Remembering a great man
Dr C W W Kanangara, the Father of Free Education.
by Mahendra "Speedy" Gonsalkorale
Dr Cristopher William Wijekoon
Kannangara, Father of Free Education was born on 13 October 1884 and passed
away on 23rd September 1969 at the age of 85 years. He was a devout Christian. I have no doubt that his zeal for community service was influenced by his religion. Dr
Kannangara studied at Wesleyan Missionary School in Randombe. Later, he won a Foundation Scholarship to Richmond College,
Galle. After leaving school, he worked
as a teacher in Mathematics at Wesley College, Colombo and Prince of Wales
College, Moratuwa. Later became a lawyer in 1910. In 1919 he entered politics
and was the first Minister of Education in Sri Lanka and served for 16
years.
He excelled as a lawyer in the
Southern Province and was nominated to contest at the legislative council
election representing the Southern Province. He won easily. Rising the ranks of
Sri Lanka's movement for independence in the early part of the 20th century, he
moved on to play a pivotal role defending leaders of the independence movement
in court. As a lawyer and orator, he achieved vital legal victories which
contributed vastly to the cause of independence. He became the President of the Ceylon
National Congress, the forerunner to the UNP. He became the first Minister of
Education in the State Council of Ceylon and was instrumental in introducing
extensive reforms to the country's education system that opened up Education to
children from all levels of society
Dr Kannangara's contribution to the
emergence of Sri Lanka as a Nation, irrespective of ethnic and other differences,
is well known. His own words summarise the problems and objectives of his
endeavour, "In spite of the fierce
and most dogged opposition from a large and very influential section of the
people of my land, in spite of abuse and calumny, vilification and ridicule, I
have succeeded in obtaining the sanction of the State Council of Ceylon for a
scheme of free education, providing for all children of the land equal
opportunities to climb to the highest rung of the educational ladder, from the
kindergarten to the University, irrespective of the status of financial
capacity of their parents, and for obtaining for our national languages their
rightful place in that scheme as an essential prerequisite for building up a
free, united and independent nation." He also introduced the term
"democratisation of education"
in place of the common term "free education."
He was free of ethnic prejudice. For
example, Dr Kannangara canvassed untiringly for a person of a different ethnic group
engaged in a contest with someone from Kannangara's ethnic background because
he firmly believed the former was the best candidate. This type of action enabled him to be selected
repeatedly as the Chairman of the multiethnic Executive Committee of the State
Council, an office associated with the ministerial portfolio for Education.
As Minister of Education in the
State Council, Kannangara and the Committees of Education introduced extensive
reforms to the education system of Sri Lanka throughout the 1940s. Dr C.W.W.
Kannangara was instrumental in passing the Free Education Act of 1943 which
benefitted thousands of underprivileged students in rural parts of the country
by making Education free for all students from Grade 1 to university level. The
free education system ushered in a structural transformation of Sri Lankan
society and paved the way for hundreds of thousands of children of
underprivileged families to achieve a higher standard of living and reduce
social inequality. The Central Colleges scheme which he began, established high-quality
secondary schools in rural areas of the country. Kannangara's significant
achievements in areas of Education have led him to be commonly referred to as
the Father of Free Education in Sri Lanka.
Dr Kanangara, I salute you and thank you for your foresight and invaluable contribution.
NOTE ON Sep 30th
These valuable photos of his Gravestone and opening ceremony attended by Chira's husband Ranjot's relatives were sent to me by Chira. Thank you Chira.
Mahendra
ReplyDeleteIt is wonderful to pay tribute to CWW, the father of free education on this Blog where the majority in our batch have benefitted from his vision and wisdom. Although it was his brilliant idea which he propagated convincing by his fine oratory I am certain a task of that magnitude could not be carried out without the support of many Ministers of the State Council of Ceylon at the time 1940-43 when the issue was discussed and ratified.
These are the names I could gather from the Wikipedia.
Robert Drayton Chief Secretary[4][5] 1942 1947
Robert Drayton Legal Secretary[4][6] 1940 1942
Barclay Nihill Legal Secretary[4] 1942 1946
H. S. Huxham Financial Secretary[7]
Oliver Goonetilleke Financial Secretary[8][9] 1945
S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike Minister of Local Administration 1936 1947
Claude Corea Minister of Labour, Industry & Commerce 1936 1947
W. A. de Silva Minister of Health 1936 1947
Don Baron Jayatilaka Minister of Home Affairs 1936 1942
C. W. W. Kannangara Minister of Education 1936 1947
John Kotelawala Minister of Communications & Works 1936 1947
Arunachalam Mahadeva Minister of Home Affairs 1942 1947
D. S. Senanayake Minister of Agriculture & Lands 1936 1946
Dudley Senanayake Minister of Agriculture & Lands 1946 1947
It is right and proper to remember CWW Kannangara for making free education a reality for all.
