(Excerpted from the autobiography of MDD Pieris, Secretary to the Prime Minister)

I would, at this stage, like to refer to two important domestic issues that came up during the latter part of the Prime Minister’s term of office. These were, the food crisis that occurred around 1974/75 and the government’s attitude to the Press, which culminated in the sealing of the Dawasa/Sun Group of Newspapers and the take over of the Lake House Group of Newspapers.

The food crisis was largely a result of the sharp hike in the price of crude oil in 1973, as a consequence of the combined actions taken by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries or OPEC. This was a reaction of basically developing oil exporting countries to what was considered to be the exploitative practices of the large multi-national oil companies, representing the rich developed countries. OPEC was reacting against unequal agreements and artificially low prices.

This action, whilst affecting the developed countries hit the non-oil producing developing countries such as Sri Lanka very hard. In a tight foreign exchange situation, caused by declining prices for plantation agricultural commodities such as tea, rubber and coconut, crude oil and petroleum products had now to be imported at about double the cost. This exacerbated inflation and budget deficits.

Internationally, not only the price of oil, but also the price of vital agricultural inputs, like fertilizer shot up in price. This, whilst impacting on domestic agriculture such as rice had repercussions also on the world production of commodities such as rice, wheat and other crops. World inflation rose coincident with weather related crop reductions, in many areas, including Sri Lanka. The price of rice, flour and sugar more than doubled in world markets, when we were facing a declining import capacity due to foreign exchange constraints, aggravated by the much higher price for oil.

What emerged was a stark and gloomy picture, and the very real threat of diminished food supplies. malnourishment and even pockets of starvation. The government’s emergency food drive personally led by the Prime Minister with an immediate emphasis on short term crops such as manioc, sweet potatoes and other yams was the response. Drastic measures were taken. Government brought in regulations to prevent the serving of rice in any hotel or eating-house for two days a week. Food could not be served at weddings or other functions where the number of people exceeded one hundred.

The sugar ration was reduced and the issue of flour curtailed. Bread became scarce, and this impacted adversely on the urban areas in particular. Bread queues began to form outside bakeries, and when things got worse people began to queue outside bakeries at 4 o’clock in the morning. Food availability became visibly short, and prices increased hurting the poor. Little children could be seen rummaging in dustbins in search of food scraps. The community helped.

Many people who could afford it either gave money or food when persons came round asking. Down our own lane, people contributed what they could. We ourselves regularly gave food to three small children living in an adjoining lane, which had a cluster of poor homes. Later it was nice to see them as grown up men. In retrospect, I believe that the emergency food drive directed at increasing the short-term food supply was a wise decision.

The outputs of various kinds of yams in particular, increased substantially, and this provided a substitute for rice and bread. This, quick increase in the domestic food supply was important also from the psychological angle, because people saw that substitute foods were available in the markets. There was however, one response by the government which proved quite excessive. This was the prohibition on the transport of rice within the country and the erection of checkpoints or “rice barriers,” in order to give effect to this.

This was clearly an over reaction, extremely unpopular with the people and lending itself to both corruption and harassment. All these measures, were designed and implemented by a team drawn from the Ministries of Agriculture and Planning. The prevailing ideological climate also resulted in a mindset directed towards controls.

I do not have much to say in relation to the governments’ action regarding the press. The prevailing ideologies were a part of it. I am aware that the government from their point of view were almost continuously concerned about the distortions, half truths, and even untruths appearing in the Lake House and Dawasa Group of Newspapers, over a considerable period of time. They came to believe that these were sustained and concerted attempts by right-wing forces to embarrass and destabilize the government, because they wanted to do away with a government with a “Socialist Programme,” and install in its place a government which would follow “a Capitalist” policy.

