{"id":104400,"date":"2020-07-11T16:20:15","date_gmt":"2020-07-11T23:20:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=104400"},"modified":"2020-07-11T16:20:15","modified_gmt":"2020-07-11T23:20:15","slug":"a-narrative-of-deep-commitment-to-two-beloved-countries-lord-nasebys-sri-lanka-paradise-lost-paradise-regained","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2020\/07\/11\/a-narrative-of-deep-commitment-to-two-beloved-countries-lord-nasebys-sri-lanka-paradise-lost-paradise-regained\/","title":{"rendered":"A narrative of deep commitment to two beloved countries-Lord Naseby\u2019s SRI LANKA- Paradise Lost Paradise Regained"},"content":{"rendered":"

Review by Neville Ladduwahetty Courtesy The Island<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The title of this book comes from a\nline in an epic poem by John Milton on England\u2019s Civil War. Although the book\nis a narrative of the many contributions by the Author to further the interests\nof Sri Lanka, it is more about the armed conflict and its aftermath that\nattempted to alter the political future of Sri Lanka. Therefore, it is fitting\nthat the Author chose a line from a poem that deals with a Civil War that\ndefined the political future in his own country \u2013 the United Kingdom. The link\nis intriguing because the Author decided to identify himself with Naseby – a\nvillage in Northampton South, that was the constituency from which he, then\nMichael Morris, was elected as a Member of the British Parliament for twenty\nyears. Even more so is the fact that Naseby is where the historic Battle of\nNaseby took place as attested to in a letter from Oliver Cromwell dated 1645\ninforming the Speaker of the victory of England\u2019s Civil War. This battle at\nNaseby that defined the end of England\u2019s Civil War resulted in altering the\npolitical character of England for all time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The book was first published by\nUnicorn Publishing Group in 2020. It includes Forewords by The Rt. Hon.\nBaroness Boothroyd, House of Lords, and by a former President of Sri Lanka,\nH.E. Chandrika Bandaranaika Kumaratunga, together with a narrative covering\nNineteen Chapters and Appendices divided into three Sections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael Morris\u2019s abiding interest\nand fascination with Sri Lanka, which he repeatedly refers to as “my\nbeloved country”, can only be understood from the experiences and\nrelationships he and his young family forged when he assumed duties as\nMarketing Manager of the Reckitt & Colman Group in Ceylon. Equipped with an\nUpper Second degree in Economics from Cambridge, Michael Morris and his young\nwife Ann and baby arrived in Sri Lanka in May 1963.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of those special relationships\nthat had a profound and lasting influence on Michael\u2019s young life and future\nwas with the late Anandatissa de Alwis who was the head of J Walter Thompson.\nWhat started out as a telephone call and an invitation to dinner to inform\nMichael that he intended to contest the next election was the turning point for\nboth, and as it turned out, for Sri Lanka too. According to Michael, “Both\nof us found the evening a really stimulating experience as we bounced ideas off\neach other, so much so that we arranged to meet every Tuesday evening to talk\npolitics and electioneering. Towards the end of my stay he said: “You\nshould think of entering UK politics as you clearly have quite a bit to\noffer” (Chapter Two). Continuing, he states, “I owe him a huge thank\nyou for sowing the seed that eventually germinated on 28 February 1974 when I\nwas elected MP for Northampton South with a majority of 179” (Chapter\nTwo). “However, it might never have happened had not my dear late friend\nAnandatissa de Alwis played tennis, given me dinner regularly and discussed the\nprospects of standing for election to the Parliament later successfully\nbecoming the Speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament. I only became First Deputy\nSpeaker to the UK Parliament but he \u2018lit the lamp” (Chapter Nineteen).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These deeply felt sentiments\nexpressed by Michael Morris, now Lord Naseby, reflect a deep sense of gratitude\nto his dear late friend for lighting the lamp that launched his political\ncareer in UK, which became his launching pad to devote a lifetime to help Sri\nLanka in every possible way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most Sri Lankans know of Lord Naseby\nas the valiant soldier who undaunted by all the challenges thrown his way by\nthe UK bureaucracy, persisted and secured the dispatches sent by UK\u2019s Military\nAttache in Sri Lanka, Lt. Col. Anton Gash under provisions of the UK\nGovernment\u2019s Right to Information Act. Notwithstanding all these