Features
KALUTARA AND ITS PIONEER RUBBER PLANTERS
by Hugh Karunanayake
The planting of rubber as a commercial crop took place several decades after tea production had almost reached its peak in the hill districts of Sri Lanka. Since up country areas were almost saturated with tea cultivation, mid and low country areas were being looked upon as potential locations for other crops.
Henry Wickam’s importation of rubber seed from Kew Gardens in 1876, and successfully grown in the Botanic Gardens of Heneratgoda provided a great opportunity. The first commercial planting of rubber was in 1883 and by 1904 about 25,000 acres were under cultivation.
Agro climatic conditions in the Kalutara District and the Sabaragamuwa area seemed to be ideal for the cultivation of rubber. In fact the Kalutara district came to be the better suited area for successful cultivation of rubber. In 1904 thirty four tons of rubber were exported from Ceylon. By 1928 the area under rubber cultivation had increased to over half a million acres.
Some of the major estates in the Kalutara District at mid twentieth century were Clyde,Tebuwana,1,500 acres, Culloden, Neboda 1,600 acres, Dalkeith Group, Latpandura 2,500 acres, Frocester, Govinna 1,200 acres, Gikiyanakanda, Neboda, 3,300 acres, Halwatura, 2,100 acres, Maddegedera 1,300 acres, Neuchatel, 2,200 acres, Neboda Group 1,600 acres, Sirikandura, Matugama, 1,000 acres, Vogan, Matugama, 1,800 acres, Yahalakelle 600 acres,and Mirishena 900 acres,
The group photo shown above was taken in Vogan Estate Neboda around 1920, over 100 years ago. They were all pioneer planters in the district and were in charge of some of the most productive rubber properties in the country..The men shown here are P.R. May, Manager of Dalkeith Group, Latpandura,WT Miller of Tudugalla, Tebuwana, RM Ash of Pantiya, Neboda, JW Oldfield of Gallawatte, Agalawatte, TH Hadden of Vogan, Neboda, KA Burns of Pallagoda , Bentota, R Garnier of Millakanda, RD Vizard, FR Dakeyne of Vogan, and LP Gapp of Mirishena
The Kalutara District comprising of Kalutara, Matugama, Agalawatte, Neboda, Tebuwana, and surrounding areas, was found to have agroclimatic conditions eminently suitable for rubber cultivation. With its salubrious climate Kalutara was called the “Richmond of Ceylon” by Britishers living in the island. Among its famous 19th Century residents was the legendary Charles Ambrose Lorenz who lived in his home called Teak Bungalow, in Kalutara and of course the Padikara Mudaliyar NDA Silva Wijeyesinghe who built his mansion “Richmond Castle”, now an orphanage.
The oft asked query on the delicious fruit the mangosteen which grows only in the Kalutara area, reinforces the belief in the unique soil and climate of Kalutara. Is it the soil, the elevation, rainfall, or a combination of all these factors ?
The lives of the planters seen in the photograph typify to some degree the objective of British colonial rule in India and Ceylon. The colonials did not intend “settling” in the subcontinent as they did in America, Africa, and Australia. The general trend was to come over to the colony and engage in a productive occupation and retire to the home country at the end of their career. The careers of some of them illustrate this observation.
Phil May was a graduate of Cambridge University when he arrived in Ceylon in 1914 to work on Ellakanda and later on at Dalkeith where he was Manager for many years. He was an outstanding cricketer and an authority on rubber cultivation and estate management. After working for nearly 40 years in Ceylon he retired to Hants, in England. W.T. Miller who arrived in Ceylon in 1904 was in charge of Tudugalle Estate, Tebuwana for many decades and lived out his life in Ceylon. RM Ash arrived in 1911 and was in Pantiya, Neboda for a few years before transferring to the Avissawella area.
JW Oldfield who came out to Ceylon in 1907 was in charge of Gallawatte, Agalawatte and was acknowledged an expert on rubber. He served with the Ceylon Planters Rifle Corps in World War 1. He had an illustrious career serving as Chairman of the Planters Association, appointed MP in Ceylon’s First Parliament of 1947. He served as a Director of Lee Hedges and Co for several decades. He was closely associated with the social and political life of his adopted homeland and was the rare exception serving his retirement at his seaside home in Negombo.
