On
the walk back last night from the Net place in Aljunied a large gathering
outside Buhari Restaurant of Sri Lankan and Indian lads for the cricket final
between the two countries. A few days ago a brawl had been reported in the
newspaper at a similar viewing involving foreign workers, Bangladeshi and
Indian in that case. Here the young chaps stood all of a piece, uniform height,
colour, feature, all neat Sunday attire shoulder to shoulder fixed on the
action. The screen was mounted indoors on the back wall of the restaurant, not
an especially large unit; many of the condos and even the HDB's would have far
larger. Three or four white cloth-covered tables only were occupied within,
no-one giving any mind to the crowd outside. A century ago the hungry stood
outside such restaurant windows observing diners indoors; in some places of the
globe the scene might still play. There must have been fifty young men formed
in a horse-shoe, in order to allow the swing of the door perhaps. Passersby
under the walkway were courteously given passage. No sound penetrated from the
other side of the glass; none was needed—the drama of runs, wickets and running
all clearly displayed. Five years after the war there would have been many
Tamils conflicted in their allegiance, Singhalese mixed and a good proportion
of former combatants. Peace and quiet concentration reigning last night.
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