Sri Lanka fires warning shots to halt dock workers' protest
COLOMBO- Sri Lankan naval troops fired warning shots on Saturday to break up a protest by striking dock workers who have held up a Japanese vessel for four days at the island's southern international port.
Navy spokesman Akram Alavi said navy troops entered the Hambantota port from the sea Saturday using navy boats and "fired some warning shots to disperse the crowd," considering their action an "act of piracy." The protesters had been preventing the Japanese vehicle carrier Hyperion Highway from leaving the port.
He says after navy's intervention, the ship sailed Saturday afternoon toward its next destination, Oman.
Temporary workers at Hambantota port have been engaged in a strike since Tuesday, demanding to be made permanent employees of the state-run Sri Lanka Ports Authority, which manages island nation's ports. The workers fear they may lose their jobs as the government is planning a deal with a Chinese firm -- the China Merchants Ports Holding Company -- to hand over a 80 percent stake in the loss-making $1.4 billion port.
