{"id":101491,"date":"2020-04-23T16:55:51","date_gmt":"2020-04-23T23:55:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=101491"},"modified":"2021-03-03T17:23:21","modified_gmt":"2021-03-04T00:23:21","slug":"the-general-election-of-1956-part-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2020\/04\/23\/the-general-election-of-1956-part-3\/","title":{"rendered":"THE GENERAL ELECTION OF 1956 Part 3"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

This essay lists some of the many changes\nand improvements made by the MEP government of 1956.  These changes, carried out between 1956 and\n1958 have not got the recognition it deserves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UNP\ngovernment followed an anti-communist and pro western foreign policy. The MEP\ngovernment, on the other hand, swung to a non aligned position in foreign\naffairs.  A\nnumber of world leaders visited Sri Lanka   \nwhen SWRD was Prime Minister. They included Robert Menezies, Prime Minister\nof Australia, Walter Nash, Prime Minister of New Zealand, Diefenbaker, Prime Minister\nof Canada, Harold Macmillan, Prime Minister of UK, Ludwig Erhard, Deputy Prime\nMinister of Germany and Soekarnao, President of Indonesia. This was an\nimpressive recognition of SWRD and a tribute to his policy of non alignment,\nsaid Vernon L.B. Mendis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MEP government established\ndiplomatic relations with socialist countries.  Viliam\n\u0160irok\u00fd Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia<\/a>  and\nPresident Josip Broz Tito, President of Yugoslavia\nvisited 1958. <\/em>Sri Lanka was one of the first countries to\nestablish diplomatic relations with Cuba soon after Fidel Castro took power in\n1959. \u2018Che\u2019 Guevara visited Ceylon as Castro\u2019s special emissary in August 1959.\nGuevara visited Yahala Kele rubber estate in Horana and planted a Mahogany tree\nthere. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

MEP decided to\nopen diplomatic relations with the Peoples\u2019 Republic of China and the Soviet\nUnion. Before doing so, SWRD informed the British and U.S. governments of his\nintention.  In this way, he avoided\nabrasiveness in implementing foreign policy decisions, said diplomat Bandu de\nSilva. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\n1955 the UNP government did not allow soviet scientists to come here to observe\nthe eclipse of the sun. In\n1957, the MEP government established diplomatic relations with   Russia. Gunapala Malalasekera was the first\nambassador to Russia. This was an excellent\nchoice.  In 1958, an agreement on\ncooperation in economic and technical spheres between the Soviet Union and\nCeylon was signed. Sri Lanka was able to gain Russian assistance in many\nfields\u2019, projects including Oruwala Steel Mill, Modera Flour Mill, Kelaniya\nTyre Factory, Samanala Weva hydro-energy project, Russian aid and technology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sri Lanka also\nreceived heavy machinery such as tractors, tippers, cranes. Russia helped some\nhousing projects, too.  Russia gave scholarships\nto Sri Lankan students, to study medicine and engineering at prestigious\nRussian universities. Sri Lanka exported\ntea, rubber, coconut oil and coir products to Russia. Tea was the major export\nitem to Russia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SWRD established\ndiplomatic relations with China in 1957. Chou en Lai visited in 1957 during his tour of\nAsian countries. He was invited to\nparticipate at the ninth celebrations of Sri Lanka\u2019s Independence. He came with\nVice Premier He Long.  Prime Minister Chou\nclimbed Sigiriya and also visited a colonization scheme and met colonists. Sometime\nlater, China sent the Beijing Opera to Sri Lanka. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was\nsignificant that within a space of four months in early 1957, the Prime\nMinisters of India and China were here as State guests, said D.C.Ranatunga.\nFirst to come was Chinese Prime Minister Zhou Enlai. The second leader to visit\nSri Lanka was Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, accompanied by daughter\nIndira The highlight of his visit was a trip to Anuradhapura where a large crowd\nwas present to listen to his address. Nimal\nKarunatilleke translated Nehru\u2019s speech into Sinhala. Prime Minister\nBandaranaike hosted official receptions at Temple Trees, for Nehru and Chou en\nLai, when they visited. The foreign affairs commentary\nin Radio Ceylon was headed by an Englishman. SWRD did not like its rightwing\nslant. He appointed Mervyn de Silva to the post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Britain withdrew from Ceylon, the naval\nport of Trincomalee, Katunayake Air base and some camps at Diyatalawa remained\nin the hands of Britain. DS Senanayake as Prime Minister readily agreed to this\nwhen the terms of independence were negotiated. SWRD got back Trincomalee and\nKatunayake, when he became Prime Minister. Trincomalee was taken back on October\n15 1957 and Katunayake on November 1 1957. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

