LAHORE - The working class all over the country commemorated the International Labour Day on May 1 by holding meetings, processions and rallies.
People paid tribute to martyrs of Chicago who sacrificed their lives for acceptance of their demand for eight work hours. The All Pakistan Workers Confederation held a rally in front of Aiwan-e-lqbal. It was participated by thousands of workers belonging to affiliated trade unions associated with Wapda, railways, telecommunication, textile, engineering, chemicals, printing, transport and banking sectors from various parts of the city. The workers had been carrying national flags and red flags and banners in support of their demands and raising slogans like down with feudalism and capitalism. They called for elimination of unemployment and ignorance and poverty and irrational gap between rich and poor in the society. They demanded that contract workers should be given permanent jobs and child and bonded labour and discrimination against women should be curbed. On this occasion, veteran trade union leader Khurshid Ahmed, general secretary of the confederation urged the working class and patriotic forces of the nation all over the country to forge unity and make a struggle to establish a society based upon equality, fraternity, dignity of work, social justice and democracy.
He demanded that all political parties adopt their election manifesto to tackle those national issues of the working class and poor segments of the society. The rally was also addressed by Rubina Jameel, Akbar Ali Khan, Ch Anwar, Ch Khushi Khokhar, Haji Younas, Niaz Khan, Rana Shakoor, Muzaffar Mateen, Hai, Latif, Rana Akram, Rana Saleem, Salahud Din Ayubi, Javed Khan, Haji Waris and other representatives of the union.