Lalith Athulathmudali

Premature death of a visionary:

A. Godwin DE ALWIS President - Pragna Study Circle

The grateful people of Sri Lanka commemorated the 16th death anniversary of Lalith Athulathmudali yesterday (23), who devoted, dedicated and finally sacrificed his life for the good of the people of Sri Lanka.

It is my intention not to write up a traditional eulogy but to analyse and highlight some unique features in his life which I believe would enlighten and inspire us to serve the Motherland in a greater measure.

In 1977, Lalith streaked into the national political arena like a meteor and for the first time entered Parliament as the M.P. for Ratmalana. A leader with multi-faceted talents Lalith was entrusted with the portfolio of Trade and Shipping by the President J.R. Jayewardene. An intellectual par-excellence, within a short period he was able to transform the Trade and Shipping Ministry to be the live wire of the national economy.

In order to meet the challenge i.e. to serve the consumers who put the new Government into power, Lalith was determined to grant some relief to the people as early as possible. He has a master plan in that he took the positive step to liberalise the trade thus paving the way for competition between private sector and public sector. Thus, Sathosa, Marketing Department, Salu Sala and a host of State Corporations. Boards and Departments were reformed and revived to compete with the private sector.

Lalith had a vision for the port of Colombo not forgetting Galle and Trincomalee Harbours. He determined to make the Port of Colombo - the hub of the Region. He has introduced legislation to unify two State Corporations and a Government Department and form the Sri Lanka Ports Authority with a work force of 23,000. With his vision, he appointed one of the brilliant Civil Servants of the day, Wimal Amarasekara as the first Chairman of the SLPA and Port Commissioner K.S.C. De Fonseka as the Managing Director.

Within a period of five years under his guidance and advice, the port of Colombo emerged as one of the leading ports in the Region. Meanwhile every encouragement and incentive were offered to lower ranks thus eliminating the menace of strikes from the Port of Colombo.

These three major commercial institutions had a direct impact on the life of the people. Having assessed their shortcomings Lalith released funds to these three institutions and motivated them to serve the consumers to satisfy their needs. With the discerning changes and improvements made, once again consumers flocked to these three State institutions to satisfy their needs. Sathosa, Salusala and Marketing Department were able to win back their customers. It was a blessing in disguise to the common man.

The Creation of the National Insurance Corporation was the brainchild of Lalith. It emerged as a competitor to Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation. This decision not only helped the customer but also created competition between two sister corporations thus providing efficient service to customer and increase revenue.

The Export Villages concept was again far-sighted step taken by Lalith which has not only opened the way to the international market for the rural folk thus benefiting Government and the rural entrepreneurs alike.

Lanka Milk Foods Company is an achievement by Lalith as the Minister of Trade and Shipping. When it was burnt to ashes, Lalith came on television and gave an assurance to horrified mothers of Sri Lanka that he would not allow a single child to starve without milk.

He arranged alternatives to temporarily overcome the situation and within a few months when the factory commenced production it was a great relief to the mothers in Sri Lanka. A miracle like restoration of Milk Food Factory symbolised the PHOENIX.

The Intellectual Property Law is again a landmark achievement which personifies the multi-faceted talents of Lalith.

A large number of artistes in diverse fields were benefitted by the Act. A barrier was introduced to stop abuse and misuse of talents of artists, for which they are ever grateful to Lalith.

When the Prevention of Terrorism Act was introduced to contain and suppress the terrorists activities, Lalith was accused of introducing a draconian laws which were inimical to civil society by the then opposition, Human Rights Activists and NGOs. However, the passage of time has proved beyond doubt the far-sightedness of Lalith.

I end this memoir with a historical statement made by him, thus “Society has discharged its duty by you - Now it’s your turn to reciprocate”.

The greatest gift that Lalith offered to the nation is the Maha Pola Higher Education Scholarship Scheme which was a blessing to the bright but economically backward student populace in Sri Lanka. Intellectuals termed it as Bridging Education with Trade.