US embassy cable - 04COLOMBO647

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 COLOMBO 000647 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, INR/NESA; PLS PASS TO USTR J. 
ROSENBAUM 
 
NSC FOR E. MILLARD; TREASURY FOR R. ADKINS; COMMERCE FOR 
A. BENAISSA 
 
E.O. 12958:     DECL: 04-15-14 
TAGS: PGOV, PINR, PREL, PINR, ECON, CE, Political Parties, Elections 
SUBJECT:  Sri Lanka:  Biographic data on new Cabinet 
ministers 
 
Refs:  Colombo 637, and previous 
 
(U) Classified by Ambassador Jeffrey J. Lunstead. 
Reasons 1.5 (b,d). 
 
1.  (C) As reported Reftel, Sri Lanka's new cabinet was 
sworn in on April 10.  (FYI.  President Kumaratunga 
retained control of the defense and internal security 
portfolios -- see Reftels.  Due to a dispute with 
President Kumaratunga, the radical Janatha Vimukthi 
Peramuna, "JVP," has not yet assumed the handful of 
ministerial positions it was promised before the 
election.)  Biographic data on key ministers follows: 
 
BEGIN BIO-DATA: 
 
(Biographic data on new Prime Minister Mahinda 
Rajapakse, who is also Minister of Highways, is 
contained in Reftels.) 
 
-- Lakshman KADIRGAMAR, 70, is the new Minister of 
Foreign Affairs.  He is also a senior Sri Lanka Freedom 
Party (SLFP) MP and a close adviser to President 
Kumaratunga.  Kadirgamar was foreign minister from 1994 
to 2001 in the then-People's Alliance (PA) government. 
Oxford-educated, Kadirgamar was an extremely successful 
lawyer and was considered a world-class authority on 
intellectual property rights before joining the PA 
government in 1994.  During his previous tenure as 
foreign minister, Kadirgamar's key duty was dealing with 
the ethnic conflict, and, in that role, he served as 
international spokesman for the GSL's perspective on the 
war.  He was also heavily involved in the public 
presentation of the GSL's policies on the war to the Sri 
Lankan public.  In general, Kadirgamar is a moderate on 
peace-related issues, expressing strong support for a 
negotiated settlement to the conflict and moves toward 
ethnic reconciliation.  He is also a strong advocate of 
human rights protections.  He remains deeply suspicious 
of the Tiger leadership and is reluctant to trust the 
group too much in the negotiating process.  The Tigers 
do not look at Kadirgamar, a fellow Tamil, in a positive 
fashion, to put it mildly.  (His house in Colombo is 
heavily guarded by GSL security forces due to concerns 
of a possible attack by the Tigers.)  While friendly to 
the U.S., Kadirgamar is an advocate of "NAM," "G-77" 
approaches on international issues.  He is a Christian 
and is married. 
 
-- Anura BANDARANAIKE, 54, is the new Minister of 
Industry, Tourism and Investment Promotion.  He is the 
younger brother of President Kumaratunga and a senior 
SLFP MP.  Bandaranaike first entered Parliament in 1983 
and continues to represent Gampaha District, which is 
located northeast of Colombo.  Bandaranaike has had a 
checkered political career, joining the SLFP in 1973, 
but resigning to join the United National Party (UNP) in 
1993.  He was Speaker of Parliament for a brief period 
from 2000-2001 and, in late 2001, suddenly rejoined the 
SLFP.  Bandaranaike is known to have an up-and-down 
relationship with his sister, the President, but he has 
access to her and is known to provide her with advice on 
political issues.  He has made no secret of his desire 
to succeed his sister as leader of the SLFP and to 
become president of the country one day.  Of late, he 
has cultivated ties to the radical JVP.  Bandaranaike 
was an International Visitor Program (IVP) participant 
in 1975.  He was educated at Royal College, a 
prestigious high school in Colombo, and the University 
of London.  He often vacations in the Los Angeles area. 
A bluff, heavy-set man with various health problems, he 
is not married and is Sinhalese Buddhist. 
 
-- Sarath AMUNUGAMA, 64, is the new Minister of Finance. 
He is a senior SLFP MP from the central district of 
Kandy and serves as spokesman for his party.  He began 
his career as a government civil servant before entering 
Parliament in 1994.  He was minister of local 
governments in the previous PA government.  Amunugama 
has international experience, having served at UNESCO in 
Paris in the late 1980's.  He was also an IVP 
participant in 1971.  An articulate, intelligent public 
speaker, Amunugama is a SLFP hard-liner, with close ties 
to the JVP.  He holds two post-graduate degrees from 
Canadian universities.  He is Sinhalese Buddhist and 
speaks excellent English. 
 
