The Press Association of Sri Lanka was founded by the late D.F. Kariyakarawana. In Sri Lanka, no Journalists Association came into being until after one hundred years of the introduction of Newspapers into the country. In the formative years, there were not enough people attached to the Newspapers to form organizations. Very often there was only the Editor or in other instances a Deputy Editor and an assistant who was later increased to two assistants and then to three. It was after a considerable lapse of time that an Editorial Board came into existence for a Newspaper. Even with these Editorial Boards, there arose no necessity nor the background to form organizations. When the need for organizations cropped up with regard to matters of salaries, rights, and obtaining benefits, the urge to set up organizations was clouded with fear.
It was Chittampalam Gardiner, Owner/Editor of a small English Newsletter who made the first attempt to form an Organization. This was merely an attempt and was not meant to obtain rights and privileges. Yet this attempt proved futile and died a natural death at its very inception.
Very much later, in the latter part of the 1940s, an idea mooted by the Founder of the Lankadeepa D.B. Dhanapala that a “Press Club” with an underlying motive of transferring it to an Organization be established received the backing of Tarzie Vittachchi, the then Editor of the Observer and Reggie Michael, the then Chief Reporter of the Times. “The Press Club Nivahana” which was founded by the threesome Dhanapala, Tarzie, and Reggie was located opposite the Globe Hotel on Baily Street (now Mudalige Mawatha) in the Fort, Colombo. The Press Club was one place which supplied liquor at cheaper rates as compared to other restaurants, became a favorite meeting place among journalists who patronized the place to the fullest. Due to journalists consuming liquor on credit and not settling their bills, the Press Club was forced to put up shutters. With the closure of the Press Club, the `organization concept’ of the three founder Editors faded away.
It was during this period that the Ven. Udakandewela Siri Saranankara Thera, a Sinhala Journalist awarded Lenin Peace Prize and received an invitation to visit the Soviet Union. Udakendewela Thera became a journalist through compiling the then popular “Nawa Lokaya” magazine which was a socialist-oriented publication. The Ven. Thera who was supportive of socialist policies was awarded the “Lenin Peace Prize” by the Soviet Union when he visited the country. Thereafter on invitation, the Ven. Udakendewela Siri Saranankara Thera visited several other socialist countries and on each visit was impressed with the concept of `Organization’. During those days journalists in many countries had formed organizations, but the journalists in Socialist countries were in the forefront in this sphere.
After 1946, several organizations for different specialized fields sprang up as affiliates of the main body of the United Nations. One such is the International Labour Organization with its Headquarters based in Geneva, Switzerland. The UNESCO Organization was yet another with its Headquarters in Paris. The organization set up for journalists - the International Organization of Journalists (IOJ) had its Headquarters in Prague in Czechoslovakia.
The Founder President of the IOJ was a French national named Jean Herman Morrison who was a man of stature and being a socialist was very attached to the Soviet Union. A Czech national named Noblock became the General Secretary of the IOJ. It was generally noted that he was a wily man though innocent in appearance. He was also attached to the Soviet Union. In the meantime, the United States, rather late, realized that the Soviet Union was unreservedly funding the IOJ and had been successful in taking it under its wing. The United States, unable to take back the IOJ counteracted by forming another international journalists association through the United Nations Organization.
Thus the new organization came into being under the name - the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and based its Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. A Britisher, Adrian White became the first General Secretary. But the American-sponsored IFJ failed to overshadow the IOJ. (This was the situation then but today it is different). The Ven. Udakandewela Siri Saranankara Thera during his visits to socialist countries such as East Germany, Poland, Romania, and Hungary made use of these visits to enhance his knowledge about the various organizations in those countries. Finally, when he arrived in Czechoslovakia and visited the IOJ in Prague decided to establish a Journalists Association in Sri Lanka. Supporting this idea General Secretary Noblock proposed that the new Organization be called the “Ceylon Branch of the International Organization of Journalists”.
On his return to the country, the Ven. Saranankara Thera made preliminary arrangements to set up the new Organization. For this purpose, he sought the cooperation of a journalist Hema de Silva who was associated with the publications of the Communist Newspaper office at Cotta Road, Borella. Hema was young and a strong Communist. He was a friend of mine introduced by Nimal Karunatilleke.
