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HL: Hulftsdorp Lion
View(s):By Kandiah Neelakandan
On the 7th April 2013, we remember Deshamanya H.L.de Silva, PC, a multi-faceted personality who was hailed as a ‘Lion of Hulftsdorp’ on his fourth death anniversary. Although ‘H.L.’ stood for ‘Herman Leonard’, these two letters identify a Hulftsdorp Lion.
I had the pleasure of associating with the Mr. de. Silva, instructing him in our firm’s court cases since the time he reverted to the unofficial Bar in 1970, in which year I was admitted to practise. When he reverted to the unofficial Bar, his first brief was from our firm. V. Murugesu, my senior, had encouraged his good friend Mr. de Silva to join the private bar and I vividly remember the pleasure of instructing him to obtain an interim injunction in a case involving the National Lotteries Board. That was his first appearance at the unofficial Bar after leaving the AG’s Department — that too in the District Court of Colombo. The last time I met him a few days before his demise — I think it was in March 2009 — he recollected a number of cases, including the Collettes v. Bank of Ceylon case and the RABEA Trade Mark appeal in which he worked hard. He shared with me, his pleasant and bitter experiences of Hulftsdorp in his forthright manner.
H.L. de Silva
When the fundamental rights jurisdiction was given to the Supreme Court under the 1978 Constitution, it was Mr. de Silva who created history by arguing and extending the scope of jurisdiction. I sat by his side (instructing him) and watched how he fought for a student who was denied admission to Medical College.
That was the case of Perera and another v. University Grants Commission reported in (1978, 1979, 1980) 1 Sri Lanka Law Reports page 128. It was perhaps the first fundamental rights application successfully argued on the right to equality of opportunity under Article 12(1) of the 1978 Constitution. The petitioner was his own niece, but there is no doubt, he would have argued the case with the same vigour, even if it was for a stranger.
In a country where people seek offices for their personal glory, Mr. de Silva brought honour to the office of President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL). I vividly remember how H.W. Jayewardena, QC, promoted the candidature of this gentleman for the president of the BASL, despite the latter’s political alignment being in the opposite camp.
The present day colleagues at the Bar should be reminded how both those great leaders of the Bar – ‘H.W.’ and ‘H.L.’ – rose above political and party differences to protect the interests of the BASL.
When he was thus persuaded to come forward as a candidate for the presidency of the BASL in early 1987, he launched his campaign, saying, “I have steadfastly sought to uphold the traditions of our high calling and sought to avoid involvement in partisan conflict, in order that my professional services may be available as widely as possible to all shades of political opinion in the country. In consequence, I have enjoyed, if I may presume to say so, the rare distinction and honour of being entrusted with professional tasks involving the highest degree of confidence from divergent groups and interests, which I believe, I have succeeded in fulfilling with acceptance to those concerned”.
Professional traditions
R.K.W. Goonesekera who was one of his close friends and university colleagues said;
“HL’s approach to any controversial matter was always clinical and legal, devoid of emotion, a trait he carried to the end. I met HL after many years when I came to practise. Even so, there was a feeling of togetherness as with old friends. He was the same reserved person whose only interest appeared to be the law. This of course did change as we all know….
“He was not just one of the greatest lawyers of the country. He was a good and honourable man. It is difficult to lose such a friend and colleague….”
When he was the BASL president, Mr. de Silva addressed the newly admitted Attorneys-at-Law on October 30, 1988, in the following manner:
“… So please remember that the Bar Association exists primarily for the protection and safeguarding of professional ideals and the maintenance of professional traditions. So if we allow these standards to deteriorate, if we permit professional honour to be tarnished, then slowly but surely the legal profession will atrophy and die….”