Frank Dakyne who arrived in Ceylon 1906 worked for many years on Vogan at Neboda was a great half back at rugby. Tom Hadden who came out in 1912 worked as Frank’s assistant at Vogan. Burns who arrived in Ceylon in 1901 was on Pallagoda, Bentota, and Vizard returned to England after about 10 years. Poodle Gapp who arrived in 1908 always worked on estates managed by Lee Hedges and Co where he later was a Director for many years and finally returned to London where he lived in retirement in his home in St James St which he named “The Thatched House” to remind him of his entire working life in Ceylon.
A planter’s life in the Kalutara District was comfortable as could be, given the amenities available in the early 20th century. There was no electricity off the grid however, and bungalows were lit by paraffin lamps, but if the estate had a factory driven by a generator, the Superintendent’s bungalow almost always was also connected to the power supply. Bungalows had latrines with a “thunder box” and night soil disposed by conservancy labourers. Those were the standards of the day and would suffer in comparison to the amenities available later in the 20th century.
Life went on at an easy pace with limited opportunities for socialisation beyond the confines of the estate. The Tebuwana Club was a popular centre of social activity in the district, with hostel accommodation, a well maintained cricket ground, and a nine hole golf course. The club was then the hub of social activity. Most planters travelled to Colombo at least once every month for shopping and for visits to the cinema almost the only source of entertainment available then.
There was also the prospect of returning to England on furlough every three years with first class shipping facilities provided, an opportunity to break the monotony of life on the estate. Michael Speer who was born in Ceylon in 1938 in the Joseph Fraser Nursing Home, and whose father H.P. Speer was Superintendent of Glendon Group, Neboda, and Yatadola Group Matugama in the 1950s, recalls some aspects of social life in the district.
“For my father’s next posting in Matugama (Yatadola Group), our local club was at Tebuwana which, like the Talduwa Club, also flooded regularly every year. But Tebuwana had a nine hole golf course, and this is where I first learned to play this most frustrating of all games. My wife and I also visited Tebuwana Club in 1984, and talked with an old club retainer who obviously missed the old life of the planters, and even remembered my father. Up until a few years ago he always sent us a Christmas card every year addressed to “Lady and Master”. He obviously had high hopes of our marriage, as one year the card mentioned “Lady, Master and Baby”!
A word about visits to Colombo is also necessary. These took place approximately once a fortnight, usually for the important purposes of picking up cash to pay the estate workers and visiting Elephant House to fill the “beef box”. It was also a much needed break for the family from the lonely estate routine. In the fifties, when estate workers’ union militancy was at its highest, the drive to Colombo was often made in convoy with other planters, as there had been a number of cases of armed robbery of payroll cash.
Fortunately, nothing particularly bad ever happened to us, and our visits to Colombo were spent pleasantly at the GOH, Mount Lavinia or at the Colombo Swimming Club, with of course, shopping trips to Millers, Cargills, the Apothecaries, Lalchands and a number of other household names familiar to the visiting planters of those days. Infrequent visits were also made to the Bolgoda Yacht Club, where I learned the rudiments of sailing in 1957.”
The loneliness in the life of a rubber planter combined with the area’s “embracing climate” sometimes resulted in liaisons with local women and as one planter exclaimed disdainfully “the seed that was sown was not always rubber !”. .Many British proprietary planters sold up and returned to the UK after 1948. Local investors stepped in and gradually assumed a dominant position in the industry and were able to capitalise on the soaring rubber prices triggered by the “Korean boom ” of the early 1950s.
A landmark Ceylonese acquisition was the purchase of Gikiyankanda and Meddagedera Estates totalling around 5000 acres of tea and rubber previously owned by Lord Elphinstone and purchased by the bus magnate Leo Fernando. There was also frenzied acquisition by traditional coconut estate owners who used their accumulated capital to invest in sizeable rubber properties.
There were however a few Ceylonese who played a pioneer role in rubber cultivation from almost the inception along with the pioneering British. Notable among them was CEA Dias who owned Wawulagala, Milleniya and Mukalana Estates from the 1920s and was reputed to be one of the first if not the first to introduce budding as a replanting technique to the district.
It is hoped that these notes inspired by the group photograph featured here, will serve to focus on the role of the Kalutara District in the development of the rubber industry of Ceylon and its significance.
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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