Susil Moonesinghe (11 February 1930 – 30 November 2012) was a

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

n lawyer, politician, diplomat and former chairman of State Trading Wholesale Company Ltd. A former

chief minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...

of the Western Provincial Council and a member of parliament, he was Sri Lankan Ambassador to

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. The brother of Anil Moonesinghe and the son of Piyadas Moonesinghe, he was educated at the

Royal College, Colombo Royal College, Colombo also known as; Royal Colombo, Colombo Royal College or Colombo Royal) is a Single-sex education, boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started by Joseph Marsh (priest), Joseph Mar ...

. His paternal grandmother was the sister of

Anagarika Dharmapala Anagārika Dharmapāla (Pali: ''Anagārika'', ; Sinhala: Anagārika, lit., ; 17 September 1864 – 29 April 1933) was a Sri Lankan Buddhist revivalist and a writer. Anagarika Dharmapāla is noted because he was: * the first global Buddhist m ...

, daughter of Don Carolis Hewavitharana and granddaughter of

Andiris Perera Dharmagunawardhana Muhandiram Lansage Andiris Perera Dharmagunawardhana (19 November 1809 – 24 January 1890) was a Sri Lankan businessman, a philanthropist, and a pioneer of the Buddhist revival movement. He was the grandfather of Anagarika Dharmapala. He owned ex ...

. He began his political career by contesting, unsuccessfully, the

Polgahawela Polgahawela is a town located in north western Sri Lanka. It is most notable for being a major railway junction. Polgahawela is situated in the North Western Province of Sri Lanka, and is located approximately north-east from the capital city ...

constituency in the 1960 general election from the

Mahajana Eksath Peramuna The Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (People's United Front) is a political party in Sri Lanka. The party is currently led by former Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, son of Philip Gunawardena, the founder of the party. History Under Philip Gunaw ...

. During the 1970 general election, he was appointed organiser for the Southern Province by the

Sri Lanka Freedom Party The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP; ; ) is a centre-left political party in Sri Lanka. Founded by S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike in 1951, the party was one of Sri Lanka's two main parties from the 1950s to the 2010s, serving as the main rival of the c ...

. From 1970 to 1972, he was director-general of

Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) (, ''Shrī Lankā Guvan Viduli Sansthāva'', , ''Ilangkai Oliparappuk Kūṭṭuttāpaṉam'') came into existence on 5 January 1967 when Radio Ceylon became a public corporation. Dudley Senanayak ...

. Thereafter, he devoted himself to business activities. He was elected first chief minister of the

Western Province Western Province or West Province may refer to: *Western Province, Cameroon *Western Province, Rwanda *Western Province (Kenya) *Western Province (Papua New Guinea) *Western Province (Solomon Islands) *Western Province, Sri Lanka *Western Provinc ...

in 1988 and served until 1993. Thereafter, until 1994 he was leader of the opposition in the provincial council. In 1994-2000, he was a member of parliament for Colombo District. In 2000-2002, he was Ambassador to Iran.

References

External links

Q&A With HC Mangala Moonesinghe

Susil Moonesinghe no more
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moonesinghe, Susil 1930 births 2012 deaths Sinhalese people Sri Lankan lawyers Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Members of the Western Provincial Council Chief ministers of Western Province, Sri Lanka Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Iran Members of the 10th Parliament of Sri Lanka

See also

References

External links