The Sinhala Language by Haris de Silva

I read with interest my good and long standing friend Dr G Usvatte-Arachchi’s (U) prologue to an obituary on the Sinhala language and an epitaph for it, published in your Midweek Review of 13/10 2004.

Like U, I too am neither a Sinhala scholar nor an astrologer. He is an economist by academic discipline and profession. My academic discipline is history and by profession. an archivist So there is something negatively common between us, although his knowledge of Sinhala language and writings far exceed that of mine. The thoughts that came to my mind on reading U’s contribution which I pen here, is of a historical nature.

If we go by what U has said that a language has to be spoken and used in writing for it to thrive, it certainly has gone from strength to strength going by the number of people, 13 million, who use it today to speak as well as to communicate in writing. As I have already said, I have no competence to judge the quality of the spoken language or of its written form.

Languages are not static. They change with time, and so is the script. One needs special training to read the script as well as well as to understand the language of the 3rd c. BC inscriptions although it’s an early form of Sinhala. The evolution of the script from that of the pre-Christian era, until it got almost stabilized around the 12th c. has been admirably shown in Prof P E E Fernando’s contributions to the University of Ceylon Review (UCR), 1949 and 1950. There, he shows its evolution from the 3rd c. BC to the 15th c. AD. The UCR is now regrettably defunct, although many others have come to take its place.

Similarly, I believe, one has to learn medieval Sinhala or have sannes or commentaries to read and understand the few extant books of the 13th c., like the Amavatura, Dhanrmapradipikava or Muvadevdavata. Commenting on the early gi poetry of the Sinhalese CHBReynolds said ‘The reason why the early poetry disappeared is partly that it was no longer understood.’ (Anthology of Sinhala Literature,1970. p.18) In a way the language of that period must be dead, but Sinhala is not dead. Take another example, English of literary works and the official documents of the medieval period in England. Of that, I am familiar only with the latter which requires special study to read the forms of its writing, and to understand the contents. That discipline of study is known as diplomatics. Some of the expressions then used and many forms of writing in those documents are no longer used. But English is not dead.

Take Greek, a more ancient language than Sinhala. It first came into use in the 8th c. BC, and by the 4th c. BC the Attic dialect became the common language in Greece and its colonies. Greece went under Rome in 146 BC, then under the Byzantine or the Eastern Empire, whose Justinian closed the University of Athens in 529 AD. Later, it came to be battered by the Ottoman Turks from 1460, and was in shambles, when the final resurrection began in the 19th c., yet, the language did not die. Even today, they use the same script, although the phonetics and grammar now used varies from that of classical Greek.

Sinhala too like other languages has acquired many words from Sanskrit, Tamil, Portuguese, Dutch and English. Some of the earliest contributions on that aspect were made by Louis Nell, who showed the accretions from the Portuguese and the Dutch, in his contributions made to the Orientalist of 1888 and 1889. Similarly a recent publication has the Sinhala words in the English language. The number may be few in comparison with the number of English words in the Sinhala language, but nevertheless it is significant. I do not know what Sinhala words have gone into Portuguese and Dutch. Perhaps, the translations of the Gospel will show them, but they will, I presume, be only for the consumption of the Sinhalese.

That reminds me of an amusing incident in 1960 or 1961. I and my Head of the Department were trying to get at the meaning of a word in a Dutch tombo entry made in the 1760’. We looked up every dictionary that was available to us, with no clue as to what it meant. Finally I asked my friend, the legendary Sam Mottau of Nuvara Eliya. He, as usual, laughed to his heart’s content and said, you will not find it in any dictionary, because ‘koite’ is how they wrote the Sinhala word ‘katte’ meaning a long handled garden or pruning knife! That word was used to indicate a tax a particular land-holder had to pay in kind. Once again, it was only for local usage. Incidentally, Mottau’s Glossary of words in official writings of the Dutch, is published in The Sri Lanka Archives, Vol. 3, 1985-86.

The use of Sinhala as a written language greatly increased with the introduction of the printing press by the Dutch in 1736. It was first used to print religious tracts. Later, the Dutch used it to print official notices known as plakaats, in Sinhala and Tamil. Here, I do not say anything on Tamil, because I do not know that language. Something I know is that litigants who needed to read the Tamil tombo entries on palm-leaf made in the late 18th c. in Jaffna had to come with experts in that period language to read them, as the forms of writing in those documents were not intelligible to ordinary literate Tamils. Perhaps, that Tamil may now be dead, but Tamil is not dead.

Coming back to the Sinhala publications, The Ceylon Government Gazette from 1802 contain material in Sinhala too. But the earliest Sinhala newspaper was Lankalokaya published in 1860. The following table shows quantity-wise, the growth of the Sinhala publishing industry

[P=Periodicals. Figures for publications given here are not comprehensive ones, as every publication has not got listed in official documents. Similarly the early population figures are not accurate. The number for 2000, is minus the Northern and Eastern provinces, except Amparai Details of newspapers, such as frequency of publication etc..are available in the Blue Books and in the annual Administration Reports of the National Archives]

Now, with a literacy rate of nearly 92% in the country, and the medium of instruction and the official language of administration being Sinhala, I guess it will be most unlikely there will be a decline in the quantity of publications in the future, and hence, in the number of people using the language. That will be an index to its health.

There are few other points on which I wish to say something. Sinhala was used in administration almost from the famous or notorious 24 hour switch-over. In the 60’we used to write at the bottom of an official letter written in English either ‘English translation’ and/or ‘The original in Sinhala will follow’; but it never did! That, as I now recall, was to escape a circular which required offices to maintain statistics of letters sent in English! But with the lapse of time all correspondence and the maintenance of files came to be in Sinhala. The latter was mainly because the clerks -except for a very few- could minute only in Sinhala. The exceptions to correspondence in Sinhala were, and presumably are, the correspondence with foreigners, foreign countries or where a foreign component was/is involved. English as the language of internal administration, by and large, perhaps died a long time back due to the same reasons adduced by U, for the supposed eventual demise of Sinhala

In the 1980’ a retired Government Agent of a provincial kachcheri, handed over to me an official diary kept by him in the traditional form that was maintained up to about the 1930’ It was an extensive diary kept in Sinhala, with very valuable information in it. Since it was handed over sometime after his retirement, and after having had it with him for quite sometime, it couldn’t get listed in the official documents of that kachcheri, and acquire its ‘legal validity’, but it’s available at the Archives and retains its historical value. . What I wish to point out here is that even in the highest strata of administration Sinhala had been in use for quite sometime.