-- Mangala SAMARAWEERA, 47, is the new Minister of Ports 
and Aviation.  He is a SLFP MP from Matara District in 
the south.  First elected to Parliament in 1989, he was 
previously the main SLFP organizer for Matara, where his 
father also served as an MP in the 1960s.  He was 
minister of posts and telecommunications in the previous 
PA government.  Samaraweera is a SLFP hard-liner and he 
maintains close links with the JVP.  A former academic, 
Samaraweera attended the University of London and is 
openly homosexual.  He is Sinhalese Buddhist. 
 
-- D.M. JAYARATNE, 62, is the new Minister of Posts and 
Telecommunications and Upcountry Development.  Jayaratne 
first entered Parliament in 1970.  He served as the 
minister of agriculture, lands and forestry in the 
previous PA government.  The President appointed him as 
the interim Minister of Posts and Telecommunications on 
February 7 when she dissolved Parliament.  He is a 
longtime member of the SLFP and was an ally of S.W.R.D. 
Bandaranaike, President Kumaratunga's father, when the 
party was originally set up in the early 1950s.  He 
hails from Kandy District, and is married and a 
Sinhalese Buddhist. 
 
-- A.H.M. FOWZIE, 67, is the new Minister of Environment 
and Natural Resources.  He first entered Parliament in 
1977 and was the first SLFP mayor of Colombo.  Fowzie 
was a member of the Provincial Council of the Western 
Province in the early 1990s, and was also the minister 
of health, highways, and social services in the previous 
PA government.  Fowzie is a moderate in SLFP ranks and 
sometimes has come into conflict with hard-liners like 
Amunugama and Samaraweera.  He is well-traveled and 
articulate, and friendly to the U.S.  He writes poetry. 
He is a Muslim and is married. 
 
-- Jeyaraj FERNANDOPULLE, 51, is the new Minister of 
Trade, Commerce, and Consumer Affairs.  He first entered 
Parliament in 1989.  He was the deputy minister of 
planning, ethnic affairs and national integration in the 
previous PA government and also served as the minister 
of airport aviation from 2000-2001.  He is a SLFP 
moderate.  An attorney-at-law, Fernandopulle is a 
Sinhalese Catholic from Negombo District north of 
Colombo and is married. 
 
-- Maithripala SIRISENA, 53, is the new Minister of 
River Basin Development and Rajarata (North-Central 
Province) Development.  He first entered Parliament in 
1989.  He holds a diploma in agriculture and is 
currently the secretary of the SLFP.  Sirisena was the 
deputy minister of irrigation in the previous PA 
government and served as minister of Mahaweli (river 
basin) development from 2000-2001.  As a "rustic"-style 
politician, he is popular in rural areas of the country. 
He is a Sinhalese Buddhist and is married. 
 
-- Dinesh GUNAWARDENA, 55, is the new Minister of Urban 
Development and Water Supply.  He first entered 
Parliament in 1983 through a by-election.  He comes from 
a prominent political family that holds diverse views. 
One of his brothers, Prasanna, is the UNP mayor of 
Colombo and another brother, Indika, is a leader of the 
Sri Lanka's small Communist Party.  Gunawardena 
represents the small Mahajama Eksath Peramuna (MEP) 
party.  The MEP, which is a Trotskyite party, was 
founded by Gunawardena's father, Philip, and was very 
strong in the 1940s and 1950s.  He holds a degree from 
the University of Oregon.  Gunawardena was the minister 
of transport from 2000-2001 in the then-PA government. 
He is a lively conversationalist and friendly to the 
U.S. (despite his party affiliation.)  He is an 
attorney-at-law.  A Sinhalese Buddhist, he is a widower. 
 
-- Ferial ASHRAFF, 50, is the new Minister of Housing 
and Construction Industry, Eastern Province Education 
and Irrigation Development.  She is also the leader of 
the National Unity Alliance (NUA), a Muslim party.  In 
2000-2001, Ashraff served as the minister of Eastern 
development, rural housing, rehabilitation and 
reconstruction.  She is the widow of M.H.M. Ashraff, who 
was a former minister of port development and shipping, 
in addition to being the founder of the Sri Lanka Muslim 
Congress (SLMC).  (Ashraff formed the NUA, after she 
lost control of the SLMC in 2001.)  Ashraff is easily 
approachable, but seems to lack ease in the hustle-and- 
bustle of Sri Lankan politics.  Ashraff has one son, who 
is 22 years old. 
 
-- Douglas DEVANANDA, 50, is the new Minister of 
Agricultural Marketing Development, Hindu Affairs and 
Tamil Language Schools and Vocational Training.  He 
first entered Parliament in 1994.  Devananda is also 
Secretary General of the Eelam People's Democratic Party 
 
SIPDIS 
(EPDP), a Tamil party that is opposed to the Tamil 
Tigers.  He was the leader of the paramilitary wing of 
the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front 
(EPRLF) until 1985, when he left the EPRLF and formed 
the EPDP.  He is a friendly well-informed, interlocutor, 
who is out-and-about on the Colombo cocktail circuit. 
He hails from Jaffna.  A Tamil, he is married and speaks 
good English. 
 
