by H.L.D. Mahindapala
(December 03, Melbourne, Sri Lanka Guardian) Despite Mangala Samaraweera playing the role of Sancho Panza to Quixotic Prabhakaran, now tilting at windmills, it must be handed to him that he is not shy about admitting publicly his natural tendency to be a poofter – and a loud-mouth one at that! He told Parliament once that he didn’t mind having an affair with “a Black American boy”(See Sunday Times,-- Mudliyar, .23rd November 1997) On another occasion, when he objected to Anura Bandaranaike quoting Shakespeare in a parliamentary debate the latter shot back, asking: “What do you want me to do? Do you want me to quote Oscar Wilde?” MPs fell over each other laughing their guts out.Like most faggots he takes to effeminate activities. His first job was to be a dress designer. One of his specialties, it is reported, was designing loose, coloured underwear for boys. There is also another unconfirmed story which claims that he designed trouser pockets for little boys with a slit at the bottom for faggots to slip their hands in on the pretext of finding out, in their own words: ”How many marbles do you have in your pocket”? That is as far as he went in dress designing.
His career in dress designing hasn’t taken him anywhere. From the known records he hasn’t gone any further than designing slit pockets for boys. Nor is there any outstanding achievement in his political career, though he imagines that he is the maker and breaker of governments. His political career has been going down hill like that of his father, Mahanama Samaraweera who was a total misfit in the Cabinet S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike’s government.
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"Mangala Samaraweera is attacking Lt. Gen. Fonseka because the Forces are strengthening the hand of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Commander-in-Chief. In his latest statement he admits indirectly that it is the military victories that are defeating the UNP and his one-man party at the polls."_____________________
The ministerial portfolio given to Mahanama was too big for him. He just couldn’t handle it. More so because he was addicted to the bottle. He was among the alcoholics that haunted the premier night club of the time, “Atlanta”, run by one of the then leading book-makers, Thaha. He was in the clique of young MPs who used to drink till their legs could not longer carry them and left “Atlanta”, staggering all the way to their vehicles, leaving behind a string of unpaid bills. The bar-keeper once summed up the situation to us journalists pithily when he said: “Bandaranaike mahattaya has tucked under his sarong some stray snakes wandering around”!
Mahanama Samaraweera just couldn’t hold his liquor. Nor did he know when to stop drinking. I’ve seen him falling down, with his head buried in his own vomit, at Simeon’s Press Club. It was a popular watering hole at that time of the arty–arty types, journos, and politicos and a variety of “catchers” hanging round ministers and MPs. It was located close to the beach towards the Galle Face end of Kollupitiya.
Mahanama Samaraweera did not know how to control his mouth when it came to liquor. His son, Mangala, has inherited the same habit when it comes denigrating the greatest national achievers. His foul-mouth has been used against those who had showered glory on the nation – something that he can never achieve even in the cycle of samsara. The first to feel the stench of his obscenities was Susanthika Jayasinghe – Asia’s most decorated sprinter and the first woman to win an Olympic medal for Sri Lanka. What is more, she broke the drought of not winning any Olympic medals since Duncan White.
This foul-mouth poofter had the gall to stand up in Parliament and denigrate Susanthika as “a black South African man” -- all because she rejected the advances of his political ally, S. B. Dissanayake. I think it was cartoonist Wijesoma who depicted the plight of Susanthika when he sketched the Olympic medalist running away from Dissanayake who was chasing her on the Olympic tracks, with his sarong tucked up
When Susanthika complained of sexual harassment Mangala Samaraweera defended his partner in crime saying that the accusation comes from a deranged mind. He also compared Susanthika to “a black South African man”, implying that she is too masculine to possess any sexual attraction to a man like S. B. Dissanayake. The public uproar forced him to deny it. But his denial made matters worse. He said that she looked like “a black American youth”. And he added that he doesn’t mind having an affair with him. So what’s the difference , poofter, between “a black South African man” and “a black American youth”? As Susanthika remarked, “We are all dark skinned.!” It was a racist sexual remark that should have prompted President Chandrika Kumaratunga, his political partner, to sack him promptly. But she kept him as one of her closet queens.
