The Press SATURDAY, JANUARY 7, 1967. Ceylon’s Troubles

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31262, 7 January 1967, Page 12

The Press SATURDAY, JANUARY 7, 1967. Ceylon’s Troubles

Ceylon has entered another year, the nineteenth since the granting of independence, still struggling to achieve political stability. A state of emergency, declared after the language riots in January, lasted for almost the whole of 1966. Now it appears that economic problems are compelling the Government to retain its emergency powers. The police may search and arrest without warrant and, in the interests of public order, ban meetings and processions. The general election in 1965, in which the Government led by Mrs Bandaranaike was defeated and Mr Senanayake’s United National Party returned to office, appeared to check a trend towards Communism; Mrs Bandaranaike had formed an expedient coalition with Left-wing groups which included the pro-Moscow Trotskyites. The new Government soon ran into trouble when it granted the Tamil language a regional status. It was charged with having betrayed Sinhala-Buddhist interests by retreating from Mr Bandaranaike’s policy of making Sinhalese the only official language.

The Government’s decision to halve the subsidised weekly rice ration caused more unrest. Ceylon, like India, is plagued by a persistent food shortage. It can grow less than half the rice it needs and has to import some 550,000 tons a year. With a rising population—growth is at the rate of about 2.6 per cent annually—the economy has had to carry an increasing cost burden in consumer subsidies and price guarantees to the producers. Ten years ago these subsidies were costing about £16.5 million a year. Today that figure has more than doubled. There are also free health and education services. Indeed, half of the national revenue is spent on welfare services. The Government, which had been warned by the World Bank that subsidies would have to be cut, admitted last November that the foreign exchange position was critical Tea prices were down; and aid was to be discontinued by foreign countries which had supported the budget to the extent of £lB million during 1966. It was announced that efforts to secure firm guarantees of rice deliveries from Burma and Thailand had failed. These countries had each promised 100,000 tons for 1967; but the Government regarded delivery prospects as uncertain, and pointed out that Burma had defaulted on the 1966 contract by some 74,000 tons.

The Opposition alleged that the ration cut was a fiscal measure; the Government insisted that no other course was open to it having regard to the state of the economy and the world rice shortage. The Opposition attacks, however, obviously made an impression on the public mind, because three byelections were lost by the Government in October—a setback which may yet compel changes in policy. The Prime Minister, Mr Senanayake, may now be recalling ruefully that his removal of the rice subsidy in 1953 led to union-organised disturbances which forced him out of office and, temporarily, out of politics. Elections are not due again until 1970; but Opposition pressure, supported by the trade unions, might compel an earlier appeal to the electorate. The outcome of by-elections due early this year will be anxiously awaited by the Government, which has decided, presumably in an endeavour to soften the ration-cut blow, that the new weekly ration of two pounds of rice will be a gift Mr Senanayake has also had to contend with policy disputes within the party, where his deputy, Mr Jayawardena, leads a faction which is demanding more drastic measures to bolster the economy, supported by emergency rule. Mr Jayawardena argues that a tough policy now, in the second year of office, could enable the Government to show an improved economic position before 1970 and thus justify its claim to renewed public confidence. The signs are that Mr Senanayake will have some difficult decisions to make before 1967 is far advanced.