CHRISTMAS CAROL OF THE LABOURERS

Tea bushes grow so green richly
Tea country is decorated so beautifully
People are crowding in the church today
Because today is Jesus Christ’s Birthday.

Our huts are as poor as the manger of Bethlehem.
No fire there in the kitchen, so the cat sleeps peacefully,
We chew beetle leaves to drive away the hunger.
Our children’s cheeks are still wet with the tears if hunger.

Working for the whole day, one gets only eight Rupees.
How can the whole family live with so little income?
They say, Christmas is holy day, and therefore a holiday.
What a holy day for us, if we don’t work we go hungry also today.

Leaders in the church speak so eloquently.
The birth of Jesus they say, ha brought welfare to the poor.
For us, peace and well being are as far as the twinkling stars yonder.
When will our hands be strong enough to reach out to them, I wonder.

It is said that Jesus alone brought peace to the world
And he wiped away the sins of the whole world
War and Poverty are eradicating our people every where.
When will Jesus come to save us from these deadly calamities?

The tea estate laborers (both women and men workers) in Sri Lanka, are responsible for the country earning highest amount of foreign exchange. Sri Lanka being famous in the world for CEYLON TEA> yet they do not enjoy even the basic minimum comforts of life. They can be compares to the unfortunate conditions of the workers in the great banana farms and sugar cane farms of the other countries