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Maithripala Sirisena

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His Excellency
Maithripala Sirisena
President of Sri Lanka
Assumed office
09 January 2015
Preceded byMahinda Rajapaksa
Leader of the House
In office
3 May 2004 – 9 August 2005
PresidentChandrika Kumaratunga
Preceded byW. J. M. Lokubandara
Succeeded byNimal Siripala de Silva
Minister of Irrigation, Mahaweli and Rajarata Development[N 1]
In office
10 April 2004 – 23 November 2005
PresidentChandrika Kumaratunga
Mahaweli Development and Parliamentary Affairs
In office
1997–2001
PresidentChandrika Kumaratunga
Preceded byS. B. Dissanayake
Succeeded byA. H. M. Azwer
General-Secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party
In office
October 2001 – 21 November 2014
Preceded byS. B. Dissanayake
Succeeded byAnura Priyadharshana Yapa
Member of Parliament
for Polonnaruwa District
Assumed office
15 February 1989
Personal details
Born
Pallewatte Gamaralalage Maithripala Yapa Sirisena

(1951-09-03) 3 September 1951 (age 72)
Political partySri Lanka Freedom Party (1967–2014)
New Democratic Front (2014–present)
SpouseJayanthi Pushpa Kumari
Children3
Alma materSri Lanka School of Agriculture
Maxim Gorky Literature Institute
OccupationFarmer
ProfessionAgriculturist
Signature
Websitewww.maithripala.com

Pallewatte Gamaralalage Maithripala Yapa Sirisena (known as Maithripala Sirisena Sinhala: මෛත්‍රීපාල සිරිසේන; born 3 September 1951) is a Sri Lankan politician and the President elect.[1] He joined mainstream politics in 1989 and has held several ministries since 1994. He was the general-secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and was Minister of Health until November 2014 when he announced his candidacy for the 2015 presidential election as the opposition coalition's "common candidate". He had also served as the Acting Defence Minister for several occasions.[2] On 9 January 2015, Maithripala Sirisena won the Presidential election defeating Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Early life and Education

Sirisena was born on 3 September 1951.[3] He was the son of World War II veteran Albert Sirisena, who was awarded five acres of paddy land in Polonnaruwa near Parakrama Samudra by D. S. Senanayake.[4]

He was educated at Royal College, Polonnaruwa.[4][5] He studied for three years at the Sri Lanka School of Agriculture, Kundasale. In 1980 he earned a Diploma in Political science at the Maxim Gorky Literature Institute in Russia.[6][7]

Early political activity

As a teenager Sirisena became interested in communism but in 1967 he joined the Sri Lanka Freedom Party's (SLFP) youth league in Polonnaruwa.[4] He was jailed during the 1971 Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna Insurrection.[6] He rose up the SLFP ranks, joining its politburo in 1981.[4] He became president of the All Island SLFP Youth Organization in 1983.[6]

Sirisena worked at the Palugasdamana Multi Purpose Cooperative Society and also as a grama niladhari (village officer).[6]

Political career

Sri Lankan Parliament

Sirisena contested the 1989 parliamentary election as one of the SLFP's candidates in Polonnaruwa District and was elected to Parliament.[8] He was re-elected at the 1994 parliamentary election, this time as a People's Alliance (PA) candidate.[9] He was appointed Deputy Minister of Irrigation in the new PA government led by Chandrika Kumaratunga.[4] President Kumaratunga promoted him to the Cabinet in 1997, appointing him Minister of Mahaweli Development.[4] In August 2000 Sirisena tried to become general-secretary of the SLFP but was beaten by S. B. Dissanayake.[10][11] Sirisena was instead appointed one the Deputy Presidents of SLFP.[12] He was re-elected to Parliament at the 2000 parliamentary election and retained his ministerial portfolio.[13][14] He became general-secretary of the SLFP in October 2001 following Dissanayake's defection to the United National Party (UNP).[15]

Opposition

He was re-elected at the 2001 parliamentary election but the PA lost the election and so Sirisena lost his ministerial position.[16]