Nihal, you are quite right to bring to our notice the other key figures responsible for the implementation of visionary thinking. As has happened throughout History, a key figure is the influencer but teamwork is required to make things happen.
DeleteMahendra, I think Arthur Ratnayake also played a key role in implementing free education. When CWWK attended the school in Randombe, Ambalangoda, at a prize giving, he had carried away most of the prizes. The Principal of Richmond College, Galle, Reverend James Home Darrel, had been the Chief Guest and has remarked that CWWK would need a bullock cart to transport the prizes home! He had also invited him to sit for the Richmond College entrance examination , which he had passed. In the hostel, CWWWK had noticed that better quality was served to the fee-levying students compared to the scholars. Perhaps the seeds of free education may have been sown in his mind at that time.
ReplyDeleteA lecture I have given at the OPA and to all the students at the Rajarata and Sabaragamuwa medical schools, is titled "Free Education and Freedom for Free Medical Education in Sri Lanka". The first slide is a photograph of CWWK, and I request all the students to stand up and observe two minutes silence, in his memory. The OPA lecture was published in the IMPA (Independent Medical Practitioners Association) Journal, in the December 2020 issue Volume 14, no.1 p 5-12.
I think one of CWWK's sons was an Obstetrician who worked at the Matale Hospital.
Sanath, I have read your article and in fact you sent me your PowerPoint presentation which I not only enjoyed watching but learnt a lot from. You will also be always remembered for the singular service you have given to Sri Lanka in the Medical field.
ReplyDeleteMahendra
ReplyDeleteI am glad you have paid this tribute to our Father of Free Education.
We all should be thankful to him for his foresight as we all have benifited from free education.
I have seen his "sohon kotha" in Loolbadduwa when going to Ranjit's
{my husband} ancestral home in Halwela both in Ittapana, Matugama.
Ranjit's grand mother and Dr. C.W.W. Kannangara were cousins. His grand mother's ge name was Kannangara Koralage..............
He had attended Ranjit's Aunts and Uncles weddings.
In fact Ranjits 1st cousins attended the ceremony when a statue of Dr. CWWK were erected in Loolbadduwa near his "Sohon Kotha" in 2013.
They sent some photos which I could whatsapp to you.
Chira
Thanks a lot Chira. I have added a selection to the Blog post
DeleteMahendra
ReplyDeleteIt was my pleasure sending those photos. The Dr. C.W.W.Kannangara"s statue was erected in Loolbadduwa near his "Sohon Kotha" in 2013. Ministers Bandula Gunawardena and Mahinda Samarasinghe and Ven.
Ittapana Dharmalankara Thero were there. ( seen in the photos)
Chira
ReplyDeleteEducation has been compulsory upto age 14 or Grade 9 perhaps since the time of CWW. I hope the SL government will extend it to 18 to fall in line with developed countries. That is the age a person can decide for themselves whether to continue or give up education. This no doubt will enhance a persons ability to vote sensibly in a democracy when they get the right to vote.
Dear Friends, I openly say that Sri Lanka is an excellent example of a failed democracy, whoever has governed the country since independence in 1948. In the first parliament, there were honourable MPs who wished to serve the country. Since then, most MPs have come to parliament to earn a living. They borrow money from corrupt businessmen to contest an election and thereafter are obliged to return the favours.
ReplyDeleteIn Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew ruled with an iron fist and jailed a Minister who had gone on a jaunt with a businessman, without declaring. Other alternatives for us are a benevolent dictatorship or feudal rule.
Do you all agree with me?
I do understand your disaffection and dissatisfaction. We had honourable men and women in politics when we were a fledgeling democracy. Where did we go wrong?
DeleteLee Kwan Yew like dictator is rare as hens teeth. A bad dictator would be far worse than a bad democratic government. I know you are not serious about the feudal the system.
We have waited a lifetime in hope.
Sanath, Any honest person will agree with you. You are spot on. The saddest fact is that Sri Lanka always had citizens of high moral calibre and capability but the "Democratic" system was not able to draw on their services. Reminds me of a herd of cattle with an abundance of prime material that are sidelined and ruled by strays. I have no problem if an MP or Minister wants a decent salary for the work they do but their primary motive should not be the remuneration but service to the country. Ethical principles are paramount and should have been so i a country allegedly the most exalted home of Buddhism! Buddhism is used just as a tool by politicians for their own selfish gains. Whatever religion, they surely cannot believe in moral justice through karma or heaven or whatever in their after lives. The other crucial factor for the degeneration and degradation is the abject failure to deal fairly with ethnic minorities. False Sinhala-Buddhist chauvinism still prevails. A true Sinhala Buddhist would be a tolerant and fair person who would judge people by their actions and not their birth circumstances. It drives me crazy when I see these Big Politicians laying themselves prostrate before Buddhist priests dressed in expensive silk, living in great comfort, travelling in Benz cars looking very important and "venerable". Give me the forest priest leading a life of meditation, living on the alms given to him and teaching the Dhamma to those receptive. any day.
