Saying goodbye to my dear friend, Harry Jayawardena was one of the saddest and most difficult things I had to do recently; more so because I had to bid my farewells from far off London.
I had dreaded that day coming to pass; ever since the moment four years ago, when I had waited at 3 in the cold morning air for his ambuplane (air ambulance) operated by Turkish Airline to land at Dubai airport and for him to be rushed into admission at one of Dubai’s best hospitals at the height of the Covid-19 lockdown. It has been three months since he passed away but it feels like yesterday.
I was saying goodbye to not one, but many manifestations of Harry J, as he was endearingly called in Sri Lanka.
Harry was a gentleman, impeccably dressed, beautifully manicured, always positive, always courteous, attentive, and magnificently hospitable.
Harry was a mischievous humourist, with an “espirit facetieux” for elaborately constructed practical jokes and events that had his friends in uncontrollable fits of laughter.
Harry was a bon vivant, with a critical appreciation of good food, particularly Japanese food, which he adored. He was also a connoisseur of fine drink. I remember once expressing a desire for Jaffna crab curry and being astonished when he presented me with huge and delicious lagoon crabs flown in from the east coast, commanding pride of place at his table. It was one of the hundreds of convivial meals we shared together.
I also recall the time he complimented me after I had my chef prepare him my favourite fish dish, resplendent in lemon jus and peel, at his beautifully designed and furnished home in Jaela, saying it was the finest fish dish he had ever eaten.
I used to joke with him that “every inch of our rather large bodies were indeed the works of master chefs.” My last memorable meal with him was last year in Singapore when he took me to a roast duck restaurant on Orchard Road with his family.
I recall his love of Royal Lochnagar whiskey which he sipped in appreciation until the doctors stopped him taking alcohol and the pride with which he served the grandest DCSL 20-year-old aged arrack Argente. His hospitality was legendary.
Harry the entrepreneur
Harry was a brave and decisive entrepreneur with complete command of the fine print, and a fast assessment of risk, reward and market opportunity. He knew which costs to cut and how to procure the best at the lowest price, to give value for money and create global businesses. He kept his work force dedicated and satisfied. His achievements were recognised when Forbes magazine judged and accoladed his business as the best in Asia.
He absorbed information extremely fast and had that unique ability, seen in so many successful people, to distinguish what was relevant and what was not. He eschewed useless information, filtering and storing valuable real knowledge in that prodigious mind, to be used later.
I remember an occasion, when we both came down to the company garage after a meeting to be confronted by a group of workmen in a deep ditch repairing a leaking pipe. Without hesitation, Harry jumped into the ditch leaving me gawking. He asked them what adhesive they were using to repair the leak. They gave him a tin. He looked at it and said, “This is the wrong spec. Use Sikaflex 291, 3M 5200 it is much better,” and climbed out of the ditch helped by a group of executives with their collective mouths open, in awe.
He knew to the core of his being; how precious time was – and wasted none of it – a far cry from most Sri Lankans. He was 24/7 reachable and always answered his mobile phone within three rings, knowing that keeping another person waiting was stealing the other person’s time, a theft that can never be repaid.
This instant approachable accountability gave his business partners, particularly those from abroad, huge confidence. His instant availability built trust with them and his partners in Sri Lanka. His word was his bond and the bank balances followed.
One of the richest men in the world said he would happily give Harry any investment he wanted, because he knew he could speak to him within 10 seconds. He knew how to create trust and knew instinctively how to spot a market opportunity, to act swiftly and with determination.
That is why, the President of one of the most powerful countries in the world, without being asked, rang the Chairman of the largest bank in Europe and asked him to help fund Harry’s acquisition of the largest insurance company in Sri Lanka.
He created and expanded several global businesses, most of them started in his early life with very little capital. He never forgot a favour done, keeping lifelong friends – and they reciprocated equally.