efforts that\nspanned from March 2014 until May 2016, he received “fifteen dispatches \u2013\nclaiming to be all there were – covering thirty-eight pages” of highly\nredacted material (Chapter Sixteen & Appendix VII). The relentless effort\nexpended by him reflects his persistence to secure vital material with which to\nchallenge the charge of war crimes leveled against the Sri Lankan Government\nand its Military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Most\nSri Lankans are not aware of his other contributions to further the interests\nof Sri Lanka. With a view to establishing bonds between the UK Government and\nSri Lanka, he created the All-Party British Sri Lanka Parliamentary Group in\nthe early 1970s which he claims “was not easy for a new boy”.\nFurthermore, it was a particularly difficult time to promote such a Group in\nthe background of political volatility in Sri Lanka coupled with the policies\nof the then Government under Prime Minister Mrs. Bandaranaike, that\nnationalized tea estates and introduced other socialist measures. Despite these\nchallenges, his persistence was rewarded when he was voted Chairman in June 1975\nat the inaugural meeting of the All-Party British Sri Lanka Parliamentary Group\n(Chapter Three). This position gave him access to the political establishments\nin UK and Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the election of Hon. J.R.\nJayewardene as Executive President of Sri Lanka in 1977, and the election of\nthe Conservative Party in UK with a huge majority and Mrs. Thatcher as the\nPrime Minister in 1979, the environment was ripe to foster the interests of Sri\nLanka. According to his narrative “Mrs. Thatcher was advised \u2026to pull out\nof the Victoria Dam Project. I asked her a question at Prime Minister\u2019s\nQuestion Time and as a result she invited me to Number 10 to explain why the UK\nshould continue with this very expensive project which had been initiated by\nLabour\u2019s Judith Hart MP. I was not in marketing and advertising for nothing. I\nmade my case, was listened to by the PM and thanked with the words: Well done \u2013\nyou have convinced me” (Chapter Four). At the ceremonial opening of the\nProject Mrs. Thatcher stated that the Victoria Dam Project was “the\nlargest single oversees aid project ever undertaken by Oversees Development\nAdministration” (Appendix 1). It was Michael Morris MP who made it happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael\u2019s attempt to get the BBC\nExternal Service to have an external service in Sinhala similar to the Tamil\nbroadcast because his Tamil friends had indicated to him that the BBC service\nin Tamil was biased in favour of Eelam, failed. His reaction was: “So much\nfor the impartiality of the BBC” (Chapter Five).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, undaunted by this failure\nhe and his friend Gamini Dissanayake, jointly engaged in a project that was\ndear to the hearts of both. That was to work out a strategy to get Sri Lanka\ninto the ICC. Their strategy was to “divide the task with Gamini as Chairman\nof Sri Lanka Cricket Board tackling India, Pakistan, Australia and New Zealand\nwhilst I agreed to lobby the MCC \u2013 the guardians of the game of cricket \u2013 the\nMinister of Sports and all the High Commissioners in London whose country\nplayed Test cricket. Between us we must have done a good job, for it was\nannounced in 1981 that Sri Lanka was elected to full Test status” (Chapter\nFive).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chapter 11 deals with the December\n2004 Tsunami and how he and his wife did not hesitate a moment to promptly\noffer their help to Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Their joint contribution to\ncope with the unprecedented challenges presented by this traumatic experience\nwas recognized by “the award of the Sri Lanka Ratna – the highest award\nthat can be given to a foreigner” by Sri Lanka\u2019s President Chandrika\nBandaranaike Kumaratunga,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The remaining Chapters with the\nexception of the final Chapter titled “Reflections”, deal with many\ntopics such as: Peace Talks; Indian intervention; Democracy in Reality;\nDespondency All Round; The war; Post war view in Sri Lanka and the view\nOverseas; Creating the chance to Succeed; Freedom of Information Act; War\nCrimes and The LTTE and other groups. It is evident that the focus of the book\nwas on the Sri Lanka\u2019s armed conflict and its aftermath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On a personal note, it was\nparticularly gratifying for me to find Lord Naseby objecting to accepting\n“Violations of Human Rights Law”. Continuing he states “This\nignores the self-evident fact that this was a war between the democratically\nelected and legitimate Government of Sri Lanka and a terrorist group, the LTTE.