The remarks about ‘international schools’ can be best summarized by the well known aphorism ‘Kolombata kiri apata kakiri’ But it goes beyond that. Today, the word ‘international’ usually prefixed to a school would be more an indication of extortion of fees. How can you have so many ‘international’ schools in a country. Our diplomatic personnel will know how many International Schools there are in the capitals of other countries, where there are thousands of foreign personnel in various walks of life. I believe there must be only a couple of established International Schools in Colombo. Practically all others must be just institutions coaching children of parents who are willing to undergo extortion for some instruction in the English medium or to prepare them for foreign examinations. It’s high time that rules and regulations are laid down by the government for the use of the word ‘international’.in connection with schools or educational institutions

That the children who attend those places jabber in English will be no indication as to what will happen to Sinhala. When the total number of children attending regular schools are taken into account, the ‘international school’ children will be a microscopic minority. Yet, name boards bearing the word ‘international’ now spring up so fast all over the country, and in most unlikely places for such schools, one would wonder from where they get the suitably competent staff to teach in them. That is another question not relevant to the subject under discussion.

Since I mentioned extortion. I must say a few words on a personal experience I had recently. I just walked into one such place located in a well known place in Colombo. My objective was to see what such a place had to offer for a 3 year old child. That place had only cuddly toys for the children to play with; the toilet was perhaps the original built about 60 or 70 years back, with presumably the same commode or perhaps one 30 or 40 years old, and a bidet and a bath of the same vintage. That was for 3 year old children! And the fees: Rs.70,000/- on admission, plus something for a building fund; term fees 14,000/- + 1000/- for other facilities + 10%VAT, all non-refundable under any circumstances. Well, you may figure out what it is, if it is not extortion. Fortunately, I just made inquiries only for curiosity sake.

English in the private sector. Well, the private sector does not mean only establishments like the CTC, JKH the Stock Market and the commercial banks. Here I am on U’s half of the field! The establishments I’ve mentioned and similar ones may be the places which offer attractive remuneration, and need capable, hard-working men and women. At the top level they will need competent people with a knowledge of English and perhaps other languages as well. So will it be in the top rungs of the public sector. Although the majority of ads seeking personnel for the private sector are in English, where does English come in the middle and the lower levels. All the selling country-wide have to be done in Sinhala, and I guess what such establishments need are smart, intelligent guys, with some knowledge of English, more for internal communication than external.

But, there are also hundreds of thousands in the private sector, some of whom must be earning much more than the city dwellers and communicating perhaps only in Sinhala. Lack of English wouldn’t have bothered them a wee bit. Once again the first category I spoke of is only a small minority, to pause a threat to Sinhala.

Take the highly advertised 40,000 + graduates unemployed or under-employed. Was it due to their lack of English to join the private sector? I would venture to say it must be more due to the government service syndrome which still persists in SL well over 50 years after independence. This government is perpetuating it in spite of high level advice against such recruitment given by their own appointees. History has no evidence for an entrepreneurial class in SL even in the days of the Sinhala monarchy. The 19th century rich were the trail blazers.

And then, English as the medium of instruction from grade 1. Once again I am on U’s half of the field! Well I am no educationist. But, let me also say that there are people of our vintage, who started schooling in the English medium from LKG onwards, as it was the then rule in some schools, and also had to read the Vadan kavi pota, Subhashitaya, the sandesa kavya and similar books at the appropriate age for reading such books, and got a good working knowledge of Sinhala. I presume they also have done well in life. Anyway, the number of people really competent in English, then as well as now was and must be absolutely small, in comparison with the total population.

On the other hand, even in the UK, the knowledge of English of primary grade children is said to be very poor. [Personal communication had from a teacher in the UK] It’s their mother tongue so they speak it. But when it comes to reading and writing they stumble at words like ‘put’ and ‘but’. We can never have ‘total emersion’ jn this country. And, is it necessary? Aren’t there professors who learned English in late secondary school stage, and have excelled nationally and internationally? It’s a matter of application and a will to succeed. Of course, the government or whoever it may be should provide the facilities for such enterprise. Sometimes, theories can wreak havoc.

But it must be said, and emphasized, that without English there can’t be any modern higher education. Our literature does not have the variety of literature and other written works as for instance in Greek or Chinese. We have no long standing tradition of research in any modern sciences or technologies. But we are gaining ground in such areas of study although more in the western tradition. That is inescapable, and it is also at higher levels of education. Only a very small minority will reach those heights. And, for that should we start English at Grade I. That is a question for those who are competent in that field of education. It’s not my forte. But whatever English is learnt or taught at whatever stage, it couldn’t be a threat to Sinhala, for it would still be the mother tongue and the most used medium of at least a 20 million people by 2104.

To end these remarks, let me say, if today we have to learn medieval Sinhala, and have atuvas or sannes to understand the Sinhala of that period, perhaps in the 22nd century one may have to learn the Sinhala of the 20th and 21st centuries to have a proper understanding of the Sinhala of that period. But that will not mean Sinhala is dead. Like Greek or Chinese of greater antiquity than Sinhala, it will also change with the times and prosper, as it has done for the last 2300 years.

Munneswaram - Ancient, legendary temple of Munneswaram ends festival season on Sept. 16 by Christie Fernando, Chilaw special correspondent

Munneswaram, a slumbery, sleepy and normally inactive hamlet, lying in the outskirts of Chilaw, comes alive this season, with complex ritualistic festivities, ceremonies and processions, culminating with the water cutting ceremony, to be performed at the Deduru Oya, two miles off Chilaw, on September 16.

The Munneswaram temple, dedicated to Lord Ishwara, is reminiscent of other celebrated and renowned temples like Koneswaram and Thiruketheeswaram, in which, three Sivalingams are enshrined.

Munneswaram has preserved its sylvan charm and enchantment, with the scenic surroundings _ with vast acres of paddy _ and hemmed in by tanks, which irrigate all farming and cultivation there.

The main temple at Munneswaram has been revamped, largely due to generous donations and assistance by devotees, who throng the sacred precincts to invoke and implore the deities, and solicit spiritual succour and material comfort.

Devotees from all walks of life, especially Hindus, visit this august shrine annually to seek favours. Often, they are seen inside the temple _ so gorgeous and spacious _ keeping vigil, and absorbed deeply in prayer and worship. They do other repentant acts in reverence. They beseech and entreat divine solace and consolation, by making their petitions and offerings.

In the days of yore, visitors to Chilaw, during this festive season of Munneswaram, will recall and hark back to the carnival atmosphere that prevailed then, with a variety of shows, open-air theatre and entertainment, to attract crowds. Nevertheless, the glamour and charm, the hectic, hurly-burly climate of amusement, enjoyment and distractions are galore still, for the youth and children. Parents bring along their children to show the colourful extravaganza, the manifold sundry items, the merchandise and wares of vendors exhibited for sale.

Interesting enough, this busy thoroughfare is restricted to either side of the road, leading to the temple _ and the merry-go-round, the public shows, fun and recreation to regale the youth are all situated far away, as these detract them from the religious atmosphere of the festival. But, many fancy stalls leased out for the festive month are lined close to the main temple, to lure the crowds, without which, the festive air, the cheer and the extraordinary spectacle of the Festival is lost. Devoid of this gala atmosphere, the traditional visitor to this hallowed, age-old Hindu sanctuary would be otherwise chagrined and dismayed. Festivities, `kavadi' dancing and processions are held each day to perpetuate the spirit of the Festival.

