Gotabhaya Rajapaksa
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant Colonel
Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa, RWP
, RSP
, psc, GR
(born 20 June 1949) is a retired officer of the Sri Lanka Army and the current Defence Secretary
of Sri Lanka. After serving through the early parts of the country's civil war
with Tamil Tiger rebels, he retired from the Army in 1992. With the election of his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa
as President of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa was appointed Defence Secretary in November 2005.
As Defence Secretary, Rajapaksa is largely credited with masterminding the successes achieved by the Sri Lankan Military in defeating the Tamil Tigers and ending Sri Lanka's 26 year long civil war in May 2009. He was also one of the top targets of the Tamil Tigers, and survived an assassination attempt in December 2006 by a Tamil Tiger suicide bomber.
, as the 5th of nine siblings and brought up in Weerakatiya in the southern rural district
of Hambantota
. According to a writer called Narada Karunthilaka, the name Gotabaya means "Abhaya, the Giant" or "Chinna Kotta" in the Jat language. He hails from a well-known political family in Sri Lanka. His father, D. A. Rajapaksa
, was a prominent politician, independence agitator, Member of Parliament
,Deputy Speaker and Cabinet Minister of Agriculture and Land in Wijeyananda Dahanayake
's government. His elder brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa was first elected to parliament as a member of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party
at the age of 24 in 1970, who gradually rose through the party ranks becoming the Leader of the Opposition in 2001, Prime Minister in 2004 and the President of Sri Lanka in 2005. Two of his other elder brothers, Chamal Rajapaksa
and Basil Rajapaksa, are also in the politics being current Members of Parliament.
He obtained his primary and secondary education at Ananda College, Colombo
.
of the British Commonwealth. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant
on May 25, 1972 and given his first command as an officer in the Ceylon Signals Corps
after his basic training at the Army Training Centre, Diyatalawa. Thereafter he served with in the Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment
and the Rajarata Rifles
before being transferred to the Gajaba Regiment
upon its formation in 1983 with the amalgamation of the Rajarata Rifles and Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment
.
During his 20 years of military service, Rajapaksa has received awards for gallantry from three Presidents of Sri Lanka, J.R. Jayewardene, Ranasinghe Premadasa
and D.B. Wijetunga. He had followed signal young officers course in school of signals at Rawalpindi
; Infantry company commanders course in Queta; Jungle warfare and counter insurgency course in Assam
; Command and Staff course at Defence Services Staff College in Welington; and Advanced Infantry Officers course at Fort Benning
.
He rose up the ranks in the military, serving as the second in command of the 1st Gajaba Regiment and latter commanding the 1GR from 1983 - 1990. He served in the battlefronts of Jaffna
, participating in Operation Liberation, the offensive mounted to liberate Vadamarachi
from LTTE in 1987. He also commanded the same battalion in Operation "Strike Hard" and Operation "Thrivida Balaya" in 1990. He was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel
, and served as the Commandant of the Kotelawala Defence Academy at the time of his retirement in 1992. He subsequently migrated to the United States.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa was appointed to the post of Permanent Secretary
of the Ministry of Defence
in November 2005 by newly elected President Mahinda Rajapaksa. In this capacity he oversaw the military operation which eventually defeated the LTTE in May, 2009 after 25 years of fighting.
At the public acclaim as a "war hero," he was conferred Doctor of Letters by the University of Colombo
on September 6, 2009.
into Rajapaksa's motorcade as it traveled through Kollupitiya, Colombo
. The Sri Lanka Army Commandos
guarding him obstructed the vehicle carrying the explosives before it reached Rajapakse's vehicle and two commandos were instantly killed. Rajapaksa escaped unhurt. The LTTE were blamed for the attack.
assassination with who he was locked in a legal battle where he was suing Wickrematunge's business for 2 billion Rs
, told British authorities that Rajapaksa was instrumental in arranging for him to be issued with a false diplomatic passport so that he could flee to Britain in September 2007. These allegations were denied by the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohita Bogollogama at the time, and later by Rajapaksa.
