H. L. D. Mahindapala

For the benefit of the readers who have not been following the exchange of letters between Izzeth Hussain and me published in The Island (March 30/April 9 and April 12)ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  let me state briefly how it all began. It began with him saying that ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Sinhala triumphalismƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ after the defeat of the Tamil Tigers would have been neutralized if President Mahinda Rajapakse, when he descended from the plane, did not ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-make obeisance to the tarmac.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ (Quote ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…”unquote). Watching President Rajapakse on TV which sane viewer would conclude that President Rajapakse ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-(made) obeisance TO the tarmacƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚? Did President Rajapakse ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-make obeisance TO the tarmacƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ or did he, in all humility, offer his gratitude to the nation kneeling down ON the tarmac? Either Hussain must adjust his glasses when he is watching TV or he must adjust his logic (if he is capable of it) for him to grasp the meaning of events unfolding before his warped vision.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ If you think that his logic is bizarre consider what he thinks should have been done by President Rajapakse as a gesture of reconciliation. One of his main complaints is that the Sinhalese and the President have acted in a triumphalist manner which is not conducive for reconciliation. And he is advising the President that instead of offering his thanks in the traditional way to the nation by kneeling down on the tarmac with folded palms, he should have poured sand over his head like Sultan Mohammed II when he marched triumphantly into Constantinople in 1453. According to Hussainic logic picking sand from a conquered land and pouring on the head is a better sign of reconciliation than kneeling down and offering thanks in the traditional Sri Lankan way. I shall deal with his SultanƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s sand later.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ But first a word about Izzeth Hussain. He writes regularly to the local media as a know-all pundit on Sri Lankan affairs. He joined the Foreign Service as a career diplomat but he fell out with the Foreign Minister, A. C. S. Hameed, because he was trying to teach his Minister how to suck eggs. Hameed put him in his place and Hussain left the Foreign Service. Later he was brought back by Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike and sent as Ambassador to USSR. After he came back his main occupation, as far as I know, has been to haunt the NGO circuit, off and on, and like all those in that circuit he has been pontificating on how the majority should treat the minorities. His latest lecture (published in The Island) was to tell President Rajapakse that he should have followed the example of Mohammed II and poured sand on his head, instead of paying his gratitude to the nation in the tradition way,

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ By now the readers would have guessed quite correctly that his eye sight (even when it comes to watching TV) is as bad as his logic. But he carries on regardless. He proceeds to announce rather patronizingly: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-It occurred to me that the tarmac is not the sacred soil of Sri Lanka but a product of Western technology.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ It is this comic logic (if it can be called logic at all!) that riled me. How can any sensible man claim that the tarmac at the Katunayake international airport is not a part of the sacred soil of Sri Lanka because Hussain says so? He was deliberately twisting the logic and realities purely to press his point that the act of Mohammed II pouring sand over his head was greater than President Rajapakse kneeling down and offering his thanks to the nation. Forget the logic. Just take the two incidents and compare both. Where is the humility and reconciliation in Mohammed II triumphantly pouring the sands of Byzantium over his head, clearly indicating that the soil, the land and everything in it is his own after his conquest? IsnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t this the ultimate expression of triumphalism? And where is the sign of reconciliation in MohammedƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s act of triumphalism?

In citing the example of Mohammed II he is also implying that the Muslim culture of pouring sand over the head is superior to the Sinhala culture as exemplified by President Rajapakse kneeling down at the airport. But the worst is how he fiddles with the historical facts. He has hidden the realities of MohammedƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s character by selectively quoting a line or two to down grade Sinhala culture ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” a common practice of all Westernized, pro-NGO ideologues like Hussain. He is disingenuous when he deliberately distorts the history of Mohammed II as a humble man who was after reconciliation.

The recorded history gives the lie to HussainƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s crafty and cunning misrepresentation. After the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 Mohammed II declared himself to be the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-CaesarƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ which was rejected by the Patriarch of Constantinople and the rest of Europe. Is this an act of reconciliation or triumphalism? Mohammed II also did not stop at Constantinople. He went on to capture other parts of the Europe as well. The most obscene act of his arrogant triumphalism was when he ordered the Grand Duke of Lucas Notaras to send his handsome 14-year old son for his ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-personal pleasure.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ When the Grand Duke refused to submit to such a degrading and inhuman act of forcing a father to sell his son for the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-pleasureƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Mohammed II ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” the great hero of Hussain — both the father and the son were executed.