Looking back to the festival legend of this glorious Hindu shrine, Munneswaram is regarded as one of the oldest Hindu temples in the island. And it has a strange origin; and according to legend, Rama, after slaying Ravana, was returning to India with Sita in his "Air chariot,'' when, impulsively, a desperate feeling of guilt gripped him.

And, passing Munneswaram, he espied a spire of a temple, and decided to alight and worship there. While praying, Lord Siva and his consort Parvathy appeared before him; and a feeling compassion for the penitent Rama, ordered him to enshrine three Sivalingams, one in each of the most sacred places: Munneswaram, Koneswaram and Thiruketheeswaram.

Lord Siva, according to legend, had pointed to a place north of the Mayavan Aru (Mee Oya), and told him to enshrine the relic. And Rama built the temple at the exact spot, which is now known as Munneswaram. The festival, too, is obscured in antiquity, and according to legend, one full-moon night, in the month of Nikini, a sage who was meditating under a banyan tree looked up and saw the goddess Amman, the mother of Skanda, who granted him his wishes.

He asked her to bless all the pilgrims assembled there for worship, and ever afterwards, that August night, a great festival was held in memory of the meeting of Agastiar, the sage and Amman, and is continued to the present day.

The festival which began on August 20, 1997, with the flag-hoisting ceremony comes to a close with the water cutting ceremony, and after a Thanksgiving ceremony held late in the evening at the promenade at the sea beach, Chilaw. Each year, the Big Chariot, drawn by two white bulls, draped in silk and adorned with garlands, carrying the deity, is escorted in procession through the Chilaw town; and at the promenade, beating of drums, playing of flutes and `kavadi' dancing are performed, in a spirit of gratitude. In the early hours of the morning, the Great Chariot returns to the temple square.

A visitor ushered casually on an odyssey into the precincts of the inner temple, will be overwhelmed to discern its refinement and magnificence _ the large corridors unravel its elegance and grandeur. A strange silence and serenity prevail _ lights in brass lamps flicker and fade, symbolising the infidelity and fickleness of human nature. The burning of incense and naphtha, radiates an exquisite fragrance, cleansing and purifying the environment and the sanctuary.

Traversing inside the temple, one is struck by an unforeseen force; the impressive deities, the inner walls and its aura echo a stillness and abiding peace. Many adherents are seen rambling and roving around, gazing at its augustness and sublimity. The rich and the poor, the noble and the common, have some time or other, paid a visit to this grand old temple.

Visitors and devotees, who have come once, come each year, to pay a visit, as a place of pilgrimage, and return home, unfettered, unburdened and unencumbered of their worldly cares and anxieties.

In the vicinity of the main temple, is the imposing temple of goddess Badra Kali, whose grace, and indulgence is sought by devotees who are desperate. This temple was dismantled and a modern temple was constructed at the same venue, this year, costing several lakhs of rupees donated by the pilgrims.

Strict police surveillance is maintained during the last week of the festival, as pickpockets, pimps, prostitutes and purveyors of narcotics, mingle with the devotees. All health facilities are provided by authorities; drinkable water too is supplied throughout the day, including transport facilities, to and from the temple. This festival has its share of woes, as beggars invade the area, turning up as bad coins.

All amenities are provided for the satisfaction of pilgrims. At the conclusion of the festival, the hamlet of Munneswaram reposes once again to tranquillity and dormancy.

(The Sunday Observer, Sunday 14, September 1997)

Lost splendour of the Embekke stone pillars

It was 8 a.m in the morning. The rays of the sun touched upon the emerald countryside of Embekke. I was in Embekke to visit Sri Lanka's finest example of ancient wooden architecture, the Embekke Devale. However, also outstanding in its architectural style is the less famous Embekke Ambalama which was a royal shelter for the Gampola kings, situated close to the famous Embekke Devale.

Embekke is situated in Udunuwara in the Kandy district. One turns off at Daulagola on the Peradeniya-Pilmathalawa road, proceeding about two kilometres on the Welamboda road. One has to walk about a kilometre in distance across paddy fields in the countryside.
Today, some of these stone pillars that have fallen from the top are lying on the rock base becoming stone benches for weary farmers working in adjacent paddy fields.

Some parts of these ruined pillars have been covered with a thick growth of weeds- a great contrast from their royal origins.

Is our future in the past? by S. Pathiravitana

This seemingly paradoxical query is from a theme that came up for discussion at a conference of environmentalists who met in Perth a few years back to talk about what we should do when building towards the future. We were represented by Mr. C.G. Weeramantry who was the Vice-President once of the Court of International Justice at The Hague . He refers to this Perth conference in the preface he wrote to a little booklet where he published his separate opinion (while agreeing with the conclusions of the Court) on this very interesting case that came up before the Court around 1997.

The litigants who appeared in this case were two states, Hungary and Slovakia. Their grievance was over a dam that was being built on the river Danube, which also happened to be their common frontier. Slovakia had spent several billion dollars on the initial investment and Hungary was now complaining that the dam was going to create a lot of environmental damage to its country. We didn’t hear of this dispute earlier, if there was one, because the two countries were then under the Soviet grip. The treaty that was signed by these two countries then was now coming apart.

What was before the Court, however, was a dispute over development and environment - the development of one country in this case being disastrous to the other. How was the Court going to resolve this problem? Mr Weeramantry tells us that his mind took him at once towards his childhood memories when he accompanied his parents on their visits to the historic cities of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa and the sight of those huge reservoirs has remained in his memory ever since. That experience soon became relevant to the understanding of the problem now before the Court.

Legal issues

Faced with similar problems, how did our kings set about damming the rivers and the waterways without damaging the environment too much and also improving the welfare of the land and its people? After studying the question at some depth he gathered a lot of useful information on how traditional wisdom helped the conservation of the environment which he has now included in a little booklet. This will soon become a useful little compendium of traditional wisdom to jurists interested in what is now becoming a subject of great importance - sustainable development.

"One of the legal issues before the court," writes Mr Weeramantry, "was the concept of sustainable development which is so much in the forefront of modern international environment law. I realized that our ancient irrigation heritage was an example par excellence of the practical application of this concept. In fact it offered one of the best examples in world history of the implementation of this concept. Its relevance to the legal question before the Court struck me as inescapable."

Another reason for his effort to draw wider attention to this subject was when he circulated some statistics among his colleagues in the panel of judges "concerning the scale and duration of the Sri Lankan operation...(which) neither the bench nor the bar, as far as I could detect, had the slightest awareness of this phenomenal Sri Lankan contribution to universal culture." Since this is a rare feature in the equipment of the Sri Lankan academic, who often is aware only of the negative side of the Sri Lankan landscape, he deserves a special word of thanks for displaying to the world the genius of the people of this country.

