Dr. P.R. Anthonis: A humanist par excellence
The 10th Death Anniversary of Deshamanya Dr. P.R. Anthonis falls on December 17.
Born on January 21, 1911 as the second child of a family of 16 children, Polwatte Arachchige Romiel Anthonis learned the Sinhala alphabet under the tutelage of Ven. Vajiragnana Thera at the ‘Dharmasalawa’ Bambalapitiya (Presently Vajiraramaya). A year later, he moved on to the Milagiriya Sinhala School (which is now non-existent) where he studied up to the fourth standard, walking barefoot, dressed in sarong and banian. Young Anthonis was admitted to St.Joseph’s College South, as St.Peter’s College was known then, at the age of 10, on the condition he improved his knowledge of English. He made headway within three months and in the fifth standard, won the class prize for English. The brilliant student he was, he ended up carrying away almost all class prizes at the annual prize givings at St.Peter’s College.
Entering the University College to do the pre-medicals, he came first in the batch. He entered Medical College in 1930, excelled in his studies and won the Loos Gold Medal for Pathology, the Mathew Gold Medal for Forensic Medicine, the Rockwood Gold Medal for Surgery and the Government Diploma Medal. He passed out of the Medical College in 1936 and took up appointment as a Medical Officer in the public service.
Dr. Anthonis was awarded a scholarship to study surgery in the UK in 1937, but the second world war prevented him from going abroad. However, he proceeded to the UK in 1945 to obtain his FRCS and was the first to be successful in the Primary and the Final Examinations in the first sittings thereby not only creating a record at the Royal College of Surgeons, but also becoming the youngest Fellow of the College. Dr. Anthonis was also the first non-university officer to be appointed by the Royal College of Surgeons of England as an Examiner to Primary FRCS, FDS and FFA Examinations.
Returning to Sri Lanka in 1947, turning down a lucrative job in the UK, being eager to serve his motherland, he was appointed Consultant Surgeon to the then premier medical institution in the Island, the present National Hospital. Until his retirement from public service, the healing angel saved the lives of thousands of people serving in hospitals in many parts of the country, working from the early hours of the day and going up to late hours in the evening. Dr. Anthonis, the trade unionist, led a strike of Medical Specialists on February 1964, against the Government’s decision to abolish private practice in respect of the Doctors as from August 1, 1964.
He retired from the public service at the age of 60 in 1971 and took to private practice. Until his demise, he operated on nearly 50,000 persons from all walks of life without stress on the financial aspects.
Dr. Anthonis was bestowed the highest National Honour Deshamanya in 1986 and was also honoured with the Visva Prasadini Award. He was the Chancellor of Colombo University from 1981 to 2003. The Government of Japan awarded the “Order of the Sacred Treasure of Japan” in 1981 in recognition of the services rendered by him in promoting Sri Lanka – Japan cultural and friendly ties. The medical profession extended him the honour “Pride of the Medical Profession”, the only professional so honoured.
His surgical prowess was legendary, and his stamina for service to the people was boundless. He was one of the few who could operate with both hands.
He was a learned, well-informed person versed in classics, philosophy and arts. He cherished traditional cultural values. He was a well-poised personality uninfluenced by fame and success. He was a humanist par excellence. That was Dr. P.R. Anthonis, the Everest among professionals.
Dr. Anthonis was a supreme being who certainly had reached the first stage of deliverance from Sansara as a Buddhist.
May he attain the Supreme Bliss of Nibbana!
Upali S. Jayasekera
Prof. J.A Gunawardena : A great proponent of engineering education
It is now three months since Jaya Abeysinghe Gunawardena who made a singular contribution to Engineering Education in Sri Lanka, left us.
He came from a well established family in Polhena, Matara. His father was a Head Master and his mother a teacher.
He had his early education at St. Thomas’ college Matara. At this stage of his school education, the intellectual brilliance which marked his career was already evident. He naturally tended to monopolise prize awards in each class. Disregarding the implicit irreverence, some teachers even called him Mahaushada. His achievements were realised with minimum effort. From an early stage, he was an indiscriminate, extensive reader with practically no time devoted to formal studies.
This habit continued even after he joined Mahinda college, Galle, for university entrance studies. His classmates were surprised to see their new colleague addicted to comics. When the results came, however, he had emerged as the highest achiever in the Southern province, earning for him the then coveted Gymkhana scholarship. This relieved his parents from the need to finance his upkeep while at university enabling resources to be channelled for the studies of five younger siblings.
He finished his engineering studies again reaping the highest reward and was absorbed to the academic staff. A sensation was created when he declined the offer of the country’s most prestigious ‘government scholarship’ for post-graduate studies abroad on the ground that a contemporary who had scored higher at the finals was overlooked. This was testimony to his steadfast commitment to justice and fair play, a characteristic which marked his whole life. He got a chance of doing his Masters at Purdue University in the United States before proceeding to Cambridge for his doctorate, the second in his family to pass through its portals.
He recommenced his teaching work at the engineering faculty which had shifted by then to Peradeniya. He remained for the rest of his working life turning aside the many lucrative opportunities that came his way. Such was his commitment to his vocation and his faculty. He strove to maintain the exemplary standards for which the Engineering faculty was well known. In later years, the heavy burden of carrying the faculty forward fell on him with just one other senior don. The uncompromising adherence to rigorous standards ensured for the products of the Peradeniya Engineering faculty an enviable reputation in the country and beyond.
