The letter written by Ms Godbai Gunasekera to "The Island" titled "B.B.C’s vain attempt to show James Mawdsley as a super-hero" is rather ironic, for she has belittled and ridiculed a human-activist who has taken a courageous stand against a tyrannical regime.

It is true as a human-activist, Mr. Mawdsley has acted contrary to man-made laws of Myannmar Junta Government by distributing leaflets supporting pro-democratic literature. He has acted according to his conscience, well knowing the probable consequences of his actions. Surely, he need not confine his sympathies only to countries situated closer to his mother-land, which itself can be regarded as an arbitrary restriction imposed upon a citizen of the global village.

In Myannmar (Burma) general public have overwhelmingly voted for a change, with a view to electing a democratic government, which itself is a fact rather than fiction, and their choice have been stifled, by the Junta government which resorted to violence to quell the uprising.

Ms Gunasekera’s assertion that average citizen of a country is not vitally concerned with who governs, as long as their needs are met, is a vain attempt on her part to over simplify the real situation in Myanmar. The Junta government guided by the brutal use of military might has silenced the strident cry of its people in that country who are clamouring for a democratic way of life.

In this context, Mr. Mawdsley being a human activist, has naturally taken an unpalatable stance, looking at the whole issue in a broader and liberal perspective. That is why he must be congratulated without considering his nationality or whether he is well-fed by the Myannmar Junta government which factors I find immaterial and also irrelevant in assessing his stand complying him to go too close to the wind, which itself is a laudable achievement.

To that alone, which is not a very visible trait, of a sycophant or a coward, I am sure all the lovers of democracy and basic human rights will salute him unconditionally without yielding the undercurrents of prejudices giving way to racial hatred. Such divisions may allow placid minds and excuse to distort facts blithely without bothering to differentiate the chaff from the grain.
Ranjan Amarasinghe
Nugegoda