Features
A new beginning in 1971 and departure to Australia
Excerpted from Nimal Wikramanayake’s A Life In The Law
(Continued from last week)
Time flew by and it was getting close to the date of our departure. I was terrified about our future, not knowing what was to befall us. I had no prospects of employment, no friends, save for Ronnie de Kretser, whom I had not met, and Australia was not the country of my birth. To whom could I turn for help if we were in trouble?
In the meantime, my parents returned home in October and my mother became extremely antagonistic and hostile towards me. She kept calling me a coward, saying that I was running away from home. I spent the last few weeks tossing and turning at night. I did not want to burden Anna Maria with my fears. It was only many years later, when we were safely ensconced in Australia, that she told me she was terrified at the thought of leaving Ceylon and did not sleep a wink in her last few months there.
We set about packing three large containers full of our furniture. I watched our furniture leave with a heavy heart. It was to be transported by sea to Melbourne. On the night of October 31, 1971, Anna Maria attended to the final preparations while my father and I sat down in his spacious lounge room. We sat there for nearly three hours in complete silence, each of us absorbed in our own thoughts. Not a word passed between us, although I wanted to get up and hug my father, and tell him how much I loved him. But my father, like all fathers of his generation, was a stoic, and he had never shown me any affection, even when I was a little boy. We had our dinner in silence and retired to our respective rooms.
For once in many months, I had a peaceful night’s sleep. But when I got up in the morning I was tired and depressed. I felt as though I was 101 years old. I wanted to run away and hide, but the die was cast. I had made my decision and I had to live with it. I was leaving a safe harbour and journeying out into treacherous stormy waters.
I staggered to the bathroom, my bathroom which I would never see again. Twenty years earlier, when my father was building his dream house, my brother and I were given a choice of selecting the colours for the bathroom fittings and the tiles for the bathroom. We chose baby-blue for the fittings and black for the tiles. I sat down on the commode and eased myself and then moved over to the bidet. Would I ever see a bidet again, would I ever use a bidet again? I remember walking into the bathroom when I was a young man and watching my friend Arthur Samarasundera washing his face in the bidet. I did not have the heart to tell him its purpose.
The servant boy had already laid the toothpaste on my toothbrush, and I brushed my teeth, shaved and got into my shower at home for the last time. The cool early morning water had a cleansing effect on me as I toweled myself and got ready for the inevitable.
Anna Maria and I had breakfast with my mother and father while we had to listen to my mother’s hysterical rantings about us: how we were running away; how we were not staying to fight; what a disgrace I was to the family. I listened in silence, for this was not a time to upset my mother, as she was clearly distressed by the fact that we were leaving her, and she might never see us again.
I wandered about the house for the next two hours, looking at it sadly, for I knew that I would never see it again. The time came for us to leave and we got into my father’s Pontiac motorcar. I thought, this is the last time I will be sitting in a big Yank tank.
The drive to Katunayake Airport was a painful one. My mother was sobbing in the back seat as all of the old familiar places flashed by. It was 1 November 1, 1971, a Monday, and one o’clock in the afternoon. The road to the airport was a single lane carriageway. As was customary in Ceylon, pedestrians were oblivious to the traffic that passed along the highway. They would wander across the road without paying any attention to the traffic. But God help anyone who ran over one of these miscreants.
Anyone who had the misfortune to run over a pedestrian would have been extremely foolhardy to stop. The brave citizens of the area would attack the miscreant mercilessly and beat him or her within an inch of his or her life. The Only course open was to drive from the scene of the collision like a bat out of hell and go to the nearest police station to report the incident. We also had to overtake a number of bullock carts which meandered along the road in a desultory fashion.
