The New Political Crises of Ceylon

Abstract

When the Sirimavo Bandaranaike Government was installed in Ceylon in July 1960, there appeared to be excellent prospects for an abatement of the crises and instability that had plagued Ceylonese politics during the preceding years. Mrs. Bandaranaike's S.L.F.P. (Sri Lanka Freedom Party) had recovered from near disintegration and secured a majority of seats in the House of Representatives. The Government also enjoyed the promise of support from the two largest parties of Ceylon's fragmented Left. Leaders of the island's large Tamil minority, optimistic of a settlement of outstanding communal disputes, offered expressions of good will and encouragement. The horror of the communal riots of 1958 and the shock of the assassination of Mrs. Bandaranaike's husband, the then Prime Minister, S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, in 1959, had sobered the Sinhalese-speaking, rural lower-middle and lower classes, thereby offering hope for communal tranquillity. It had been these Sinhalese who in 1956 had suddenly discovered their political strength and shattered the monopoly of political power previously held by a small, affluent, westernized elite. After the March 1960 election produced a deadlock and a second election was called, even the S.L.F.P.'s opponents grew weary of crisis and instability. Following the July election victory of the S.L.F.P., Mrs. Bandaranaike, who had campaigned for her party but had not herself sought a parliamentary seat, was appointed to the Senate, Ceylon's feeble upper house, and named Prime Minister. The prospects for reasonable stability seemed good. Within less than two years, however, crises as serious as those faced by the S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike Government had rocked the country, culminating in an attempt by a group of military and police officers to overthrow the Government. The country's economic problems remained unsolved, and almost unnoticed amid the communal and social conflicts. With falling prices for Ceylon's three major exports, tea, rubber, and coconuts, the country's external assets plummeted to the lowest level in many years. Growing costs of social services and consumer subsidies and regular budget deficits contributed to a steady rise in the cost of living. Unemployment and under-employment mounted under the impact of economic stagnation combined with one of the highest rates of population growth in the world.