) and the Army. There are Sri Lankan patriots who love us do and will do what is required if necessary." In April 2007 he was accused of allegedly calling the Editor of the Daily Mirror Champika Liyanaarachchi and threatening her, saying that she would escape reprisals only if she resigned. He was also accused for threatening to "exterminate" the Daily Mirror journalist Uditha Jayasinghe for writing articles about the plight of civilian war casualties. Rajapaksa denied these claims.
A December 5, 2008 story from The New York Times
quoted his news reporting position as "he insists that journalists should not be allowed to report anything that demoralizes the war effort.".
In the editorial titled A brother out of control (August 16, 2011), The Hindu
raised the observation, "President Rajapaksa would be well advised to distance himself swiftly from his brother's stream-of-consciousness on sensitive issues that are not his business. This includes an outrageous comment that because a Tamil woman, an “LTTE cadre” who was a British national, interviewed in the Channel 4 documentary was “so attractive” but had been neither raped nor killed by Sri Lankan soldiers, the allegation of sexual assault by soldiers could not be true. For this statement alone, Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa must be taken to task."
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa, RWP
Rana Wickrama Padakkama
The Rana Wickrama Padakkama medal and bar are presented to Sri Lankan military officers and other ranks as a reward for individual or allied acts of heroism in facing the enemy and performed of their own accord.-How medal awarded:It is ordained that the decoration shall be granted to all ranks of...
, RSP
Rana Sura Padakkama
The Rana Sura Padakkama is a medal presented to members of all ranks of the Military of Sri Lanka for individual and/or associated acts of heroism in facing the enemy and performed of their own accord. The decoration is presented by the President of Sri Lanka...
, psc, GR
Gajaba Regiment
The Gajaba Regiment was formed when 1st Battalion the Rajarata Rifles and 1st Battalion the Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment were amalgamated in 1983 to counter the threat from the LTTE. It is made up of six regular battalions and five volunteer battalions. Headquartered at Saliyapura Camp, Anuradhapura...
(born 20 June 1949) is a retired officer of the Sri Lanka Army and the current Defence Secretary
Ministry of Defence (Sri Lanka)
The Ministry of Defence, Public Security, Law & Order is the Sri Lankan government ministry responsible for implementation of government defence policy and the headquarters of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces....
of Sri Lanka. After serving through the early parts of the country's civil war
Sri Lankan civil war
The Sri Lankan Civil War was a conflict fought on the island of Sri Lanka. Beginning on July 23, 1983, there was an on-and-off insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam , a separatist militant organization which fought to create an independent Tamil state named Tamil...
with Tamil Tiger rebels, he retired from the Army in 1992. With the election of his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa
Mahinda Rajapaksa
Percy Mahendra "Mahinda" Rajapaksa ; ; born November 18, 1945) is the 6th and current President of Sri Lanka and Commander in Chief of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. A lawyer by profession, Rajapaksa was first elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka in 1970, and served as prime minister from April 6,...
as President of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa was appointed Defence Secretary in November 2005.
As Defence Secretary, Rajapaksa is largely credited with masterminding the successes achieved by the Sri Lankan Military in defeating the Tamil Tigers and ending Sri Lanka's 26 year long civil war in May 2009. He was also one of the top targets of the Tamil Tigers, and survived an assassination attempt in December 2006 by a Tamil Tiger suicide bomber.
Early life
Gotabaya Rajapaksa was born in Palatuwa in the Matara DistrictMatara District
Matara is a district in Southern Province, Sri Lanka. Its area is 1,246 km². It is represented in the Sri Lankan Parliament following the Sri Lankan parliamentary election, 2010 by former Sri Lankan national Cricketer Sanath Jayasuriya who stood for the United People's Freedom Alliance....
, as the 5th of nine siblings and brought up in Weerakatiya in the southern rural district
Districts of Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, districts are the second-level administrative divisions, and are included in a province. There are 25 districts organized into 9 provinces. Each district is administered under a District Secretary, who is appointed by the central government...
of Hambantota
Hambantota
Hambantota is a coastal city in the south of Sri Lanka. It is the capital of the Hambantota District...