Moral integrity
On October 27, 2007 he was invited by the Organisation of Professional Associations to address them at the induction of its president and on that occasion Mr. de Silva advised the lawyers and the other professionals of this country on “Moral Integrity”. He said:
“Moral integrity in public life transcends and extends beyond the prescriptions of the statute law which seek to precisely delimit the kinds of conduct which are either prohibited or positively enjoined. In a sense the standards of conduct considered as being appropriate to a life of moral integrity may be broadly and comprehensively subsumed under the concept of good faith which like a golden thread runs though the warp and woof of all human activity. Deviations from this norm are manifold. They are acts or omissions which are characterised by diverse forms of bad faith (mala fides) and the lack of fairness. The commonest forms in which they are manifest are abuse of power, misuse of power, fraud and corruption including bribery, biased decisions, favoured treatment of some victimisation of others.”
To emulate his example
Sena Wijewardene, a distinguished lawyer, who gained recognition at international level, has made glowing tribute to H.L.de Silva in the following words:
“I asked HL whether he would appear on behalf of Lake House as important issues were at stake. He had just come into the private bar. It was by no means a popular cause at the time, but I am proud to vouch for the fact that there was not a moment of hesitation in his professional answer. Several other friends who have later achieved great eminence in the public life of our country excused themselves saying they were likely to be victimised or deprived of State patronage – an unfortunate perception that continues to this day. It was our fortune to have had HL in our midst for so long and generations of lawyers will emulate his example…
“He was patriotic in the sense of wanting to ensure as most do, the country stays as a unified whole. To my knowledge, he never denied to others the rights and freedoms he was so passionately attached to himself. He was always willing to put under the glare of sunlight any argument including one of injustices, because he knew well, that if true it has to be corrected and if false, exposed. This is another mark of a great modern lawyer reflective of international standards of mankind not any particular country, and he fully lived up to that. Another reason then, for us to acknowledge his contribution and to emulate him. It is good to remind ourselves of his virtues.”
Having observed that the “members of the legal profession, who have various political opinions and know what is going on, believed him, and, as we have seen, overwhelmingly elected him as their leader”, (referring to Mr. de Silva’s election as the President of the BASL) Justice A.R.B. Amerasinghe, one of the respected Judges of our Supreme Court who is also no more with us, once said “H.L. is a dedicated member of his profession, and in his speeches and writings he has advocated adherence to the highest standards of conduct”.
Justice Amerasinghe had this to say of Mr. de Silva’s family:
“Undoubtedly, H.L.’s central and pivotal driving force, his power-house, has been his family. Manel, his wife, has been his most steadfast and constant friend and loyal helpmate through the vicissitudes of the changing fortunes of life through almost fifty years. H.L. and Manel have two daughters – Nilmini, a Civil Engineer, and Lakmali (Mrs. Charles Casinader), an Attorney-at-Law of Sri Lanka and a Solicitor of the New South Wales Bar. H.L. and Manel have three grandsons — Sanjeev, Rajeev and Krishan. Every year, H.L. and Manel spend some months in Australia with their children and grandchildren.”
His family always stood by him. I have seen and admired how Manel de Silva played the role of her husband’s dedicated secretary as well. Of course this giant of the Bar has instilled the great values in his next generation. His daughter Nilmini had this to say in her tribute to her father;
“He always had words of wisdom to impart, whether it was in relation to his favourite dish or on some intellectual topic such as the right to self determination. His thirst for knowledge even at 81 was unquenchable and he always believed that he was never too old to learn…
“So what lifelong lessons have you left me with? You have taught me that I should never seek fame or fortune but that rather, that I must strive to earn the trust and confidence of my peers. You have taught me that to lead the orchestra I must be willing to turn my back on the crowd! You were a man who walked the talk and you set us an amazing example to follow…
“It has truly been a privilege for Nangi and me to call you “Thaththi” and I would like to end with the words of Shakespeare which you inscribed in my autograph book when I was a little girl. “To thine own self be true. And it must follow, as the night and day, thou canst not then be false to any man…
“Thaththi, your journey here has ended but what a ride it’s been! We are all so very proud of what you have achieved and those memories will live in our hearts forever!”
I also wish to conclude in the same tone. We the members of the Bar are also proud of this Hulfsdorp Lion and his memories will live in our hearts. It is unfortunate we do not have him with us, at this critical time of our history.
(The writer is Precedent Partner of law firm Neelakandan & Neelakandan, formerly Murugesu & Neelakandan)
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