ISLAMABAD, June 1: The standoff between the management and workers of the Pakistan Telecommunication Company continues, with the legislators, concerned citizens and trade unionists opposing the largest public utility’s privatization while the government officials defending the move.

Speaking at a roundtable discussion on Wednesday opposition legislators, trade union representatives, journalists and lawyers criticized the government’s insistence on privatizing the company and sought reversal of the decision.

They held the government responsible for the losses to the PTCL and the suffering to the public during the current strike.

The discussion was organized by the People’s Rights Movement (PRM), Pakistan Trade Unions Rights Campaign (PTURC) and Socialist Movement Pakistan (SMP).

Prominent among those who spoke on the issue were Imran Khan, member, National Assembly of the Tehrik-i-Insaf, MNA Hafiz Hussain Ahmed of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, Siddiqul Farooq of the PML-N, member, Punjab Assembly, Farzana Raja of the PPP, Zahid Khan of the ANP, Shah Khawar of the Lahore High Court Bar Association, C.R. Shamsi of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists and Akram Bunda of the Pakistan Workers Confederation.

They condemned selling of state assets at throw away rates and said that privatization has had adverse impacts on common citizens.

They supported the PTCL workers’ strike and urged the parliamentarians to pressurise the government to withdraw the proposal.

Through a resolution they sought public referendum on all such moves in the future.

They also condemned increase in inflation, unemployment and asked the government to overhaul its ‘neo-liberal policy’, give priority to the public needs rather than increasing the profit margins of (foreign) capital.

Earlier in his opening remarks, PRM’s Aasim Sajjad said the present government was protecting the interests of imperialist capital and willing to sell the most profitable enterprise.

“The nexus between military rule and imperialist capital has been reinforced in recent years with the result that Pakistan’s economy has become even more dependent on foreign strategic aid due to which the living standard of working people has declined”, Mr Asim maintained.

“It is imperative to develop a popular consensus in progressive political and social circles to challenge our ruling classes and thereby bring a halt to the neo-liberal tidal wave.”

Azad Qadri of the PTCL Unions Action Committee and Khalid Bhatti of the Socialist Movement said that the strike would not be called off until the privatization decision was withdrawn.

Journalists and workers from other industries such as Wapda and OGDC also pledged their support to the PTCL workers, sounded a warning of mass mobilization and civil disobedience.

Lawyers said that the government was violating the basic principles of democratic decision-making and justified the PTCL strike to force the government to withdraw its anti-people decisions.

Sher Baz Khan adds: An official of the PTCL claimed that the national exchequer would lose over $150 million if the company’s privatization was delayed.

The PTCL Public Relations Executive Vice-President, Ali Qadir Gillani, at a press conference here on Wednesday said the PTCL could not survive in the competitive environment.

He asked the media not to “sensationalise the ongoing countrywide strike of the workers and publish and telecast balanced news”.

There were 29 issues on which the union leaders and government were holding talks, he said. Both the parties have agreed on 28 issues but the 29th could not be resolved as it opposed the privatization of the company.

He said the management respected the workers and their right to peaceful protest and had prepared a Rs3.5 billion package for them.

The workers who had joined the company before 1996 would not be axed, he assured.