Commodore Ajith Boyagoda might have escaped the Tamil Tigers if he had been capable of overcoming a natural instinct. After his ship was sunk by a suicide boat, Boyagoda was left clinging to a raft in the Indian Ocean. The Tamil Tigers spied him in the water and looped a rope around him and hauled him in. If he had removed the rope and took his chances with the ocean he might have escaped. But when you are trapped in the middle of an ocean, you let yourself be hauled out of the water, regardless of whom the rescuer is. In doing this, however, he sealed his fate for the next eight years of his life. From that moment on the Tamil Tigers moved him from one hidden jail to another. His treatment was entirely dependent on the whims of his latest jailor. Regardless of his treatment, though, Boyagoda behaved with incredible dignity. Not only did he make the best situation for himself as possible but also his fellow prisoners.
This is an incredible story of a remarkable man. His humility, dignity and goodness shines through the pages. I have enormous respect for this man and his story deserves to be heard.