Whether there was a degree of paranoia in these views, I cannot say. But that there was a considerable degree of biased, distorted and selective, reporting was a fact. Whether a democratic government should have gone so far as to seal the Dawasa Press and to take over Lake House would be a debatable question. A charge of over reaction would not be unwarranted. It would also be true to say that the government displayed an authoritarian bent, in certain areas. These decisions, however, were taken at political levels, after discussions in political groups, and the involvement of career public servants was confined to preparing the necessary gazette notifications, and dealing with the legal and administrative issues of implementation.

Canada, Mexico, even war-torn Ukraine and adversarial Iran offer support, firefighters to contain Los Angeles wildfires, President-elect Trump sends misinformation

by Vijaya Chandrasoma

Mother Nature provided the most appropriately tragic backdrop to the imminent end of the Great Experiment of Democracy in the United States of America, the nation that has long been considered the Cradle of Democracy and the Leader of the Free World. The ongoing wildfires in California could well be the worst natural disaster the US has faced in history, a tragedy diminished only by the Second Coming of the Orange Jesus.

California, the most beautiful and populous state in the Union, has been, over the years, ravaged by natural disasters like earthquakes, wildfires, winter storms and droughts. Due to climate change, these disasters keep growing in size, frequency and intensity, with wildfire seasons growing longer in duration.

The current wildfires have now been brought under a certain degree of control in most areas. Residents who were forced to evacuate have been allowed to return to their homes, those which had not been totally destroyed. Wildfires in the most affluent and humble areas alike have devastated entire communities. Beautiful and wealthy homes and buildings in prestigious Los Angeles communities like the Pacific Palisades, Malibu and Pasadena now resemble bomb-stricken areas on the Gaza strip, with entire neighborhoods turned into rubble and ash.

The ferocity of these wildfires has also shown the resiliency of the human spirit. Devastated communities are pulling together, neighbors risking their lives to help neighbors. There was an outpouring of sympathy and assistance from all parts of the nation and the world. Mexico and Canada, among other nations, amazingly even war-torn Ukraine, a country which has been the victims of relentless bombing for three years, have sent their first responders to help in California’s disaster.

Of course, this compassion hardly touched the man who was going to be the president of the country in a few days. Trump has already started the blame game, accusing California Governor Newsom (or to use his kindergarten nickname, New-scum) for mismanagement of the proliferation of wildfires in California.

As these devastating fires continue to burn through Los Angeles, Donald Trump, self-proclaimed climate change scientist, continues with his theory that climate change is a hoax. His latest idiocy is that the current California fires were not caused by severe Santa Ana winds. Nor the unusually dry weather. Nor the possibilities of arson and negligence.

No, they were caused by a fish. A tiny bony fish, called a “smelt” that Trump alleges California’s Democratic Governor, Gavin Newsom, used precious water to protect, rather than conserving the water for the wildfires. As always, a monstrous lie. Trump states that one of his first duties after inauguration, after mass deportation of illegal immigrants and immediate drilling for oil, would be to deregulate non-existent water restoration plans, approved by Governor Newsom to protect an “essentially worthless fish”. Promises that will all meet the fate of the famous 2016 promise of the 3,000-mile border wall paid by Mexico.

The world’s real climate change scientists believe that we have already “passed the tipping point where the earth’s climate has crossed into a different system leading to potentially irreversible, catastrophic events”. Yet we remain complacent, take no serious action to mitigate these disasters.

On a lighter note, this year’s ongoing transition of power has thrown up a few cringeworthy “firsts” in the nation’s history.

This is the first time a president-elect has continued to sell, publicly and on TV, various products, like “golden” sneakers, Inauguration edition Bibles, wristwatches, boots, even autographed guitars. A more classless and tacky enterprise to disgrace the institution of the presidency would be hard to find. But once a snake-oil salesman, always a snake-oil salesman.

At a press conference after the November election, Trump claimed that the terror group, Hezbollah was responsible for the January 6, 2021 insurrection. A little later, at the same conference, he said he was going to pardon the “patriots” who carried out the same January 6 insurrection. Hezbollah will be so happy at being called patriots by the United States President-elect.

