He was born on 18 November, 1945. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. As per the sources, the Rajapaksa family members are in the army camp in Trincomalee. In April 2010, Namal Rajapaksa was elected as a Member of Parliament for the Hambantota District, obtaining the highest number of preferential votes in his father's former district. In August Rajapaksa was elected to Parliament, representing the Kurunegala district. He is famously known in the country as the son of Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is serving the position of Prime Minister of Sri Lanka at the moment. For many Sinhalese, Rajapaksa offered promise for security amid fears of renewed violence in the country. [133], In 2016, Rajapaksa loyalists created the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party in an attempt to split with the SLFP. [204][205][206] During his time in power, his pictures were shown on buses, billboards, and all forms of media. During the opening ceremony, protesters led by joint opposition MPs ignored a court order banning protests in the area and pelted stones at the event's participants, during which the Chinese envoy claimed that China will ignore "negative forces". Though his second term officially was to end in November 2016, he could legally seek re-election after completing four years in office, a marker he passed on 19 November. He was a member of the Sri Lankan Parliament from 2007 to 2015 as well. Matters came to a head in early 2022, after Russias invasion of Ukraine led to fuel shortages. [149][150] Their firm grip of power was consolidated in parliamentary elections in August 2020. When it became clear that Parliament would not approve Rajapaksas appointment, Sirisena dissolved the legislative body in early November. Nationwide protests broke out in March and continued in the weeks ahead. He is the youth and sports minister of Sri Lanka. The law cannot interfere. We will march towards a richer freedom and lasting unity that await us as a nation. [7], On the 9 May 2022, Rajapaksa loyalists were transported to his residence on buses who were then addressed by Rajapaksa. He held this post until 1997 when, following a cabinet reshuffle, his portfolio was changed to Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. Chandrika Kumaratunga. [190] State administrators in Tamil-speaking regions blocked the Tamil version of the anthem and in some cases used security forces to disrupt events. The family re-emerged as the dominant political force in Hambantota district when Mahinda and his brother Chamal Rajapaksa were elected in the 1989 Parliamentary election to represent Hambantota Electoral District. [148], The Rajapaksa family regained power in the 2019 presidential election that November, when his younger brother and former wartime defence chief Gotabaya Rajapaksa won the election and was sworn in as the new President of Sri Lanka. [14][15], In the mid-sixties, he started work as a library assistant at the Vidyodaya Pirivena and soon became active in leftwing politics. [154][155], On 3 May 2022, opposition leaders declared a motion of no confidence aimed at Rajapaksa and his cabinet, in an attempt to remove him from power. She had committed suicide on the railway tracks at 19 years. Consular in Sydney - Gamini Fonseka's daughter Bharathy Wijeratna - Ambassador, Turkey - Former Minister Mano Wijeratne's wife Dr. Yvonne Amarasinghe - Ambassador, Vietnam - President's close friend Srimal Wickremesinghe - Deputy Head, Vienna . Violence erupted Monday after Rajapaksa supporters clashed with protesters in a dramatic turn that saw Mahinda resign. A Transparency International-led coalition revealed Rs. In South Asia, no other political dynasty has been as confidently nepotistic. In 2019 the mother received a call from the coroners office. Some of his cousins were given ambassadorial positions: Jaliya Wickramasuriya was appointed as Sri Lanka's ambassador to the United States, and Udayanga Weeratunga was appointed as the ambassador to Russia. [37] In February 2015, India pledged to help the Sirisena Government in tracing the billion of dollars that were taken out of the country illegally. Sri Lanka's former president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, left, gestures after taking oath as its prime minister toward his brother, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, during a ceremony in Colombo on Nov. 21, 2019. [19][20] Between them the three Rajapaksa brothers are in charge of five government ministries: Defence & Urban Development, Law & Order, Economic Development, Finance & Planning and Ports & Highways. [12] At the 1947 parliamentary election, two members of the family were elected to represent both of the constituencies in Hambantota district. [45] A number of foreign journalists and news teams, such as the UK's Channel Four News, have reported and filmed evidence of targeted shelling of civilians, executions, and atrocities. Media groups have alleged that media freedom was curtailed in Sri Lanka during Rajapaksa's terms as president. He replaced R. Sampanthan, who was the leader of the Tamil National Alliance. [6] In the 2019 presidential election, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the brother of Mahinda Rajapaksa, ran and won. His brothersGotabaya, Basil, and Chamalheld prominent positions in his administration, serving respectively as secretary of defense, special adviser, and ports and aviation minister. Mahinda Rajapaksa, Rajapaksa also spelled Rajapakse, (born November 18, 1945, Weeraketiya, Sri Lanka), Sri Lankan politician who served as president of Sri Lanka from 2005 to 2015, during which time he oversaw the end of the country's civil war (1983-2009), and later served as prime minister (2019-22). After the end of Sri Lanka's civil war in 2009 . 