ReplyDeleteNihal and Mahen, Muslims are still being treated very badly, probably because they did not support the Rajapakse's during the previous elections. Are you aware that Muslim burials are only allowed in a remote village in the Eastern Province? Poor Muslims are unable to afford the expenditure. There is ample scientific evidence to prove that Covid 19 infection does not spread through ground water. The Muslims are very badly discriminated by having this regulation, which no other country practises.
ReplyDeleteI will forward an email to you, sent to me by a Muslim doctor who was a former President of the SLMA.
I am paying my homage to a great Parliamentarian in the twentieth century. His praise-worthy effort in introducing free education benefitted millions of children in deprived corners of the island. Just before the first General election since independence Dr CWWK and Sir Baron were dispatched as Ambassadors(High Commissioners) to Indonesia & India, respectively. People wondered whether it was a pre-planned .Some voters thought that Sir Baron was the peoples choice as the Premier. I have no idea why CWWK was not retained to contest a seat in 1949.CWWK returned just before the 1956 election and I was aware that SWRD wanted him to join MEP and contest a very safe seat, Agalawatte. He declined the offer and decided to contest Agalawatte as a UNP candidate and the people voted him. Voters never forgot the great service he rendered during the State Council, era. I wonder whether we will have politicians of CWWK's calibre in the years to come. As Lama has stated the corruption at its glory and those corrupt politicians are guarded by armed thugs. Exploitation of the religion and the nationality has poisoned the minds of the young and the old and it might take generations to erase off." RELIGION IS THE OPIUM OF MAN" Well said comrade Karl Marx.
ReplyDeleteDear readers. The year that CWWK contested Agalawatte was in 1952 and not 1956.SWRD broke away from UNP in 1951 and formed SLFP. He won 8 seats in 1952,election.1956 was the worst defeat for UNP with 8 seats and MEP won with a overwhelming majority.
ReplyDeleteSumathi, I am currently reading Sir Baron Jayathilaka's biography written by his very close relative Dr. Nandadeva Wijesekera. It was given to me by the author's daughter, Ramya, who is the wife of my former colleague and friend Prof.Asoka Gunasekera. You are correct in saying that Sir Baron was sent to India as the High Commissioner because D S Senanayake Snr. considered him to be a threat of becoming the first Prime Minister of Ceylon. Haritha Jayathilaka, who was in our junior batch is also a close relative of Sir Baron's.
ReplyDeleteLama, I was correct in expressing the opinion, people had prior to 1949 election. It was an open secret. Similarly, SWRD lost the chance of becoming Premier, following the death of DS. Dirty politics were not that uncommon during that era.
ReplyDeleteSumathi, The logical successor to D S Senanayake should have been SWRD, but nepotism prevailed and Dudley succeeded DS. Then SWRD left the UNP and formed the SLFP, with a few others. Being a pragmatic politician, he mobilised the tri-forces, "Guru"(teachers), Vedha (ayurvedic physicians) and Sangha(Buddhist Bhikkhus) and with the slogan of "Sinhala only in 24 hours", won a landslide victory in 1956. In my humble opinion, that was the turning point in our history and it had been a downward spiral since then. Tamils were humiliated and the Burghers left the country in droves and migrated to Australia, mainly Melbourne.
ReplyDeleteCommunal riots erupted in 1958, with the introduction of "Shree" number plates for motor vehicles.
In the early 1970s Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike introduced standardisation for the University entrance examination, whereby Tamils had to score marks than the Sinhalese to gain entrance. That regulation led to the birth of the LTTE and the rest they say is history.
After JR's landslide victory in 1977, there were communal riots again on a minor scale ,culminating with the "Black July" riots in Sri Lanka, between the 24th-27th of July 1983. JR turned a blind eye and Cyril Mathew aided and abetted him.
After that, educated Tamils left the country in droves and we became international "Paraiyas".
Lama, Panchamaha balawegaya was, Sanga, weda,guru,govi kamkaru. I still remember the slogan. The
DeleteMahen, you have paid a well deserved tribute to the "Father of Free Education." I learned a lot from reading your article as well as the comments from Nihal, Sanath, Chira and Sumathi. Thank you all for providing the details of the downward slide of the governing forces of our Motherland. It is truly tragic that honorable people like Dr. CWWWK don't exist in politics any more. It is a dirty, corrupt game not just in Sr Lanka, but all over the world. Any decent man or woman would find it difficult to survive in such a system. I'm sorry that I am so pessimistic!
ReplyDeleteSrianne, you were correct in expressing your pessimism. World had been inundated with corrupt regimes in the past and the history repeats itself.
ReplyDelete