The investiture ceremony at which the science fiction writer, Arthur C. Clarke (80), was to have been conferred with a knighthood by the Prince of Wales has been postponed at the author's own request following allegations that he was a paedophile. Clarke, who is Sri Lanka's "special guest" and most beloved resident, has denied the report in Britain's Sunday Mirror newspaper that he regularly paid young boys money for sex ever since settling in Colombo more than 30 years ago. A spokesman for the author said yesterday that he was seeking legal advice in connection with the report."In view of the nature of this story, I have asked that my investiture be postponed in order to avoid embarrassment to the Prince of Wales during his visit to Sri Lanka," Clarke said in a statement. One of Clarke's closest friends, a senior Sri Lankan television journalist, had claimed in the English tabloid that Clarke had been involved with boys in recent months. Sri Lankans were surprised and upset by the allegations, even though there had been rumours in Colombo for many years that Clarke was a homosexual."I am shocked and outraged by Clarke's confession," the head of End Child Prostitution and Trafficking in Colombo, Ms Maureen Seneviratne, said yesterday. But Clarke's status on the island, she added, was so secure that his standing would remain unaffected.Prince Charles arrives in the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, today amid the tightest security this wartorn city has ever seen. The prince is chief guest at the country's 50th Independence Day celebrations.The festivities come two days after fighting between government troops and Tamil Tiger guerillas in the north of the island, in which more than 300 rebels and some 20 soldiers died in the first major battle this year. The Tigers have been fighting a civil war for independence for 15 years in which over 50,000 people have died.Meanwhile, some 15,000 soldiers armed with assault rifles have set up road blocks across Colombo. In spite of this, a civic reception for Prince Charles tomorrow has been cancelled following security concerns expressed by his bodyguards.
