He was far more than a mere diplomat

It was with deep, heartfelt sadness that I heard the depressing news of the passing away of one of the most illustrious characters I have had the fortune of associating with in life; Dag Larsson. For me, it was a double whammy, because it came close upon the heels of another such much valued character, Per Prestgard. Both of them were exemplary Norwegian diplomats serving in Sri Lanka.

Dag Larsson was the Norwegian Ambassador and Head of NORAD in Sri Lanka for four years commencing 1987. He was simple and modest, approachable by his first name to us the local staff, greeting us with his pleasant smile every morning as we entered office.

Yet it was his professionalism, his inspiring leadership and management skills that impressed all of us who served the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Colombo. His service to Sri Lanka went well above and beyond the role of a mere diplomat. He was humanist, economist, sociologist, development planner, leader, manager all in one.

As the Head of the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Sri Lanka, he discharged his diplomatic duties impartially to perfection steering clear of any politics. Beyond that he, as a person, was an ambassador of goodwill to all and sundry, earning the unstinted respect of every ethnic and religious group, in the pluralist milieu that our society is.

I remember an incident which reflected the high esteem he had for the integrity and sovereignty of our country. When the India-Sri Lanka Peace Accord was signed in the late eighties, the Indian army came and occupied the North and the East. At the time a NORADfunded development programme was operating in the Batticaloa District and field visits by the NORAD staff had to be undertaken for inspection and progress monitoring. The Indian High Commission in Colombo had imposed a condition that their prior permission be obtained by anyone from outside entering the District.

The diplomatic staff of NORAD was privileged by a waiver, but not the local staff. As the District was still an integral part of the independent, sovereign state of Sri Lanka, Dag challenged the stance of the Indian HC and informed them that he was taking his local staff as well, with permission from the Sri Lanka Air Force and the Government Agent Batticaloa. And he kept his word.

Serving under his direction was a sublime blessing. As Senior Programme Officer of NORAD I gained invaluable experience and guidance in converting the knowledge and skills I had acquired in academic and professional institutions into practical use in the field. He was down to earth in planning and implementing development programmes aiming to institutionalise development as a sustainable process, rather than a mere activity or event. He believed in people-centred development concentrating in internal resource mobilisation along with ingrained local level institution building as against straitjacket infrastructure or output delivery. He promoted the concept of social mobilisation and the deployment of people’s institutions such as the SANASA, in preference to sectoral agencies which were more regulatory, than dynamic by design.

He was a leader and manager par excellence. He selected his support staff without fear or favour, solely on merit. In introducing the concept of integrated development to the rehabilitation programme of Batticaloa District he obtained the services of the ideal man for the job, W.M. Leelasena, who had done a splendid job as Project Director of the Hambantota Integrated Rural Development Programme.

Dag loved Sri Lanka and its people. Even after he had completed his term and left Sri Lanka, he was a frequent visitor, holidaying and reminiscing with his friends here.

We miss you a lot, Dag. May the gentle turf lie soft over you.

Ranjit Weerasinghe