Opinion

Searching for Lakdasa

Published

3 years ago

2021/06/25

A few weeks ago, when I wrote an article titled “Shakespeare in a takarang shed” about the English department at Kelaniya University in the 1970s, I mentioned of Lakdasa Wikkramasinha, the poet. Lakdasa did not teach in the English department – he was an instructor in the sub-department of English, which conducted English language courses for all the undergraduates – but he was very much a part of the scene. In the article, I recalled playing carrom with him at the Senior Common Room, and how we both escaped severe injury, perhaps death, from a mob that was coming to attack campus students.

In the article, I described Lakdasa as “a man of few words, with a disdainful stare that made lesser mortals uncomfortable, [wearing] his shirt halfway buttoned that displayed his hairy chest, the sleeves rolled up just below the elbow.” In other words, a bad ass.

To accompany that article, I needed a photo of Lakdasa. I Googled, only to be shocked by the images that popped up. The most prominent was his gravestone, streaked with a black stain that obscured some markings, and a photo of the Nigerian Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, mislabeled Lakdasa. Other search engines also came up with the same images.

Surely, someone, somewhere should have Lakdasa’s photo. Thus, began my search. Lakdasa had been my senior at the Maharagama training college, so I reached out to his classmates for a photo. One, who said he had been the best man at Lakdasa’s wedding, did not have a photo. Another, a photography enthusiast, could not be contacted because of the lockdown. Two other classmates of Lakdasa did not respond to my messages.

I was told about Lakdasa’s sister, who had built a house on Heerassagala Road, Kandy, but my attempts to trace her petered out. A friend of a friend, who said that she may have a photo at her office, was also unavailable, due to the lockdown and a death in the family. Tracing Lakdasa’s genealogy, I contacted a second cousin of Lakdasa’s, without a response. An appeal to the head of an academic department, where Lakdasa’s wife had taught, has gone unanswered. That is understandable, because she last taught there 40 years ago, and my attempt was a desperate shot in the dark.

When I first knew Lakdasa at Maharagama, in 1970, he was known as “the poet”, although hardly anyone around him may have read his poetry, (I hadn’t). In those days, poetry meant Wordsworth, Blake, and Keats to us. Also, at that time, Lakdasa’s poetry hadn’t received much critical assessment, or much read for that matter, because his poems had been self-published in limited editions. He was courting his classmate Claire, and I would see them seated on the corridor leading to the library and chatting for long periods. Lakdasa’s collection titled, Fifteen Poems (1970) carried the dedication “For Claire”. But, they didn’t marry. By the time his next collection, Nossa Senhora dos Chingalas (1973), came out, the dedication was “To Shanthini”, who had become his wife. She taught Chinese at the University of Kelaniya.

Lakdasa’s stature as a poet hit me full in the face, so to speak, only in the early 1990s, when I read Michael Ondaatje’s Running in the Family, a rollicking memoir of Ondaatje’s Ceylonese lineage. Chapter 3 is titled “Don’t Talk to Me about Matisse”, and Lakdasa’s poem of the same title is quoted there. I was in the USA at the time, and could not access any of his poetry.

Some years later, in Hong Kong, I was introduced to the chairman of a university English department. When he realised I was Sri Lankan, Andy blurted out, “Did you know Lakdasa?”, and seemed to disbelieve when I said “Quite well”. Later, I realised that he, a British/Australian, was an ardent fan of Lakdasa’s poetry. When Andy published the volume World Englishes (2007), two of Lakdasa’s poems were included in the accompanying CD, read by Prof. Thiru Kandiah.

In personality, Lakdasa was eccentric. His philosophy was an enigma. In 1965, he stated that “to write in English is a form of cultural treason” and called English the language of the “most despicable and loathsome people on earth”. But, just four years later, he was training to become an English teacher, and went onto “commit treason” by teaching English at the University of Kelaniya.

His poetry has been called masculine, and anger, eroticism, sarcasm, and satire were clearly on display. His originality and daring can be seen in lines such as “thick black coils of hair on her head, and Elsewhere”; “the great white hunter Matisse with a gun with two nostrils … Gaugin – the syphilis-spreader, the yellowed obesity”. And satire in “What does the Professor do? He plants brinjals all day”. The soaring finale – “All roads lead to Rome!” – from “To My Friend Aldred” is matchless.

When he was being interviewed for admission to Maharagama training college, Lakdasa was asked what he had been doing in the past few years. He replied. “Growing cardamoms”. Indeed, he had, in the remote Yahanagala area in the Uva. Usually, to interpret Lakdasa’s poetry, one may have to delve into history, the Classics, Latin, Sinhala folklore. But, the appealing simplicity of “In Ancient Kotmale” perhaps derives from those cardamom growing days.

In the beautiful principality, in Kotmale

I will build my house of the good soil’s brick

With the timber of the ringing forests,

And I will cover it with the tiles flat,

One on one, as the palms of the farmers ….

And in the morning will I see

The sun wounded as my heart with a million arrows,

Rise between the mountain ranges

And spread in the green valley its golden blood.