The year 2025 marks the first time a convicted felon has ever been the president-elect of the United States in its history. It is also the first time that the convicted felon president-elect has nominated another convicted felon, his son-in-law Jared’s father, Charles Kushner, as the US Ambassador to France.

Also the first time a president-elect has threatened to annex, by military force, if necessary, two sovereign nations, Panama and Greenland, an island owned by NATO ally, Denmark.

Trump has also claimed that Canada is really the 51st state of the United States of America, and he will annex that sovereign nation by economic force. His argument: that the American-Canadian border is an artificially drawn line and Canada is really a part of the United States.

Trump does not seem to understand that the borders of most countries in the world are artificial lines drawn by whichever colonial power had been in occupation at the time. Trump is using the exact same argument for annexation of independent, sovereign nations that Putin is using to invade Ukraine, that Xi Jinping is using to threaten Taiwan.

The confirmation hearings of Trump’s nominations for his cabinet are currently in progress. There is little doubt that the 53/47 majority Republican Senate will confirm Trump’s spectacularly unqualified, dangerously extremist cabinet choices, whose only qualification is lickspittle loyalty to the Fuhrer. In fact, the confirmation hearings at the Senate were a performance played out for an audience of one, with one Republican Senator tripping over another to display whose nose was browner.

During the hearings, just one of Trump’s nominations, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, his choice for Secretary of State, showed some semblance of independence, when he spoke of the value of the NATO alliance and the importance of resisting Russia’s geopolitical ambitions. His days are surely numbered.

The others who have so far been interviewed by the Senate refused to answer one simple question; whether they would resist obeying an unconstitutional or illegal order issued by Trump.

Defense Secretary nominee, Pete Hegseth refused to answer if he would remain faithful to international laws and the Geneva Convention if Trump instructed him to go against them. He also implied that torture, like waterboarding, would be justified under certain circumstances.

Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi refused to confirm that Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential election. She denied that she intends, as she has said on TV on numerous occasions, “to prosecute the prosecutors”, an obvious reference to taking legal action against those who headed the prosecutions of the 91 felonies committed by Trump. Liz Cheney, Jack Smith, Adam Schiff are three names that immediately come to mind.

On January 6, 2025, the US Congress constitutionally counted the electoral votes already certified by Congress the previous December. A feature of American democracy, this tradition, which was fractured in 2021, was resurrected in its constitutional form probably for the last time this year, when the President of the Senate, Vice-President Kamala Harris, acted according to the constitution and certified Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States.

No objections, no accusations of fraud, no violence resulting in murder and mayhem, no threats of the gallows or assassination of the President of the Senate and members of Congress. Just a tedious count of Electoral College votes and a 30-minute constitutionally boring speech by Vice-President Kamala Harris, certifying the presidency of Donald Trump. Thank the Lord we have seen these mind-numbing, boring, legal, constitutional procedures for the last time.

Instead, we saw the birth of a new tradition gaining ground in the political arenas of the United States and many other hitherto liberal nations in the world. Future presidential elections in these nations will be organized in the style of elections in oligarchies like Russia and North Korea, where war criminals like Putin and Kim il Sung, Trump’s erstwhile mentor and lover, respectively, are elected with overwhelmingly manufactured majorities and maximum fanfare.

In his 19-minute farewell speech from the Oval Office last Thursday, President Biden said that he is immensely proud of the achievements he leaves behind, suggesting that “it will take time to feel the full impact of what we’ve done together. But the seeds are planted, and they’ll grow and they’ll bloom for decades to come”.

Of course, the credit for the achievements of the Biden/Harris administration will be claimed by Trump, that they were created by him on the first day of his presidency. Just as he claimed the credit for the 75 months of consecutive economic development he inherited from President Obama in January 2017.

