Fact Check: Claims regarding JVP’s policy on salary hike for estate workers and recent government action – Fact Crescendo Sri Lanka English

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As Sri Lanka approaches its national elections, there has been a significant increase in the number of misleading posts on social media. These posts spread false information about political parties and their policies, causing confusion among the electorate. The rapid spread of such misinformation on platforms such as Facebook and X contributes to distorted political discourse, potentially influencing voter perceptions and decisions in the critical period leading up to the elections.

Social media posts

Recent social media posts have reported that as per the recent policy statements (on women’s issues) of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), the main political party in Sri Lanka, the salaries of government employees should be increased to Rs 1,000. The posts also state that President Wickremesinghe has already increased their salaries to Rs 1,700.

Pay for all your money to get reward “Pay for all your money free of 1000/- for each additional reward”

Pay 1,700/- for each subsequent transaction.

— Sudaththa Ariyasena (@sudaththa) July 2, 2024

Archived

We decided to check it out.

Fact Check

JVP Policy Statements:

Latest Policy Updates: The JVP has not made any recent policy announcements related to salary increases for government employees. The NPP’s media unit, affiliated with the JVP, confirmed that no new policy updates for 2024 have been released regarding women and estate workers, excluding science, technology and engineering. They added that the figures are for that time and not the current situation.

Policy Document 2019:The latest available policy document on women’s issues from the JVP is from 2019. It mentions a hike in the salaries of estate workers to Rs 1,000 under their government, but the document is five years old and was created before the 2020 general elections and the recent economic crisis that has significantly increased the cost of living and prices of goods. The policy document is available here

Actions of President Wickremesinghe:

Notification in the Official Journal:On May 1, 2024, the government published a notice in the official gazette ordering a 70 percent hike in the salaries of estate workers, increasing their salaries from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,700. The PMD notice can be found here

Implementation:Despite the announcement in the Journal of Laws, the salary increase has not yet been implemented in many housing estates.

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Application:

The claim that the JVP recently advocated for a Rs 1,000 salary for government employees is false. The last policy statement by the JVP on the matter was issued in 2019 and there have been no recent updates. The information about President Wickremesinghe increasing the salary to Rs 1,700 is accurate but has not yet been fully implemented.