Colombo Telegraph
IN JOURNALISM TRUTH IS A PROCESS
By Brian Senewiratne -
February 4th , the day Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) got so-called “Independence” from Britain in 1948, is a day for action, not regret or mourning.
The British irresponsibility
Of all the irresponsible acts of the colonial British in Sri Lanka, by far the most serious was leaving the country in the hands of the Sinhalese majority. If Britain was the cause of the problem, then it has to be part of the solution. To support the blatantly anti-Tamil Sri Lankan government, is to compound the problem, not to resolve it.
It is absurd to claim that the British were unaware of the anti-Tamil stance of the Sinhalese ‘leaders’ such as D.S. Senanayake, leader of the United National Party (UNP), who took over from the British. Senanayake’s anti-Tamil stance (and actions) was clearly evident. This included altering the demography of the Tamil East by relocating Sinhalese from the South to make places like Amparai, a Tamil area, into a Sinhalese area.
It is absurd to claim that the British were unaware of the anti-Tamil stance of the Sinhalese ‘leaders’ such as D.S. Senanayake
Sinhalese leaders have never been inspired by any desire to create a common nationalism out of ethno-religious diversity. They peddled the Sinhala-Buddhist jingoism of blatant anti-Tamil propagandists such as Anagarika Dharmapala, based on an exaggerated vision of the Sinhalese past.
It is important to focus on this ethnic intolerance since this is what is happening today more so than it ever has, and has to be addressed.
Anagarika Dharmapala was a confused, quixotic Buddhist with a crusading missionary zeal. He even renamed himself for the purpose. Originally Don David Hewawitarne, he took on the name “Anagarika” (in Pali “the homeless one’),“Dhamapala’ (guardian of the doctrine). His propaganda was based on distortions, half-truths and blatant lies, peddled as historical evidence of the glories of the ancient Sinhalese.
A single example will suffice. In 1911, Dharmapala proclaimed “The Country of the Sinhalese should be governed by the Sinhalese”. In his view, the Tamils and others had no place in Sri Lanka. Every Sinhalese leader has peddled this ethnic chauvinism with increasing virulence, to get the electoral support of the Sinhalese majority (74% of the population). The British were well aware of this. Indeed concerns about the plight of the minorities were raised, not once but twice, by those in the British Colonial Office before Independence was given.
Of all the irresponsible acts of the colonial British in Sri Lanka, by far the most serious was leaving the country in the hands of the Sinhalese majority. If Britain was the cause of the problem, then it has to be part of the solution.
