- Gamini Dissanayake
Lionel Gamini Dissanayake(
March 20 ,1942 -October 24 ,1994 ) was a prominentSri Lanka npolitician and a former presidential candidate and Leader of the Opposition.Early life
He was born in
Kandy in the hillcountry ofSri Lanka . His father served as an MP and a deputy minister in theSri Lanka Freedom Party government ofSolomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike after his departure from theUnited National Party . The wealthy Dissanayake family resided in bothKandy as well asNuwara Eliya . Gamini Dissanayake had his schooling at the prestigious Trinity College in Kandy, and received his tertiary education at theSri Lanka Law College . Later in life, he completed an MPhil Degree in International Relations atCambridge University .Political career
Dissanyake spearheaded the
Mahaweli Development Project . This was a huge project which was expected to take 30 years to finish. But due to Dissanayake's skills he managed to finish the project within 6 years. TheMahaweli Development Project is the largest development project conducted in Sri Lanka after independence. The whole country was affected by the project which focused on irrigation, hydro power generation, agriculture, town & country development. Majority of the power generated for the local consumption is generated from these hydropower plants while an overwhelming majority of the rice cultivation in Sri Lanka is conducted in theseMahaweli areas.Death
After President D.B. Wijetunga indicated he would not run in the 1994 presidential election, Dissanayake was nominated as the UNP candidate at the same time he was the Leader of the Opposition in parliament. This was cut short when he was assassinated by a
female suicide bomber of theLiberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) [ [http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/sentinel/sent000904_6_n.shtml Jane's Sentinel examines the success of the LTTE in resisting the Sri Lankan forces] ] . His wife Srima ran in his stead, but was defeated by People's Alliance candidate & then Prime MinisterChandrika Kumaratunga .His eldest son
Naveen Dissanayake is currently a non-cabinet minister of investment promotion in PresidentMahinda Rajapakse 's Government.References
External links
* [http://www.divaina.com/2008/10/06/mano05.html Methek Kathawa Divaina]
* [http://www.unp.lk/portal/ Official Website of United National Party]
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