Fine depiction of contemporary social and cultural setting

Reviewd by C.A. Lenin Divakara

Nihal P. Jayatunga, the Sinhala creative writer has proved again as a literary artiste par excellence in his latest novel Siththarakuge Kathawak (story of a painter) through his intimate portrayal of the characters and the depiction of contemporary social and cultural setting.

The educated youth of the post 1956 era, aptly called the ‘children of 1956’, and their idealism, aspirations, their interaction with the social-economic realities and the cultural resurgence of the era, provide the backdrop against which the main characters are portrayed vividly and credibly in the novel.

The four protagonists of the novel are Darshana, Kanthi, Lalani and Hemasiri. All of them have a similar social outlook, but personally differ from one another as chalk is from cheese. They interact, creating an exciting plot structure, with melodramatic qualities. But the plot is not manipulated by the author who uses melodrama only as a literary technique to depict the realities of a turbulent era, and to highlight the idealism of the characters.

Darshana, a revolutionary youth with a broad social outlook, Hemasiri, rebel turned an exponent of spiritual salvation, Lalani, the radical feminist painter and Kanthi, the frustrated wife, the old flame of Darshana form a cross-section of the educated youth, committed and dedicated to radical social change.

All of them belong to rural Sinhala families in the South of Lanka and are steeped in Sinhala Buddhist culture.

The author being ‘a child of 1956’ has portrayed, with intimacy, the characters with their rebellious’ idealism, Buddhist ethos, and romantic overtures to one another.‘Siththarakuge Kathawak’ is a unique contribution to contemporary Sinhala literature in that, it explores the inner world of the educated rebels and the broader social - economic, and cultural realities which they encounter. Thus, Jayatunga handles with expertise, the enviable task of striking a balance between the social reality and the human factor.

The female characters are grassroot feminists each in her own way in the sense, they successfully overcome the social barriers, the taboos and inhibitions, without being promiscuous and freely mingle with the opposite sex.A pertinent question that might be raised by an enlightened reader of the novel whose two protagonists are painters as well as rebels, is that whether their revolutionary politics influenced their works of art and vice versa. Do their political views and their commitment to the cause of social justice influence their creations? Conversely, do their aesthetics, influence, their role as political activists? Do they consider their respective roles as artiste and rebel, incompatible? Do they believe in the absolute aesthetic value divorced from social reality?

The author could have humanised the roles of Darshana and Lalani as painters and rebels, by portraying them, mutually enriching each role, that of the rebel with an aesthetically humanising dimension and of the artist, with revitalising humanising effect.

The author paints a vivid picture of the prison where Darshana undergoes severe hardships while striking a clandestine intimate relationship with a fellow female prisoner, Lalani.

This portryal of the bleak environment is juxtaposed with the serene rural surroundings. Siththarakuge Kathawak’ offers the Sinhala reader a rewarding experience that broadens his outlook of life and society. Jayatunga, the literary artiste, strikes a balance between the social realities of a turbulent era and the human dimension of the characters, when he depicts with sympathy, exploring their inner world, making the reading of the novel an interns experience for the reader.

The novel is an outlet for the writer’s creative artistry as indicted by the rich, sensuous imagery and the lucid, literary style.

To Ujiji, Kigoma and Laket Tanganyika

Reviewed by Carl Muller Part 3

As Christopher says: “When we set out from Zungamero, I had hoped to cover the distance (to Lake Tanganyika) much more quickly... We left Bangamoya on October 25 and arrived at Lake Tanganyika on November 1... The trip... (was) a difficult slog... we detoured and backtracked ceaselessly, trying to identify some of the more elusive portions of Burton’s trail.”

They went south to Mikumi, then to Miyombo and Kilosa. They passed through Ulaya, meaning “Europe” because the first person to camp there was a European. They found no throughway from Kilosa through the Rubeho Mountains to Dodoma, so backtracked to pick up the Miyomba-Dodoma road.

They made sure that they were always in sight of a river tributary, making their way over the foothills of Rumuma, and readied to cross the Rubeho mountains. Christopher says: “We heard on the radio that there was fighting in Zaire near the border of Rwanda and Burundi.” Moving into the Rubeho foothills they met members of the Wagogo tribe. They had reached Ugogo - typical settlements of flat-topped thatched houses. He also tells of their encounter with two police officers and two politicians who drove up while he was taking pictures of children and their schoolhouse. Rather than confront Christopher, they began to threaten Pollangyo.

“You are selling our people for money! You are holding up the poor of Africa to the ridicule of the rich by helping the white man to get photographs!”

A roll of film was confiscated, but the team got away well enough, lucky that they were not held in detention.

