30,000 out of 50,000 clerical workers in Sri Lanka in the 1960s. He organised branch committees of the union throughout the country, giving more strength to it. He was elected as secretary of the union and later became its President. During his period in office (1965–70), many incidents happened in Sri Lanka's politics and they reacted to the changes by taking the side of the worker. Anyone can refer to their official news paper "Red Tape" and get an idea of how they reacted to the changing political situation of the country. He introduced the Death donation scheme and the Retirement donation scheme from which its members benefited at a time of grief and in the later years of their lives. Building the headquarters Under I.J. Wickrema's leadership the GCSU started work to build their own headquarters in front of the "Lake House" (the office of the government news papers). Famous Sri Lanka's drama player Henry Jayasena staged dramas to raise funds for the new building. Former Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Mrs.Sirimavo R.D. Bandaranaike laid the foundation stone for the building. Any one who visits the city of Colombo can see the GCSU headquarters building near the Beira lake. Leaving the GCSU I.J. Wickrema left the union at the end of 1970 as he was appointed as a CAS officer. The 1977 government of Mrs.Sirimavo was over and the new United National Party government came into power under the leadership of Junius Richard Jayawardena. He was subjected to political revenge and his close relatives worked in the public sector were transferred to difficult areas. Finally he was sent to the CAS officers pool giving him mental agony and a year later he was retired. He died in late 1979 and his funeral march was organised under the banner of the GCSU. GCSU martyrs In June 1947 V. Kandasamy a Tamil national, became victim to the atrocities of the British colonial rulers and sacrificed his young life to the bullet, on their way to Kolonnawa after a general strike meeting at Hyde Park Colombo. In May 1989 M.K. Meththananda was shot by insurgents when he was at home in Tangalle, a village of deep south. He supported Provincial Councils, which were formed after the Indo-Lanka Peace Accord signed in July 1987. See also Lanka Sama Samaja Party I. J. Wickrema Communist Party of Sri Lanka References Trade unions in Sri Lanka