In January 2004 the SLFP joined forced with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna to form a political alliance called the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA).[17] Sirisena was re-elected at the 2004 parliamentary election as a UPFA candidate.[18] President Kumaratunga appointed him Minister of River Basin Development and Rajarata Development in the new UPFA government in April 2004.[19][20][21] He was also appointed Leader of the House.[22][23] Sirisena's ministerial portfolio was renamed as Minister of Irrigation, Mahaweli and Rajarata Development in July 2005.[24][25] He resigned as Leader of the House in August 2005.[26]

Minister of Agriculture

After the 2005 presidential election newly elected President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed Sirisena Minister of Agriculture, Environment, Irrigation and Mahaweli Development in November 2005.[27][28] On 27 March 2006 Sirisena's personal secretary M. L. Dharmasiri was shot dead by unknown gunmen in Aranangawila.[29] Following a cabinet reshuffle in January 2007 he was appointed Minister of Agricultural Development and Agrarian Services Development by President Rajapaksa.[30][31]

Assassination attempt

Sirisena narrowly escaped death on 9 October 2008 when a convoy he was part of was attacked by a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's suicide bomber at Piriwena Junction in Boralesgamuwa, Colombo.[32][33] One person was killed and seven injured.[34]

Minister of Health

Sirisena was re-elected at the 2010 parliamentary election and was appointed Minister of Health in April 2010.[35][36][37]

Presidential candidate

Main article: Sri Lankan presidential election, 2015

Following days of speculation in the media, Sirisena announced on 21 November 2014 that he would challenge incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the 2015 presidential election as the common opposition candidate.[38][39] Sirisena claimed that everything in Sri Lanka was controlled by one family and that the country was heading towards a dictatorship with rampant corruption, nepotism and a breakdown of the rule of law.[40][41] He has pledged to abolish the executive presidency within 100 days of being elected, repeal the controversial eighteenth amendment, re-instate the seventeenth amendment and appoint UNP leader Ranil Wickremasinghe as Prime Minister.[42][43][44]

Sirisena has received the support of the UNP, the main opposition party, as well as former president Chandrika Kumaratunga and several UPFA MPs that had defected alongside him (Duminda Dissanayake, M. K. D. S. Gunawardena, Wasantha Senanayake, Rajitha Senaratne, Rajiva Wijesinha).[45][46][47][48]

Following the announcement Sirisena, along with several other ministers who supported him, were stripped of their ministerial positions and expelled from the SLFP.[49][50][51] His ministerial security and vehicles were also withdrawn.[52][53]

Notes

  1. ^ Minister of River Basin Development and Rajarata Development (April 2004 - July 2005)