What delights the reader is the careful and considerate manner with which Christopher “fills in” so to say. As an example, he tells of arrival at the village of Mpwapwa; the village boutiques, the women carrying bags of peanuts. This is what he says:

The peanut or “ground nut” as it is usually called in Africa, has a curious history. One of the chapters of that history is the story of the infamous British “Ground Nut Scheme” of the 1940s. This was a 25 million pounds plan to cultivate 1.2 million hectares of peanuts in the Mpwapwa region and export them via a new port connected by a railway to the peanut fields - the port and railway to cost an additional 5 million pounds. However, the scheme collapsed because the planners failed to take into account the realities of the soil and climate of the Mpwapwa region, and the difficulties of introducing mechanized cultivation. Perhaps they would have been more successful if they had read Burton. He begins his description of Ukaranga, the country between the Malagarasi ferry and Lake Tanganyika by writing, “Ukaranga signified, etymologically, the “Land of Groundnuts.”

They took the main road to Dodoma, well-paved but rising clouds of red dust. This is his quick reference:

Dodoma began as a settlement of thatched huts of the Gogo, a tribe that Stanley called “masters of foxy craft.” The settlement grew with the arrival of the railway at the beginning of the 20th century. The railway stations became the centres of the towns that lined the old caravan routes. That is where the markets and shops were established Dodoma dwindled considerably during the First World War, when 30,000 people died of starvation in a famine caused by the misappropriation of food supplies by the Germans and the British. In the 1970s the Tanzanian government declared that Dodoma was to replace Dar es Salaam as the capital in the 1980s, but this still has not happened. “Idodomya” meaning “the place where it sank” and referring to an elephant that got stuck in the mud of a Gogo washing hole, is a phrase that gave the town its name on German maps. The name, like the elephant, stuck.”

Dodoma’s main modern importance came with the reform plans of Julius Nyerere, the father of Tanzanian independence. He used Dodoma as a pilot programme for his concept of communal life, which had three phases. First, Nyerere attempted to create self-reliant agricultural socialist villages whose residents held their property in common and worked together for the good of the village... The villages were in large parts modelled on Chinese communist villages... When this scheme resulted in the enrichment of some farmers at the expense of others, a second phase began under which the state assumed direct control and attempted the resettle most of the people living in rural areas into planned villages with modernized services. But this latter scheme proved to be too expensive and also failed. Finally... the whole rural population was regrouped into larger units through a compulsory policy which came to be known as “villagization.” This process resulted in the elimination of traditional tribal rule, with predictable resentment. Villagisation was ruthlessly enforced, and in the long run, might still prove to be beneficial.

West of Dodoma, the railway town of Manyoni and Tabora. A comment:

We passed numerous villages, and along the way were reminded that the Swahili word for white man is “mzungu”, which comes from “mzungu kati” meaning “wandering around in circles going nowhere.” I was beginning to understand why.

At Kazi Kazi: I was again reminded (of the whimsical literal translations Burton provided for place names) when we reached Kazi Kazi, a small railway station whose name means “work-work.” I was never really sure whether this name implied colonial criticism of the natives or native criticism of the colonials.”

Reaching Karagasi: At the sight of date palms, I knew this was the old caravan route, and I felt we were on the Burton-Speke route to Tabora.”

Passing Tabora: ...we met three Sukuma maidens who had come a long way to get water. “Aren’t you afraid of being eaten by lions?” we asked. “No,” they answered; “the lions are looking for animals, not people!” An interesting answer.

On the way to Kigwa they heard radio reports of an ebola outbreak in Zaire: This viral infection ruptures cell walls, beginning with those of the internal organs, and turns the victim’s body into a sack of bloody pulp.

It took 5 1/2 days to reach Tabora firm Bagamoyo. Christopher was now anxious to get to Ujiji on the shore of Lake Tanganyika. They crossed the Malagarasi river to reach the final station in the Fourth Region of Burton’s trek. They were now near Ujiji and the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika.

Another comment: Those who had come from Zaire were fleeing the conflict between the ruling dictator, President Mobutu, and the rebel leader Laurent Kabila. The refugee situation was greatly worsened by conflict between warring factions of Tutsis and Hutus, which had resulted in the further flight of hundreds of thousands of Hutus from neighbouring Rwanda.

The refugees are the result, not the cause, of the strife - the result of political upheaval and of genocide, stemming in turn from colonial interference in Africa, from the transition to undemocratic forms of independence, and from tyranny and greed.

Refugees are big business in Africa. The Western world is being held to ransom by the various countries to which refugees flee. Tanzania, for example, will not always admit the refugees unless Western countries pay the government for costs and administration. When payment is assured a

certain number are allowed in and given refugee status. It is not a simple humane act. It is a business deal. Only when the money is actually paid do the white UN vans come into play to transport refugees, to set up the camps, to provide medical services and so on. The host countries make enormous financial demands on the Western countries. Some of this money trickles down to the refugees. Most of it, however, usually goes to the people organizing food and shelter for them. The refugees were being held of shore not simply because of lack of space. It was financial blackmail.