You gather from the information he provides that the Sri Lankan civilization was not an isolated case, but one which had diplomatic relations with Rome in the first century A.D., with Byzantium in the 4th century A.D. and that the presence of Sri Lankan ambassadors in Rome was recorded by Pliny (lib. vi, c 24) and the detailed knowledge Rome had of this country was noted by Grotius in his Mare Liberum and how Lanka was known to the Greeks as Taprobane, to the Arabs as Serendib, to the Portuguese as Ceilao and to the Dutch as Zeylan. Gibbon, too, noted that Lanka had trade relations with the Far East and the Roman Empire,

Arnold Toynbee also refers to our tank civilization as an ‘amazing system of water works’ and goes on to describe how the hill streams were trapped and the water guided into giant storage tanks ‘some of them four thousand acres in extent.’ Mr. Weeramantry also quotes extensively from a modern day campaigner for the environment, Edward Goldsmith, as in the following quote:

High degree of sophistication

Sri Lanka is covered with a network of thousands of man-made lakes and ponds known as tanks (after tanque, the Portuguese word for reservoir). Some are truly massive, many are thousands of years old, and almost all show a high degree of sophistication in their construction and design. Sir James Emerson Tennent, the nineteenth century historian, marvelled in particular at numerous channels that were dug underneath each bed of the lake in order to ensure that the flow of water was constant and equal as long as any water that remained in the tank.

The quotations cited by Weeramantry range from Pliny to Arthur C Clarke and may be sufficient to impress a reader from the West, but the one he quotes from the Mahawamsa may strike this same reader as being ‘quaint’ but, nonetheless, startling. In the modern West the role of Man is conceived as that of a conqueror of Nature.

But here in the East he plays only a secondary role as pointed out by Arahat Mahinda, when he surprised King Devanampiya Tissa in the middle of his hunt with the following words:

O great King, the birds of the air and the beasts have as equal a right to live and move about in any part of the land as thou. The land belongs to the people and all living beings; thou art only the guardian of it.

It is difficult to imagine that the West will ever come to grant a secondary role to Man in the scheme of things. The way the modern scientific age stands now, dreaming of building cities on remote planets and satellites, it is hard to dissuade it from spending billions of dollars on such projects. Here on earth he is unable to live barely in peace among his fellow men, how is this same Man going to build a better future over there?

No doubt there were voices in the West, too, that cautioned those who wanted to rush headlong into the future with words of warning such as this:

Why has not man a microscopic eye? It is Alexander Pope who asks this question and goes on to supply the answer:

For this reason, man is not a fly.

And he goes on to ask a second question:

Say what the use, were finer optics giv’n

T’inspect a mite, or comprehend the heav’n’

Alexander Pope

In this traditional scheme of things man is not on the top of the pile, says Alexander Pope but somewhere in the middle alongside ‘Beast, bird, fish, insect’ in what he calls the ‘Vast chain of Being’ extending from microbes to God. But then who reads Pope these days? From Alexander Pope to T.S. Eliot and Wendell Berry in our time, they are all voices crying in the wilderness.

That is why I am beginning to wonder whether the term ‘sustainable development’ is the most appropriate to apply here. ‘Development’ has several meanings, the one that comes most to mind readily is a state of change of state from worse to better. And striving towards a better state means for people today a desperate yearning to go to the Middle East or Italy, only to come back loaded with all the gadgetry in the world and to find that they are unsuited for our style of doing things.

Some people in the West are now realizing that over consumption is all wrong and wasteful and harmful to the environment. They are recommending now, like E.F.Schumakar, a Buddhist economics that can observe a proper balance of economic, environmental and social needs to reduce the tension between development and environment. Schumakar sums it all up in one sentence - A maximum of welfare with a minimum of consumption.

If you like to see how this worked read Robert Knox:

Eat to live

‘Thus plentifully has Nature stored this island that they neither need nor have many manual operations, except making tools to till the ground to sow Cotton for Clothing and for rice; for they reach not for more than food and raiment and drink the water of the brookes.

Thus with these naturall helpes they live with little labour; having less riches and Care than we in England, but are healthful, Chefull and Carelesse and so live with their wives and children tell worned out with old age.

‘Thus they eate to live (not for wantonnesse) and live to eate, for they use not sports for recreations when grown up, but their Chief diversion is to sett and talk with their friends and neighbours.

‘This kind of life have I had many years experience of having but little and wanting less - I mean such things as are absolutely necessary for mans subsistence - and so could very well have Continued myself to have Continued...’

Sacrilege at a sacred site By Damitha Hemachandra

The battle between the past and present in Pottuvil is about to leave one of the most important archaeological sites of eastern Sri Lanka destroyed forever.

Muhudu Maha Viharaya, situated in the heart of Pottuvil, is believed to be the place where Princess Devi, the legendary mother of King Dutugemunu, is said to have landed at the kingdom of Ruhunu ending her journey from the Kelaniya kingdom. Historians and archaeologists have discovered numerous villages and places which claim a direct connection to Princess Devi. They say that she is known as Vihara Maha Devi due to her arriving at a temple.

Yet the historical facts are heavily clouded with myths and legends. The story based on the arrival of Princess Devi claims that she was first spotted at a village near Pottuvil but when the king arrived at the spot the craft carrying the princess had drifted to the ocean and the disappointed king questioned the villagers 'Ko Kumari?' which eventually gave the village its name 'Komari'. "Later the princess drifted ashore at Arugam Bay and the villagers told King Kawantissa that the princess had landed at 'Ara Gama' which later changed into 'Arugam', " a villager at Pottuvil explained.

Shasthrawela Viharaya situated in Pottuvil is believed to be Devi's school while Magul Maha Viharaya is said to be the place where Princess Vihara Maha Devi got married to King Kawantissa. Although the legend has it all explained, the story is yet to be backed by archaeological evidence. But veteran archaeologist, Ven. Ellawala Medhananda Thera, the only archaeologist to conduct research at the site, is convinced about its authenticity.

According to Ven. Medhananda Thera, the temple is one of the oldest temples in the country with its history dating back to the early Anuradhapura period.

He believes the temple to have been constructed by an early line of kings.

"The temple could be almost 2000 years old," he pointed out, while adding that the majority of the artifacts still lie under the sand . During the initial excavations nearly 100 stone pillars were discovered buried under the sand suggesting a large Buddhist monastery and a temple complex buried under the sands of time.

Most of these stone pillars are no longer on site and were sold as artifacts to foreigners and antique dealers while the chief incumbent of the temple, Kataragama Siriratana Thera, watched helpless.

"Although the Archaeological Department appointed a watcher, much harm is being done by him than good," the Ven. Thera pointed out. He said that the Archaeological Department authorities have not taken any step to stop the deliberate sacrilege unleashed on Muhudu Maha Viharaya.