And I will go into the fields in the seasons ….

I will sow the grain, a stream between my hands,

I will cast the grain in falling nets.

It will stream up round the calves of maidens

From the viridian fire of that clay.

And in the kilns of my sun-wed fields,

And under the haven of passing clouds

As I repose, in those almost everlasting days,

In the time ordained, in green calendars

Will come my yearned harvest

Over the years, Lakdasa’s poetry has drawn much analysis – in academic presentations, scholarly articles, an anthology here and there, theses, blog sites – and in the popular press. Some poems were also included in the English literature A/L syllabus. He has been acknowledged as one of Sri Lanka’s foremost poets writing in English. But, sadly, his poetry is scattered in various, little-known publications, and 43 years after his death, there is a possibility of his poetry receding into obscurity.

But, for now, we can focus on a more urgent matter, that of finding a photo of Lakdasa and placing it on the Internet. So, here’s my plea. If you have a photo, could you send it to me at georgebraine@gmail.com? I am also on Facebook. Thank you.

GEORGE BRAINE

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Opinion

Bitter truth about laws and animal welfare

Published

12 hours ago

2024/11/20

Sahan Weerasooriya

Draft Animal Welfare Bill
National Dog Spay and Rabies Eradication Programme
Draft Animal Welfare Bill

By 2023 when the Draft Animal Welfare Bill was taken up for its first reading in Parliament, it has been made into a legal mess, denying legal protection to animals from cruelties.

In June 2023 our Coalition intervened and by March 2024 we got Parliamentary Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) to approve amendments that would make this bill exemplary, offering legal protection to all animals from cruelties, coupled with fines increased from Rs. 100,000 to 250,000- 500,000 to Rs. 5 million for animal abuse, with the fines doubling for abuse of pregnant animals.

But even after that Constitutional intervention and clear instructions to the relevant Ministry by the SOC to include the approved amendments, the Bill was prepared by that Ministry for the Second Reading in Parliament, dropping many crucial PARLIAMENTARY SOC-APPROVED AMENDMENTS.

Fortunately for the Animals of Sri Lanka, the Draft Bill was not taken up for the Second Reading.

The Parliament stands dissolved.

Attention President, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Justice: This draft Bill must be presented in Parliament again ONLY after including the SOC-APPROVED AMENDMENTS.

Anyone trying to scuttle the process to pass a Bill that comprehensively provides legal protection to animals citing ANY reason, cannot have animal welfare in their hearts and minds.

2) The National Dog Spay and Rabies Eradication Programme

All one has to do is to travel round Sri Lanka to witness the enormous numbers of ownerless dogs, some in shocking conditions, to judge how “efficient and sustainable result-oriented” the National Dog Spay and Rabies Eradication Programme has been, after functioning under the Health Ministry with contract veterinarians for 15 years since 2008 till now, at a budgetary allocation ranging from Rs.100 million to Rs. 280 million annually.

Right now Rs. 200 million has been allocated to this fruitless, unmonitored, unevaluated activity, to SUSTAIN A BUSSINESS and not an accountable programme.

The move to have this programme executed by the ONLY State Entity that is responsible for handling and eradicating zoonotic diseases, the Department of Animal Production and Health (DAPH), having recruited 500 additional veterinarians, was scuttled in 2019, and the Programme was taken back to the Ministry of Health, a State entity responsible for diseases that afflict humans and not animals and hence has no Veterinarians, for BUSINESS AS USUAL.

Attention President, Minister of Health, and Minister of Livestock: This programme must be immediately vested in the DAPH so it can be made into a scientifically executed, accountable, sustainable-results-generating programme that can be monitored and evaluated regularly.

Such a scientific, professional, and systematic DAPH-executed accountable programme, coupled with Owned Dog Registration will see significant results in two years towards zero dog population growth and dog rabies control towards eradication.

CPAPA – SL (The Coalition for a Pro-Animal Protection Act – Sri Lanka)

Opinion

Landslide victories

Published

1 day ago

2024/11/19

Sahan Weerasooriya

by Chula Goonasekera
Nagananda Kodithuwakku

President AKD and the NPP deserve applause and heartfelt congratulations for their organisation, information gathering, and dissemination of a vision that resonates with the people. They have successfully created an enormous wave of funding and support, culminating in a decisive victory over the corrupt factions that have contributed to the destruction of our nation and motherland. The NPP’s anti-corruption message resonated deeply with voters who have suffered across many sectors of society, including the economy, education, healthcare, and nutrition. The public trust generated by this movement has led to an exemplary landslide victory for the NPP in this general election.

However, as voters, we must remain mindful that Sri Lanka has witnessed landslide election results in 1970, 1977, 2010, and 2020—all of which ultimately resulted in a landslide toward the nation’s ill-being, leaving the country burdened with massive debts, corruption, indiscipline, brain drain, and economic collapse.