Having crossed the Malagarasi, they entered the Fifth Region of Burton and Speke’s journey to Kalenga and Kidawe and to catch the first sight of Lake Tanganyika. They drove into Ujiji - one of Africa’s oldest market villages. Let me now tell you of Christopher’s impressions:

It is colourful, bustling, commercial centre. The majority of the population is from the Ha tribe, although Arab influence is seen in the architecture.

Burton and Speke, the first Europeans to see Lake Tanganyika, arrived in Ujiji in February 1858, and immediately started exploring the waters of the lake.

Twenty-three years later, in 1871, Livingstone also made his way to Ujiji, at that time the terminus for most caravans from the coast. It was here that the historic meeting between Stanley and Livingstone took place. Both the name of Livingstone Street and a 1927 plaque donated by the Royal Geographical Society commemorate the event. In Ujiji we headed straight to the Livingstone Memorial. It stands on the spot where Stanley met the famous explorer, but the beach and the lake front have receded considerably.

They heard stories about the refugees in south-western Tanzania who were pouring in from Rwanda and Burundi. Even in Kigoma, refugees made their way across the lake from Zaire, seeking escape from the political turmoil in that country.

There were crocodiles and hippos clearly visible in the water. It is well known that there are more deaths caused by hippos than by any other animal in Africa. Despite their placid appearance, they are extremely aggressive and attack boats and charge people on river banks.

Christopher’s comment:All were Hutus, and all had arrived from Zaire. It really was a pitiful sight. The police were everywhere, searching the refugees for guns and ammunition. If not confiscated by police, weapons were traded for money or provisions, usually to rebel Tanzanians.

Arms were also sought by refugees planning to return to Burundi to seek revenge against the Tutsis. Once searched, the refugee boats were... checked again and their occupants were registered as refugees, but only after the required guarantees from the international community. Refugees cannot settle in Tanzania anywhere but in the refugee camps. It was heartbreaking to see tired, sad-eyed, dejected families with small children huddled amid their possessions, mattresses, bundles of clothes, bicycles. Everything - people and goods - piled into the open slender boats.

They cruised in a boat up the east coast of Lake Tanganyika - seven fishing villages and boatloads of refugees waiting offshore at each. As he says:

Our trip up the east coast took four hours and went as far as the Burundi border. Because of the refugees, there was a disturbing quality to our explorations. There was an uneasiness to Burton and Speke’s experiences at Lake Tanganyika too. It was there that their unlikely partnership began to founder, dashing forever any hope that they would identify the source of the Nile together

Part 2 appeared on August 24,2008.

Sirith Maldama

‘Sirith Maldama’ which was written way back in 1895 by Muhandiram M. L. Silva, a teacher has been reprinted by the President’s Security Division under the guidance of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Steps have been taken to distribute the copies free to children across the country- to schools and Dhamma schools with the intention of inculcating good habits in them. Those who are interested could obtain a limited number of copies by writing to (along with your contact no) Commanding officer, President’s Security Division, President’s House, Colombo.

Book Festival 2008 at SLECC, Colombo

Book Festival 2008 which commenced yesterday will go on till September 13, 2008 to coincide with the Literary Month at Sri Lanka Exhibition and Convention Centre.

This event being conducted under the patronage of Madam Shiranthi Rajapaksa, apart from inculcating the habit of good reading among the children and youth in our country, will create a unique platform to create awareness on Thalassaemia prevention programme.

Organisations such as Sri Lanka National Book Development Council, Department of Mass Communication, Department of Education Publication, Departments of Examinations, State Printing Corporation, Central Bank of Sri Lanka etc. will participate at this exhibition along with a number of statet and private bookshops and related industries.Attractive discounts will be offered by the exhibitors along with various activities to celebrate the Literary Month. An exclusive clinic will be operative for pre-diagnosis of Thalassaemia, a topic that most people are not aware of, whilst this opportunity will create a forum for awareness, causes leading to this illness and how to save our future generation from this deadly disease.

New on the shelf

Asoka Palliyaguruge’s The Bower Bird and Other Poems , an anthology contains forty poems written by her based on her personal experience and confidences her friends shared with her. Illustrations are by Thilak Palliyaguruge. As Kalakeerthi Ashley Halpe mentions in the Foreword Palliyaguruge’s “poems capture the pains, pathos, and comforts of everyday experiences, others give glimpses of much loved landscapes,some are thumb-nailed morality sketches.All in all she achieves a generous human presence.

Book launch

Dos Nathi was Nathi kos

‘Dos Nathi was Nathi kos’ a research study on Jak fruit written by Nihal P. Abeysingha will be launched at National Library and Documentation Board Auditorium, Colombo 07 on September 8 at 3 p.m.

Peralikara Pasala

R. P. Wijesinghe’s Sinhala translation of Arkady Gaidar’s popular novel The School entitled Peralikara Pasala will be launched at Dayawansa Jayakody Book Exhibition hall, Ven. S. Mahinda Mawatha, Colombo 10 at 10 a.m. on September 9.