The BBC report filed by Flora Botsford on Mangala Samaraweera, who was the Media Minister in Chandrika Kumaratunga’s government, says it all: ‘Mangala Samaraweera's repeated denials have only added fuel to the fire. In a statement faxed to the media earlier this week, the minister said his speech in parliament had been misquoted; what he had said was that Susanthika Jayasinghe looked like a black American youth, not a black South African man, as had been reported in some newspapers. Why that should be any improvement on the misquoted speech remains unclear. The inference was clearly that she was so unattractive no one would have made her the object of sexual harassment, as Susanthika has alleged. At a briefing to the media on Thursday, Mr Samaraweera made matters even worse. Asked whether he stood by his comments that she must be mentally deranged to make the allegations against unnamed powerful men at the Sports Ministry, Mr Samaraweera added that Susanthika was "a little silly", yet another derogatory remark against Sri Lanka's finest and one of the world's fastest athletes. Susanthika Jayasinghe has been tipped to win an Olympic medal at Sydney in the year 2000. She won a silver at the World Athletics competition in Athens in August, running 200 metres in less than 23 seconds. But the continuing row over her sexual-harassment claims is reported to be taking its toll. Susanthika was quoted in a Sunday newspaper as saying that all her training had come to a standstill because of the stress and shock, and she said the remarks attributed to Minister Samaraweera were a disgrace to the entire nation of Sri Lanka. "We are all dark-skinned people," she said”.
In any other democracy Mangala Samaraweera would have been hounded out of politics for abusing a nation’s heroine with racist and sexist remarks. But in Sri Lanka he is put on a pedestal and even promised the post of the next Prime Ministership in the most unlikely event of Ranil Wickremesinghe becoming the President. That is another bizarre story that reveals the political morality of the failed opposition looking desperately for salvation through poofters in designer sarongs.
It is also relevant to ask what has Samaraweera achieved for the nation on the scale of Susanthika? Since he has no record of achieving anything substantial to his credit, it is better to narrow down the question to ask: Has he done anything for the nation at all? The answer is in the juicy word coined by the most evocative poet of the 20th century, Dylan Thomas:, “llareggub” (if you care to read it backwards). He, however, may take it as a compliment because “llareggubing” is what gives him his kicks. But should we allow him to “llareggub” the nation?
Normally, gay people are very decent people. Some of the well-known homosexuals in history –from Socrates to Shakespeare (based on his “master/.mistress” references in his sonnets), from Caesar to several Popes, from Alexander the Great to James I (the list is unending) -- have been great contributors to civilization and to mankind, if you know what I mean. Politics in Greek society, in particular, revolved round the rivalries of Senators fighting over boys. The sexual deviation, which the gay community thinks is only a matter of opinion, does not make them loud-mouth idiots. But among them there are petty poofters (like Mangala Samaraweera) who are a disgrace not only to the gay community but to the nation as well.
For instance, his unwarranted attack on Lt. Gen Sarath Fonseka, a figure that would go down in history as Sri Lanka’s greatest general, reveals the muck in his prawn-head than his capacity to judge mean and events rationally.He said that Lt. Gen. Fonseka was not “fit to be general in the Salvation Army”. Like all “llareggubers” he has a tendency to stab people in the back (no pun intended). Compare, for instance, Lt. Gen Fonseka’s achievement of advancing to Killinochchi to that of the “Nelum Mal thavalama” led by the “llaregguber” and his “Queen of Thieves” (Victor Ivan, Editor of Ravaya) Chandrika Kumaratunga. How far did this couple go? What did they achieve? It was supposed to usher in peace. Victor Ivan also hints in his book “Queen of Thieves” (which has been confirmed in the latest Supreme Court Judgment) that Chandrika Kumaratunga also is an aficionado of sexual deviation which may include, among other things, “llaregubbing”.