SWRD had presented a Cabinet paper on the\ntransfer of army and navy bases back to Sri Lanka. Britain wanted the transfer\nsubject to their terms and conditions. SWRD did not agree.  He said that the return of the bases was something\nthat Ceylon had the right to demand without any qualifications. Britain\naccepted that Ceylon could give them notice to quit.  Britain had no grounds on which to\nrefuse.   \u2018In the last resort we have\ndepend on the good will of Ceylon\u2019, admitted Britain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vidyodaya Pirivena, (Maligakanda), and\nVidyalankara Pirivena (Kelaniya) were the leading pirivenas of the time. They\nhad played a historical role during the British occupation, in preserving\nBuddhist learning and in projecting the image of a strong Maha Sangha.  SWRD recognized this and took action to\nelevate these two Pirivenas to University status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vidyodaya University<\/strong> and Vidyalankara University Act No 45 of 1958\nconverted these two pirivenas to universities. The two universities were duly\nestablished at Maligakanda and Kelaniya respectively. This was sneered at. The\nwestern oriented University of Ceylon was quite sufficient, said the opponents\nof SWRD. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Welivitiye Soratha <\/strong>who was the Principal of the\nVidyodaya Pirivena was appointed as the first Vice-Chancellor of the Vidyodaya\nUniversity, and the university was ceremonially opened on 16th February 1959.\nToday, this has become University of Sri Jayawardenepura. Vidyalankara Pirivena\nbecame the Vidyalankara University in 1959. It is today University of Kelaniya.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1956 for the first time a\nMinistry was formed for Cultural Affairs. \nMinistry of Cultural Affairs was established on\n12.04.1956 in accordance with the Throne Speech made by the MEP\ngovernment when it came into power in 1956. It was established to formulate and\nimplement a national cultural policy to regenerate the indigenous cultural\ntradition which had been suppressed for so long, under colonial rule.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1956, Parliament passed the Official Language Act\nno 33 of 1956. It was passed\nafter a marathon debate, with 66 \u2018for\u2019 and 20 \u2018against.\u2019 The Act said that the Sinhala language \u2018shall be the\none official language of Ceylon.\u2019 The Act came into effect on 1st<\/sup> January 1964.  All government transactions throughout the\ncountry had to be in Sinhala from 31.10 1964. \nTherefore it was not \u2018Sinhala in 24 hours\u2019. That statement is incorrect. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Sinhala only\u2019\nwas never \u2018Sinhala only\u2019. Critics observed that the Act had failed to limit the use of Tamil\nand English, \u2018as it should have done\u2019. Nor did it make\nSinhala compulsory in schools. No subsidiary legislation was\npassed under the Act either. Implementation was based solely on administrative\norders and Cabinet directions. As a result, state administration was conducted\nin English above a certain level. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\nwere many positive results from Sinhala Only. \nIt brought a hitherto submerged class onto center stage and upward\nmobility,   said Meegama. TIME said until\nnow, citizens could not send         telegrams\nmake long distance calls, make out a bill of lading or hold a government job\nunless they spoke English. Sinhala only\nalso led to\nsignificant changes in the administration of justice in Sri Lanka. Sinhala was\nmade the official language in 1956 and  \nthis led eventually to the use of Sinhala in courts of law, said WTA\nLeslie Fernando. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A National Planning Council was\nformed it. This was a first for the country. This Council brought out Ceylon\u2019s\nfirst Ten Year Plan for 1959-68. It was the first comprehensive and systematic plan\ncovering both public and private sectors, unlike earlier plans which covered\nonly the public sector. It extended beyond the usual five years, said the\nCentral Bank in its 25 anniversary review. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The MEP government made   a lasting contribution to the social\nlegislation of the country. There was significant labour legislation, said\nMeegama.  These laws are now taken for granted.  The pioneer role of the MEP is forgotten\ntoday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Prevention of Social Disabilities Act, No.\n21 of 1957 prohibited discrimination on the basis of caste. This was a boon to the low caste groups in Jaffna, who at the time\nwere prevented from entering certain temples and barber shops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Act permitted all persons to\nenter and be served at, any public hotel, rest house,\neating house, and restaurant. Obtaining or using water from any public well,\nspring, water-pipe or any other source of supply of water to the public.\nEntering, or obtaining the service provided at a public hairdressing saloon or\nlaundry. Entering any public cemetery and attending or taking part in any\nburial or cremation. No person should be prevented from entering and worshipping\nin any temple which belongs to that person\u2019s religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MEP government set up Conciliation\nBoards   to   facilitate amicable settlement of disputes. The\nConciliation Boards Act No. 10 of 1958\nwas passed amidst opposition from vested interest. Conciliation Boards were to operate\nin all villages. Boards were empowered to settle dispute of a civil nature, especially\nthose which related to moveable property. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was not until 1958 that a serious attempt\nwas made to reintroduce the concept of the \u2018amicable settlement of disputes\u2019 by\nintroducing the Conciliation Boards Act 1958, said legal experts. The Act\nprovided for mandatory community level resolution of minor disputes by\nimpartial conciliators. The objective of the Act was to make available to\ndisputants a much more accessible, less expensive, speedy and participatory\ndispute management process.  They did a tremendous service by settling the\ndisputes at village level and preventing length litigation in courts, said WTA\nLeslie Fernando. