Shyamon Jayasinghe with NM Perera, Colvin R De Silva, Leslie Pushing Bandaranaike to Bring in Reforms Around Phillip Turned Over to Sirima And
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www.sannasa.net Gunawardena, and Edmund Samarakkody . and such attempts were frowned upon Along with these leaders, Phillip founded the by many other MEP leaders. Powerful Surya Mal campaign set up to help the poor vested interests worked on Bandaranaike during the Malaria epidemic in the 1930s. and against Phillip. SWRD caved in During World war II Phillip Gunawardena and the resultant acrimony led Phillip he four decades from 1930 to about organised trade union agitation and anti to break off with the MEP government. 1970 saw colourful personalities imperialist campaigns and was arrested and Tstrut the political stage in Sri Lanka, jailed. Along with his even fi erier brother, almost all of them from the Old Left. Robert, and jailor Solomon, Phillip escaped Phillip Gunawardena was perhaps the most Phillip’s deserved opportunity blew out. I spectacular of them all. In view of his 35th think the Lion never forgot that ever. death anniversary, which fell last March, shall The adversity of his fortunes caused we take some space to rev up our memory utter disgust in Phillip. In the meantime, about this extraordinary man? Phillip’s career he had also been suffering from a family concluded in anticlimax but that does not take fi nancial crisis. Here was a man who had away the attractive gloss and punch of his lost all his vast inherited property and wealth core years in the political arena. He continues for politics-now faced with a showdown. to live in the public memory as a legend and The decision to make his famous U- still, to many, as a hero. turn by joining the UNP in a “National Don Phillip Rupesinghe Gunawardena Government” under Dudley Senanayaike th was born on January 11 and he died on March during 1965- 1970 took place against this 1972. He had a proud ancestry being as he was background. That represented the ironical the scion of the Boralugoda Jacolis Ralahamy and sad anticlimax of the life of the great of the Hewagam Korale. The Ralahamy was Lion of Boralugoda. He had capitulated to legendary for his fearlessness and also for his the very conservative forces against whom generosity and Phillip inherited both these he had worked all his life. characteristics in ample measure. That said, one can shower a lot of Phillip had his senior school education at praise on Phillip for many good reasons. Ananda College, Colombo. While at college, He was scrupulously honest in his dealings. he lodged at the residence of TB Jaya, freedom As a leader he stood by his convictions fi ghter, who was also a teacher at Ananda. instead of yielding to vested interests as There, Phillip came into contact with critics SWRD so often did. From the beginning of colonial rule like Anagarika Dharmapala, he kept an intellectual focus on social Walisinghe Harischandra, and John De Silva. justice and freedom from oppression Phillip entered University College from jail and fl ed to India and lived under a He took with him other stalwarts like for humanity anywhere. As Minister of Colombo in order to do Economics but Jacolis disguised name “Guruswamy”. In India, too William Silva. government he strove for economic justice Ralahamy had other plans for the son and he engaged in the anti imperialist struggle When leaving, Phillip made and the amelioration of poverty among the he sent the latter to study in the US. Phillip along with Indian leaders like Jawaharlal one prediction before the House of peasantry. Although the MEP was a product studied at the universities at Illinois, and Nehru. Phillip was jailed again but released Parliament, namely that one day the same of Sinhala-Buddhist nationalism Phillip Wisconsin. He graduated and postgraduated in 1945 after which he was sent back to Sri forces that were aligned to Bandarnaike never played with communal or religious in Agricultural Economics- a sound academic Lanka. will strangle him (SWRD) and puff the feelings. The progressive changes he made base for any aspiring Lankan political leader. Phillip was elected to the State council life out of him. He also criticised the in the rural economy and the banking sector However, Phillip had his focus in 1946 where he worked tirelessly in unholy infl uence of certain Buddhist lives to this day. worldwide- toward struggles for freedom poverty alleviation projects. In the General monks who really acted as spokesmen The political disabling of Don Phillip from oppression and repression anywhere and Election held in 1947 Phillip Gunawardena for “racketeers” Rupesinghe Gunawardena epitomises the everywhere. Exposed to Marxian Socialism was elected to the fi rst Parliament as MP for True enough Bandaranaike was failure of our country and of our people. in the US, he engaged in mass agitation Avissawella with a huge majority. Ideological assassinated by a Buddhist monk there by joining the Anti Imperialist League differences with his LSSP colleagues led suspected of being an agent of vested in New York in 1929. He went to the UK him to break away from that party and form interests. In the election that followed, and participated in mass agitations and anti the VLSSP in 1951. In 1956, the VLSSP Phillip campaigned vigorously for power. imperialist movements over there. Phillip became a constituent party of the MEP that Sloganized as “Maha Kalu Sinhalaya” crossed the Channel from London and hopped campaigned under the leadership of SWRD Phillip’s popularity throughout the into Europe- to Germany and to France. He Bandaranaike. After the victory that followed, island gained by the day. I was one of his undertook a dangerous journey by foot across Phillip Gunawardena got the portfolio of numerous fans and I remember attending the Pyrenees carrying with him some secret Agriculture and Cooperatives. In this role a huge meeting of his at the Bogambara documents to be delivered to the Spanish he introduced revolutionary changes to in Kandy during my Peradeniya days. rebels there. Phillip assisted in the struggles peasant agriculture by bringing in the Paddy Phillip spoke with great eloquence for freedom by Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya and Lands Act and by setting up Cooperatives and with a strident voice. The swing Ram Goolan of Mauritius and the Multipurpose Cooperative. He became stronger and stronger until some An early convert from Stalinism to also set up the Cooperative Bank that later SLFPers persuaded Bandaranaike’s Trotskyism, Phillip Gunawardena returned became the Peoples Bank. Within the MEP widow, Sirima, to take over the mantle to Sri Lanka and founded the LSSP in 1935- Phillip became a strong left-tilting force of leadership. Lo and behold! The very the oldest political party in Sri Lanka- along that threatened the establishment. He kept same masses that had been gathering Shyamon Jayasinghe with NM Perera, Colvin R De Silva, Leslie pushing Bandaranaike to bring in reforms around Phillip turned over to Sirima and MAY 2008 4.