Posted by Niranjani Ronald
A recent fuel price hike has had a massive impact on day-to-day life in Sri Lanka. Several major protest marches have taken place, demanding that the government brings the price back down, as we’ve reported in ucanews.com. In one demo, a fisherman was killed and another five injured when security personnel fired tear gas and live ammunition at the crowd.
The price of fuel is obviously of crucial importance to low income people such as fishermen and tea plantation workers, for the simple reason that most of them don’t have electricity.
They use kerosene to start the day by lighting a lamp. In the evenings, they sit and their children study by the light of it. They use kerosene oil for cooking.
With little or no infrastructure, the roads and steps carved in the hills are dangerously unrepaired and unlit at night. Without an oil lamp, people can’t get around after dark.
The price rise will also have an effect on transport costs, which is bound to create in turn an increase in the price of bread, vegetables and other staples.
The government opposition party has joined in the protest and even staged a demonstration of their own outside Parliament this week. The minister responsible is blaming the rise on world crude oil prices and the devaluation of the Sri Lankan rupee. But the opposition leader has countered that the spike in world prices is not big enough to justify the increase domestically.
Let’s see how the government responds to that. Like everyone else, I think the decision should be reversed. The rulers should assist the poor people who do, after all, contribute a large amount to Sri Lanka’s economy.
If they don’t, there is little doubt that we face a dark future.
What do you think of this? Should the government help?
