• On the occasion of NMSJ Chair and fmr Speaker Karu Jayasuriya being conferred the country’s highest national civil honour, ‘Sri Lankabhimanya’ 

The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka has conferred former Speaker of the Parliament and incumbent National Movement for Social Justice (NMSJ) Chairman Deshabandu Karu Jayasuriya with the honorary title “Sri Lankabhimanya”. 

This unique title is awarded to citizens who have rendered exceptional, outstanding, and distinguished service to the nation, limited to five citizens living at the same time. It is the highest national civil honour of Sri Lanka, awarded by the President, on behalf of the Government. Hence, the uniqueness of this award can be understood. 

Considering the history of the award, only three Sri Lankans have been awarded this title among those who have been involved in politics. Among these are former Presidents, slain Ranasinghe Premadasa and late Dingiri Banda Wijetunga, and former Minister of Foreign Affairs President’s Counsel (PC), the late Lakshman Kadirgamar. The other Sri Lankans who were awarded this title are the late science fiction writer Arthur Charles Clarke, the late musician Wannakuwattawaduge Don Albert Amaradeva, the late Vice President of the International Court of Justice and Judge of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka Christopher Gregory Weeramantry and philanthropist Ahangamage Tudor Ariyaratne.

Considering the role of Jayasuriya, he, no doubt, is a person with excellent qualities, who sacrificed his life for the development of the country in many different fields, and is still working for the same. Regardless of what field he has served in, be it politics, business, or social work, he has made his fullest contribution to the development of the country. It is a fact that is generally accepted by both his political friends and rivals, competitors during his time as an entrepreneur as well as all the national and religious leaders of the country. 

There are three special characteristics observable in Jayasuriya’s life. In his youth, he achieved success as a manager and entrepreneur in Sri Lanka's business sector, without any political patronage. He achieved all that success solely on his merit. Later, he served as the Mayor of the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), as a Cabinet Minister in a number of leading ministries, and as the Speaker. It is noteworthy that he took on all responsibilities related to politics based on invitations and not by asking for positions.

He entered politics while working at the highest levels of the Sri Lankan business sector, holding the highest positions such as Chairman and Managing Director of 52 leading companies in the country, at the request of then-United National Party (UNP) Chairman N.G.P. Panditaratne and Premadasa. Then, he contested as a candidate for the CMC and various other elections based on the two districts of Colombo and Gampaha at the invitations made by then-UNP Leader. Only on one occasion did he openly compete for the leadership of the UNP, as it was impossible for him to ignore the strong calls made by a number of top leaders and members of the UNP.

 When the country was in the midst of a serious war and facing a particularly critical phase, he joined the then-Government led by the UNP’s Opposition, on the condition that it would be for a limited period. He made the decision to join the Government considering requests made by national and religious leaders, including the Chief Prelates (Mahanayakas) of the Buddhist Sects, in order to reach a consensus for the country. When it became clear that the war would be won following that specific period, he, as promised to the country, resigned from the Cabinet Ministry of that particular Government and rejoined the UNP as its Deputy Leader, at the request of the UNP leadership. Evidence that none of the above undertakings was for mere power is evident by the fact that on two occasions, he clearly rejected the invitations made by two former Heads of State to accept the post of Prime Minister.

Another special feature displayed by Jayasuriya is the enormous dedication he takes to act according to the vision he stands for in every step he takes. During the short period of about two years in which he served as the Mayor of the CMC, Jayasuriya was able to make Colombo the best City in South Asia. At one time, when the country was facing a huge power crisis, he, as the Minister of Power and Energy, was able to resolve the crisis within a period of less than 180 days after taking up the Ministerial position. Further, he has demonstrated such excellent qualities not just in the management and administration process but also in his political career. A prime example of this is the courageous intervention he made for the country’s democracy and the dignity and respect of the legislature during his tenure as the Speaker.

When considering the social responsibilities that he fulfils as an active citizen outside of his full-time political activities, the same great qualities are manifested. Although it is a common situation that many of those who are involved in politics focus only on their comfort and other personal affairs after leaving active politics, and stay away from the general public, Jayasuriya is not a person of that sort. He considers fulfilling his social responsibility as a role that he must fulfil in the spiritual philosophy that he believes in. This is the very reason that he, as the NMSJ Chairman, is carrying out responsibilities nationally, as well as in a number of religious institutions, in the advocacy for the social and political reforms that should be carried out for the benefit of the country.

He is engaged in various social welfare programmes in the country. He established the Indira Cancer Trust to help cancer patients islandwide, after the untimely death of one of his daughters. The said Trust, which has been established near the National Cancer Institute (Apeksha Hospital, Maharagama), carries out an immense mission for the benefit of thousands of cancer patients. He also successfully runs a special programme to teach the Tamil language to the children of the South and the Sinhala language to the children of the North. 

Currently, on the initiative of Jayasuriya and under the patronage of the Government of India, 158 houses are being built in the Sri Sobitha Gama, Elapathgama, a remote village in the Anuradhapura District. Also, many people are unaware that he was instrumental in constructing two elephant fences in the Habarana, Ritigala, and Bendiwewa areas with the support of a leading charity organisation in Germany. Accordingly, Sri Lanka, as a country, has awarded the honorary title “Sri Lankabhimanya” to one of its noble citizens, Karu Jayasuriya.

(The writer is the General Secretary of the NMSJ)

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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.