All trade unions of the Department of Wildlife Conservation launched trade union action on Monday (July 13), with members reporting sick leave in protest against the government’s plan to integrate Civil Security Department (CSD) personnel into the department. A large-scale protest was also staged outside the department’s headquarters in Battaramulla.
President of the All Ceylon Wildlife Ranger Officers’ Association, Indika Peiris, said the unions were not opposed to recruiting Civil Security personnel in principle, but objected to the way the process was being handled. He accused the Director General of Wildlife Conservation of acting arbitrarily by pressing ahead with the recruitment in a manner the unions say would be detrimental to serving officers.
“We informed the Director General that we are not against the recruitment, but we wanted an opportunity to discuss the flaws in the proposed recruitment process,” Peiris said. “However, without any consultation, he is proceeding with these recruitments unilaterally. This will seriously affect not only field assistants and secondary-level officers, but also wildlife rangers, range assistants, range guards, and all officers serving in the department.” He said the department head had failed to meet the unions despite repeated requests ahead of July 13, prompting the protest and the mass reporting of sick leave.
Responding to an inquiry by Ada Derana, Director General of Wildlife Conservation Ranjan Marasinghe said discussions had already been offered to address the concerns raised by staff. He noted that the Ministry of Environment has appointed a committee to examine the proposed integration of Civil Security personnel into the department, and that the committee would decide the future course of action.
The dispute follows the government’s growing use of Civil Security personnel in conservation work, including the deployment of thousands of officers to guard electric elephant fences announced last month.
