AIKS Mourns Death of Comrade MM Lawrence

AIKS condoles the death of Com.MM Lawrence, 95, freedom fighter and towering working class leader of Kerala. Com. Lawrence worked as a central committee member of CPIM, General Secretary of the Kerala state committee of CITU and the convenor of the LDF. He was also a former member of Lok Sabha.

Com. Lawrence got politicised in the early 1940s when the country was boiling with anti-imperialist fervour. As a student, he was rusticated from St. Albert’s School, Ernakulum for wearing a tricolour badge in the shirt pocket. He shifted to another school but discontinued his Studies after 10th standard and started devoting his energy to the anti-imperialist movement and Communist Party.

Comrade Lawrence’s trade union life began with organizing manual scavengers, tirelessly fighting for their rights and dignity. When the Nehru government banned the Communist Party after Calcutta Thesis, young Lawrence rose as an important functionary of the Communist led working class movement in the industrial belt of Ernakulum, the then industrial epicentre of Kerala. His political, ideological and organisational acumen played an important role in building a militant movement of industrial workers. The illegal police crackdown on workers and other activists who were supporting the all India strike of railway workers led to the historic “Edappally” police station attack, regarded as one of the significant episodes in the historic struggle of the Communist movement in Kerala. Com. Lawrence was brutally tortured by the police after this incident.

State violence couldn’t destroy the revolutionary proletarian spirit of Com. Lawrence. With his stellar work among the people, he developed as an organic leader of the newly formed Kerala state. His clinical understanding of the functioning of factories and ways of surplus extraction made him a tough and successful labour negotiator. With his strong roots in industrial workers, he emerged as a leader of all working people. With his in-depth grasp on Kerala’s political economy, Com. Lawrence always reiterated the need for worker peasant unity. He was also one of the early voices from the organised working class movement who warned the peasantry about the predatory neo liberal policies.

All India Kisan Sabha pays homage to Com. MM Lawrence conveys heartfelt condolences to his family members and comrades.  AIKS dips its red flag in honour of the departed leader. He shall remain an inspiration for generations to come.

Sd/-

Vijoo Krishnan, General Secretary

Ashok Dhawale, President