Fascinating excursion into the past, revisiting the colourful personalities of the era

By Ranga CHANDRARATHNE

In this wide ranging interview, senior civil servant and prolific author Bradman Weerakoon traverses the fascinating history of Kalutara and the colourful personalities who dominated the era. One such personality was Padikkara Mudliyar of Kalutara district Don A Silva Wijesinghe Siriwardene (1888-1949) who constructed the legendary Richmond Castle. The local elite of the era served as a bridge between the colonial administration and its subject.

The author has detailed out some of the cardinal personalities of Panadura like G.P. Malalasekara, Wilmot A Perera and Cyril Jansz who had left gigantic footprints not only on the socio-cultural landscape of Panadura but also on the cultural life of the nation. The coastal township of Beruwela holds a prominent position on account of its rich history and particularly of its contribution to cultural and linguistic mosaic of the nation.

Bradman Weerakoon

It is a multi-ethnic and multi-lingual constituency which had made its unique contribution to the cultural and linguistic diversity of Sri Lanka; apart from its predominant Muslim community, there are a sizable expatriate community living in the area. The account on the road to holy peak and towards Singharaja, deals with the important passage of history revisiting the legend of the rebel Prince Vidiye Bandara.

It also recounts the Pahiyangala (Fa Hsien’s) rock cave where the locals believe the great 5th century scholar monk rested on his long and arduous journey on foot to the Peak. This part of the history is marked by legends and folklore as well as the milestones in the post-colonial history of Sri Lanka along the road to the Holy Peak. One such historical landmark is the tree planted by the legendary Che Guevara, when he came to Sri Lanka in 1959 to see how rubber was grown in Kalutara.

Colonial times

Q: Kalutara Society in British Colonial times is an interesting section which sheds light on the social life of Kalutara in colonial times. You have cited the story of Padikkara Mudliyar of Kalutara district Don A Silva Wijesinghe Siriwardene (1888-1949) as an example for changing values and social behaviour of Sinhalese elites at the time. Wijesinghe’s legacy the Richmond Castle is not only a watershed in his personal life but also the social life of Kalutara in colonial times and it also marks the rise of Sinhalese elite. How important was that period in the colonial history which also marked the emergence of native elite in the run up to the transition of political power from colonials to natives?

A: This certainly was an important development and our social historians and political theorists have written on the emergence of the native elite, such as our Padikara Mudliyar of Kalutara. In my view they represented an interesting bridge between the colonial administration and the ordinary people. They served the valuable function of being a resource regarding local habits, traditions and mores to the colonial and in turn, either consciously or otherwise, communicated back to the people the policies, attitudes and inclinations to the local people.

They contributed to a sharing between two quite contrary cultures – one western and one Eastern. Being people in the middle, as it were, and having a bit of both cultures - West and East, the native elite were in the main the good intermediaries or middle men, who often get things done. I believe this role they performed deserves more research. Usually history records the achievements of the political leader. But the contribution of these silent ‘people in between’ should not be overlooked.

Of course, it must also be remembered that there were the usual competitiveness and jealousies between the native elite themselves. Kumari Jayewardene has highlighted these tensions in her fascinating social history entitled ‘Nobodies trying to be Somebodies”. The Somebodies in this instance were the mudliyars of the Siyane Korale with their supposed links to the old aristocracy, if not to the nobility of the feudal age.

They resented the so called lesser breeds who had come up the social ladder on account of wealth acquired through arrack renting or the plumbago trade – the Nobodies as they would have it. The Kalutara padikars mudliyar would undoubtedly have had to face such taunts from the so called aristocrats. The British colonialist playing his game of divide and conquer would have lost no time in exploiting this faultline among the native elite. To that extent the positive role the elite could have played in political reform and constitutional development would have been diminished.

Q: In the section on Panadura, you have explored Panadura from diverse perspectives; from the singular contribution it made in the post-colonial Sri Lanka in the revival of Buddhism and you have also written about the great debate Panadura Vadaya and about the great personalities like G.P. Malalasekara, Wilmot A Perera and Cyril Jansz. How do you evaluate the contribution that Panadura made and its famous sons?

A: I think people like these three, and Arthur V Dias, whom unfortunately I have omitted in my English edition, (he is restored to his rightful place in my Sinhala version) represent the dynamism which Panadura and its remarkably inventive people gave to the country. More and better education seemed the motif of their lives of service to the community. One sees it in Wilmot Perera’s work on culture in Sri Palee and in the pioneering impetus he gave to rural development long before anyone else; Malasekera, one time Professor in Pali at the University of Ceylon was a towering figure in the higher education area and emphasised the importance of research and ‘inquiring’ into the roots of our cultural inheritance especially through the growth of language.

He also stressed the lasting value of female education which is such an important part of our national development. The early ‘movers’ and ‘shakers’ in establishing high - class institutions for girls to receive education were the women of Panadura. Sri Sumangala Girls school in Panadura and Visakha Vidyalaya in Colombo owe their existence to the pioneering work of some great women of Panadura. Cyril Jansz who also gave his life for education of children was a prime example of the high place that the Burgher intellectual occupied in colonial society.

St John's College, Panadura was the cradle in which several future leaders of the country were nurtured. Its students achieved fame in a variety of pursuits – the professions of law and medicine, the arts – music, drama, song, painting and sculpture; and in academia and politics. As a mark of gratitude to Cyril Jansz the Government of the time changed the name of the college he created to Cyril Jansz Vidyalaya. It continues to maintain the legacy of excellence Cyril Jansz endowed it with.

