Lorry owners picket Point Pedro harbour

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 January 2003, 18:40 GMT]
Unloading of cargo from vessels in the Point Pedro Harbour in Jaffna district came to a standstill Wednesday following picketing by port workers and members of the Jaffna District Private Vehicles Owners' Co-operative Society (JDPVOCS)against allowing non-members to remove unloaded cargo from the jetty, sources said.

For the last six years lorries belonging to members of the JDPVOCS are allowed to remove unloaded cargo from Point Pedro jetty.

On Monday a private trader was allowed to remove cargo from the jetty contravening an agreement entered into between the Jaffna district secretariat and JDPVOCS, sources said.

Members of the society and port workers Wednesday launched a protest blocking the entrance of the first cross street preventing the said private lorry entering the high security zone where the Point Pedro jetty is located. They demanded that society lorries should be allowed to remove cargo, sources said.

Due to picketing unloading work in the Point Pedro came to a standstill Wednesday.

Picketers said the Jaffna district secretariat officials maintain silence over this dispute. They said that their picketing would continue until their demand is met.

Meanwhile, picketing by displaced from high security zone (HSZ) continued Wednesday in front of the Tellipallai Assistant Government Agent office. The displaced demand that they should be allowed to resettle in their villages in the high security zone in Valigamam North in Jaffna district, sources said.