Prof. Gunawardena has to be remembered, among other things as the first person who introduced computer studies to any teaching institution in Sri Lanka. His guru, Prof. E.O.E Perera had requested him to prepare a single page justification for a computer to his faculty. Thus it is that one of two computers first imported to the country in the early 70s, came to the engineering faculty while the other went to engineer ANS Kulasinghe in the state sector. The foundation for the expansion of information technology that has spread to all corners of the country, creating limitless employment opportunities for the country’s youth was laid in the engineering faculty at Peradeniya under his initiative.
Gunawardena was a simple man. He had no hidden agendas and no involvement in politics. At the University Council as well as at the National Science Council, he fought for the cause of science education. A devoted family man, his life revolved round his wife Lalitha and their daughter Arundathi. In the last years of his life, he divided his time between Kandy and Singapore where his daughter lived with her husband - a diversion which sustained him in spite of his poor health.
Let us salute the memory of this simple man who made such a big contribution to the promotion of engineering education in the country at the highest level.
H. P. Wijewardena
Sunil S. Abeysundara: A king in people’s heart
Sunil S.Abeysundara, whose 30th death anniversary fell this year, was an insightful leader with a warm heart, courage, determination and a father who advised and directed us on to the correct path. He wore a smile wherever he went, whomever he spoke to.
He became the mayor of Kadugannawa in the early 1950s. Obtaining electricity and water supply to the town was one of his first efforts to make Kadugannawa a much better place to live in. He stepped into Parliament defeating two major personalities, Hector Kobbekaduwa and D.B. Wijethunga in March 1960. However, he was defeated by U.B. Weerasekara in July 1960, and he regained his status as the representative in 1965 defeating Weerasekara. In 1970, Hector Kobbekaduwa won against Abeysundara, but in 1977, he secured his seat and became the Deputy Minister of Fisheries. He was a permanent member until 1988 and held ministerial positions as the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and the Minister of telecommunication and Post. He retired from his post after opening the doors to his third son, Gemunu Abeysundara. He left us in 1989 at the age of 63.
He advised us to be honest and to follow the leader. He asked us to listen for understanding rather than to respond. He taught us to become like a sponge to absorb everything and learn from it. He made us realise the importance of humanity. He was inspired by leaders, such as A.E. Nugawela, Dudley Senanayake, J.R. Jayawardene, E.L. Senanayake, Ashoka Karunarathne and N.H. Keerthirathne.
He was in the second year of medical college when he had to carry the responsibility of his family and the business after his father’s sudden demise. His courage and determination in carrying out his responsibilities and giving back to the people made him a commendable person.
Sunil S.Abeysundara initiated to give away nutritious food to families in need in the 1950s. He also transformed the Kadugannawa Maha Vidyalaya to a national school. He managed to provide physical facilities to all the schools of the Yatinuwara electorate. He was a pioneer in uplifting the quality of life of the villagers and supported many religious activities.
His fatherly affection was extended to all of us. He always had time to take us to theatre and to walk with us around the Kandy lake.
He was a role model, a father who unconditionally loved us and a pathfinder. His honesty and dedication was visible in everything he did. I am lucky to have been inspired by this great personality. I would like to wish that he will be born among us again to lead the nation.
Neville P. Vidyaratne
A.F. Dawood: An outstanding pedagogue
I salute my great guru for helping me to improve my English.
I was dumbfounded and non-plussed when I heard that my dear A.F. Dawood Sir had passed away in December last year after a brief illness. It is thoroughly heartbreaking to know that he has been robbed away from many of his learners. Simple and humble, he was gifted with a fine knowledge of English that made him an outstanding pedagogue and a versatile writer. Many readers of the Sunday Observer would recall the short stories he wrote.
His perfect knowledge of English made him stand tall. He used his talent not only to reach at all levels but also to undertake professional assignments like copy writing, copy editing, writing for tourist brochures and secretarial work. He had a penchant to pick out grammatical errors in book reviews authored by some well known names and pinpointed these flows by writing articles to the paper. He was very particular about sentence structures, grammar usage and syntax. He was in his element when he pointed out these shortcomings.
Being a businessman, I was hunting for an expert tutor to polish my English in communication and writing. When I met him for the first time, he put to rest my concern and uneasiness. He welcomed me and spoke kindly with a lot of camaraderie. He was fine-turned to impart and instruct. His amiable ways to all, laced with a human touch made us adults comfortable and confident; enabling them to ask questions sans inhibitions. He would even resort to Sinhala as a meaning conveying device. These fine teaching techniques endeared our sir to all who sought his expertise and services.
In the class there were young professionals; lawyers, accountants, executives, managers, etc. who benefited from his systematic and methodical explanations. His classes became popular among school leavers, students from local and international schools who sat for London and Cambridge exams. He proved his loyalty and dedication to all his charges, most of whom achieved outstanding results.
I too was yearning to improve my English. The result was that he guided me in such a way that I was able to gain confidence. His outstanding trait was gauging one’s shortcomings and repairing those weak points. I have never come across a person who was such a fine motivator. His encouraging words, warmth and understanding nature, simple approach made our Sir an excellent mentor. His precious life was cut short by the divine command depriving many of his pupils his sterling services and the readers of his interesting and popular stories which made his name familiar as a creative writer.
He has passed through this earthly life as a law abiding citizen, adhering to strict principles with a sense of responsibility towards his family and society. My beloved A.F. Dawood Sir has gone to his eternal rest. I deeply mourn his irreplaceable loss and will carry cherished memories in my heart of this honest gentleman. May your soul rest in peace!
Shehan Daluwatte