These planned acts of vandalism began in the mid '90s when a leading politician of the SLMC bulldozed nearly 1000 years of a stupa in the temple, he pointed out.

"The stupa was strong proof that there was an age of temples and monasteries in the area and this politician who was planning to eliminate the traces of a temple, destroyed the stupa overnight leaving just a pile of bricks at the premises," said the Ven. Thera. The uninvestigated archaeological reservation, which surrounds the temple, amounts to 30 acres according to the gazette notification issued in 1965. "The majority of the temple's artifacts were discovered during a two year excavation initiated in 1960 and the area was gazetted as an archaeological reservation after the discovery of wide spread monasteries buried underground," said Sirirathana Thera.

However, the archeological reservation of the Muhudu Maha Viharaya has been diminished to a mere five acres today with planned and rapid encroachment by many Sri Lanka Muslim Congress MPs in the area, he pointed out. According to Sirirathana Thera, the encroachment started in the early 1980s when the East was a focal point of terrorism and violence.

"The chief incumbent and many priests living in the temple were forced to abandon the temple due to the rising violence," he said. On his return in the early '90s he found the temple land encroached upon.

"However, I did not complain since I did not want to deprive the encroachers of a living space," he said. But the dimension of the problem dawned upon the Ven. Thera when Muslim Congress MPs started distributing the temple land among more and more people and encroachment surrounded the archeological conservation left, right and centre.

The encroachers are using most of the invaluable artifacts for their home construction while destroying proof of a temple on site.

An encroacher who destroyed two statues at the statue house of the temple believed to be of King Kawantissa and Queen Devi later pleaded insanity and was released by the court on directions to follow a course of treatment. "This man was not insane and he is not following any treatment," Ven. Sirirathana Thera said adding that it was act vandalism. Meanwhile repeated complaints to the Department of Archaeology, Cultural Ministry and Ministry of Buddasasana have gone unheard or unattended.

According to the Department of Archaeology, the Ampara regional archaeological director has informed the main office that no such encroachment is taking place and authorities are negotiating with the incumbent Thera to give the temple another 30 acres with no archaeological value.

However, the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and Ministry of Buddasasana has initiated another inquiry against the chief incumbent of the temple on a complaint made by a former SLMC MP

In his letter to the authorities he had pointed that he is greatly distressed by the vandalistic acts of the monk in charge of the temple. He alleges that the Ven. Thera is selling the artifacts of the temple and is involved with drug dealing and smuggling.

The Pottuvil police have failed to find any evidence to back these allegations. The Ven. Thera has had several death threats since the '90s. A chat with the encroachers revealed that they had been 'planted' at the temple site which is close to Pottuvil town, from other areas. Many of them are Muslims and believe that the declaration of an archaeological reservation is just leaving good land wasted.

Many were eager to distance themselves from vandalism but felt that more temple land should be spared to built an access road to their homes. The unspoilt beach line behind the temple is becoming rapidly encroached thanks to the politicians.

An inhabitant of Peanut Farm, one of the few beach lines in Pottuvil, which still remains the same, told us the 'secret' behind the encroachment. According to him, two former ministers had tried to remove them (a small fisherman group) from their own lands in the forests of Peanut Farm on grounds of conservation "while we came to know that they were planning to sell the lands to a Korean hotelier." A lengthy court case has stopped the threats at Peanut Farm but the threat looms the same in Muhudu Maha Viharaya, where environment and history are at the mercy of political encroachers and vandals.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2004/10/23/life/1.asp)

Galle Church — Burial Chambers and Vaults by Deloraine Brohier

It was a Sunday, a weekend I was spending in Galle, sometime in the 1970’s. Sitting on the verandah of the New Oriental Hotel, in the Fort of Galle with my father, the late R. L. Brohier, a waiter mentioned that a few days before , in the garden of the Dutch Church next door to the hotel, the earth had caved in. I walked across to investigate.

Yes, the earth on the north-side of the Church had fallen in, leaving an entrance hole large enough to creep into. Adventurous as I was wont to be, cautiously on my belly hands and knees scraping, I crawled my way down. A few feet in, I found I was in a chamber where I was able to stand up.

It was damp and musty of smell. Long stalactites were hanging down, dripping and trickling with water, from a vaulted roof. By the dim light which filtered in I was able to discern a centre pillar from where flowed arches of lime-stone. The place was eerie in atmosphere — so not lingering too long I crept out again, into the sunlight.

"That’s a Burial Chamber", said my father, when I reported back though he gave me sharp admonition for the danger I had exposed myself to. Knowledgeable as he was, from researching into old records and books, my father then explained that such Burial Chambers had been known to exist, to hold the embalmed remains of eminent personages in Dutch times.

It was to such a Chamber that the body of Gerard Hulft , the Dutch Commander who was killed during the siege of Colombo, was kept. For it is on record that, "the body of General Hulft was received in Galle three days after his untimely death .... and placed within a masonry catalogue in De Groot Kerk for one year. Thereafter, it was lowered into a grave on the right of the pulpit within the Church — the General’s arms and spurs being hung on the wall, over the grave. The following year, 1658, the Dutch conquest of coastal Ceylon being complete, the body of Hulft was removed to the State Dutch Church, within the Colombo Fort, where it was placed in a tomb".

Today the Burial Chambers -there being two adjacent to each other- in the north garden of the Galle Church can be seen and entered. With funds and expertise provided by the Netherlands Government, the Chambers as well as the interior of the Church have been repaired and restored.

The present day visitor may enter down a flight of steps and see the lime-stone arches of the Chambers. Still very damp and sweating.

As to any subsequent discovery, R. L. Brohier alludes also to a two-chambered vault underneath the Church floor. One of these he says was opened in 1908 — but little is of the other. The manuscript of his book, "Links between Sri Lanka and The Netherlands" — a book of Dutch Ceylon, was completed sometime in the mid - 1970’s. So the entry we’ include from his publication as above — is relevant. The Chamber discovered when the garden caved in , was not accurately identified by him at the time.

There is also a vault that can be identified underneath the western end of the nave of the Church, and within it. We have it on record that this vault was last opened in 1925. An account has been included in the publication Links Between Sri Lanka and The Netherlands. The account as given is by R. G. Anthonisz, the first Government Archivist and Librarian appointed by the British Colonial administration.

During the repairs effected to the Church, in 1925 the Church was without a roof. The heavy rains made the flooring sink in certain places. There was then the fear that one of the vaults which were believed to be under the floor beneath the Church floor had collapsed. R. G. Anthonisz was consulted in regard to the opening of the vault

His reply as given below is very illuminating. "I have a perfect recollection" Anthonisz wrote, "of the very last occasion when this was done., on the 23rd February, 1863. It was for the burial of Mrs. C. P. Walker, wife of the District Judge permission had to be obtained from the Government because already burials within places of worship had been much restricted by law. To get at the entrance (to the vault) the tombstone of Mathew Vander Spaar, opposite the vestry door was taken away. When the sea sand was removed to a depth of about 6 feet, there was a stone gate from which a couple of steps led into the vault. There were a number of coffins in a fair state of preservation, some of these were lined with black velvet".

