The All Ceylon Nurses Union (ACNU) warned they would stage a walk out at the Maharagama Cancer Institute today (22) if the Health Ministry failed to cancel fifty four transfer orders on nurses which the Union said were unjust. They were transferred to the National Hospital and to the Angoda Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH). The Union further said it had no objection to transfers effected according to transfer regulations adopted by the Public Service Commission (PSC).

Vice President of the ACNU, Uditha Wanigasekara accused the Health Ministry of drawing up transfer lists merely to take revenge against those who refused administering Cytotoxic drugs.

Nurses had resumed routine work after the Ministry pledged to recruit more staff, bring in more machines, and transfers for those who had served more than two years at the Cancer Institute. The Ministry even called for applications from those nurses who wished to be transferred out of the hospital on humanitarian grounds. "But then they suddenly had a change of heart and on the day of the closure of applications they were transferred to the IDH and the National Hospital," he said.

The nurses who have been appointed in place of those transferred are those who have just completed their training.

The ACNU held a picket on Monday (20) demanding the Health Ministry cancel the transfer list and stick to the PSC regulations.