Don Stephen Senanayake

The Right Honourable Don Stephen Senanayake
DS Senanayake
1st Prime Minister of Ceylon
In office October 14, 1947 – March 22, 1952
Monarch	George VI Elizabeth II
Succeeded by	Dudley Senanayake
Personal details
Born	October 20, 1884(1884-10-20) Botale, Negombo, British Ceylon
Died	March 22, 1952(1952-03-22) (aged 67) Colombo, Ceylon
Nationality	Ceylonese
Political party	United National Party
Spouse(s)	Molly Dunuwila
Religion	From Buddhism to Roman catholicism Finally to Buddhism

Don Stephen Senanayake (Sinhala:දොන් ස්ටීවන් සේනානායක) (October 20, 1884–22 March 1952) was an independence activist who served as the first Prime Minister of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) from 1947 to 1952.

Early life

He was born at Botale,The village was named after ‘Bodhi-tale’—the place of the Bodhi or Bo tree(This is an extract from the book Don Stephen Senanayake, the first Prime Minister of Sri Lanka by H. A. J. Hulugalle, the second edition of which was launched on the 20th of October, the birth anniversary of D. S Senanayake. The first edition was published quarter century ago.). Mirigama to Mudaliyar Don Spater Senanayake and Dona Catherina Elizabeth Perera Gunasekera Senanayake. Brought up in a devout Buddhist family, he entered the prestigious Anglican school [[S. Thomas' College].He was a Buddhist. An intelligent student, school Senanayake did not excel at his studies. The education which Senanayake had with Warden Buck and subsequently, with Warden Stone would have nurtured his inherent qualities which were reflected in later life. He was witness to Buck’s famous farewell speech "You have learned the best lessons from STC (St. Thomas’s College)... true manliness and truth, courage, purity and all those things that make a man a gentleman..." The college had inculcated a self confidence to this sturdy villager from Botale, which enabled him to deal with statesmen of the highest intellectual levels and to be admired by them for his intrinsic noble and decent character traits.Despite the hard work pertaining to much needed social reforms of the time by the three Senanayake brothers (D.C, F.R. and D.S), whether it be through the Lanka Mahajana Sabha where D.S. and D.C. were prominent members or through the Y.M.B.A. which F.R. and brother D.C. heavily financed and tirelessly worked for, the direct involvement in politics and affairs of the state fell upon D.S's shoulders. There were two reasons for this. Firstly F.R. (Frederick Richard) expired while on a pilgrimage to Buddha Gaya in 1925, and D.C. (Don Charles) who was known to be the man behind the scenes shunned the limelight. The youngest brother D.S. therefore became the natural choice. he found work in the Surveyor General's Department, but left work as a superintended on his father's plantation. When World War I broke out in 1914 he joined the Colombo Town Guard, however he was imprisoned without charges during the Sinhalese Muslim Riots (known as the 1915 riots) and was faced the prospect of execution.

Politics

Senanayake played an active role in the independence movement first supporting his brother Fredrick Richard Senanayake and after his death in 1926, D. S. took his place Legislative Council and lead the independence movement. In 1931 when he was elected to the State Council, and went on to become Minister of Agriculture and Lands. He combated Ceylon's agricultural problems effectively, and established the LDO, an agricultural policy that countered Ceylon's rice problems. This policy earned him respect, and he continued to be a minister for fifteen years. He also enforced "Agricultural Modernisation", which increased production output. During World War II he was a member of the Ceylon war cabinet.

However, he resigned in 1946 from his cabinet post to fight for Ceylon's independence. That same year he founded the United National Party (UNP) by amalgamating three right-leaning pro-dominion parties, which is still one of the main political parties and perhaps the largest single party in Sri Lanka. In only a year he succeeded, and was elected as Ceylon's first Prime Minister in the general election held in 1947. He refused a knighthood, but maintained good relations with Britain and was a Privy Councillor. He boldly made plans to spread out the population, and his Gal Oya scheme relocated over 250,000 people.

Death

His other plans included the increase of hydroelectric power, but he suffered a stroke and fell down whilst riding the Police mare ‘Chitra’ at the Galle Face Green on the morning of March 22, 1952. He died at the age of sixty-seven.

D.S.Senanayake as the first Prime Minister of Ceylon with his Cabinet members

D.S.Senanayake visiting the 1st battalion of the CLI at the Echelon Square

Legacy

D.S Senanayake is respected by Sinhalese and some Muslims. However, Tamils were not happy with his citizenship laws that disenfranchised virtually all Tamils of recent Indian origin living in the central highlands. His bold agricultural plans and pro-Western policies, however, attracted criticism for their modern and untraditional nature. Under his family's leadership, Sri Lanka's economy flourished, and D.S. Senanayake is still known as "The Father of Sri Lanka".

Family

D.S Senanayake married Molly Dunuwila, with whom he had two sons, Dudley Shelton Senanayake (19 June 1911 - 13 April 1973) and Robert Parakrama Senanayake (8 April 1913 - 26 April 1986). His eldest son, Dudley Shelton Senanayake, succeeded him as Prime Minister in 1952, followed by another relative, Sir John Kotelawala (1897–1980) in 1953, but this nine-year family dynasty was ended by a landslide victory for Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike in 1956, campaigning under the "Sinhala Only" slogan. Dudley Senanayake regained the Prime Ministership in 1960, and again from 1965 to 1970. Rukman Senanayake, one of his grandsons is a former cabinet minister, former chairman of the UNP, current member of parliament and Assistant Leader of the UNP.

See also

• List of political families in Sri Lanka
• Dudley Shelton Senanayake
• Rukman Senanayake

Mudaliyar Don Spater Senanayake ( son of Don Bartholomew who had assumed the name Senanayake), with son-in-law F.H. Dias-Bandaranaike, sons Don Stephen Senanayake, Don Charles Senanayake and Fredrick Richard Senanayake, daughter Maria Frances and wife Dona Catherina Elizabeth Perera. They were Anglican Christians

External links

• The Senanayake Ancestry
• The Senanayake Clan
• Remembering D S of Botale Walauwa
• Website of the Parliament of Sri Lanka
• United National Party website
• DS Senanayake in Sinhala
• Methek Kathawa Divaina
• Methek Kathawa Divaina
• D.S. Senanayake College

Government offices
Preceded by –	Prime Minister of Ceylon 1947–1952	Succeeded by Dudley Senanayake