Trump will also claim the credit for the ceasefire-hostage deal which is close to agreement between the Israelis and Hamas, after months of difficult negotiations. Though Hamas agreed to the deal last Thursday, Netanyahu’s office is delaying it, alleging that “Hamas is reneging on parts of the agreement and trying to extort last-minute concessions”. However, it is likely that the Israel cabinet will vote in favor of Phase 1 of the ceasefire-hostage deal on Saturday, which will result in the initial release of 33 hostages.

Like climate change has taken the planet past the point of no return, the election of Donald Trump’s billionaire-backed Republican Party indicates that the United States has also passed the ideological tipping point and has crossed into a political system leading to a potentially irreversible oligarchic kleptocracy.

The rule of the oligarchs will be publicly displayed at Trump’s inauguration on Monday, when the richest men in the world, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and several other billionaires will be honored with the most prestigious seats, alongside senior members of Trump’s cabinet.

As President Joe Biden emphasized in his farewell speech, “Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead”.

(Excerpted from Rendering Unto Caesar by Bradman Weerakoon)

Dudley Senanayake was not only the youngest to serve as prime minister (he was 41 years old when called upon to do so by the Governor-General Lord Soulbury and succeeded his father D S in 1952) but also the one who had to fill the position the most number of times. The second occasion was after winning the election he called in 1952 and the third, the shortest tenure, after narrowly winning in March 1960. He actually went through the formal swearing-in ceremony before the governor general four times.

Now in 1965, fully matured after five years as leader of the opposition to Sirimavo’s first administration, he was back in office at the head of an assorted seven-party national government.’ It was called contemptuously by his opponents the ‘hath havula’ (in simple English, ‘the devil’s brew’). But he had a comfortable majority if he could hold the coalition together.

The UNP alone under his leadership had won 66 seats, and with the help of the Federal Party (14 seats), the SLFSP C P de Silva’s breakaway group from the SLFP (five seats), the Tamil Congress (three seats) and one each from the MEP, LPP and JVP not the Janata Vomukti Peramuna(which was yet to emerge, but the’Jatika’ Vimukti Peramuna of KMP Rajaratne) he was well ahead of Mrs Bandaranaike whose SLFP had won 41 seats.

This time, hardened by the long spell in the opposition, Dudley was a different being. I found him pugnacious and much more confident. The challenge of running a fractious team which included for the first time in government, the Federal Party in addition to such well known mavericks as Iriyagolle and Dahanayake (now resurrected from Galle) and the redoubtable Philip Gunawardene kept the adrenaline running. I knew I was going to enjoy the trip if I could stay the course. The problem was whether I could, or would be allowed to, considering the background of my close association for the past five years with the administration of Sirimavo Bandaranaike.

There were strong forces at work to have me out and replaced with someone more close to the UNP. My first sense of this was when I presented myself at the swearing-in ceremony of the new prime minister and Cabinet at Queens House before the Governor-General William Gopallawa. He had been Sirimavo’s choice soon after the abortive coup d’etat of 1962. Dudley was charming and greeted me in his usual cheery way but there were many black looks from the other UNP supporters around him.

The feisty Wimala Kannangara, soon to be a deputy minister in the new government, characteristically forthright but not with too much hostility, greeted me with, “What are you doing here? Aren’t you Mrs Bandaranaike’s blue-eyed boy?” Actually, this was the first time I had heard myself being called so. In the five years that he had been in the opposition I had seen Dudley only once or twice once at a DPL reception and the second time at his home when I called to condole with him on the death of his mother.

On the latter occasion I walked with the other mourners to Kanatte from his Woodlands home.

The swearing-in encounter was not the end of the matter. A week or two later, after I started working with Dudley, he appeared unusually serious one morning. He inquired of me whether I had been seeing Mrs Bandaranaike recently. I said I hadn’t. He laughed and said he was only checking because a delegation led by a very prominent monk associated with the UNP, the Ven’ble Malewana Gnanissara, had told him in all seriousness that they had information that I was seen recently at Rosmead Place in deep conversation with Mrs Bandaranaike. Dudley in his characteristic way accepted what I said, also adding that he had no problem with my meeting her socially, if I so desired and was certain that I would keep that within limits. This made me all the more convinced that I should avoid seeing her at all, even if social events were to bring us together.