References

  1. ^ http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/south-asia/sri-lanka-election-mahinda-rajapaksa-concedes-defeat/article6770519.ece
  2. ^ "Acting Defence Minister". Daily News (Sri Lanka). 15 May 2009.
  3. ^ "Directory of Members: Sirisena, Maithripala". Parliament of Sri Lanka.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Gunewardene, Prasad (25 September 2007). "'Mangala, Sripathi, JVP and UPFA'". Daily News (Sri Lanka).
  5. ^ "Enter Maithripala Sirisena". The Sunday Leader. 23 November 2014.
  6. ^ a b c d Warnapala, Wiswa (15 February 2009). "Maitripala Sirisena: An embodiment of aspirations of common man". Sunday Observer (Sri Lanka).
  7. ^ Sirisena, Maithripala. "Biography". http://maithripalasirisena.lk/. Maithripala Sirisena. Retrieved 24 November 2014. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
  8. ^ "Result of Parliamentary General Election 1989" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka.
  9. ^ "Result of Parliamentary General Election 1994" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka.
  10. ^ Ferdinando, Shamindra (17 September 2000). "Jayakody denies rift over National List, says "I'll remain with CBK"". The Island (Sri Lanka).
  11. ^ "SB at the helm ahead of polls". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 20 August 2000.
  12. ^ "Dissnayake is General Secretary of SLFP". TamilNet. 17 August 2000.
  13. ^ "General Election 2000 Preferences" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka.
  14. ^ "New cabinet sworn in today". Current Affairs. Government of Sri Lanka. 19 October 2000.
  15. ^ Jabbar, Zacki (9 October 2001). "Chandrika moots proposal at Central Committee meeting". The Island (Sri Lanka).
  16. ^ "General Election 2001 Preferences" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka.
  17. ^ "SLFP-JVP alliance signed in Colombo". TamilNet. 20 January 2004.
  18. ^ "General Election 2004 Preferences" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka.
  19. ^ "PART I : SECTION (I) — GENERAL Appointments & c., by the President" (PDF). The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Extraordinary. 1335/24. 10 April 2004.
  20. ^ "The new UPFA Cabinet". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 11 April 2004.
  21. ^ "JVP boycotts UPFA cabinet swearing in ceremony". TamilNet. 10 April 2004.
  22. ^ "Leaders of the House". Parliament of Sri Lanka.
  23. ^ "President retains Defence, takes Education and Constitutional Reforms". Daily News (Sri Lanka). 12 April 2004.
  24. ^ "PART I : SECTION (I) — GENERAL Government Notifications NOTIFICATION" (PDF). The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Extraordinary. 1402/11. 19 July 2005.
  25. ^ "New Ministers take oath". TamilNet. 18 July 2005.
  26. ^ "Leader of the House of Sri Lanka parliament resigns". TamilNet. 4 August 2005.
  27. ^ "PART I : SECTION (I) — GENERAL Appointments & c., by the President" (PDF). The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Extraordinary. 1420/28. 23 November 2005.
  28. ^ "Mangala Samaraweera appointed new SL Foreign Minister". TamilNet. 23 November 2005.
  29. ^ "SL Minister's Personal Secy shot dead in Polannaruwa". TamilNet. 28 March 2006.
  30. ^ "The New Cabinet". The Island (Sri Lanka). 29 January 2007.
  31. ^ "New Cabinet of Ministers sworn in". Current Affairs. The Official Website of the Government of Sri Lanka.
  32. ^ "Minister Maithripala Sirisena escapes suicide bomb attack, deputy minister injured". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 5 October 2008.
  33. ^ Ferdinando, Shamindra; Palihawadana, Norman (10 October 2008). "Was suicide bomber's target the President or PM? One killed, two injured in attack on Convoy". The Island (Sri Lanka).
  34. ^ "Bomb attack targets Sri Lankan minister in Colombo". TamilNet. 9 October 2008.
  35. ^ "Parliamentary General Election - 2010 Polonnuaruwa Preferences" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka.
  36. ^ "PART I : SECTION (I) — GENERAL Appointments & c., by the President" (PDF). The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Extraordinary. 1651/03. 26 April 2010.
  37. ^ "Sri Lanka's new Foreign Affairs Minister is G.L.Peiris". TamilNet. 23 April 2010.
  38. ^ "Are you the common candidate?-Maithripala asked". The Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka). 11 November 2014.
  39. ^ "I'm the common candidate: Maithripala". The Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka). 21 November 2014.
  40. ^ "Sri Lanka election: Health chief to challenge Rajapaksa". BBC News. 21 November 2014.
  41. ^ "Sri Lankan minister quits, to challenge Rajapaksa for presidency". Reuters. 21 November 2014.
  42. ^ Bastians, Dharisha (22 November 2014). "No Maithri for Mahinda". Daily FT.
  43. ^ Mallawarachi, Bharatha (21 November 2014). "Sri Lanka leader to face health minister in polls". San Francisco Chronicle. Associated Press.
  44. ^ Srinivasan, Meera (22 November 2014). "Chandrika returns to politics". The Hindu.
  45. ^ "Maithripala named common candidate". The Nation (Sri Lanka). 21 November 2014.
  46. ^ Dalima, Bella (21 November 2014). "I am the common candidate: Maithripala Sirisena". News First.
  47. ^ "Chandrika, Rajitha, Arjuna, Rajeeva, M K D S and Dumindha Dissanayaka join Maithripala". Hiru News. 21 November 2014.
  48. ^ Dalima, Bella (21 November 2014). "UNP to extend their support to Maithirpala Sirisena". News First.
  49. ^ "Maithripala and others sacked". The Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka). 21 November 2014.
  50. ^ "SLFP rebels stripped of posts and party membership". The Nation (Sri Lanka). 21 November 2014.
  51. ^ "Sri Lanka Presidential Election Set for January 8 Next Year". NDTV. Press Trust of India. 21 November 2014.
  52. ^ "Sirisena's security, vehicles withdrawn". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 23 November 2014.
  53. ^ "Security squadron of former Minister Maithripala Sirisena reduced- Police Media Spokesman". Ceylon Today. 23 November 2014.

External links

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