When these sexual deviants were in power they refused to give competent commanders like Maj-Gen. Janaka Perera and Lt. Gen, Fonseka their due place in the military. Maj-Gen Janaka Perera was posted oversea to Canberra. He told me that tales were whispered into the ears of Chandrika Kumaratunga saying that he would pose a threat to the political popularity of Kumaratunga and the best option was to send him overseas. And, according to poofter Samaraweera’s own admission, they did not give capable officers like Sarath Fonseka their place to lead the forces to victory. Their great military achievements were to appoint the fuddy-duddy uncle of Ms. Kumaratunga, Ratwatte as general which ended in debacle after debacle.
Maj-Gen Janaka Perera told me that Mangala Samaraweera, when he was Foreign Minister, dismissed him from the post as ambassador to Indonesia before his time expired. He was to be shunted out of the premises he occupied instantly. The decision to keep his roof over his head was made by officials after several representations were made to them. This is the man who is now posing as the great saviour by keeping a watch on our soldiers who are daily sacrificing their lives to keep loud-mouths like poofter Samaraweera safe in his home..
After bungling the military operations that humiliated the nation Mangala (poofter) Samaraweera is now running a Defence Watch which has demeaned the achievements of our heroic Security Forces. His main aim is to demoralize the forces and their families with horror stories. The only other man in his camp is Lasantha Wickrematunge, the Editor of The Leader. Both are losers. Both supported the Nelun Mal thavalama, which went down the drain soon after it began. Both went marching into the National Congress, an alliance with the UNP. Now both are at logger heads with Ranil Wickremesinghe. Ranil Wickremesinghe has now taken up the position that it is not possible for the forces to turn back. But both losers are running their own campaigns to save Private Prabhakaran whose future is as great as these two losers. Both went running to save Chandrika Kumaratunga who future is now located firmly in her failed past.
With nothing to hang on to poofter Samaraweera has launched his Defence Watch. How does this help the forces sacrificing their lives to protect the nation? How does this help the nation to face the future free from terrorism? At the same time, this poofter is the same man who is demanding security for his own self from the forces he condemns. If one security officer is withdrawn he cries to high heaven, and writes to United States and other human rights groups. This slimy poofter is worried only about his security. He says: "I have come to know of an attempt to target my life with a claymore bomb. For my protection, I have mentioned that in a letter to the United States and a lawyer of mine." Why should the poor taxpayer and the soldiers sacrificing their lives waste their money and energy in protecting this worthless poofter when he is running a Defence Watch that helps only Prabhakaran?
There is also a contradiction here. If he can run a Defence Watch to monitor the actions of the Security Forces which, according to him, are blundering their way to Killinochchi, why should he depend on these failed forces to protect him? If he is big enough to run a Defence Watch to monitor the Security Forces why can’t he run a Defence Watch to look after himself? If, for instance, the claymore bomb that he says is planted round the corner to blow him up actually takes his life away tomorrow, how many dress designers will trail behind his coffin? And how many people will remember him the day after he is buried? Sadly, how many remembers his father? Unlike ordinary folk like us, these are politicos in the public contest for popularity. How many popular votes can a self-confessed poofter like Samaraweera get in the next election?
Mangala Samaraweera is attacking Lt. Gen. Fonseka because the Forces are strengthening the hand of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Commander-in-Chief. In his latest statement he admits indirectly that it is the military victories that are defeating the UNP and his one-man party at the polls. He also knows that they have no hope of capturing power when the Forces crown their campaign by marching into Killinochchi. When the forces plant the national flag in Killinochchi it will not only bury the future of Prabhakaran but also that of the UNP and poofters like him.
So the best policy alternative available to Samaraweera is to shut up, pack up and go to his original job of dress designing. It might give him another opportunity to slide his hand into the slit pockets of boys to count the number of marbles missing in their pockets.
H.L.D.Mahindapala: Editor, Sunday and Daily Observer (1990 - 1994). President, Sri Lanka Working Journalists' Association (1991 -1993). Secretary-General, South Asia Media Association (1993 -1994). He has been featured as a political commentator in Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Special Broadcasting Services and other mainstream TV and radio stations in Australia.) - Sri Lanka Guardian
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