45
428
44
but I should likewise feel that such action would not only alienate their support to Government, for however little it might count, but would also incline them to assimilate methods of agitation which they at present condemn, but which they could rightly postulate had achieved success. And it should be borne in mind that, however, strongly the delegates in England may have protested that with this concession of the abandonment of the Tamil communal seat for Colombo and the Western Province, or some modification of the conditions for a Tamil communal seat, further agitation would cease, I am of opinion that such agitation, though possibly repressible for a period, will break out with renewed vigour, with the aim and object of obtaining Responsible Government at the earliest possible date. Of this contingency I entertain no possible doubt, and in this latter agitation the Tamil community, who I feel are for moderate schemes at present, embittered by the surrender of their case to the clamour of a body for whom they have little respect, would join with the Extremists in the fear that their political safety would alone be secure by such a course of action.
9. I would very gladly have done everything in my power to effect a compromise, could I have felt that such a compromise would be advisable, and I very fully recognize how desirable, in the early days of the new Council, that might have seemed to be. But I do not feel that such a compromise, even had it been acceptable to the Tamils, would have had any permanent effect. Agitation for further advance towards, if not for, Responsible Government is inevitable. It might have been controlled for a short period, but at a sacrifice to the Tamil community which I could not recommend to you.
10. In regard to the additional seat for the Southern Province as a concession to moderate opinion, I have no objection to offer to this proposal, except that it upsets the balance of parties and upon which I comment later. This extra seat will give a total of 49 seats in the Legislative Council, adding the extra Sinhalese seat for Colombo, already assented to.
11. The number as set out in paragraph 8 of my despatch of 14th August, 1922,* will then be :-
Unofficial
Territorially-elected
Communally-elected or nominated Nominated
21 Territorially-elected Members. 26 Remainder,
if examined as to the number of Sinhalese and Tamil representatives in the Council, would reveal that there would be
21 Territorially-elected Members (Sinhalese and Tamil).
1 Tamil communally-elected Member, Colombo Town and Western Province.
2 Possibly Sinhalese (including Kandyan) Nominated Members.
24
and deducting these 3 seats from the "Remainder" 28, the figure becomes 23 for the "Remainder."
Similarly, in the present calculation the Territorially-elected seats
are to be 23
Add the 8 seats above 3
26
Deduct these 3 seats from the "Remainder" and that figure becomes 23. I think it desirable to set out this position though it need not be taken to affect the decisions already arrived at.
14 In regard to the proposed seat for the Southern Province, I have not yet been able to decide upon the revision of the electoral areas in order to provide for this, but this need not delay the publication of the Order in Council, as provision for these 3 seats can be made in similar terms as for the electoral divisions in the Northern Province.
40633
No. 37.
I have, &c..
W. H. MANNING,
Governor, &c.
THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE GOVERNOR. [Answered by No. 50.]
23
11
3
Official
12
Total
49
(Confidential.)
Majority of Unofficial Members
SIR,
25
Remainder
Territorially-elected Members
Distribution of seats:
Sinhalese
23
28
12.
16
Tamil-
8
T
Total
24
(of which 6 seats are provided for
Kandyan areas.)
(including the Tamil communal Beat for Colombo and the Western Province.)
The combined Sinhalese and Tamil seats will thus amount to 24 as against the remainder of the Communal, Official and Nominated seats numbering 25, still apparently preserving a majority of 1 over the two communities (Sinhalese and Tamil) and, therefore, apparently maintaining the principle that no two communities should be able to outvote the rest of the Council, though by a very narrow majority. 13. The three Nominated seats, however, come into this consideration, and until the elections have taken place it will not be possible for me to state how I' should propose to fill these seats; but the probability seems to be that two of these seats will go to the Sinhalese (including the Kandyans), in which case the balance will be upset. It is, however, assumed that the principle applies to the Territorially- elected Members, including the Tamil communal seat for Colombo and the Western Province, and in the calculations regarding this principle in submitting my proposals in my despatch of 14th August, 1922, I had recognized that the state of the parties, though shown as
No. 88 in Eastern No. 188.
Downing Street, 25th September, 1923.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Confidential despatch of the 24th of July,* in which you submit proposals for the creation of a body
to be styled the "Executive Committee," by which an opportunity will be given for the closer Association of the Elected Members of the Legislative Council with the Executive Government of Ceylon.
2. Your proposal follows closely the arrangement which has for some time been in force in Barbados. You may be aware that in that Colony the tendency has been for the Executive Committee to supersede the Executive Council to a very large extent, and that at the present time the Executive Council rarely meets except for discussion on questions of discipline, which remain among the few important questions not now falling within the province of the Executive Committee. In these circumstances, I think it possible that some of the arguments which you have used against the appointment of Elected Members to the Executive Council might be used with hardly less force against similar appointments to an Executive Committee. Nevertheless, I am satisfied that it will be difficult to resist indefinitely proposals for the Association of Elected Members with the Executive, and I consider that your proposals may well form the basis of a practical scheme.
3. With a view to the further discussion of the matter, I enclose a draft scheme for the formation of an Executive Committee in Ceylon drawn up on the basis of your proposals and of the existing arrangement in Barbados. that, subject to any observations which you may wish to offer on this draft scheme, I suggest you should submit it to the Legislative Council in order that the views of the unofficial members on the proposals may be obtained.
• No. 25,
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
CO. 882/10
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
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