Then according to the directions received from the Government the vault was re-opened in 1925. R. L. Brohier describes in his book of Dutch Ceylon that when the vault was opened it was found to have been in good preservation — though much smaller than expected, a mere 6 by 9 by 5 1/2 feet. The remains of the last coffin was there, the lid covering the bones. On a side there were fragments of other old bones and bits of coffins scattered around. An account giving the history of the vault and the reason for opening it were bottled and the vault closed.

This is interesting history and those who care can see the Chambers in the north garden and go round the beautiful Church after its re-dedication at the end of October‘ 2004. A Service will be held by the Dutch Reformed Church of Ceylon attended by high dignitaries of State in the country.

An exploration of European encounter with the ‘Other’ by Nira Wickramasinghe

Book Review

Dept of History and International Relations University of Colombo

Writing that conquers. Re-reading Knox’s Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon,

(Social Scientists Association, Colombo 2004)
By Sarojini Jayawickrama

Among academic historians in many parts of the world there exists an almost pathological fear of contamination by literary studies via the linguistic turn which manifests itself in the display of fierce criticism of authors of postmodern or cultural studies especially those interested in ‘discourse’ or textual analysis. This is an indication of how centred professional historians still are in the historicist and implicitly empiricist models which are responsible for their material and political hegemony in academia as well as in the public sphere. In Sri Lanka even more than fear, it is ignorance that prevails: rare are the occasions when new and old narrative forms of history writing simply engage in either dialogue or confrontation. There are many reasons for this situation: practitioners of ‘real history’ remain chiefly interested in ‘political outcomes’ and as a result the kinds of textual analyses performed by feminists and others in the field of gender and cultural history are not considered useful. Furthermore since History’s real concern is perceived as ‘change over time’, it is believed by the majority of historians that cultural history’s contributions can only be limited. This type of belief is often articulated without any serious knowledge and understanding of the methods and aims of the ‘other’s writings and for this reason it is important for critiques as well as practitioners of textual/ethnographic approaches to read the ‘other’s production and accommodate historical techniques instead of urging that one should displace the other. The book under review is an example both of the richness of new techniques of recovering and interrogating the past and of the weaknesses of such approaches.

In ‘Writing that Conquers’, a book based on a University of Hong-Kong doctoral thesis, Sarojini Jayawickrama’s offers us a complex and nuanced re-reading of a book that has in Sri Lanka acquired a near canonical status. Knox’s Historical Relation is indeed regularly plundered by students in search of evidence to prove virtually any hypothesis, by advertisers in search of quotable quotes that will help give legitimacy to products of dubious quality and even by the occasional literate politician trying to display his/her erudition. If Knox says it.. it can’t be wrong! Nationalist scholars of a sort dismiss it totally as a book of little significance written by a seventeenth century ‘sailor’ of the East India Company who misread local customs.

The title of the book under review, ‘The Writing that Conquers’ refers to the hegemonic power of the discourse of historiography to appropriate and transform the space of the other. The French historian Michel de Certeau used this term when analyzing Amerigo Vespucci’s encounter with the New World, where the conqueror used the New World ‘as if it were a blank, ‘savage’ page on which Western desire would be written. The historiographer, he argued, like the conqueror bearing the European weapons of meaning will ‘write the body of the other and trace there his own history’.

Avoiding the conundrums of the false and the true in history, Jayawickrama’s book is an exploration of a European encounter with the ‘Other’, its confrontation with a society that was remote from Europe on cultural, moral and political planes. She analyzes the way this encounter is mediated through representation, the politics of this representation and the relations of power embedded in it. Her book is an essential read for anyone eager to understand the importance of new historicism as a methodology to explore one’s past.

In her first two chapters Jayawickrama sketches the historical milieu of the work and locates the text within a particular type of writing, the discourse of travel as a colonial enterprise. The author sets down her project which is to consider Knox’s text within a multiplicity of discursive practices embedded in a variety of documents from political documents that form an integral part of colonial administration to contemporary writings in the local language . She then gives a succinct and useful summary of the process by which the maritime provinces of Ceylon came under the colonial domination of the Portuguese and the Dutch. The pages that follow analyse Knox’s text as a travel narrative where the self of the narrator is involved in a process of redefinition as the antithesis or negation of the East. The travel writer assumes the persona of the ethnographer who, as a ‘captive’ in the Kandyan Kingdom, a ‘forbidden city’ to all Europeans writes from a neutral perspective, representing the unfamiliar in a coherent and credible fashion for western readership, but as Jayawickrama demonstrates his writing is always partial. Particularly fascinating is the comparision made with the writings of Oviedo in 1535 (General and Natural History of the Indies) on the New World, the better known account of Las Casas about the Indians, or Columbus’s ‘Letter of 1493 to Luis Santangel’. The dehumanizing strategy is present in these texts as in Knox’s classification of the natives of Ceylon: ‘Of these Natives, there are two sorts, Wild and Tame.... For as in the Woods there are Wild Beasts, so Wild Men also’.

The second chapter explores the links between Knox and the East India Company and the Royal Society . More interestingly it analyses the autobiographical notes made by Knox at a later date. Knox was employed by the East India Company as an advisor on the feasibility of opening up plantations and in that capacity procured slaves for St Helena from among the inhabitants of Madagascar and was sometimes involved in piracy. His autobiography helps trace his spiritual wanderings and progression from alienation to redemption.

Chapter 3, entitled ‘Writing that Conquers’ looks at Knox’s representation of the people of Ceylon, especially women linking it to religious, racial and moral discourses of the seventeenth century. The chapter discusses how the colonial discourse is mobilized in an act of representation that produces the Other and differs for instance from the discursive production of Amerigo Vespucci. The uncritical use of framing devices such as ‘contact zones’ (Mary Louise Pratt) or Foucault’s notion of ‘heterotopia’ , a counter site where ‘all the other sites that can be found within the culture are simultaneously represented, contested and inverted’, or Fernando Otiz’s transculturation is often cumbersome to otherwise subtle analyses. For the historian familiar with the literature on 18th century Sri Lanka the description of the way in which the relations of power were inverted in Kandy through the symbolic stripping of the powers of the ambassador who is made to dismount his horse and enter the city by foot seem very similar to Tikiri Abeysinghe’s analyses.

