Lalith Athulathmudali, another star blooded into the JRJ 1977 cabinet

Excerpted from volume ii of Sarath Amunugama’s auotobiography

In the public mind today Gamini is often coupled with Lalith Athulathmudali because they jointly sponsored an impeachment motion against President Premadasa and were forced out of the UNP. They then formed the Democratic United National Front (DUNF) thereby changing the political landscape of the country. Both of them and President Premadasa were brutally assassinated by the LTTE and the UNP and the DUNF were left leaderless paving the way for the return of the Rajapaksas for a long spell of power.

With the death of these two and their bete noir Premadasa the UNP under the disastrous leadership of Ranil Wickremesinghe lost its way and suffered reverse after reverse and is now in its death throes. But in the salad days of JRJ’s rule Lalith was certainly ‘a coming man’ and his contribution to growth of both the party and the country have not yet been properly evaluated. He has not been given the credit he deserves. This was partly because he was not given the time to fully display his capabilities and because he was a latecomer on the political scene and had few friends.

Lalith from his schooldays had been an ambitious ‘knuckle duster fighter’. He was determined to claim his political heritage as D.D. Athulathmudali’s son. DD had been a State Councilor and a member of the Sinhala Maha Sabha. DDs rise in our political firmament had been thwarted by an unexpected defeat in the 1947 elections and his premature death. But he had instilled in his son a commitment to politics as a social obligation. He was proud of his son’s achievements at Oxford and lived long enough to see him become the President of the Oxford Union.

His father’s early death created financial worries for Lalith but Bandaranaike came to his rescue by voting a grant to him from the Government treasury. Nimal Karunatilleke who was the deputy Minister of Finance at that time told me that Bandaranaike was insistent on this grant as a tribute to his friend from the Sinhala Maha Sabha days – Athulathmudali. Nimal also thought that Bandaranaike looked on Lalith as a possible husband for one of his daughters. However that may be, Lalith never forgot this unique gesture of the Sri Lankan Parliament. He brought a sense of mission and a commitment to hard work which would have seen him to the top had he lived. He was a political fighter who was determined to achieve his ambitions.

JRJ encouraged his younger colleagues to compete for his favours by excelling in their performance as Ministers. He also encouraged his young ministers to speak out in Cabinet saying that he was following DS who had wanted him and Dudley though young to intervene at cabinet meetings. Once when the ceiling of the cabinet room collapsed he laughingly asked Lalith for the Latin phrase which said, “Even if the heavens fall, justice must be done”. Many of his ministers who had no knowledge of Latin and Greek were envious of these sophisticated asides even though, all except perhaps Ronnie, conceded that Lalith was an outstanding intellectual.

While the JRJ regime created history by introducing an open economy, accelerating economic growth, launching the Mahaweli project, inaugurating Free trade Zones and mega housing schemes, Lalith also made a vital contribution by converting the lazy and strike ridden Port of Colombo into one of the best in Asia. He was the first in South Asia to understand the change in shipping patterns as a result of the phenomenal economic growth in the region, particularly with the rise of the Asian Tigers.

In the JRJ Cabinet only he had personal experience of two of the dynamic and fast developing small states; Singapore and Israel. He had taught Law in the Universities there and was up to date in trade and maritime laws and management. It was an inspired decision to make him the Minister of Trade and Shipping though it was a recipe for conflict with the Minister of Finance who had to interact with him on policy matters. On policy issues, as well as personality clashes, Lalith and Ronnie were on collision course. But nobody could deny Lalith’s achievement in transforming the Port of Colombo. He made it a container port-the first of its kind in the region.

Up to about this time Ports handled bulk cargo. But with the invention of containers, goods and commodities were packed differently in ‘containers’ which were easier and safer to handle and the time and effort taken in ports for loading and unloading was drastically reduced. This also positioned our Port as a hub for ‘bulk breaking’ because large consignments could be broken up into containers and sent to different ports in the region, in countries which had a smaller demand. These arrangements made Colombo a hub Port and laid the foundations for the development of new terminals and a phenomenal growth which still keeps Colombo on the shipping map.

Had Lalith lived and was allowed to continue his vision Colombo would have given a good fight to Singapore. Indeed it was the trade unionism and maladministration of the Colombo Harbour that provided the opportunity for Singapore to develop shipping as the early focal point of its economy and the base of its spectacular economic growth. Conversely the pathetic neglect of our Port by all Presidents after JRJ was a major cause of our economic failure. Even today the Ports Authority is a drag on our economic growth as seen in the inability to construct the East Terminal which would have secured our pre-eminent position.

Lalith was a great success as Minister of Trade. In order to show case local products and draw in the private sector he organized Mahapola exhibitions which attracted large crowds. The collection from the sales of entrance tickets helped him to launch the Mahapola scheme through which he funded the education of needy University students. This was a poignant and heartfelt decision because it harked back to his own difficulties during his Oxford days.

He told me that he wanted to repay the investment made on him by the people of his country when public funds were allocated for him to complete his higher studies. This scheme was so popular that the demand for Mahapola scholarships outstripped the income from the exhibition sites. With typical panache Lalith wanted to set up a Mahapola lottery to increase its revenue and cater to a larger group of students.