. According to a writer called Narada Karunthilaka, the name Gotabaya means "Abhaya, the Giant" or "Chinna Kotta" in the Jat language. He hails from a well-known political family in Sri Lanka. His father, D. A. Rajapaksa
D. A. Rajapaksa
Don Alwin Rajapaksa was a Sri Lankan politician and Member of Parliament, who represented the Beliatta electorate in Hambantota district from 1947 to 1965...
, was a prominent politician, independence agitator, Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
,Deputy Speaker and Cabinet Minister of Agriculture and Land in Wijeyananda Dahanayake
Wijeyananda Dahanayake
Wijeyananda Dahanayake was a Sri Lankan political figure. He was the Prime Minister of Ceylon from 1959 to 1960.-Early Life:...
's government. His elder brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa was first elected to parliament as a member of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party
Sri Lanka Freedom Party
The Sri Lanka Freedom Party is one of the major political parties in Sri Lanka. It was founded by S.W.R.D Bandaranaike in 1951 and, since then, has been one of the two largest parties in the Sri Lankan political arena. It first came to power in 1956 and since then has been the predominant party in...
at the age of 24 in 1970, who gradually rose through the party ranks becoming the Leader of the Opposition in 2001, Prime Minister in 2004 and the President of Sri Lanka in 2005. Two of his other elder brothers, Chamal Rajapaksa
Chamal Rajapaksa
Chamal Jayantha Rajapaksa is the current Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka and former Cabinet Minister of Ports, Aviation, Irrigation and Water Management. He hails from a well known political family in Sri Lanka. His father, D. A...
and Basil Rajapaksa, are also in the politics being current Members of Parliament.
He obtained his primary and secondary education at Ananda College, Colombo
Ananda College
Ananda College , Colombo which is considered as the leading National school in Sri Lanka, was established on November 1, 1886, by the Buddhist Theosophical Society led by Colonel Henry Steel Olcott...
.
Military career
Rajapaksa joined the Sri Lanka Army as a Cadet Officer on April 26, 1971 , when Sri Lanka was still a dominionDominion of Ceylon
The Dominion of Ceylon, known today as Sri Lanka, was a dominion, in the British Empire between 1948 and 1972. In 1948, British Ceylon was granted independence as the Dominion of Ceylon. In 1972, the Dominion of Ceylon became a republic within the Commonwealth, and its name was changed to Sri Lanka...
of the British Commonwealth. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
on May 25, 1972 and given his first command as an officer in the Ceylon Signals Corps
Sri Lanka Signals Corps
The Sri Lanka Signals Corps a combat support corps of the Sri Lanka Army, responsible for providing military communications, information technology and electronic warfare support. The corps is made up of nine regular regiments and one volunteer regiment...
after his basic training at the Army Training Centre, Diyatalawa. Thereafter he served with in the Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment
Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment
The Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment is the first rifle regiment in the Sri Lanka Army and the second oldest infantry regiment in the army. It is made up of seven regular battalions, five volunteer battalions and a headquarter battalion...
and the Rajarata Rifles
Rajarata Rifles
The Rajarata Rifles was a former rifle regiment of the Sri Lanka Army. The regiment saw action in the 1971 JVP Insurrection and the Sri Lankan Civil War before it was amalgamated with the 1st Battalion of the Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment in 1983 to form the Gajaba Regiment. Raised along with Ruhunu...
before being transferred to the Gajaba Regiment
Gajaba Regiment
The Gajaba Regiment was formed when 1st Battalion the Rajarata Rifles and 1st Battalion the Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment were amalgamated in 1983 to counter the threat from the LTTE. It is made up of six regular battalions and five volunteer battalions. Headquartered at Saliyapura Camp, Anuradhapura...
upon its formation in 1983 with the amalgamation of the Rajarata Rifles and Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment
Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment
The king Vijayabahu was the one of the greatest rulers who ruled Sri Lanka from 1055 AD to 1110 AD. His heroic action is very popular among the Sri Lankans. Our Regiment is privilege to name as the Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment to give the honour and respect to this great king...
.