We arrived at the airport and got out of the limousine. Our driver took our suitcases out of the boot and gave them to a waiting attendant. Our chauffeur Wilson had come to us as a young inexperienced boy in 1943, when I was nine years old. He had been with us for over 27 years, a faithful servant, and more like a familiar uncle. He said goodbye to me in the manner and custom of an old family retainer, the custom which has long since disappeared in Sri Lanka (the country I knew as Ceylon). He fell down at my feet and worshipped me, kissed my shoes and wished me God speed. He was sobbing. I laid a gentle hand on his head, but we both knew that we would never see each other again. He left and we collected our luggage and went into the airport.
My father collected all the necessary forms, immigration, customs and the like, took Anna Maria’s and my passport and filled in the necessary forms for us. He was a great organizer. We strolled through Customs and Immigration with the officials bowing deferentially to my father. We were ushered into the departure lounge and soon it was time to leave. In those days, there were no aerobridges leading into the plane. One had to walk across the tarmac and climb up the short gangway to the plane.
Dad led us up to the plane, my mother clinging to my arm and sobbing loudly and begging me not to leave. This was something I was completely unprepared for. I quickly disengaged her arms and hands, shook my father’s hand, embraced and kissed my mother on both cheeks and darted up the ramp. Anna Maria also kissed my parents and followed quickly behind. Mummy was still wailing when the air hostess closed the door.
Singapore
We were flying first to Kuala Lumpur, disembarking there, and flying on to Singapore. We were to stay with a close friend of my dad’s, Mr Kulasekeram, and his wife Wimala. Kula was a Supreme Court judge in Singapore and had been one of my father’s apprentices in the 1940s. He had migrated to Singapore, established a big law practice there and been appointed to the Supreme Court bench.
We caught the plane to Singapore and were greeted by Mr and Mrs Kulasekeram.In the confusion, I had forgotten to buy cigarettes and I asked Kula whether he could stop at a convenience store so that I could buy some. I went into the convenience store, bought a packet of Peter Stuyvesant cigarettes and got back into the front seat of Kula’s Mercedes Benz. I tore the wrapping off the packet then wound the window down and threw out the wrapping. This was something we did in Ceylon.
The car screamed to a halt and Kula looked at me sternly and said, “Don’t you realize that you have committed a very serious offence and you could end up in jail for that?” I was aghast. I got out of the car and quickly walked back, picked up the wrapping and deposited it in a rubbish bin that was close by. I then realized that the entire city was spotless, unlike the dirty, filthy streets of Colombo.When we arrived at Kula’s home he showed us into a lovely spacious bedroom which opened onto a large, beautifully manicured lawn. We unpacked our suitcases, then went down for dinner. After dinner we chatted briefly as Kula said he had to sit in court the following morning. We went up to the bedroom where there were two single beds which Anna Maria pushed together.
She was soon fast asleep while I lay there, sobbing softly to myself. This was indeed one of the saddest days of my life. We had left everything behind, everything. I was going into a bleak uncertain future, leaving a life of absolute luxury.
There was a streak of lightning and a clap of thunder, the like of which I had not heard for several months. It was deafening and suddenly the skies opened up. The rain came down in proverbial buckets. This added immensely to my misery. I was devastated. I went through all the unhappy and unfortunate things that were going on in Ceylon at the time. I started with Mrs Bandaranaike’s government – nepotism, the 10 pm curfew, and the like. By the time I reached fifteen items I was asleep. I did not think of Ceylon again as I have a penchant for putting horrible things out of my mind.
The Ceylon government in its wisdom had given Anna Maria and me £150 each to start our life in Australia. It imposed strict exchange control regulations carrying a draconian penalty if they were broken – a mandatory term of imprisonment of five years. We had arranged to have £1,000 paid to us in Singapore and £1,500 to be paid to us when we arrived in Australia to start off our new life.
All this money had been purchased for us on the black market at some four times the exchange rate, although we had nothing to do with its purchase.We had three days of glorious shopping in Singapore and were preparing to leave on Thursday morning when we learned that there was a BOAC strike in London so we were now stranded in Singapore. Fortunately, we were able to change our flights and we left for Australia late on the night of Thursday, November 4, 1971.
(To be continued)
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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