About a month later, Dudley told me that he had had another group come to him with a similar story of my meeting Sirimavo. He had reprimanded them and said that if he believed all the stories which were coming to him about his officials, he would have only Carolis his valet left to work for him. This was the end of the matter but is illustrative of the campaign of ‘tale carrying’ that is rampant in the country and viciously erupts, especially at times of transition.

My relations with Mrs Bandaranaike begin to deteriorate

It had been a tearful farewell when Sirimavo left Temple Trees after Dudley had been sworn in as leader of the National Government. He had generously passed the word round that since 65 Rosmead Place was not immediately available, the house having been rented out to the Egyptian ambassador at the time, she could, if she wished, stay on at TT for a while. Sirimavo did not take advantage of the offer, made other arrangements and left within a few days.

She hoped, in her final conversations, that Dudley would not deal too harshly with me for having served her government so closely. I replied that I did not think he would because I had worked with him earlier and, moreover, I did not really mind being transferred out-station after 10 continuous years in Colombo. I even hoped it would be Puttalam where I could begin to plant coconut on a 25-acre block of jungle land a group of us public servants had got on leasehold some years earlier.

The only request she made of me was that a Ms Soma Bandaranaike whom she had appointed as manageress at TT would be kept on, as she needed the income the job gave her. I undertook to do my best. One morning soon after Dudley Senanayake took over, Mrs Bandaranaike spoke with me on the telephone about the manageress of Temple Trees who had been brought in during her time. This was Soma Dias Bandaranaike who was a relative and had done a good job if keeping the cooks and house boys in control.

Soma filled a permanent post but since she had come in by personal selection, she should normally have left with the change of government. However, she hadn’t any other job to go to and Mrs Bandaranaike suggested that if I could, she might be kept on. However, Dudley had his own ideas about who should manage the household and had been able to persuade a friend, a highly qualified and responsible retired health department administrative secretary, one Wijesuriya to take on the job.

He was really overqualified to be manager of TT but since the prime minister wanted him to be there and `Wije’ was willing, there was nothing to be done but give Soma a month’s notice and ask her to find some other job. Getting Soma out and putting Mr Wijesuriya in, caused some concern to Mrs Bandaranaike and I could sense the petulance when she called me. She, only half in jest, asked whether Dudley wanted the coast clear to bring in one of his girl friends. It was the first difficult conversation I had with her and I did not think I had managed that particular encounter at all well.

Leaders of the National Government discuss the DDCs

Dudley’s first priority was to cement relations with his new allies of the Federal Party. It was the first time in history that a national party representing the Tamil community was in partnership with the majority community in governing the country. Over the three years that the FP was in the cabinet, Dudley tried hard to make his concept of district development councils work. The DDCs would include all the members of Parliament in the district and would be vested with sufficient powers to exercise limited autonomy in critical areas of public concern.

But in attempting to take away powers from the central line ministers and pass them down to the districts he found himself thwarted by most ministers. No one was willing to give up anything. They wanted all the powers for themselves. The notion of devolution or subsidiarity was not yet in their thinking at all.

The discussions on the subjects and functions which might be devolved, under the direction and control of the central government, were often heated and tempers rose especially in the cross-talk between the Federal Party and the Tamil Congress. Once in the middle of a serious discussion where the intriguing subject of elimination of pests and noxious plants was being discussed at great length, and whether this subject should come under the DDC of the central government, G G Ponnambalam, with a mischievous twinkle in his eye, remarked that the subject might be better amended to read elimination of pests and noxious persons and given to the DDC, directing his look straight at Dr Naganathan. Naganathan who was not given to taking things lying down literally exploded in rage.