I received information that Hema was approaching people and was having discussions with the intention of seeking new members. But Hema did not inform me about it nor did I inquire from him. I was then the Chief Sub Editor of the Dinamina. Besides himself and Udakendewela Thera, Hema de Silva was only able to harness the support of seven others to set up the new “Ceylon Branch of the International Organization of Journalists”. These seven if not being Communists were extreme leftists. On 9th October 1955, these nine people set up the new Organization at the Communist Party Headquarters at Cotta Road, Borella. Rev. Udakendewela Thera who was the Editor of the Nawaloka publication and the Deputy Editor of the Maubima publication of the Communist Party Hema de Silva was the Secretary. The Media Organization of these nine people though small in the country was powerful internationally.
A few months later the Ceylon Branch received an invitation to nominate a representative to attend the International Journalists Organization’s General Congress to be held in 1956 in Helsinki in Finland. It was also informed that the Air ticket for travel, food, and lodging facilities would be provided and the representative would not be called upon to bear any expenses. As President, Ven. Siri Saranankara Thera’s proposal to nominate the General Secretary Hema de Silva to attend the Congress was adopted unanimously.
A situation prevailed at that time was that there were no objections from the country’s rulers for a journalist to undertake such a journey. If this invitation was received a few weeks earlier, there would have been objections from the Government of Sir John Kotelawela. The situation that prevailed in the country with the victory of S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike proved favorable for Hema de Silva. Hema de Silva left for Helsinki via London and after a period of three months returned to the country from the eastern side. Hema de Silva as a VIP was able to visit East Germany, Poland, Soviet Union, Mongolia, China, and Vietnam on invitations received from those countries.
The stories related by Hema de Silva regarding his overseas visits encouraged many others to join Hema de Silva’s organization. The fear psychosis which prevented many to join such an organization during the Kotelawela period ended with the setting up of the Bandaranaike government. A few months later several people from Lake House and Lankadeepa, including myself joined Hema de Silva’s organization.
On the completion of two years, the executive powers of the Ceylon branch of the international journalists organization came into the hands of the Lake House and Lankadeepa journalists. During this period Hema de Silva became my best friend. On certain Fridays, Hema de Silva stayed in my office till night until I could finish my work to accompany me to my house at Mabole, Wattala. I had no work on Saturdays. We continued on going discussions about plans to expand the IOJ branch. I proposed the name Press Association of Sri Lanka with the intention of establishing a Press Club and affiliating it with the organization. In the year 1957, the British Government extended an invitation to three newspaper Editors to visit London and I was among them. I utilized this visit to study and gain information about Press Clubs institutions. Thereafter I had a great desire to establish the name Press Association. Hema de Silva supported my idea.
During the second anniversary of the IOJ branch held at the Polytechnic Institute in 1957, we changed the name of our organization as the Press Association of Ceylon. Though the name was changed, the International Organization in Prague approved the affiliation to continue. Hema de Silva who approved the organization’s name change, suggested that a Presidium be appointed instead of a President. This proposal received the widest support of us the powerful journalists of Lake House and the Lankadeepa. (Hema de Silva’s proposal to establish a Presidium may have been to ensure the leftist orientation of the organization). With the intention of negating this fact the rightists brought forth a proposal to appoint three people representing Sinhala, Tamil, and English languages to the Presidium to which Hema de Silva had to agree. Accordingly, during the second anniversary meeting officials were appointed for the third year. The General Secretary whilst the two Assistant Secretaries’ posts were filled by an old friend of Hema de Silva, Ariyawansa Pathiraja and myself. My Deputy Chief Sub Editor of Dinamina Ananda Weerawarna was the Treasurer. The two Assistant Treasurers posts were filled by another Sub Editor of Dinamina Albert Welivita and News Editor of Virakesari David Raju.
First impressions of the IOJ Ceylon Branch suggested that it had been redeemed from leftist influences. Even though Hema de Silva was the General Secretary some believed that I was more powerful than him. Some of these people branded me as a rightist. But in reality, I was neither a leftist nor a rightist and like the present day I was then too, an independent journalist.