The irony is that Hussain is in raptures, embracing the beastly brutality of his hero, Mohammed II and he has the gall to accuse me of supporting President Premadasa, a democratically elected head of state who used state power to crush the barbaric Sinhala terrorists of the JVP. I make no apologies for backing President Premadasa. He used state power after he had exhausted other means of negotiating with the Sinhala terrorists. He had no alternative but to fight fire with fire. In any case, did Mohammed II invade and conquer Constantinople withƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  80,000 soldiers and a massive fleet by throwing buriyani and wattalappan at the feet of the Byzantians? According to the logic of Hussain it is perfectly legitimate and even humane for Mohammed to attack and destroy Constantinople ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” one the greatest cultural centres of the Medieval Ages ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” but it is immoral for President Premadasa to use the legitimate power of the state to restore normalcy and security to people persecuted and humiliated daily, hour by hour, by the Sinhala terrorists. Hussain was able to drive to the occasional embassy party or to haunt the NGO circuit because President Premadasa crushed the JVP fascists using brutal force. One report claimed that the JVPers tied a man to a table and ran a scalding hot iron over his naked skin to make him confess.

President Rajapakse too faced a similar situation with the Tamil terrorists. He launched the military offensive only as a last resort. As I said earlier, his gesture at the Katunayake airport was in keeping with the traditional way of Sinhalese saying thank you with humility to respect the dignity of those to whom the salutations are offered. And he offered it to the whole nation on the tarmac (including Hussain). He has made it clear from the beginning that he was not fighting the Tamils but the Tamil Tiger terrorists. Besides, it was a victory worthy of triumphalism because the general consensus, nationally and internationally, was that the Tigers cannot be beaten and, therefore, the war should be stopped.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Hussain, however, twists the gracious and humble act of the President with his queer logic to impress that MohammedƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s pouring of sand on his head to declare publicly that he is the master of the earth which he has conquered ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” a blatant act of triumphalism — was superior to that of President Rajapakse kneeling down to offer his thanks to the nation. In making this comparison Hussain resorted to his wonky logic. So he dragged in a totally irrelevant connection saying that the tarmac was a product of Western technology and refuses to recognize that it is a product built on Sri Lankan soil, by Sri Lankan labour, with Sri Lankan money, and using Sri Lankan skills. As opposed to this he has no qualms about praising the Sultan bathing in Byzantian soil, which is a product of a foreign land. What is more it is not an act of humility, as Hussain claims it to be, but an act of boastful exhibitionism of a ruthless imperialist ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to glorify his use of brutal force to conquer territory that belongs to other nations..

Hussain ended his adoration of Mohammed by saying: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-I would like to see a TV image of President Rajapakse scooping up a handful of Sri Lankan soil and pouring it on his head ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” without any commentary at all.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Thankfully, Hussain has stopped at the point of asking President Rajapakse to bathe in sand following the example of his great hero, Mohammed II. I sincerely hope that he wouldnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t go any further and blame the President for not ordering Prabhakaran to send his son for his pleasure. Levity apart, who in their proper senses would agree to emulate Mohammed II to take Sri Lanka towards reconciliation, eh?

Practically, all the pundits who have been theorizing on the causes and solutions either to end the war and or for reconciliation are like Hussain:ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  they come up with weird models that have never worked for the simple reason that they have failed to get the basics right. For instance, asking the President to pour sand over his head like Mohammed IIƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  — even as a symbolic act of reconciliation — is as valid as asking a hungry man to eat sand for breakfast, lunch and dinner. These pundits also cite foreign models as if the Sri Lankans are not capable of evolving their own solutions. Hussain is a typical example of a voodoo theorist promoting imported models as the panacea for Sri Lankan problems. The less we have of these types of pundits the better it is for the nation to move away from the likes of Mohammed II to find home made models.