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Conciliation Boards operated from\n1958- 1977. Problems with the implementation and\napplication of the Act ultimately led to its repeal in 1977, said analysts. The Mediation Boards Act no 72 of 1988 is nothing but a\ncontinuation of the Conciliation Boards, said WTA Leslie Fernando. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Labour Tribunals were set up on 2.5.1959.\n. Until these tribunals were set up, a worker had to go to the civil courts\nwhen he was wrongly dismissed. This was beyond the worker\u2019s means. With the creation of Labour tribunals, the\nworkman with a grievance now had a place to go to. He could get a non lawyer to\nappear for him in the Labour Tribunal. The Labour Tribunals provided speedier\njustice than the courts .  TB Ilangaratne minister of labour, housing and\nsocial service in the 1956 government was responsible for introducing the\nlegislation for this in Parliament. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) was\nestablished under the Act No. 15 of 1958 and is currently the largest Social\nSecurity Scheme in Sri Lanka. It had an asset base of Rs. 2,289 billion in\n2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MEP government of 1956 nationalized the \u2018port\n\u2018and the bus services. All cargo handling operations in the port of Colombo\nwere nationalized in 1958.  There is no\nfurther information on this. It is different with nationalization of bus\nservices. There is plenty written on that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MEP had promised to nationalize the\nbus companies and create a State Transport Board.  There were several large bus companies at the\ntime. South Western Bus Company of Cyril de Soyza operated on the Colombo-Galle\nroute. Silver line bus service   operated\nin Colombo. Sri Lanka Omnibus Company owned\nby Jayasena Madanayake of Peliyagoda, operated Colombo-Kandy- Gampaha-,\nKurunegala run. Panadura Motor\nTransport Company of Leo Fernando operated on Panadura- Ratnapura- Wellawaya-\nButtala route. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was a host of smaller companies\nin the outstation. Siri Medura Bus Company ran buses   from Gampaha to Waturugama.  There was the Blue line Company, Green line\ncompany,  Uva Bus company, Madhyama Lanka,  Kandy Omnibus,  Galle Motor company and so on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was long standing\ndissatisfaction with the bus service provided by these private companies. There\nwas much public anger over the deplorable service provided and the huge profits\nthat the bus owners were making, which they did not use to improve the service.\nThere was rivalry between the bus owners and brutal fights. Employees were\nbadly treated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The call for nationalization of\nbus service had been there for a long time, but the UNP government was not\nprepared to nationalize. The Bus company owners were all supporters of the UNP.\nThey provided the UNP with funds and also provided gangs for intimidation\nduring elections.  In the 1950s, 27    MPs had interests in the bus companies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The MEP nationalized the private\nbus service. The Motor\nTransport Bill for the nationalization of bus services was presented to the\nHouse of Representatives on September 24, 1957 and passed on October 17, 1957. It was passed without division. Buses were nationalized in 1958. SWRD wanted the nationalization\ndone in stages, Philip Gunawardene insisted that it must be done in one go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All road passenger transport services were\ntransferred from private to state ownership and on January 1, 1958 by Transport\nAct No. 48 of 1957. The Ceylon Transport Board (CTB) was created to operate an\nall island bus service. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 SWRD\nappointed   a senior member of the Civil\nService, Vere de Mel as Chairman, He was an excellent choice. He handled the\ntakeover expertly, then set up an integrated bus transport system which for the\nfirst time catered to   hitherto\ninaccessible parts of the island. CTB also made it possible for passengers to\ntravel to distant  places without having\nto change buses at  several  points, \nnoted Meegama. It should be observed,  however, that while this may have been\ngood for transport, it was  a  calculated hit at the  emerging Sinhala business man.  The takeover was a severe blow to them and\nmany \u2018bus mudalalis\u2019 never recovered from it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

May Day was declared a holiday in Sri Lanka in\n1956 for the Government sector, bank and mercantile sectors. Ayurveda was revived, .  A  \nfilm  and recording studio\nwas  set up In Kirula Rd, Colombo for\nmaking  films.\nThis was  very welcome. Until  this studio was set up,  the Sinhala film makers had to go to India to\nget their films processed.  ( Continued)\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS This essay lists some of the many changes and improvements made by the MEP government of 1956.  These changes, carried out between 1956 and 1958 have not got the recognition it deserves. UNP government followed an anti-communist and pro western foreign policy. The MEP government, on the other hand, swung to a non […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-101491","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101491","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101491"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101491\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101491"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101491"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101491"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}