Srima Dissanayake

Vajira Srimathi Dissanayake (Sinhala: වජිර ශ්‍රීමති දිසානායක, romanized: Vajira Śrīmati Disānāyaka; 1943 – 29 March 2019) was a Sri Lankan lawyer, politician and 1994 UNP presidential candidate.

Srima Dissanayake

MPC
ශ්‍රීමා දිසානායක
United National Party candidate for
President of Sri Lanka
Election date
9 November 1994
Opponent(s)Chandrika Kumaratunga
and others
IncumbentD. B. Wijetunga
Personal details
Born1943
Died(2019-03-29)29 March 2019
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Political partyUnited National Party
Spouse(s)Gamini Dissanayake
ChildrenNavin, Mayantha, Varuni
Alma materCeylon Law College
OccupationLawyer

Early life and family

Dissanayake was born in 1943.[1][lower-alpha 1] She was the daughter of Piyasena Lenaduwa from Galle in southern Ceylon.[2] She was educated at Ladies' College, Colombo.[2]

After school Dissanayake joined Ceylon Law College where she met her future husband Gamini Dissanayake.[2][3] They had two sons, Navin and Mayantha, both of whom are Members of Parliament, and a daughter, Varuni.[4][5]

Career

Dissanayake was a lawyer by profession and was a member of the Central Provincial Council.[6][7] Her husband Gamini Dissanayake, who was the Leader of the Opposition, was chosen by the United National Party to be its candidate at the 1994 presidential election.[8] However, he was killed in a suicide bombing on 24 October 1994, sixteen days before the election.[9] The UNP, hoping to capitalise on the sympathy vote, chose Srima Dissanayake over former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and former first lady Hema Premadasa to be Gamini Dissanayake’s replacement.[10] However, many UNP officials refused to campaign for Srima Dissanayake who, for security reasons, campaigned through the media only.[9][11] Dissanayake was heavily defeated by Prime Minister Chandrika Kumaratunga who swept the polls, winning in all but one of the 160 polling divisions.[12] Dissanayake received 2,715,283 votes (35.91%), the lowest share for a major party candidate in any Sri Lankan presidential election.[13][14]

Dissanayake left politics thereafter and devoted herself to her family, the Gamini Dissanayake Foundation and the Gamini Dissanayake Institute of Technology and Vocational Studies.[2][15]

Dissanayake died at a private hospital in Colombo on 29 March 2019.[16][17]

See also

Notes
  1. Another source gives Dissanayake's year of birth as 1941.[2]

References
  1. Peebles, Patrick (2015). Historical Dictionary of Sri Lanka. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 118. ISBN 978-1-4422-5584-5.
  2. Pelopla, Palitha (31 March 2019). "Passing away of a gentle lady…". Sunday Observer. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  3. Jayasekera, Talia (21 March 2003). "Remembering a trail-blazing servant of the people". Daily News. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  4. Epasinghe, Premasara (23 October 2003). "Gamini Dissanayake - Man who was born to be great". Daily News. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  5. "Death of Srima Dissanayake". Daily News. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 30 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  6. Jayaram, P. (15 November 1994). "Another shattering blow". India Today. Noida, India. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  7. Epasinghe, Premasara (7 July 2011). "Navin Dissanayake - Crickting personality with leadership ingredients". The Island. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  8. "Six Vie for Presidency" (PDF). Tamil Times. Vol. XIII no. 10. Sutton, U.K. 15 October 1994. p. 7. ISSN 0266-4488.
  9. "Sri Lankan Claims Victory in Presidential Vote". The New York Times. New York, U.S.A. 10 November 1994. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  10. Dahlburg, John-Thor (26 October 1994). "Sri Lankan's Widow Gets Party Nod : Asia: The wife of the slain opposition figure will run for president in his place, sources say". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, U.S.A. Archived from the original on 1 April 2016.
  11. Dahlburg, John-Thor (10 November 1994). "Sri Lankan Premier Wins Presidency, Partial Results Show". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, U.S.A. Archived from the original on 1 April 2016.
  12. Sebastian, Rita (15 November 1994). "Shortest Race to Presidency" (PDF). Tamil Times. Vol. XIII no. 11. Sutton, U.K. p. 4. ISSN 0266-4488.
  13. Weerapperuma, E. (14 November 2005). "A historical sketch of Presidential Elections". Daily News. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  14. Ranatunga, D. C. (7 January 2015). "Long journey to presidency: Part V". Daily FT. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  15. "Final rites of Srima Dissanayake tomorrow". The Sunday Times. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 31 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  16. "Mrs. Srima Dissanayake no more". The Daily Mirror. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  17. "Srima Dissanayake passes away at age 76". News First. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
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