Philip Gunawardena

an illustrious son of the soil:

W. T. A. Leslie FERNANDO

In the beginning of the 20th century there lived in Hevagam Korale in the Kelani Valley a wealthy landowner called Don Karolis Rupasinghe Gunawardena. A Vidane Arachchi with a commanding personality, he was popularly known as Boralugoda Ralahamy'. He was married to Dona Liyanora Gunasekera, a kula kantava (noble lady) from Samanabedda in Siyane Korale. Philip was the fourth son of ten children, three boys and seven girls born to them.

Philip was born on January 11, 1901 at Boralugoda Walawwa in Kosgama. He read his 'Sakaskada' at the Boralugoda Temple and had his primary education at Siddhartha Vidyalaya, Kaluaggala built by his father. He had his secondary education at Prince of Wales College, Moratuwa and Ananda College, Colombo.

Family roots

The Gunawardenas were prominent gentry in the Hevagam Korale. Philip grew up with his brothers and sisters in the lap of luxury. Boralugoda Ralahamy was a patriarch who raised his children to be devout Buddhists, proud of their Sinhala heritage. Even as teenagers, Philip and his brothers were attracted to the stirrings of nationalism.

While studying at Ananda College, Philip and his brother Robert took up residence at the house of T. B. Jayah, a statesman involved in the freedom struggle, who at the time was a teacher at Ananda College. While being there, Philip came into contact with Anagarika Dharmapala, Walisinghe Harischandra and John de Silva at the residence of W. A. de Silva and was inspired by their patriotism.

After passing the London Matriculation from Ananda, Philip joined the University College and followed a course in economics. As a young student, Philip attended the meetings of the National Congress but later became a sympathiser of 'Young Lanka League', a radical organisation led by Victor Corea, A. E. Gunasinghe and C. H. Z. Fernando.

Boralugoda Ralahamy now wanted to send his promising son to England to become a Barrister-at-Law. But Philip turned to America and sailed to the USA. He studied two years at the University of Illinois and four years at the University of Wisconsin and obtained a doctorate in Agricultural Economics.

While in the United States, Philip came under the influence of Scot Nearing, the pioneer Professor in Socialism and became a socialist. He worked in collaboration with Indian socialists Jayaprakash Narayan, Seyed Hussain, J. C. Kumarappa and the Mexican revolutionary Jose Vanconcelaus. In New York, Philip participated in trade union activities and once some Negro workers in the city carried Philip on their shoulders for leading them to win their demands.

Political figure

In 1928, Philip came to the UK and became a member of the Communist Party. He participated in the activities of the Indian League with Krishanan Menon. He organised anti-imperialist activities with Jomo Kenyata of Kenya, Ram Gulam of Mauritius and Tuan Malacca of Malaya. Philip was a fascinating speaker who propounded socialism attacking the imperialist machinery and Hyde Park Corner in London used to reverberate with his thunderous voice.

While in England, Philip gradually moved away from the Communist Movement. He was taken up by the criticism of the Stalinist regime in Russia by Leon Trotsky and became a Trotskyite. In England, Philip met Dr. N. M. Perera, Dr. S. A. Wickremasinghe, Dr. Colvin R. de Silva and Vernon Gunasekara. He formed a Marxist circle with them and that became the nucleus of the LSSP in our country.

Leadership

The imperial Government had impounded the passport of Philip because of his Marxist activities. It was only after the intervention of Sir D. B. Jayatilaka at the request of Boralugoda Ralahamy that Philip was allowed to return to Sri Lanka.

Philip landed in Sri Lanka on November 01, 1932 and he began to organise a broad based movement against the colonial set up. His strategy was to form a single political party that would give the leadership to both the anti-imperial struggle and the socialist movement. When N.M., Colvin and Leslie returned to the island, Philip had already initiated the proletarian movement.

The first socialist party in Sri Lanka, the LSSP was inaugurated on December 18, 1935. Philip Gunawardena was the energy and brains behind the party. Although Philip pushed Colvin to be the first president of the party, all were conscious that Philip was the real leader. (Dr. N. M. Perera; Philip Gunawardena, the Father of Socialism in Ceylon - 'Daily Mirror', March 28, 1972). The LSSP adopted a manifesto to obtain full independence and establish a socialist society. It avoided controversial issues like Trotkyism and Stalinism.

Directing force

Philip was a dynamo of activity and he was the directing force of the LSSP. People were attracted by his fire-brand speeches that mesmerised the audience. They were taken up by his charismatic personality and his sincerity of purpose.

In 1936, State Council elections, Philip comfortably won the Avissawella Seat and N.M. won Ruwanwella. The political duo Philip and N.M. vociferously championed the cause of the underprivileged in the State Council. They voiced the sentiments of the masses against oppression of rulers, drawbacks of the Ministers and injustices of various officials and unmasked them. N.M. took the lead from Philip whom he admired to the point of hero worship. (Charles Wesley Ervin - 'Philip Gunawardena the making of a Revolutionary, 2001 - page 24).

