CID Archives

BURGHERS – PRIDE OF THE POLICE – By S.Sivendran, Retired Senior Superintendant of Police Burghers were the descendents of the Portuguese and the Dutch who invaded Ceylon during the sixteenth and seventeenth century . They were fair in complexion and had an outstanding personality. Many of them joined the then Ceylon Police and were able administrators and outstanding sportsmen. They rose to high ranks and were the pride of the Police. They served all communities alike without fear or favour irrespective of race and religion. During my forty years in the Police, I had the privilege of working with many of these officers who were real officers and gentleman. They were DIG Wilhelm W R Lembrugen,a six footer who looked majestic in uniform. DIG David C T Pate who was in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department, DIG Cecil Percival Wambeek, who was in charge of Adminstration, DIG Tommy H ...

A migrant’s story – 2: Leaving Ceylon and landing in high spirits in Australia! BY RON PIERES My first journey out of Ceylon in March of 1974 was a very memorable one. My wife and I were migrating to Sydney, Australia. So, we sold most of our possessions as we had to pay for the tickets. We sold our worldly belongings, even clothes and my beloved transistor radio! We had to pay 66% FEEC’s plus the cost of tickets. To purchase foreign exchange, it was called Foreign Exchange Entitlement Certificates. Our first visit was to the Taxation Office to obtain tax clearance. I bribed the peon RS10 to ensure the swift movement of our file from desk to desk for approval! We then had to go to the notorious 10th Floor of the CID to obtain clearance certificates to leave Ceylon. We did this without getting thrown out of the ...