Mangala Moonesinghe, parliamentarian, diplomat and true gentleman

Mangala Nath Moonesinghe passed away peacefully at Hemas Hospital a week ago and the cremation was held last Sunday at Kanatte amidst a big gathering who came to say a sad farewell to an ex-MP and diplomat who represented our country with great aplomb and finesse as High Commissioner in London and New Delhi (appointed by two different governments) and above all a true gentleman and a sincere friend.

Mangala was born in July 1931 to the reputed Buddhist Moonesinghe family closely related to Anagarika Dharmapala. His early education was at Royal College starting in 1943 when he stood out as a sprinter and pole vaulter and also played cricket. He earned himself the pet name of Munde as we all knew him. Mangala was two years ahead of me at college; yet the early links of a strong and durable friendship started then. Our paths then parted as his affluent parents sent him to London to read for the Bar at the Middle Temple. The rest of us had to be satisfied trying to enter the local university.

Having successfully completed his Bar exams, he was called to the Middle Temple. He returned to then Ceylon and was gradually drawn into politics. In March 1965, he entered the sixth Parliament (House of Representatives) as the LSSP Member for Bulathsinhala which he continued to represent both in the Seventh Parliament and the First National State Assembly until May 1977.

In March 1989 he changed both his party and his constituency and was elected an SLFP MP for the Kalutara district. When he left Parliament in 1994 he had a parliamentary service of over 17 years. Over this long period, my friendship with him became closer. I for one knew how he earned the respect of all parliamentarians of different shades of politics for his eloquent speech and his totally dignified conduct.

An incident which comes to my mind was President R. Premadasa picking him from the opposition to chair a Parliamentary Select Committee in 1991 to try to settle the ethnic differences between the Sinhala and Tamil communities. After speaking to the President, Mangala came to my room and asked me to help him draft the terms of reference for the motion appointing the Select Committee which we did together spending a few hours on the task. The rest is history.

That Select Committee sat for many months and I was privileged to serve as its Secretary. An Interim Report was published in 1993. With his unfailing charm and his persuasive ways, he succeeded in achieving consensus among the Sinhala and Tamil MPs on the Select Committee – an unimaginable task. To this day this achievement stands as the solitary instance of such unanimity -- possible largely due to his winning ways and persuasive ability.

Often during his 17 years in Parliament we used to lunch together talking at length about our college days, local politics and our own families. Mangala married an erudite scholar and lovely lady, Gnana Coomaraswamy, who lived with her sister at Barnes Place. I was lucky enough to enter the Peradeniya University with her in 1955 and we graduated together.

Many were the occasions my wife and I were treated to delightful evenings and sumptuous meals at their homes, first at Park Road, then in Battaramulla and finally in Havelock City. We had a grand evening one Dec. 31 night when they hosted a few friends at their elegant Battaramulla home.

Mangala and I were on several parliamentary delegations overseas. When Stanley Tillekeratne was Speaker, we were hosted by the North Korean and Russian Parliaments. Once we were at tea at a Russian Hotel when we were joined by three young Russian ladies and before long Mangala had charmed them though neither of us could speak Russian and they spoke no English. Before long they were hustled off by three Russians whom we later learnt were KGB agents. We were state guests and the young women had no business to be with us and so our cordial tete-a-tete was soon ended.

There was another occasion when we were guests of the Pakistani Parliament and one of our MPs turned up at an evening reception in a colourful sarong and a pyjama coat. He was proud of his appearance. Being the mere secretary to the delegation, I dared not tell the MP that his dress was inappropriate. So I sought Mangala’s help and he, with his usual charm, persuaded the MP to go change his clothes.

I can relate many such incidents which added colour and nostalgic memories to our lives. I recall with pleasure the many times we used to drive each other home after parliamentary sessions. He was often mobbed in the car park by constituents wanting favours. He used to tell me that when he lived at Park Road, he didn’t open the upstair windows early morning because he didn’t want people waiting for him in the garden to know he was up and about!

Mangala had a special affection for his constituents in Bulathsinhala and on every occasion they asked him for some help, he never refused them. His constituents adored him for his gentle ways.

My friendship with him lasted over 70 years. His gentle manner, his unfailing charm, his absolute integrity and honesty as a Parliamentarian (so rare nowadays) and his down to earth simplicity are features I will not easily forget.

He leaves his devoted wife Gnana, his son Sanath doing well at the New York Stock Exchange and his adorable daughter Avanti, his deeply loyal son-inlaw Murtaza and his two grandsons who were the love and joy of his life. He reveled in their delightful company. May he attain Nibbana! -Nihal Seneviratne