Unique township

Q: The coastal township of Beruwela is a unique township with a fascinating history behind it. Among other things, you have mentioned that Beruwela is a multi-lingual constituency where Tamil is an official language. It is an important site where one can examine the history of Moorish settlements in Sri Lanka.

How important is Beruwela as an example of ethnic amity particularly in Southern province?

A: Actually Beruwela is in Kalutara which is in the Western Province and my loyalty to Kalutara will not let it slip over to the Southern province although it is almost on the provincial border. The Muslims of Beruwela comprise a very important, influential and valuable part of the cultural mosaic of the country. They are relatively well -to –do and some of the residencies of the richer ones and the mosques are beautiful to behold. As a rule Muslims all over are known for their ability to get on with their neighbours and their trustworthiness in business.

Bradman Weerakoon

Although I found in my work among them that their household language is generally Tamil, they have often acquired great facility in Sinhalese. Excellent examples are their members of Parliament and other elected bodies, for example, Bakeer Markar formerly a Speaker of the Parliament and his son Imtiaz who was among the best Sinhala language debaters at Ananda College, one of our leading Buddhist schools. I have not enumerated the number of the community’s well - educated who are in the gem and jewelry industry nor in the hotel and leisure sector of our economy but I am sure the ratio greatly exceeds their proportion in the general population.

I found a large number of the permanent - residence visa, foreign expatriates live in and among the Beruwela Muslim community. This may well be due to the overall attractiveness of the beautiful coastline around here but it could also do with the non-intrusive and generally ‘welcoming of the outsider’ that seems to be a characteristic of the locals. The regular five - hourly ‘call to prayer’ by the mosques appears to be accommodated with appreciation by all around.

Q: On the road to Holy Peak and towards Singharaja are two interesting chapters which not only trace the two roads leading to the Holy Peak and the rain forest Singharaja but trace back a trail of fascinating account of history rich with legends. Wasn’t it a journey of discovery?

Journey of discovery

A: Yes, quite literally a journey of discovery to me, as it would be to thousands of travellers who mostly go on the north –south coastal road from Colombo to Galle. There is a lot of culture and history on the two east / west roads, one through the north of the district to Ratnapura and the Holy Peak and the other in the south of the district through Matugama and Badureliya towards the Singharaja. These two roads traverse the two Korales of the district – the Raigam in the north and Pasdun in the south that are full of Sinhalese history. The Kotte sub-kingdom of Raigama and in Pasdun Korale the hide-out of the rebel Prince Vidiye Bandara who had a most colourful history. Some of his daring exploits are recounted in the road to Singharaja as Pelende, where he established himself and built a small palace (now the site of the Raja maha vihare) are just off this road.

On the northern road on the ancient way to the sacred Peak you come across Pahiyangala (Fa Hsien’s) rock cave where the locals believe the great 5th century scholar monk rested on his long and arduous journey by foot to the Peak. The Chinese government believes this happened and the Embassy supports its restoration work. The Western Provincial Council too votes money for the upkeep of this largely unknown historical site.

Lots of other things to see on the road to the Holy Peak including the tree planted by the legendary Che Guevara ,when he came to Sri Lanka in 1959 to see how rubber was grown. The southern road to Singharaja too bristles with places to see and enjoy. The Rubber Research Institute in Agalawatte, Gee kiya Kande – ‘the mountain of song’, rubber estate of a famous son – Ronnie de Mel and the former camp site of the Kukuleganga hydro- power scheme now turned into an admirable tourist- chalet resort to serve as the final base camp for the assault on Singharaja.

Rivers and lakes

Q: In the final chapter, you have covered the areas of rivers and lakes and mode of transport in Kalutara district. Transport and development has inseparably linked together. How would you describe mode of transport of the time such as buggy cart defined the life of colonial era?

A: I think the mode of transport that defined the early British colonial era was the double bullock cart – the bara karate. The buggy cart was for the townsfolk and their little journeys. The bullock cart was for hard work of transporting goods and people over many days and long distances.

Manuka Wijesinghe’s Theravada Man recounts one such epic journey and the carter’s songs that made such difficult journeys passable. The haunting lamentation of the carter and his entreaties to his bullock adapan pau karapu gono up the Haputale pass to the plantations beyond, evoke memories of what life would have been in the developmental phase of colonial history.

I read that the road to the holy Peak was the preferred route to the hill country the gradient from Ratnapura being less steep than up from Kandy via Ramboda. The local stories about the carts were that they were made in Moratuwa (where else could the best and most up to date wood - work come from) and the bulls obtained from Horana (no offence meant to anybody living or dead).

The pace of change in transport from animal (the cart bull) or natural (the sailing ship) of Portuguese and Dutch times to steam power (the train) and steamship in British times were the main drivers of development and the extension of that progress into the remotest parts of the district of Kalutara.

Though train services remained only to serve the coastal dweller transport development at the beginning of the 20th century when the first motor vehicle and omnibus appeared in the country presaged penetration into the hinterland. The opening up of vast tracts of jungle for rubber plantations caused problems as well as benefits. One of the unexpected developments was the immigration of thousands of Indian Tamil labour for work in the rubber plantations.

The consequences social and political of this influx of workers is touched on in my book. I believe one effect was the strong support the parties of the Left – the LSSP and later the JVP – received in the return of members to Parliament. Kalutara always appeared to return Left or Left of centre parliamentarians more than those of more rightist persuasion.