The history of Sri Lanka is unique because the relevance and richness of it extends beyond the areas of South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean. The early human remains which were found on the island of Sri Lanka date back to about 38,000 years ago.
Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga , commonly referred to by her initials CBK, is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the fifth president of Sri Lanka, from 12 November 1994 to 19 November 2005. The country's first and only female president to date and the country's second female prime minister. She is the daughter of two former prime ministers and was the leader of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) until the end of 2005.
The president of Sri Lanka is the head of state and head of government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. The president is the chief executive of the union government and the commander-in-chief of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces.
Ranil Wickremesinghe is a Sri Lankan politician who is the 9th and current President of Sri Lanka. He also holds several ministerial positions, including the Minister of Finance, Minister of Defence, Minister of Technology and Minister of Women, Child Affairs and Social Empowerment.
The United National Party, often abbreviated as UNP, is a centre-right political party in Sri Lanka. The UNP has served as the country's ruling party, or as part of its governing coalition, for 38 of the country's 74 years of independence, including the periods 1947–1956, 1965–1970, 1977–1994, 2001–2004 and 2015–2019. The party also controlled the executive presidency from its formation in 1978 until 1994.
Sirima Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike, commonly known as Sirimavo Bandaranaike (මැතිනිය), was a Sri Lankan politician. She was the world's first female prime minister when she became Prime Minister of Sri Lanka in 1960. She chaired the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) from 1960 to 1994 and served three terms as prime minister, two times as the chief executive, 1960 to 1965 and 1970 to 1977, and once again in a presidential system from 1994 to 2000, governing under the presidency of her daughter Chandrika Kumaratunga.
Mahinda Rajapaksa is a Sri Lankan politician. He served as the President of Sri Lanka from 2005 to 2015; the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 2004 to 2005, 2018, and 2019 to 2022; the Leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2004 and 2018 to 2019, and the Minister of Finance from 2005 to 2015 and 2019 to 2021. He has been a Member of Parliament (MP) for Kurunegala since 2015.
Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike, known by the Sri Lankan people as "The Silver Bell of Asia", was the fourth Prime Minister of the Dominion of Ceylon, serving from 1956 until his assassination in 1959, causing him to die in office. The founder of the left-wing and Sinhalese nationalist Sri Lanka Freedom Party, his tenure saw the country's first left-wing reforms.
Sir Oliver Ernest Goonetilleke was a Sri Lankan statesman. Having served as an important figure in the gradual independence of Ceylon from Britain, he became the third Governor-General of Ceylon (1954–1962). He was the first Ceylonese individual to hold the vice-regal post.
President's House is the official residence and workplace of the President of Sri Lanka, located at Janadhipathi Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Since 1804 it had been the residence of British Governors and Governors-General and was known as the "King's House" or the "Queen's House" until Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972.
The Presidential Secretariat is the office of the President of Sri Lanka. It provides the administrative and institutional framework for the exercise of the duties, responsibilities and powers vested in the President by the Constitution. The Presidential Secretariat is located in the Old Parliament Building in Colombo.
The 1962 Ceylonese coup d'état attempt was a failed military coup d'état planned in Ceylon. A group of Christian officers in the military and police planned to topple the government of Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike during the night of 27 January 1962. Organised by Colonel F. C. de Saram, Colonel Maurice De Mel,, Rear Admiral Royce de Mel, C.C. Dissanayake, Sydney de Zoysa and Douglas Liyanage, it was to take place in the night of 27 January 1962, but was called off as the government gained information in the afternoon and initiated arrests of the suspected coup leaders before the coup was carried out.
The Prime Minister's Office is a ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka. It provides the administrative and institutional framework for the exercise of the duties and responsibilities vested in the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. From 1947 to 1978 it was the most powerful office within the government. However, after the creation of the executive presidency in 1978 the post of Prime Minister became more or less nominal and functions as a deputy to the President, with a few exceptions.
The Prime Minister of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the head and most senior member of parliament in the cabinet of ministers. It is the second-most powerful position in Sri Lanka's executive branch behind the president, who is the constitutional chief executive. The Cabinet is collectively held accountable to parliament for their policies and actions.
Visumpaya, is an official residence of the Government of Sri Lanka. It is located in Lillie Street, Colombo, Sri Lanka. The house has been used as a residence for visiting heads of state and local government ministers.
Cyril Esmond Lucien Wickremesinghe was a Ceylonese press baron, lawyer, and a successful entrepreneur. He also played key role in defeating Sirimavo Bandaranaike that brought United National Party's Dudley Senanayake to power in 1965's Parliamentary Election. He was also father of President of Sri Lanka and Leader of the UNP Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The Sri Lanka People's Front, commonly known by its Sinhalese name Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), is a political party in Sri Lanka. Previously a minor political party known as the Sri Lanka National Front (SLNF) and Our Sri Lanka Freedom Front (OSLFF), it was relaunched in 2016 as the SLPP and became the home for members of the United People's Freedom Alliance loyal to its former leader Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Don Stanley Ernest Perera Rajapakse Senanayake was the 18th Inspector General of the Sri Lanka Police (IGP) (1970–1978). Senanayake is the second longest serving IGP, after Sir Herbert Dowbiggin, remaining in the position for seven years.
115 Fifth Lane is the home of Ranil Wickremesinghe, the former Prime Minister and incumbent President of Sri Lanka. It was built by Wickremesinghe's father, press baron Esmond Wickremesinghe. In his capacity as Prime Minister, Wickremesinghe continued to live at Fifth Lane, using the Prime Minister's official residence, Temple Trees, only for official functions during his time as Prime Minister, with the exception of the 2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis. During Wickremesinghe's tenure as opposition leader, he met many foreign dignitaries at Fifth Lane.
The 2022 Sri Lankan protests, commonly known as The Struggle, were a series of mass protests that began in March 2022 against the government of Sri Lanka. The government was heavily criticized for mismanaging the Sri Lankan economy, which led to a subsequent economic crisis involving severe inflation, daily blackouts, and a shortage of fuel, domestic gas, and other essential goods. The protesters' main demand was the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and key officials from the Rajapaksa family. Despite the involvement of several opposition parties, most protesters considered themselves to be apolitical, with many expressing discontent with the parliamentary opposition. Protesters chanted slogans such as "Go Home Gota", "Go Home Rajapaksas", and "Aragalayata Jaya Wewa". Most protests were organized by the general public, with youths playing a major part by carrying out protests at Galle Face Green.
