Desamaanya Dr Sudath Guanasekara

Part 11

A sad tragedy we all should be ashamed of

Although, historically that is the stark truth, we all should be ashamed that nothing had been done to rectify the historical injustices done to our own heroic ancestors in the former Kandyan Kingdom, by the colonial invaders for 443 years by any government that took over the reins of government of this country in 1948, even though 75 years have lapsed, since the invaders have left the shores of the country. 

Kandyan Peasantry Commission 1949

Although a Commission called the Kandyan Peasantry Commission was appointed in 1949 by the then Government in an attempt to look in to the problems of Kandyan people (calling them peasants- a social group never existed in this country since the advent of Buddhism in 307 BC), its objectives were limited, To inquire in to the socio-economic conditions of the Kandyan people and make recommendation to ameliorate them” This in my opinion was only a very superficial scratching of a deep rooted national problem manifested by Western colonial plunderers over a long period of nearly 500 years (1505-1948) of brutal and savages colonial destructions of one of the greatest millennia old Eastern civilization.

The KPC never addressed the basic issues of a nation robbed of its natural wealth such as millions of acres of land, its  pristine forests and making hundreds of perennial rivers dry and a nation pauperized and culturally poorer due to ruthless colonial exploitations and depredation. The restoration of their lost birth rights and the heritage starting from 1815 up to 1948 was not given any attention. Firstly, by returning their ancestral land to their original owners, the right to restore the premier forests cover destroyed by the invaders on the prime watershed in order to restore the lost physical stability of the nation’s Heartland that led to acute soil erosion and land degradation, and the depletion of water resources and the loss of bio diversity in the geographical heartland of the country. The demographic complication of the presence of a foreign labour force of nearly 1.2 million Indian labour right at the center of the country that would bring about internal demographic, political and socio-economic problems and future geopolitical problems that threatens the political stability of the Island a nation and finally, the reparation of the lost rights of the native Sinhala people, the sons of the land who owned it for millennia

It may be that both the politicians and policy makers of the time had been debarred from looking in to other critical problems like, touching the tea plantations, the issue of the Indian labour and the crimes committed by the British on native Sinhalese, including their war crimes, genocide and murder, their draconian land policies that made thousands of native Sinhalese landless.

To that extent the KPC Report is also an incomplete public record that has failed to do justice by the Kandyan and their land. 

What is worse was that even the extensive recommendations made in the KPC Report which made to ameliorate the socio-economic conditions of the Kandyan peasants, were never implemented as recommended and left justice denied to them up to date.

For example even the first and the only 6 Year Plan 1953/54-1959/60 prepared under the findings of the KPC Report 1951 still remains unimplemented fully, due to  non-provision of funds and absence of necessary institutional arrangements and more specifically  due to objections by some of the so-called low county Sinhala politicians like M.D.H Jayawardha, the then Finance Minister who raised his objections against special treatment for a particular area and a particular group and refused to give allocations. This evinces how the black white rulers have treated their own ancestors of the Kandyan areas, who had died on behalf of them.

The chronic apathy on the part of the Kandyan present day politicians (from 1948 to date) on the other hand who should have fought the battle on behalf of their own people is even worse. The disinterest on the part of all Sinhala politicians in the Parliament, who have no feeling for their country or for their own people who had fought and died to protect this country for them, who were and who are  more interested in estate Tamil votes and their own narrow party politics than the destiny of the country and their own Sinhala voters whose ancestors had died in thousands in battle under extremely deplorable and pathetic condition as Davy had mentioned above, to protected this country, for them to do politics today and enjoy the lavish privileges of political life are responsible for this unfortunate situation. (See Annex 111 for details)

Two other eyewashes.

Meanwhile two other political” eyewashes to deceive the Kandyans, were also made in recent times by the same genre of politicians who were never committed to rehabilitate the Kandyan areas.

The first was the formation of the Udarata Development Authority under Act no 26 of 2005. This was closed down on Jan 1st 2014 by Minister Basil Rajapaksa to from his own pet project Divineguma.

The second attempt was made in 2017 to form an Authority called a Statutory Board for the protection of Kandyan Heritage. Those who sponsored this were also never concerned about the rehabilitation or the welfare of the people. This Authority   has no final Cabinet approval or an Act passed by the Parliament up to date. But it continues to operate rather illegally in the Kandy town in a rented-out building paying a monthly rental of Rs 1.2 million spending millions of public funds, looking after their own benefits.

A Nations Indebtedness to Kandyans

The whole nation is eternally indebted to the Kandyans who sacrificed their lives for 443 years on behalf of the Motherland and its people which enabled us to have a country to live today.