Jayawickrema’s analysis of Knox’s representation of women is pointed and well supplemented by recent feminist literature on the subject. Less convincing is her attempt to show ‘how the women of Kandy found a space for resistance through a carnival subversion of the mores that regulated marriage and property rights’ purely on the basis of the text by Knox. The social historian needs more evidence before speaking of resistance or agency, that cannot be gleaned solely from a reading of the interstices of Knox’s text. In the same way more evidence is needed to substantiate her contention that ‘the people of the island looked upon the Kandyan king as their monarch.’ (p. 107). There investigation sometimes falters for want of a firm grounding in the political and intellectual context.

Chapters 4 and 5 look at the king Raja Sinha II’s use of language and ritual practices and interrogates their effectiveness as strategies of ‘resistance’. For this the author relies on the correspondance between Raja Sinha II and the Dutch governors. King Raja Sinha II who ruled in Kandy from c. 1629-1687 succeeded in thwarting the ambitions of the Portuguese and the Dutch to control the entire island. The analysis of the different ways in which the king endeavoured to improvise an image of imperial kingship through speech and action so as to counter colonial power is very convincing. The use of the concept of self-fashioning that relates to the way he fashioned his own identity as that of a cakravarti would however be more suitable than the term resistance that the author sometimes uses: indeed it seems a little incongruous since the concept is generally associated as the weapon of the weak, with revolts of peasants or subalterns against dominant groups. The titles the king used in his first communication with the Dutch give an idea of his language:

‘I Raya Singha, Emperor of the Island of Ceylon, King of Candy, Zetivaca, Dambadany, Anorayapore, Jafnapatam, Prine of Ove, Mature, Dinavaca, The Four Corlas, Grand Duke of the Seven Corlas.....’ (p. 163)

The fifth chapter is a wonderful account of the rituals and other symbolic acts that were used by the king to constitute power. It studies the architectural features, spatial organization and landscape of the city as manifestations of the king’s majesty. The analysis of the king in audience, there ‘both to see and be see; to gaze and be gazed at, from a distance’ provides a new perspective on kingship and its modes of legitimacy. The ambassador had to climb seven levels of steps before reaching the inner courtyard of the Hall of Audience. The King was veiled by seven curtains, that symbolized the seven mountain rings that encircle Mount Meru. The veil was signaling that the king was like a god in a temple shielded from the view of worshippers.

Chapters 6 and 7 are a comparative and critical reading of Knox’s text and Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe. The final chapter sums up the impact of the colonial encounter on Knox. Sarojini Jayawickrama concludes thus:

‘In re-reading Knox’s An Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon, I have sought to inflect the fissures in the colonial discourse that underpin the text. Knox’s homogenising colonial history, which naturalized hierarchical relations and polarities of colonizer and colonized, self and other, civilized and uncivilized, has been interrogated through an exploration of alternative and heterogeneous sources of knowledge, which are seen to destabilize and resist the power of the colonial history to impose its authoritative discourse, which erases ‘other voices’ and privileges one’ (p.287)

No reader of this book will ever read Knox as he/she read it before, so in more ways than one the author has succeeded in her endeavor to prise open the fractures in the narrative and read it differently while deciphering hidden relations held in the discourse of other times.. Coming from a different discipline and with an interest in material issues as well as in representation it seems to me important to reflect on Dipesh Chakrabarty’s signaling of ‘asymmetric ignorance’ whereby non-Westerners must read ‘great’ Western scholars to produce the good histories, while the Western scholars are not expected to know non-Western works. This is not in any way a condemnation of works that belong to the tradition of cultural theory but a display of fatigue with the tidal waves of intellectual fashion that has left a landscape of strangely similar and often uninventive works on colonial representation and colonial discourse. The more I read them the more I feel that these new methods - to read texts against the grain, to read the silences and omissions or the marginalia - have long been deployed by many historians preoccupied with a close and critical reading of texts and the unremitting awkwardness of archival evidence but who do not openly articulate their theoretical position. After all is not the appreciation that knowledge, the definition of its scope and manner of its creation, is ingrained in the imperatives of its political context integral to the historian’s craft?

Stone inscriptions neglected by by N. Wimalasiri

The stone inscription, which is known as 'Madawala Sellipiya' close to the Madawala Bazaar in the Dumbara Valley, has been totally neglected due to the inefficiency of relevant authorities.

It is believed to be about 600 years old.

According to the book "Peramaga Salakuna," this stone inscription was set up during the 15th century A.D. by a minister named 'Jothi' during the reign of King Parakramabahu (VI).
Once, King Parakramabahu (VI) had chosen this place as a resting place during one of his journeys to Polonnaruwa.

During his stay the king had not only obtained rice and other grain as food, but also recruited soldiers for his army and as a gratitude the king had donated land, according to the cultural officer of Pathadumbara.

This land is now covered by thick jungle and some people have tried to destroy this rock using dynamite.

Although the Department of Archaeology has set up some name boards, they have not taken any action so far to protect the place.

Some persons have encroached and constructed fences claiming the ownership of this land, residents said.

Talks to assess impact of Archaeological Act by L. B. Senaratne

The Malwatte and Asgiriya Chapters are to draft a joint memorandum to be presented to the President following the visit of those two Venerable Prelates on the President at Janadhipathi Mandiraya at Kandy for an informal discussion and to bless the President.

The two Mahanayakes were accompanied by the Secretaries of the two Chapters.

The discussion, according to the Chapter sources was informal and centred on various aspects regarding the protection and development of Buddhism.

The chief discussion was on obstacles that the clergy trustees were facing due to the implementation of the Archaeological Act. The Mahanayakes stressed the implementation of the Archaeological Act for the protection of Archaeological sites should remain.

But they personally have faced a number of obstacles, even to the extent of having called upon to pay a fee to visit the sites which they administer.

The President, Chandrika Kumaratunga Bandaranaike is said to have assured the Mahanayakes, Venerable Thibbotuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Thera of the Malwatte Chapter and Venerable Udugama Buddharakitha Thera of the Asgiriya Chapter that immediate action would be taken to assess the impact of the Archaeological Act.

However, the Malwatte and Asgiriya Chapter sources indicated that a joint memorandum would make it easier for the President to take action to protect the Archaeological sites and also would allow to take responsible action by the Maha Sangha easier under the Act.

‘Vamsa Katha’ a glean into Sabaragamuwa From Sumana Saparamadu

The Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council has published a chronicle of the province titled Sabaragamuwa Vamsa Katha running into three volumes. The chronicle is edited and compiled by Dr. Pandula Endagama, anthropologist and former assistant director of the National Museum, Colombo, with Savimon Uragodawatta as assistant executive editor. The chronicle contains articles by renowned scholars, of the province.

It is for the first time the SP has come out with such piece of literature. HCP Bell’s Kegalla Report of 1904 deals only with a part of the province and is not as extensive as this. The GAs and AGAs of the 19 and early 20 centuries compiled manuals of the districts they were in charge of though they cover many of the subjects included in the Vamsa Katha, they don’t have the amplitude.