-- John SENIVIRATNE, 63, is the new Minister of Justice 
and Judicial Reforms.  Seniviratne first entered 
Parliament in 1989.  He is an attorney-at-law.  He was 
the deputy minister of education in the previous PA 
government and was also minister of health from 2000- 
2001.  He is a Sinhalese Buddhist and is married. 
 
-- A.L.M. ATHAULLA, 46, is the new Minister of 
Infrastructure Development in the Eastern Province. 
Athaulla entered Parliament in 2000, and briefly served 
as minister of highways in 2003.  In early 2004, 
Athaulla led a group of several SLMC MPs from the east 
that broke away from the main SLMC.  He is now the 
leader of the "Athaulla faction" of the SLMC.  He is a 
roughhewn politician, used to party infighting.  On 
international issues, he is said to be somewhat critical 
of U.S. policy in the Middle East, including regarding 
Iraq.  A Muslim, Athaulla is married and has four 
children. 
 
-- Reginald COORAY, 58, is the new Minister of 
Information and Media.  Cooray is a former Chief 
Minister of the Western Province and first entered 
Parliament in 1994.  He is very close to President 
Kumaratunga.  He is a lively conversationalist.  He is a 
Sinhalese Catholic and is married.  He speaks excellent 
English and is quite wealthy from land holdings. 
 
-- Amarasiri DODANGODA, 62, is the new Minister of 
Public Administration and Home Affairs.  Dodangoda first 
entered Parliament in May 1983 after contesting a by- 
election in the southern district of Galle.  An 
attorney-at-law, he was the minister of cooperatives, 
provincial councils and indigenous medicine in the 
previous PA government.  He is married and a Sinhalese 
Buddhist. 
 
-- Milroy FERNANDO, 60, is the new Minister of Christian 
and Parliamentary Affairs.  Fernando first entered 
Parliament in 1989.  He is a businessman who has vast 
experience in the coconut and coir industries.  (Coir is 
a material used to make rope.)  Fernando was a member of 
the North-West Province Provincial Council in the early 
1990s, and was the deputy minister of fisheries and 
aquatic resources in the PA government.  He is affable 
by personality.  He is a Sinhalese Catholic and is 
married.  He hails from Negombo District.  He speaks 
good English. 
 
-- Sumedha JAYASENA, 52, is the new Minister of Women's 
Empowerment and Social Welfare.  Jayasena first entered 
Parliament in 1994.  She was the deputy minister of 
Buddhist affairs in the PA government and was minister 
of women's affairs from 2000-2001.  She is a Sinhalese 
Buddhist and a widow.  She is from Moneragala District, 
a poor district in southeastern Sri Lanka.  She does not 
speak good English. 
 
-- Felix PERERA, 59, is the new Minister of Transport. 
Perera first entered Parliament in 1994.  A leading 
businessman, he formed the Sri Lanka Mahajana Party in 
1986 together with Vijaya Kumaratunga, the late husband 
of President Kumaratunga.  Since that time, he has been 
a close associate of the President's.  He is a Sinhalese 
Catholic and is married.  He speaks good English and 
hails from Gampaha District. 
 
-- Susil PREMAJAYANTHA, 49, is the new Minister of Power 
and Energy.  He is also the Secretary of the United 
People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) (the UPFA is the 
technical name of the SLFP-JVP combine).  Premajayantha 
first entered Parliament in 2000 and briefly served as 
minister of education that same year.  An attorney-at- 
law, Premajayantha obtained his law degree from the 
University of Colombo.  Premajayantha has previously 
held several government positions, including serving as 
the Chief Minister of the Western Province from 1995- 
1998.  A former mayor of Kotte, a town outside of 
Colombo, he is considered approachable.  He is Sinhalese 
Buddhist and is married. 
 
-- Athauda SENEVIRATNE, 73, is the new Minister of Labor 
Relations and Foreign Employment.  Seneviratne first 
entered parliament in 1970.  A former educator, he is 
strongly allied with the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), 
a now-minor Sinhalese leftist party that has lost much 
of its power base since the 1970s.  He was the deputy 
minister of public administration, plantation industries 
and parliamentary affairs in the former PA government. 
He studied at St. Joseph's, a prestigious private high 
school in Colombo.  Seneviratne is Sinhalese Buddhist 
and is married. 
 
-- Anura Priyadarshana YAPA, 45, is the new Minister of 
Plantation Industries.  He first entered Parliament in 
1994.  Yapa previously served as a North-West Province 
Provincial Council member in the early 1990s.  He was 
the deputy minister of information and media from 2000- 
2001 in the then-PA government.  Yapa was a participant 
in an IVP program in 1996.  He is from Kurunegala 
District, northeast of Colombo.  He is considered a 
dynamic, up-and-coming politician.  An attorney-at-law, 
Yapa is Sinhalese Buddhist and is married. 
END BIO-DATA. 
2.  (U) Minimize considered. 
 
LUNSTEAD