Sri Lanka, Nov. 1 -- Ceylon's first attempt to curb the media freedom came to pass in 1964. The attempt resulted in the incumbent government being overthrown when the Press Council Bill was defeated in Parliament.

The previous essay of this series chronicled Sirima Bandaranaike's ascent to become the world's first woman Prime Minister, after her coalition secured 75 seats of the 151 elected seats in July 1960. She secured a senatorial appointment and added six appointed MPs in order to stitch together a slim majority. She could even attract a few independents to her side.

However, her government's narrow margin in Parliament was a house of cards that constantly teetered. The traditional Marxist parties - LSSP, CP, and Philip Gunawardena...