On this episode of ‘At HydePark with Indeewari Amuwatte’, veteran civil servant Austin Fernando discusses the crucial incidents leading to an escalation of the civil war in Sri Lanka and the historic events of the country's political landscape. Elaborating on the social unrest that began with the passing of the Official Language Act of 1956 and the 1983 Black July riots, the former public administrator pointed to the unavoidable responsibility of the civil war on former governments, administrators and politicians. Austin Fernando, who had served under 6 Sri Lankan Executive Presidents, added that the actions of politicians representing the minorities too contributed to escalating tensions and emphasized that public administrators who were in positions of power, should have done more to prevent some of the darkest episodes of Sri Lankan history.