Hussain has also challenged me to show examples of where he has expressed doubts about reconciliation. I wonder whether Hussain even understands what he writes. If he had no doubts about the nation moving towards reconciliation why did he ask the President to pour sand as a gesture of reconciliation? He sees every Sinhala act as ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-triumphalismƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ and even argues that the mass movements of Sinhalese visiting Jaffna could be considered as acts of triumphalism. How much more nutty can he get, eh? Instead of debunking such inanities he bends over backwards to justify Dr. D. Nesiah, an apparatchik of the failed MARGA institute, who apparently feels that the Sinhala ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-conquerorsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ are visiting Jaffna. Hussain even goes as far as saying: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦(I)t has to be expected that Sinhala group visits to Jaffna could be seen by the Tamils as betokening Sinhala triumphalism much more than a process of reconciliation.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ He goes further and blames the government and the opposition for not addressing the issue of finding a solution. If this isnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t a confirmation of his doubts what is? He backs Dr. Nesiah by adding: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-We should try to understand Dr NesiahƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s negative reaction, instead of snarling at him.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ According to Hussainic logic we should not read his critical statements as expressing doubts but as affirmation of the positive trends of the government and the opposition moving towards reconciliation. When will he ever get real?

Sometimes, I wonder whether it is worth taking on Hussain and his ilk because it is as futile as chopping the heads of scarecrows whose head pieces are filled with straw. Take the example of his objecting to the adjective ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-HussainicƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ as opposed to ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-HussainianƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚. He thinks the former is derisory and the latter is respectable. Well, whatƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s in a name, buddy? DonƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t you know by now that ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-HussainicƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ by the other name ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-HussainianƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ smells the same?

From this point he leaps to the cheapest trick of the anti-Sinhala-Buddhist pundits who pick up stray remarks and pop ditties where ethnics figure prominently. He is always harping on funny ditties, as he calls them, about ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Abdul Hameed, dumi ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…”dumi-tum / Sala-malai kumƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚, or other pop ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-dittiesƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢. He claims that this is the way the Sinhalese vilified Muslims and other ethnics. Our generation sang all these pop ditties and my Muslim and Tamil colleagues joined in lustily because they all understood it was all a part of the dayƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s fun and nothing more. They also joined in singing: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Sinhalaya modaya / Kavun kanda yodayaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ as a refrain. The Sinhalese who are very good at cutting down tall poppies are the first to create stories and ditties about their own ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ leaders and their own community. For instance, the ditties about JRJ, Premadasa and SWRD run into scores. When I sang one of those ditties against ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Banda and his CabinetƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ (in fun and not in hate) at the Balangoda Planters Club one night Mrs. B complained to her husband and there was a police inquiry into it.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

Besides, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Abdul Hameed, dumi-dumi-tumƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ etc were not deliberately circulated ditties like the way the British government manufactured jokes to portray the Irish Patricks as dumbos. I live in Australia and the ethnic jokes against Asians and even European migrants have never diminished. The Italians are labeled as ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-DagosƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚, the Chinese as ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-slant-eyes of the yellow perilƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ and Sri Lankans as ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Curry munchersƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚. All ethnic communities look askance at each other. This is common the world over. But our local pundits, who have run short of evidence, accuse the Sinhalese as if they are the only community in the world that recite ethnicized ditties or stories. These pundits expect the world to consider this as signs of the Sinhalese vilifying the minorities. This is not evidence of vilification. This can be considered only as a kind of incurable paranoia of delinquent minds looking for excuses to demonize the Sinhalese who had given refuge to the ancestors of Hussain when they had nowhere to go, as they retreated from the glorified ancestors of Western democracies who were persecuting them

In any case, stereotyping characters has been a common occurrence among the best of classical writers, with memorable legends like Malvolio and Micawber. Of course, there are some who argue that Shakespeare stereotyped the Jews in his portrayal of Shylock. But in his interpretation Sir Laurence Olivier gave a human fact to Shylock. He did not make him look like the man who was out to get his pound of flesh. When he declaimed solemnly:: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-If you prick us do we not bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh? etcƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Sir Olivier made Shylock look more like a victim than a victimizer. It all depends how you read it.

I wonder how Hussain would have characterized his fellow-Muslim, A. C. S. Hameed, with whom he fell out when he was a career diplomat in the Sri Lankan Foreign Service. Their private battle was a saga in itself. But it is reasonable to assume that, with his persecution mania, he would probably have characterized his problems in the Foreign Ministry as a gross act of oppression of a Muslim (and the Muslim community) by a Sinhala chauvinist if his boss happened to be a Sinhalese.

ItƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s time he grew up and faced reality as it is and not through his myopic glasses which are not giving him a clear view of whatƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s happening before his own eyes, let alone things happening elsewhere in the nation. A greater sense of maturity in reading and understanding what is happening around him would also add some sense into his nonsense, ItƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s time he got real and I hope it would happen before he replies to me again. Perhaps, a bath in the sands of the beach at Bambalapitiya might help him to come down to earth.