Touched the lives of many
He was the consummate consumerist. A tea producer and exporter, food importer and distributor, a dairy farmer and milk producer, a distiller and latterly a brewer, a garment manufacturer, a hotelier, a health care provider and banker.
His activities touched the lives of everyone right across the social spectrum. His business model was quality driven. All the equipment had to be the best, not the cheapest. He took me proudly and showed me the most ultra-modern bottling plant he had ordered at an eye watering price from Germany for the Distillery, eschewing cheaper varieties from elsewhere.
His business model was people-oriented and carefully considered, catering to basic human necessities. He spent money delivering quality because all his businesses pivoted on what was needed daily by ordinary people, not the rich, the sophisticated or the elites. Just ordinary people – the mass consumer; who understood quality and value for money in everything they bought. He quickly became the market leader and profits followed.
He knew how to deliver these with huge impact. On one occasion I took him to the Carlton Club, London, one of those powerful institutions from which the British Establishment had run the Empire for 250 years and where profound decisions of the day were made by the Great and the Good. While most Sri Lankans I have taken to the Club spent their time in awe, ooohing and admiring the gilt adorned rooms and portraits of generations gone by. Harry was having none of it.
He asked, “Have you done a Sri Lankan week here? I was nonplussed. He said, “Call the Club Secretary here”, I did. Six months later we held the first of a week-long Sri Lankan food and drink festival at the Club after he flew in five chefs from Colombo. The London Establishment buzzed for the first time with the idea of eating hoppers, string hoppers, pol sambola etc., which hitherto had never been heard of.
The annual week-long festival ran for 10 years, sponsored by Harry. I remember after a reception at Buckingham Palace given by the Late Queen for Members of Parliament, taking several of them to the Carlton Club for Sri Lankan seeni sambola and hoppers. Her Majesty had been amused at being told where we were going. Such was Harry’s genius.
Then there was Harry the patriotic Government servant, running Government enterprises – Sri Lanka Airlines and the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation as though they were his own. He gave them 24-hour attention seven days a week. Nothing was too small for him as he rolled up his sleeves, arriving in the offices, stores, warehouses, oil depots, loading and unloading bays, aircraft maintenance facilities, aircraft cabins, food preparation kitchens, inspecting them even at midnight to make sure that they were more than fit for purpose. He was one of the few people in Sri Lanka who turned loss-making Government enterprises into profit.
Warm-hearted human being
Then there was Harry the Internationalist, acutely aware of the implications of every twist and turn in international politics, knowledgeable and acquainted with numerous world leaders and a friend to both President Clinton and Hillary Clinton, which then empowered his children to have extraordinary experiences working in the White House.
And then for me, there was Harry the friend, loyal, supportive, never forgetting a help or kindness he could do; always concerned and always there, sometimes silently with that piercing gaze, sometimes with a few right words. When my mother passed away, I was in Hong Kong on a Parliamentary visit. Harry helped by coming to the house six times and staying up in the night with me and then being a pallbearer.
Then there was Harry the husband, a loving, supporting pillar of strength to one of the nicest, kindest ladies in Sri Lanka, who cared for him and looked after him lovingly with his children for over four years of hospital care, day and night, seven days a week, without having a break, giving their love and devotion in an acknowledgement of family and filial love.
Harry was a loving and caring father, manifesting himself in his kind, warm-hearted way teaching his son, now a seasoned tea trader and international businessman, how to run a huge conglomerate and his daughters the intricacies of running a modern hotel empire and banks.
Finally, there was Harry the human being showing kindness to thousands of people in countless ways and helping their lives anonymously.
Deshamanya Harry Jayawardena, Knight Cross of the Order of Dannebrog, you are an amazing soul and we are very sorry you have left us; but I know you will be by the side of Jesus and praying for us from where you are.
Chevalier Thakur Niranjan de S Deva Aditya
Deputy Lieutenant HM King Charles III Lord Lieutenancy of London, former Presidential Envoy of Sri Lanka, former Vice President DEVE European Parliament, former Government PPS and Member UK Parliament