\nThe law that must operate is the law of armed conflict otherwise known as\nInternational Humanitarian Law. The European Convention on Human Rights upon\nwhich the British Human Rights Act is based is wholly inappropriate for\napplication in combat and battlefield conditions” (Chapter Fifteen).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The support for International\nHumanitarian Law as the Law to judge the conduct of Sri Lanka\u2019s armed conflict\nis of particular interest to me because I have been advocating such a position\nconsistently since 2008. The advocacy of International Humanitarian Law as the\nmost appropriate law to judge the conduct of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces and\nthe LTTE, was advanced by me during my presentation to the Lessons Learnt and\nReconciliation Commission (LLRC). Regrettably though, no Government of Sri\nLanka thus far has accepted this recommendation and advocated it in any of its\nofficial statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reading the book was a rewarding\nexperience particularly because of the attention one has to pay to style and\ndetail when reviewing a book. The repetition one notes when reading the book is\ninevitable because of the overlap of events and reference to personalities. The\ndaunting question he leaves for future generations to address is to find the\n“match to light the lamp” for the West to better understand Sri\nLanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, since patience\nand time has a way of healing thorny issues, the image of Sri Lanka in the West\ntoo would normalize with time. Persistence in handling issues with prudence and\npatience will win out in the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The message that one gets about the\nAuthor is that he is deeply committed to causes that he passionately believes\nin, thus reflecting a level of integrity and single minded purpose in all\nissues he sets his mind to and undertakes. This attitude enabled him to stand\nby those who made an impact on his life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fact that Michael MorrIs MP,\nlater Lord Naseby, held a positions of significant importance in the UK\nGovernment, gives the reader a unique exposure to the inner workings of his\nGovernment to a degree that few outside would have the privilege to know.\nFurthermore, the fact that he had access to the highest echelons of power in\nthe Governments of both the UK and Sri Lanka gave him a rare platform to pursue\nhis objectives and those of both Governments. One such incident was when his\nGovernment wanted him to contact President Jayewardene and canvass the support\nof Sri Lanka on the Falklands issue. The other was to convince the UK\nGovernment to undertake its largest single overseas aid project – the Victoria\nDam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consequently, this book is not the\nusual book on communal politics and power sharing arrangements, or about the\narmed conflict and post conflict issues. Nor is it about the national question\nand the continuing work of the Tamil diaspora in the West, written from either\na national perspective or as an outsider\u2019s narrative. Instead, the book is\nunique in that it is a narrative by one who was posted to Sri Lanka and who\ndeveloped deep and abiding personal relationships during his stay which enabled\nhim to take advantage of his considerable influence both in UK and Sri Lanka\nfor the betterment of mutually beneficial interests to both countries and its\nPeoples. As he says in the final Chapter titled “Reflections”, his\n“motivation to write the book was to record my experiences of a country\nwhich captivated my imagination\u2026and I was driven by one simple principle:\nwanting to help the people of Sri Lanka”. These motivations make the book\nan unusually enriching experience, not only to read but also as a historical\nrecord of his efforts to influence British and Sri Lankan relations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Review by Neville Ladduwahetty Courtesy The Island The title of this book comes from a line in an epic poem by John Milton on England\u2019s Civil War. Although the book is a narrative of the many contributions by the Author to further the interests of Sri Lanka, it is more about the armed conflict and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-104400","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-forum"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104400","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=104400"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104400\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104400"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104400"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104400"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}