700 billion) out of the country illegally through Sri Lanka's Central Bank using Mahinda Rajapaksa's close association with Ajith Nivard Cabraal, the former governor of Central Bank of Sri Lanka. [6], Rajapaksa became the leader of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna in 2019, splitting the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. Later that year Parliament restored a constitutional two-term limit on the presidency, precluding Rajapaksa from running again. His cousin Jaliya Wickramasuriya is Sri Lanka's ambassador to the United States. The Rajapaksas initially maintained an image of security and stability in 2020 as the global coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 pandemic took hold, especially as Sri Lanka reported much lower rates of infection and death from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, than other South Asian countries. Rajapaksas older brother, current Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, was president at the time. [135][136] Rajapaksa also changed his stance on private medical universities such as the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM); during his rule, SAITM was accepted with several concessions from the Board of Investment, and at the request of Rajapaksa, SAITM gave scholarships to students who gained 3As in advanced-level exams. The position of Prime Minister is largely that of a senior member of the cabinet who acts as a deputy to the President. [69][70] However, on 21 November 2014, after the election had been called, Maithripala Sirisena was announced as the common opposition candidate by the UNP. [203] However, Rajapaksa is accused of creating a cult of personality around himself, using the civil war victory and Sinhala chauvinism. In Sri Lanka, amid rising civil unrest against the Rajapaksas, a video of MP Namal Rajapaksa's wife fleeing in a chopper was accessed by Republic. In the courtyard was a banner of similar size showing golden rice fields and Rajapaksa's smiling face at its centre. [152][153] Mahinda was called Myna by the protesters who established MynaGoGama protest site outside his official residence at temple trees. A sum of around $3.7 million was distributed in checks with ten days to go before polls opened, including $678,000 to print campaign t-shirts and other promotional material, and $297,000 to buy supporters' gifts, including women's saris. The poll, in early January 2015, proved to be an upset, as Maithripala Sirisena, formerly a member of the cabinet, defeated Rajapaksa and was sworn in as president. [64], In a move that was widely seen as solidifying his control over the Supreme Court, Rajapaksa removed chief justice Shirani Bandaranayake from office in January 2013, allowing Rajapaksa to appoint an ally and legal adviser, former Attorney General Mohan Peiris, as Chief Justice. Don Mathew Rajapaksa (1896-1945), Member of State Council for Hambantota (1936-45), + Emalin (Emalyn) Weeratunga 1.3.1. The Man Who Tamed the Tamil Tigers. The loyalists then attacked protestors at Temple Trees before assaulting protestors at Galle Face as attacks were carried out simultaneously against protests in other areas; however this intensified protests and retaliatory violence against Rajapaksa loyalists erupted islandwide and Mahinda Rajapaksa submitted his letter of resignation the same day. At the age of six, he was sent to his father's school Richmond College in Galle. COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) A daughter of a slain Sri Lankan journalist filed a complaint Friday with the United Nations Human Rights Committee over alleged government involvement in her fathers death 12 years ago. The JVP had opposed the original 2002 peace process as treasonous. [52], 1. In later years Mahinda Rajapaksa would follow his uncle's example and wear a similar characteristic shawl. (Reuters Photo/File) Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is in hiding, having fled from his own people. On January 10, 2023, Gotabaya and his brother and former president Mahinda Rajapaksa were sanctioned by Canada for "gross and systematic violations of human rights during the armed conflict in Sri Lanka". [170] Rajapaksa and his family were the subjects of numerous state resource abuse complaints from organizations and election monitors, including claims of their involvement in fraud, misuse of powers, murder, and money-laundering activities that are said to have taken $5.31 billion (Rs. A daughter of a slain Sri Lankan journalist filed a complaint on January 8 with the United Nations Human Rights Committee over alleged government involvement in her father's death 12 years ago. Sri Lanka's ruling party has won a landslide victory in parliamentary elections, the country's Election Commission declared Friday, consolidating the Rajapaksa family's control on power . [23] According to the 2014 budget the brothers have been allocated 47% of the national budget (40% of recurrent budget and 57% of capital budget). [10] One of its members, Don David Rajapaksa, held the feudal post of Vidanarachchi in Ihala Valikada Korale. Sinhala and Tamil are the two languages of the people of Sri Lanka. Despite the huge election campaign led by the UNP, Mahinda Rajapaksa was able to gain a narrow victory, by 190,000 votes. CICT did not say how the money was used. The Human Rights Committee is a group of independent experts that monitors implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.