Death comes like a knave at night - EDITORIAL

Three days ago, on August 24, Mangala Samaraweera Cabinet Minister of yester-year and a man of many parts and talents breathed his last at a private hospital. He became one of the many victims of the Covid-19 Delta (Indian) variant, which is rampaging out of control worldwide. He was 65-years-old at the time of his death.
He addressed his final briefing at the ‘Freedom Hub’ at T.B. Jayah Mawatha on July 25 where he warned of the debt trap the country faced.

Mangala as many of us in the media referred to him, was a man of many facets, outspoken and unafraid to share his views however controversial they might be. Whatever his shortcomings he, like all of us, had many of them. However, he will be best remembered for his bold stance over the last few years, for championing minority and civic rights, going on to even challenge the powerful Buddhist clergy who wield great influence 
in politics. 

Whether we agree with it or not, Mangala was a co-architect of the UN Resolution on Sri Lanka co-sponsored by the the then government in the UN Assembly. He consistently came under fire for his role in the co-sponsoring of that Resolution, but had the guts and courage of his convictions to not only defend Sri Lanka’s sponsorship of the resolution, but proudly proclaim the role he played in its formulation. 
Standing up for the underdog was his forte, consistently speaking on behalf of rights of oppressed sections of the people, in the face of state challenges. 

In 1989, at a time when the state was hunting down, arresting and disappearing citizens suspected of involvement in the then Janath Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) uprising, Mangala played a leading role in the formation of the ‘Mothers Front’. He even went  to the extent of smuggling lists of disappeared persons to human rights activists outside the country at great risk to his own life.

Born on 21 April 1956, Mangala was Sri Lanka’s first openly gay politician and a vociferous advocate of LGBT rights. Same-sex sexual acts still remains criminalsed in the law books of this country.
His was a voice devoid of race, caste, religious or ethnic hatred. The tribute paid him by Senior Parliamentarian and Tamil National Alliance leader R. Sampanthan on his death encapsulated his stature as a defender of rights in the country.

MP Sampanthan said, “Mangala was a Sri Lankan in the true sense of the word” who wanted all citizens to unite on the basis of equality, justice, and dignity to form a united Sri Lankan nation and take Sri Lanka on the path of progress and prosperity.
“By his death all Sri Lankans irrespective of ethnicity or religious differences have lost a genuine leader of very high principles,” he said in his statement.

Mangala entered Parliament for the first time in 1989 from the SLFP. He served as a politician for over 30 years in his career until his retirement from politics in 2020. He also served as a Senior Cabinet Minister under several governments.
During his tenure as a politician, he was known for his political stance against Sinhala Buddhist nationalism, though a Sinhala Buddhist himself.

As mentioned earlier, Mangala was a man of many parts. He was educated at Royal College, Colombo and at Walthamforest College, London where he gained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Clothing Design and Technology from St. Martin’s School of Art in London. He also served as a Design Consultant to the National Design Center of Sri Lanka and served as a visiting lecturer at the Institute of Aesthetic Studies, University of Kelaniya. 
As we bid the man, Cabinet Minister, social activist, teacher and artist adieu may he attain the supreme bliss of Nibbana.