CHENNAI: Left parties CPM, CPI and CPM (ML) will hold protests in Chennai on October 5 against alleged police repression and in support of Samsung Electronics workers demanding better wages and union recognition.
These protests are being organised following a month-long strike by workers in Samsung plant at Sunguvarchatram in Kancheepuram district.
In a joint statement, CPM state secretary K Balakrishnan, CPI state secretary R Mutharasan, and CPM (ML) Pazha Aasaithambi emphasised the need for state govt’s intervention to resolve the strike.
The leaders accused the district police of intimidating peacefully protesting workers and trade union leaders. “The fact that police refused permission for the joint protest of all trade unions in Chennai and arrested all the union leaders who came to participate in the demonstration shows that the police have become an instrument of repression of Samsung,” the leaders alleged.
The parties urged the labour department to promptly recognise the union and address the workers’ demands, which they described as basic rights.