During his 20 years of military service, Rajapaksa has received awards for gallantry from three Presidents of Sri Lanka, J.R. Jayewardene, Ranasinghe Premadasa
Ranasinghe Premadasa
Ranasinghe Premadasa was the 3rd President of Sri Lanka from January 2, 1989 to May 1, 1993. Before that, he served as the Prime Minister in the government headed by J. R. Jayewardene from February 6, 1978 to January 1, 1989...
and D.B. Wijetunga. He had followed signal young officers course in school of signals at Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi , locally known as Pindi, is a city in the Pothohar region of Pakistan near Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, in the province of Punjab. Rawalpindi is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad...
; Infantry company commanders course in Queta; Jungle warfare and counter insurgency course in Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
; Command and Staff course at Defence Services Staff College in Welington; and Advanced Infantry Officers course at Fort Benning
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
.
He rose up the ranks in the military, serving as the second in command of the 1st Gajaba Regiment and latter commanding the 1GR from 1983 - 1990. He served in the battlefronts of Jaffna
Jaffna
Jaffna is the capital city of the Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna district located on a peninsula of the same name. Jaffna is approximately six miles away from Kandarodai which served as a famous emporium in the Jaffna peninsula from classical...
, participating in Operation Liberation, the offensive mounted to liberate Vadamarachi
Vadamarachi
Vadamarachchi is one of the three historic regions of Jaffna peninsula in northern Sri Lanka. The other two regions are Thenmarachchi and Valikamam. Vadamarachchi is sometimes spelt Vadamarachi, Vadamaraachi or Vadamaraadchi.-Etymology:...
from LTTE in 1987. He also commanded the same battalion in Operation "Strike Hard" and Operation "Thrivida Balaya" in 1990. He was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
, and served as the Commandant of the Kotelawala Defence Academy at the time of his retirement in 1992. He subsequently migrated to the United States.
Secretary to the Ministry of Defence
In order to assist his brother's Presidential election campaign, Rajapaksa returned to Sri Lanka in 2005 from the United States.Gotabaya Rajapaksa was appointed to the post of Permanent Secretary
Permanent Secretary
The Permanent secretary, in most departments officially titled the permanent under-secretary of state , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
of the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (Sri Lanka)
The Ministry of Defence, Public Security, Law & Order is the Sri Lankan government ministry responsible for implementation of government defence policy and the headquarters of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces....
in November 2005 by newly elected President Mahinda Rajapaksa. In this capacity he oversaw the military operation which eventually defeated the LTTE in May, 2009 after 25 years of fighting.
At the public acclaim as a "war hero," he was conferred Doctor of Letters by the University of Colombo
University of Colombo
The University of Colombo is a public research university located primarily in Colombo, Sri Lanka...
on September 6, 2009.
Attempted assassination
On December 1, 2006, at approximately 10:35 an assassin attempted to drive an explosive laden auto-rikshawAuto rickshaw
An auto rickshaw or three-wheeler is a usually three-wheeled cabin cycle for private use and as a vehicle for hire. It is a motorized version of the traditional pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw...
into Rajapaksa's motorcade as it traveled through Kollupitiya, Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
. The Sri Lanka Army Commandos
Sri Lanka Army Commando Regiment
The Sri Lanka Army Commando Regiment is an elite special operations unit which is a Regiment of the Sri Lanka Army. Within one of the four Army Commando Regiments there is a 140-man counter-terrorist unit that provides the primary Counter-terrorism response for Sri Lanka...
guarding him obstructed the vehicle carrying the explosives before it reached Rajapakse's vehicle and two commandos were instantly killed. Rajapaksa escaped unhurt. The LTTE were blamed for the attack.
Criticism of UN and western countries
In June 2007, Rajapaksa was severely critical of the UN in Sri Lanka and of western governments. He accused the UN in Sri Lanka of having been infiltrated by terrorists "for 30 years or so", and as a result the UN was fed incorrect information. He also alleged that Britain and the EU were bullying Sri Lanka, and concluded that Sri Lanka "does not need them", and that they don't provide any significant amount of aid to the country. Rajapaksa has also been accused to have connections to Lasantha WickrematungeLasantha Wickrematunge
Lasantha Manilal Wickrematunge was a prominent Sri Lankan high-profile anti-government journalist, media personality, politician and human rights activist who was assassinated in January 2009...
assassination with who he was locked in a legal battle where he was suing Wickrematunge's business for 2 billion Rs
Karuna link
The former LTTE commander Vinayagamoorthi Muralitharan, better known as Colonel KarunaColonel Karuna
Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan is a Sri Lankan politician and former militant. After fighting for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam for over 20 years, he rose to prominence as the leader of the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal , a breakaway faction of the Tamil Tigers.After giving up arms and...