The Sabaragamu ‘Vamsa Katha’ is in depth encyclopaedia with statistics, diagrams, illustrations and photographs of places such as Maduwanwela Walauwa, the Bata Domba cave and Waulpana cave.

Pre-history and written history of the province the number of electorates and pradeshiya sabha, the population census of 2001, water falls, rivers, land area crops, temples, Kovils, devala and other places of worship customs and traditions, landmarks, tales and legends, education and health services, are recorded.

The bare enumeration of the contents, conveys an idea of the value of this "Vamsa katha’. Two chapters pay tribute to two scholars who did intensive research on the pre-history and early history of Sabaragamuwa. Dr. P. E. P. Deraniyagala’s research pushed one goes back to 30,000 years BC, and Ven, Kirielle Gnanawimala, scholar and physician, unearthed many facts and facets of Sabaragamuwa’s history.

The ‘Vamsa Katha’ records events of historical, social, religious and political importance. One such event is the Pelmadulla Sangayana of 1864-incidentally the year Anagarika Dharmapala was born. At that time the study of the Dhamma was superficial and adherence to Vinaya rules lax, due to alien rule and occupation of the country. One man saw the immediate need for authoritative texts to bring the Sangha back to the true path, and he organized a council of erudite bhikkhus. He was Iddamalgoda Ratay Mahatthaya, (RM) of the Navadun and Kukule Korala, and Basnayaka Nilame of the Ratnapura Maha Saman Devala.

Another interesting bit of information, I gleaned from this ‘Vamsa Katha’ is the probable location of Diva Guha, one of the "Solosmasthana" or 16 sacred places of worship, where the Buddha is said to have made brief stops on his third visit to the island.

In 1990 Ven. Balangoda Ananda Maitree Thero, declared that on topographical and other evidence he was willing to accept Bata Domba Lena, the cave off Kuruwita, as the Diva Guha where in the Buddha rested after visiting the hill of Saman, now Sri Paada Kanda.

Sabaragamuwa ‘Vamsa Katha’ is a mine of information for historians, anthropologists, sociologists, students, writers, and journalists.

Galle Fort residents set for battle By Frances Bulathsinghala

As residents of the Galle Fort region get ready to fight the Archaeology Department’s declaration that houses in the fort area be declared monuments-restricting any modern renovations- the Archaeological Department's Additional Director General, Keerthi Vishwanath to whom more than 200 residents in the Galle fort area handed over a petition, said yesterday he was ignorant of the matter.

"I do not know anything. I just accepted the document. All I know is that we have received serious objections by the residents regarding the declaration of the fort area as a protected site. We have received 200 objections," Keerthi Vishwanath, the Archaeology Department's Additional Director General told The Sunday Times. In the face of the refusal by the Archaeology Department's Director General, to meet the residents, Mr. Vishwanath had been the official who had met the desperate residents of the Galle Fort region who wanted to protect their houses against the new regulations to be introduced by the Archaeology Department and the Ministry of Culture.

A document sent by the Director General of Archaeology on 16/09/2004 to the Galle Fort residents, said that the UNESCO was 'on the verge of de-listing the Galle Fort as a world heritage' site because of the modernised changes being made to the buildings. However, the Additional Director when asked for details regarding the issue told The Sunday Times there was no truth in it, but when asked for the 'truth' merely said that he handled only administration matters.

Both the Director General and the Deputy Director General, Senarath Dissanayake was unavailable for comment when contacted by The Sunday Times. According to the declaration, under the 'care, protection and maintaining of heritage buildings and monuments in Galle Fort', no modifications, repairs or changes of materials to any of the buildings will be permitted without a written approval from the UDA and the Department of Archaeology. According to residents there would be restrictions even on the colours they paint their walls with.

"We are forced to take legal action to protect our rights. Because if all the buildings in the Fort region are declared as monuments we will lose our right completely. This will affect 147 houses. We have received a consensus from the residents to challenge the gazette in courts and we have received offers for legal consultancy from many lawyers following an appeal made by us," says Mahendra Jayasinghe, Secretary of the Galle Fort old house owners Association.

Mr. Jayasinghe states that there has been no response from the Cultural Affairs Minister regarding discussions with the house owners, although the Prime Minister’s Office last week had directed the Galle District Secretary to immediately facilitate a meeting with the residents and the Cultural Affairs and National Heritage Minister to discuss the published gazette.

"We have been desperately trying to get in touch with any responsible authority in the Archaeology Department after we got to know of the gazette notification issued on August 27. We were not informed about the gazette. None of the authorities made any attempt to get in touch with us. It was only September 4 that we were alerted about the gazette notification by a senior resident who had seen the announcement. We are perturbed as the declaration of the Galle Fort vicinity prohibits us from selling our houses and forbids any renovation unless we go back in time architecturally. This means (covering clauses 22 to 25 of the Antiquities Ordinance) no modern renovations would be allowed and the Archaeology department would have full rights over the territory", he explains.

"The violation of these regulations would be an offence where bail would not be granted," said Nazar Hussain, Assistant Secretary of the Old House Owners Association in Galle Fort (the organisation is also known as the Galle Fort Isuru Welfare Association). Mr. Hussain blamed the Archaeology Department for sleeping on the job and the Galle Heritage Foundation of politicisation.

"The Galle Fort region was declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1978. Constructions have been going on uninterrupted from then to now by the people in the region. It seems unclear what the fate of these people would be with the new declaration of the houses around the Fort region," Mr. Hussain said. Quoting clause 18 of the Antiquities Ordinance, Mr. Hussain further stated that it was only if the monument was neglected or suffered injudicious treatment that the monument should be protected. "It is under this clause that we stand justified. All the Galle Fort residences have been maintained well. One of our other main worries is that we will lose our privacy where we would be asked to show our premises to tourists as it is now declared as a 'monument'.

"Has the world heritage foundation and the archaeology department been sleeping from 1978 to now?" asks an angry Mr. Hussain. "We have sent appeals to the Minister of Cultural Affairs and National Heritage, Vijitha Herath who has up to date not acknowledged our letter or given us an appointment. We have also had to beg for an appointment with the Archaelogy Director General and was not successful. Instead we were informed by him that we should meet the Additional Director General who now says that he is not aware of the subject," Mr. Hussain said.

Meanwhile, the District Secretary of the Galle District, Hewa Vitharana who is also the Vice President of the Galle Heritage Foundation when contacted, said that the decision to declare the Galle Fort region was taken ‘entirely by the Cultural Ministry’. "The people living around the Galle Fort region have always been aware that it is their duty to protect their houses as they are important as a cultural monuments. The Galle Heritage Foundation had seen to it that the houses were protected and their old infrastructure retained as much as possible", Mr. Hewa Vitharana said.

According to him no resident could carry out any renovations without the permission of a special committee representing the Galle Heritage Foundation. Mr. Vitharana who was handed over a petition by residents in Galle Fort said that he had referred the matter to the Cultural Ministry but had not received any response.