Under a misconception that the Press Association of Ceylon was a rightist-oriented media organization, a group of leftist-oriented journalists a few months later set up the Ceylon Journalists Association. Those who initiated the new organization was a group of Lankadeepa journalists. Its President was Deputy Editor of Lankadeepa Ratna Deshapriya Senanayake, General Secretary was the Features Editor of Lankadeepa Dharmasiri Jayakody and the Treasurer was the News Editor of Lankadeepa T.B. Peramune Thilaka. This group then made an application to Czechoslovakia to affiliate the Ceylon Journalists Association. By this time Hema de Silva had written to the International Organization of Journalists clarifying our affiliation that the Ceylon Branch of IOJ was the Press Association of Ceylon. In keeping with the IOJ Constitution that only one Association from one country could be affiliated, the application of the Ceylon Journalists Association was turned down. We came to know that the Association undaunted kept on pressing the IOJ to accommodate their request. I felt that Ceylon Communist Party too had been supporting this request, owing to the visit of IOJ General Secretary Noblock’s to the country a few days later and the remarks he had made. Noblock met the parties of both sides and made inquiries. On one occasion he came to my Wattala Mabole house for dinner. The remarks he made at dinner after consuming liquor were not those of his own thinking but what he had been briefed to say. He trusted Hema de Silva implicitly and had cordial relations with each other. This may be due to the relationship they had at Helsinki. Besides, Hema de Silva was an eloquent speaker. Hema had the capacity of convincingly speaking both in Sinhala and English. Noblock’s decision was that our Association was the most powerful and that its affiliation should stand.
The IOJ Congress takes place every two years. The next Congress was held in Bucharest, Romania in May in 1958. I represented Ceylon at that Congress. The request of the Ceylon Journalists Association had been forwarded to the Congress by letter. This was also considered when other requests for membership were taken up. At that time I reminded them of the provision that `only one Association from one country’ and thus the request was turned down. Thereafter at a later occasion the Ceylon Journalists Association’s request was again turned down due to the objections raised by our representative Nimal Karunatilleke at an IOJ Congress meeting held on board a ship on the Mediterranean Sea. B. A. Siriwardene represented our Association at the next IOJ Congress held in Cuba. At the annual meeting of the Press Association of Ceylon, we dropped the idea of the Presidium and the President elected for the year 1959, the Deputy Editor of Lankadeepa was Attorney at- Law R. Pallewela. I was elected as the General Secretary. For the Anniversary celebration for the year 1959, we organized a grand dinner at the Grand Oriental Hotel in Colombo. We invited Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike to be the Chief Guest and the then Director Information Lionel Fernando took me to Rosmead Place to hand over the invitation. It was on this occasion of the Anniversary Celebrations that Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike made the historic speech on Media Monopoly. He spoke in Sinhala and later in English.
There was a smooth flow in his speech similar to a prepared delivery. Pallewela and I were on his sides and we can vouch that there was not even a chit of a paper. We were amazed at his oratorical ability and powerful memory. The following day Lake House was like a hornet’s nest and seemed possessed by a demon. The speech had been directly aimed at Lake House.
In the election of office-bearers for the year 1960, we elected Dinamina Editor Piyasena Nissanka as the President. I resigned from the post of General Secretary and proposed the name of A.B. Mendis of the Daily News. He gladly accepted the post. In the meantime, the Press Association of Ceylon received an invitation to assist with the arrangements for the IOJ Second World Congress to be held in Baden, Vienna. The IOJ organized the Second World Congress and invited one representative whose Air ticket fare would be met by them. Two other representatives were invited at their own expense.
The Ceylon Journalists Association too had received one invitation for a representative on condition that he would come to an agreement with the Ceylon Press Association and attend as one delegation. This condition appeared as an effort to unite the Lankan journalists. During this time there were four large and small journalists associations in the country. The Press Association of Ceylon, the Sri Lanka Journalists Association, the Ceylon Union of Journalists (set up by a group of English-speaking journalists headed by A.J. Samuel), Association