, told British authorities that Rajapaksa was instrumental in arranging for him to be issued with a false diplomatic passport so that he could flee to Britain in September 2007. These allegations were denied by the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohita Bogollogama at the time, and later by Rajapaksa.
Relationship with the media
Rajapaksa has been accused of threatening journalists on several occasions, including telling two journalists attached to the state-owned Lake House Publications that unless they stop criticising the armed forces "what will happen to you is beyond my control". When asked by the two journalists if he was threatening them, he replied "I am definitely not threatening your lives. Our services are appreciated by 99 per cent of the people. They love the Army Commander (General Sarath FonsekaSarath Fonseka
Gardihewa Sarath Chandralal Fonseka, known as Sarath Fonseka is a former commander and General of the Sri Lanka Army and a former candidate for President of Sri Lanka. As Commander of the Army, he played an instrumental role in ending the 26 year Sri Lankan Civil War in 2009, defeating the...
) and the Army. There are Sri Lankan patriots who love us do and will do what is required if necessary." In April 2007 he was accused of allegedly calling the Editor of the Daily Mirror Champika Liyanaarachchi and threatening her, saying that she would escape reprisals only if she resigned. He was also accused for threatening to "exterminate" the Daily Mirror journalist Uditha Jayasinghe for writing articles about the plight of civilian war casualties. Rajapaksa denied these claims.
A December 5, 2008 story from The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
quoted his news reporting position as "he insists that journalists should not be allowed to report anything that demoralizes the war effort.".
In the editorial titled A brother out of control (August 16, 2011), The Hindu
The Hindu
The Hindu is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Chennai since 1878. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 1.46 million copies as of December 2009. The enterprise employed over 1,600 workers and gross income reached $40...
raised the observation, "President Rajapaksa would be well advised to distance himself swiftly from his brother's stream-of-consciousness on sensitive issues that are not his business. This includes an outrageous comment that because a Tamil woman, an “LTTE cadre” who was a British national, interviewed in the Channel 4 documentary was “so attractive” but had been neither raped nor killed by Sri Lankan soldiers, the allegation of sexual assault by soldiers could not be true. For this statement alone, Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa must be taken to task."
See also
- Eelam War IVEelam War IVEelam War IV is the name given to the fourth phase of armed conflict between the Sri Lankan military and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, which is currently proscribed as a terrorist organisation by 32 countries . Renewed hostilities began on the July 26, 2006 when Sri Lanka Air...
- List of attacks attributed to the LTTE
- List of Sri Lankan non-career Permanent Secretaries
Reading
- Army, Sri Lanka. (1st Edition - October 1999). "50 YEARS ON" - 1949-1999, Sri Lanka Army. ISBN 995-8089-02-8
- The Broken Palmyra - The Tamil Crisis in Sri Lanka: An Inside Account. The Sri Lanka Studies Institute, Claremont 1990. By Hoole, R., Somasundaram, D., Sritharan K., and Rajini Thiranagama. (Also available online.)
- War and Peace in Sri Lanka: With a Post-Accord Report From Jaffna. ISBN 955-26-0001-4/ISBN 978-955-26-0001-2, Institute of Fundamental Studies, Sri Lanka; 1 edition (October 1, 1987), By Rohan GunaratnaRohan GunaratnaRohan Gunaratna is an international terrorism expert. He is the head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research ] at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore...
.
External links
- Official Website - Ministry of Defence, Sri Lanka
- Media Centre for National Security, Sri Lanka - Brainchild of Gotabaya Rajapaksa
- Defence Secretary’s interview with Business Today
- The predicament of a Defence Secretary ,"srilankaguardian.org"
- TV Interview with Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Video: http://www.defence.lk/videos/20070823_SecDef%20Interview.wmv
- ITN Interview with Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapska. Video: http://defence.lk/videos/20071030_SecSpeeh.wmv