This sums up the 75 years of an appalling and tragic story of how the successive governments since 1948 have treated the brave and patriotic sons of the soil who had fought and died in battle in thousands to liberate this country, from three western colonial enemies for, four centuries and forty-three years.

Therefore, the crying need and the timeliness for formulating, and implementing a comprehensive rehabilitation and development Programme, for the Kandyan areas to uplift these forgotten, neglected and betrayed sons of the soil whose ancestors have protected this land by paying with their lives in thousands for us to live today in our beloved motherland and to do justice to these neglected people at least now, though belated.

It is on behalf of these patriotic freedom fighters who died on our behalf for 443 years and their victimized and destitute decedents who are landless, poverty stricken and therefore helpless, today, I am making this request for their rehabilitation, reparation and upliftment in order to do justice by a patriotic generation of people.

Needless to say, the whole nation is eternally indebted to the Kandyans who sacrificed their lives on behalf of the Motherland and the posterity.

At the same time there is also a legitimate and moral need to rectify the historical injustices done to the country and the people as   a whole.

First, by the colonial invaders, more specifically by the British by way of reparation and an open apology for the destruction and devastations done to this country and its people.

Second, by our own politicians who succeeded the colonial rulers in 1948 for the criminal negligence committed by them on their own people who protected a country for 443 years for us to live up to date.

The area proposed to be taken up for rehabilitation and development under this Authority covers 1/3 the total area of the Island also with a beneficiary population of 1/3 the total population of the country.

Proposed Political and Administrative mechanism to implement this programme.

1. A proposal to establish 

A powerful Ministry of Kandyan Rehabilitation, Development and Protection under the Head of the State as proposed by the Kandayan Peasantry Commission Report of 1951

(ශ්‍රි ලංකා කන්ද උඩරට පුනරුත්ථාන, සoවර්ධන සහ සුරැකීමේ අමාත්‍යාන්ශය)

and

2. A Kandyan Areas Rehabilitation, Development and Protection Authority of Sri Lanka under the above Ministry as the Agency in charge of carrying out the activities of the Master plan

The mandate of the Kandyan area Rehabilitation, Development and Protection Authority are as follows.

1.First,

To complete the recommendations made for rehabilitation under the Rehabilitation and the Development programme given in the first six-year plan made under the Report of the KPC 1951.

2.Second, to complete the other recommendations of the KPC Report 1951.

3.Third, to carry out a comprehensive socio-economic development programme through an intensive and sustainable agricultural livestock, small and medium industries and tourist development program geared to employment and income generation within the rural sector on 1/3 the total area of the Island with a view to raising the standard of living of nearly 7 million people there by rescuing them from abject poverty and discrimination.

4.Fourth,

To implement a comprehensive infra structure development programme like roads, irrigation facilities (anicuts, village tanks and canals ect) hospitals and Ayurvedic centers, schools, multipurpose cooperatives with banking facilities, Agrarian service centers, marketing facilities, and postal facilities etc throughout the project area.

(See Annex 1V for details.)

5.Fifth,

To implement a Settlement Development programme to settle 250,000 families within the areas between 1000-3500ft msl in the above three Provinces and in the selected Divisional Secretary Divisions mentioned in para 2 to solve critical socio-economic problems prevailing in these areas such as landlessness, unemployment and abject poverty rampant and acute. This settlement and development package is based on the NADSA Development model implemented in the Districts of Kandy and Kegalla (1985-1991) that was extended to Monaragala, Badulla, Rathnapura, Nuwaraeliya from the year 1992, after its resurrection with a 12.5 m us$ WFP package obtained by me as its then Executive Director under the new name HADABIMA Authority of Sri Lanka)  

The original NADSA project (National Agricultural Diversification and Settlement Authority was confined to Kandy and Kegalla Districts, was a UNDP project started in 1978 August with the three-fold objectives of

1 Watershed Protection (management)

2 Settlement Development and

3 Agricultural Diversification

In addition to these objectives the new proposal is also geared to employment and income generation within the rural sector. leading to overall socio-economic development in the country.

6.Sixth,

To initiate a program of returning the lands of native leaders confiscated by the British to their legitimate inheritors. (See Annex 1V 12)

8. Seventh

This will be followed by a call for reparation, compensation and apology from the British government both for natives and Indian estate labour who had been exploited to the rim under most inhuman treatment. (See Annex 1V 10&11)

9 And finally,

To engage in any other activity the Authority deems appropriate to meet the lost rights and grievances of these great people and improve the standards of life of the permanent residents of the selected Divisional Secretaries Areas.

(To be continued)