|
|
|
  |
| Sunday, 24 April 2005 |
 |
|
 |
Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Memoirs of Sirima R.D.Bandaranaike : Ceylon becomes Sri Lanka In 1964 our government was defeated at the Throne Speech by one vote as explained earlier in a separate chapter. After Parliament was dissolved we faced a General Election.
At this stage we, the SLFP formed a United Front with the LSSP and CP. It was a keen fight. The UNP won. But they didn't have a strong majority to form a stable government so they formed a seven party government with Phillip Goonewardene's Party, MEP, K.M.P. Rajaratnam's group including members of the Tamil Congress (TC), Federal Party (FP), M. Tiruchelvam of the (FP) was given a ministry. It was really a seven party coalition which did not last long. We had some good debators like Felix Bandaranaike, Colvin R. de Silva, N.M. Perera, Pieter Khenaman. The opposition was strong. While in the opposition we organised ourselves. We held a series of public meetings, round the country which made the government weak gradually. The FP Minister left the government on some disagreement. We faced the 1970 election as a front with LSSP and CP. The Front put up a common program based on SLFP policies. The leaders of the three parties of the Front signed an agreement to carry out the program of the late S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. At Bogambara at a mass meeting of an unprecedented crowd this was announced and approved by the people. It was on this program that we went to the country. We asked the people for a mandate to change the Constitution and establish a Republic. We were given this mandate a 2/3 majority. Some of the UNP stalwarts were defeated including C.P. de Silva who was a Minister in the 65-70 UNP government. After the formation of the government within six months an insurrection broke out. This is described in a separate chapter. In 1971 we got down to the job of drafting the Constitution. The whole Parliament was converted to a Constituent Assembly. A Minister, Dr. Colvin R. de Silva was appointed for the purpose. The public were given an opportunity of making representations to the Constituent Assembly. All parties were in the Constituent Assembly till the FP members walked out at a stage on a disagreement. The Constitution for the establishment of a Republic was finalised and approved by the National State Assembly on May 22 1972 at the Royal Primary School Hall - Navarangahala. The Constitution was ceremoniously adopted and signed by me as Prime Minister to the beating of drums and sounding of conch shells. The cultural aspect was given a pride of place at this ceremony. It was a great occasion for the people of Sri Lanka as it was able to remove the last vestiges of colonialism such as allegiance to the Queen of Britain. To me it was a great event in my life that during my regime we were able to declare Ceylon a Republic. Ceylon was changed to Sri Lanka the original name before foreign domination. All Ministers, MPs, Judges of Supreme and other Courts and all public servants including Armed Services had to take the oath under the Republic Constitution. 1971 insurgency The biggest crisis my government faced was the insurgency in 1971, an attempted revolution by a group of misguided youth. Within a few months of our coming to power in 1970 we received information that there was a clandestine movement building up against the government. The CID was put on trail to gather information. A special unit was set up under an Assistant Secretary Defence Mr. S.A. Dissanayake (ex IGP) to handle the situation. Guns were being stolen from farmers and Superintendents of Estates. They had a government spy system where they planted their members in government offices and departments to gather useful information such as lists of gun licences and lists of those who had obtained permits for cartridges. They used this information and visited those permit holders and demanded their guns and cartridges. People just surrendered them through fear. One fine day in a village hut in Dedigama there was an explosion and it was discovered that some youths had been manufacturing bombs and one of them had exploded killing several of the youths there. In Peradeniya University too a bomb was exploded and Police search party went in there. They discovered that the University was almost a bomb manufacturing factory, large quantities of material for manufacturing bombs such as empty tins, nails, pieces of barbed wire and glass were found. In the girl's hostel uniforms were being stitched. Then more and more information started coming in about the manufacture of bombs etc., and holding of classes in various places. On the information received we realised a serious situation was arising, therefore an emergency was declared. We alerted all Police Stations to be ready. In the meantime quite by chance Mr. Rohana Wijeweera was found holding a secret meeting at Inginiyagala in Ampara. He was arrested. At the time he was arrested it was not known that he was Rohana Wijeweera. He told the Police who he was. He was detained. Many other leaders were also arrested and detained in other districts. On 5th April quite unexpectedly two Police Stations in Moneragala and Wellawaya were attacked and some Policemen were killed. This was an indication that the attack was coming sooner than expected. We immediately deployed the forces to various areas to assist the police to handle the situation. On that night 60 police stations were attacked. The terrorists succeeded in destroying a few stations and killing Policemen. Terrorists were also killed. From then on the civil war went on in various parts of the country mainly in Polonnaruwa district and Hambantota, Kegalle, Moneragala, parts of Galle and Kurunegala, Kalutara districts. For about a week or 10 days the government was on the defensive in certain areas. Very soon the army recaptured the occupied areas by the insurgents and very soon the armed services were on the offensive. After about two weeks we decided to call for laying down arms and surrender. I made a personal appeal on the radio, pamphlets were distributed widely by helicopter, etc into the areas infested by insurgents including the jungles. We indicated the places they could surrender to. We avoided police stations. About 8000 youths surrendered. We had a problem of accommodation for them. So we took over the two Universities in Colombo. Vidyalankara and Vidyodaya and housed them there. In the outstations we took some of the bigger schools. After a week or so we called for a second surrender and about 4000 surrendered. Altogether with those surrendered and captured there were about 18,000 in camps. Groups of public servants were appointed to go into every individual case. To see the quantum of guilt etc., and by that a process of elimination of those not seriously involved was done, finally only about 2000 were retained and others were sent home. Those against whom there was sufficient evidence of murder, arson etc., were charged in court. For the others we started a process of rehabilitation. A Minister of Rehabilitation was appointed and a band of officers to assist him. Our effort was to rehabilitate them and put them back to society. To be continued Reproduced with the kind permission of ANCL Editorial Consultant
Malalgoda Bandutilleke custodian of the manuscript. |
|
| News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
| Produced by Lake House |