The reactionary elements got alarmed when the LSSP rapidly gained ground in the country, and tried to suppress it. They sent thugs to suppress the LSSP meetings. But Philip and Robert used both brains and brawn and with the assistance of Harbour workers made those hirelings run for their lives. Strangely enough in many instances Philip was taken to Courts as an accused but he was honourably acquitted in all the cases.

Imprisoned

During the World War II, the Colonial Government proscribed the LSSP and its leaders Philip, N.M., Colvin and Edmund Samarakkody were imprisoned. In the confusion that followed after the Japanese bombed Colombo on April 05, 1942, the LSSP leaders broke the Bogambara jail and escaped. Later, some of them fled to India and accordingly Philip lived in India under the assumed name Curusamy. Later his wife Kusuma too fled to India and joined him. Their eldest son was born in India and they named him as Indika.

Soon Philip and N.M. were arrested in India and brought back to Sri Lanka. They were sentenced to six months' rigorous imprisonment for breaking the jail. In prison Philip had to husk coconuts and he learned to rattan chairs. When the War ended in 1945, Philip and N.M. were unconditionally released.

Formation of VLSSP

In 1947 Parliamentary elections, Philip won Avissawella as the candidate of the LSSP with an overwhelming majority.

However, in 1948, he forfeited the seat when he was sentenced to three months' rigorous imprisonment over an incident in the South Western bus strike. Kusuma was returned uncontested in his place for Avissawella.

In 1950, when the LSSP and Bolshevik Leninist Party merged, Philip left the party with his band of 42 supporters who were mainly Harbour workers, peasants and swabhasha teachers and formed the VLSSP. In 1951, the VLSSP formed a united front with the Communist Party. The LSSP and CP-VLSSP United Front organised the famous 1953 Hartal which was a success.

By 1955, Philip shifted his political orientation. From being a figure subscribing to the basic Marxist tenets of the need for a dictatorship of the proletariat, he was gravitated to a position which recognised the need to go beyond the urban working class and rural labourers and ally with other social formations in rural Sri Lanka. (Dr. Ananda Meegama; Philip Gunawardena and the 1956 Revolution in Sri Lanka, 2008 - page 43). Accordingly in 1956, the VLSSP joined the Non-Marxist parties like the SLFP and Bhasha Peramuna to form the MEP.

At the 1956 General Elections, the MEP which got the blessings of Sangha, Veda, Guru, Govi, Kamkaru: Pancha Maha Balavegayas gained the power. As the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Co-operatives Philip Gunawardena forged ahead with a radical agenda.

Philip introduced the Paddy Land Act to emancipate the tenant farmer and increase the yield. Multi-Purpose Co-Operative Scheme to ensure proper distribution of produce and the Co-Operative Development Bank which was later renamed and implemented as the People's Bank to uplift the rural sector.

During the three years tenure of Philip Gunawardena as a Minister, there was unprecedented development and growth in every subject under its purview Philip was the force behind the nationalisation of bus transport and the Port. He was also instrumental in the take over of British Air Force base at Katunayake and Naval Base in Trincomalee to remove last shackles of colonial rule.

Leader of common man

Philip Gunawardena addressing a public rally. File photo

In 1965, Philip joined the coalition Government of the gentleman politician Dudley Senanayake. Although Philip was much criticised about that move, Philip achieved so much as the Minister of Industries and Fisheries in 1965-70 Government.

He set up the Industrial Development Board and introduced a national industrial policy. He streamlined many public corporations to make them viable institutions. He developed Tyre and Steel Corporations with the help from the Soviet Union. He got Chinese and Japanese aid and facilitated the mechanised fishing industry. It was he who put Fisheries Corporation into operation.

To the surprise of many, Philip lost the Avissawella Seat in the 1970 elections. But he was not disheartened. He wanted to re-orient the MEP to suit the changing times but he unexpectedly fell ill. He passed away on March 26, 1972.

At his death, it was Dr. N. M. Perera, one time his close ally and later a bitter foe in politics that paid the greatest tribute to Philip. He expressed thus on Philip. "History will no doubt accord him his rightful place in the political life of this country. In the years to come, when lesser mortals like us have played their evancent part and vanished into the limbo of forgotten, a grateful socialist Ceylon will remember him with pride and place him in the worthy pedestal due to him."

Philip Gunawardena was a man of vision who realised that national development should be in harmony with our much cherished spiritual and cultural values. And he was a man of stern moral rectitude. The District Judge who dismissed a defamation case filed by a senior DIG against him declared that Philip was an embodiment of honesty and integrity.

Philip led an unostentatious family life. He and Kusuma were blessed with four sons and one daughter. They all are shinning stars in their various fields. The personal life of Philip epitomised the cream of high moral values found in our rich cultural heritage disciplined by Buddhist way of life.

Philip Gunawardena was indeed a statesman par-excellence.

(The writer is a former High Court Judge and Vice-President of the Newman Society Alumni Association)