What is ironic in 2024 is that this landslide victory may be one of the most significant of the century. However, it also calls for critical reflection. For the first time, even Jaffna voted in favour of the NPP. This could indicate the beginning of the end of the divisive politics that have historically exploited racial and religious divisions. Perhaps this marks the dawn of a new, more unified political landscape—one that promotes a united Sri Lanka as one nation working toward an equal society across every corner of our motherland.

Despite the landslide, we must be fully aware of the potential for disinformation if proper actions and preventive measures are not taken. The constitutional gates of covert and overt political corruption remain open while, as a nation, we lack the compensatory capacity to face another political or financial crisis. Therefore, we must remain vigilant and ensure the continuity of national oversight to keep our new parliament and president on track despite the many distractions that could hinder their efforts for national freedom and development. One key strategy is to remain non-aligned but work with external forces through clear, transparent, and fair agreements that prioritise national benefit.

In this context, the priority for the NPP should be to make the Judiciary and the Bribery Commission independent, supported by a robust quality assurance system and a clear definition of ‘contempt of court’ to embed accountability. No national institution—especially the judiciary—can thrive without accountability and transparency. A recent example from the UK, the Post Office Scandal, underscores this point: a national service organisation made wrongful decisions that destroyed the lives of many innocent people, wrongly labelling them as criminals. A documentary exposing this injustice was widely circulated in the media, leading to justice for many victims, some of whom were no longer alive to witness it. In Sri Lanka’s current legal environment, such exposure could easily be misconstrued as contempt of court, with all involved potentially facing jail time.

An independent Judiciary and Bribery Commission, free from political interference, can be achieved through a parliamentary act requiring a two-thirds majority. This is paramount and should be implemented at the earliest opportunity to prevent politics from undermining legitimate processes. Such reforms will help resolve the deadlock that has stifled progress—particularly in addressing political corruption, including linked severe offences such as rape and murder. Furthermore, these reforms will clarify the constitutional changes necessary to prevent the legitimisation of political corruption, enabling the cleanup of a constitution that has been manipulated countless times to allow corrupt politicians to act with impunity despite blatant violations of good governance.

Opinion

Srinivasan believed in Sri Lanka’s true potential: An appreciation

Published

1 day ago

2024/11/19

Sahan Weerasooriya

Historical ties between Sri Lanka and India date back to the Ramayana era and the visionary missions of the Great Mauryan Emperor Ashoka. The emperor tasked his own son, Arahant Mahinda, and daughter, Bhikkhuni Sangamitta, with spreading the teachings of Gautama Buddha (dhamma), laying the foundation in the island nation of Lanka, probably visualising its potential in cultivating a unique culture.

In 1977, Sri Lanka opened its economy while our great neighbour India had a closed economy. The Indian Bank, a wholly owned entity of the Government of India, decided to set up the bank’s first offshore banking unit in Sri Lanka. The unit became the first Foreign Currency Banking Unit (FCBU) owned by a foreign bank in Sri Lanka and started operations in 1979.

The bank appointed the young banker V Srinivasan to head the FCBU unit in Colombo, which led to many transformational changes in banking and entrepreneurial relationships between the two countries. Late V Srinivasan had the rare opportunity to leave his footprint, being the only officer serving as the CEO of Indian Bank’s two overseas branches in Sri Lanka and Singapore.

The Indian Bank’s FCBU unit raised foreign currencies and arranged investments in the Katunayake Free Trade Zone and several other BOI-approved projects. Under Mr. V Srinivasan’s leadership, many projects were financed, including the first multi-purpose apartment and shopping complex in Kollupitiya, and value-added rubber and textile manufacturing projects in the Free Trade Zone in Katunayake. These projects enabled industrial technological know-how to flow into Sri Lanka. The Indian Bank recognised V Srinivasan’s leadership and promoted him to the bank’s CEO in the Colombo branch in 1985, thus managing the bank’s decades-old domestic operations specialising in international trade. During this period, he identified the true potentials in the Sri Lankan economy, such as financing value addition and branding of Ceylon Tea, and financing the construction of a glass-bottomed multipurpose boat as a tourist attraction.

Unfortunately, all the innovative projects came to a grinding halt with the July 1983 riots in Sri Lanka. Although the bank’s assets were subject to many risks impacting viable operations, V Srinivasan demonstrated his kindness by saving the bank’s vital intellectual capital, the human resource, from destitution and distress because of the ruthless communal riots in Sri Lanka. His passion for spotting talent and his caring attitude towards the well-being of staff probably made him the bank’s youngest General Manager, leading Human Resources prior to his retirement from the bank in 2011.

This writer was fortunate enough to sense and learn the social orientation of the business of banking as a budding banker under his stewardship. During his tenure, I had the opportunity to engage in negotiations as a young trade unionist. Our friendship continued even after both of us left the services of the Indian Bank for many decades. The last time I met Mr. V Srinivasan, his wife Kalpana, and his son Prasanna and family was while he was holidaying in Sri Lanka in 2010, catching up with beautiful memories. Mr. Srinivasan passed away at the age of 73 on 9th November 2024 in Chennai. May his departed soul rest in peace. Om Shanti.

Jayasri Priyalal