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Gotabhaya Rajapaksa

Significant role as Secretary of Defence during the Eelam War IV
Place of birth Matara, Sri Lanka
Allegiance Flag of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka
Service/branch Sri Lankan Army
Years of service 1971 - 1992
Rank Lieutenant Colonel
Commands held Gajaba Regiment
General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University
Battles/wars Eelam War I
Eelam War II
Eelam War IV
Awards Rana Wickrama Padakkama
Rana Sura Padakkama

Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Nandasena Gotabhaya "George" Rajapaksa RWP, RSP, GR is the current Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Defence of the Government of Sri Lanka. See also Sri Lankan Civil War Eelam War IV is the name given to the fourth phase of armed conflict between the Sri Lankan military and the separatist Liberation Matara can refer to Matara Eritrea Matara Sri Lanka Matará, Cangallo Province, Peru Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island The Sri Lanka Army is the oldest and largest of the three armed services of Sri Lanka and is responsible for overseeing land-based military and Lieutenant Colonel ( Lieutenant-Colonel in English from the French grade 's spelling is a rank of Commissioned officer in the armies The Gajaba Regiment (GR was formed when 1st Battalion the Rajarata Rifles and 1st Battalion the Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment were amalgamated in 1983 to counter General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU located at Kandawala, Ratmalana, Colombo, is a joint services academy where Cadets of the Eelam War I is the name given to the initial phase of the armed conflict between the government of Sri Lankan and the LTTE. Eelam War II is the name given to the second phase of armed conflict between Sri Lankan military and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. See also Sri Lankan Civil War Eelam War IV is the name given to the fourth phase of armed conflict between the Sri Lankan military and the separatist Liberation See also Awards and decorations of the military of Sri Lanka The Rana Wickrama Padakkama ("Combat Gallantry Medal" ( Sinhala රණ වික්රම See also Awards and decorations of the military of Sri Lanka The Rana Sura Padakkama (Combat Excellence Medal ( Sinhala: රණ ශූර පදක්කම Lieutenant Colonel ( Lieutenant-Colonel in English from the French grade 's spelling is a rank of Commissioned officer in the armies The Gajaba Regiment (GR was formed when 1st Battalion the Rajarata Rifles and 1st Battalion the Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment were amalgamated in 1983 to counter The Permanent Secretary, in most departments officially titled the Permanent Under-Secretary of State (although the full title is rarely used is the most senior civil Ministry of Defence Public Security Law & Order is responsible for the formulation co-ordination and the execution of policies in relation to the security of the country TemplatePolitics of Sri Lanka Politics of Sri Lanka takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic Republic, whereby the President A retired military officer who was involved in the country's civil war with LTTE rebels in the 1980s, he is the younger brother of current President Mahinda Rajapaksa. The Sri Lankan Civil War is an Ongoing conflict on the Island -nation of Sri Lanka. "LTTE" redirects here For the Led Zeppelin bootleg see Listen to This Eddie. Percy Mahinda Rajapaksa (commonly known as Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sinhala මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ; maˈhində ˈraːjəˌpakʂə born November He survived an assassinations attempt by a Tamil Tiger suicide bomber in December 2006. This article is about suicide attacks for political and/or military reasons

Contents

Early life

George Gotabhaya Rajapaksa was born in Palatuwa in the district of Matara and brought up in Weerakatiya in the southern rural district of Hambantota. Matara can refer to Matara Eritrea Matara Sri Lanka Matará, Cangallo Province, Peru The provinces of Sri Lanka are divided into 25 Districts ( Sinhala: දිස්ත්‍රි‌ක්‌ක sing Hambantota is a rural town in southern coastal area of Sri Lanka. He hails from a well known political family in Sri Lanka. His father, D. A. Rajapaksa, was a prominent politician, independence agitator and former Member of Parliament. Don Alwin Rajapaksa (commonly known as DA Rajapaksa; born November 05 1905 was a Sri Lankan politician and Member of Parliament A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a Parliament. D. M. Rajapaksa, his uncle, was a State Councilor for Hambantota in the 1930s who started wearing the earthy brown shawl to represent kurakkan (finger millet) cultivated by the people of his area, whose cause he championed throughout his life. Finger millet ( Eleusine coracana, Amharic ዳጉሳ "Dagusa" or ቶኩሶ tōkūsō) also known as African millet or Ragi His brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa was first elected to parliament as a member of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party at the age of 24 in 1970. The Sri Lanka Freedom Party is one of the major political parties in Sri Lanka. Mahinda gradually rose through the ranks of the party, becoming opposition leader in 2001, Prime Minister in 2004 and the President of Sri Lanka in 2005. Two of his other brothers, Chamal Rajapaksa and Basil Rajapaksa, are also in the politics being current Members of Parliament.

Military career

The commanders of "Operation Liberation" commonly known as "Vadamarachchi Operation". From left to right: Lt Col. Vipul Boteju, Lt Col. Sarath Jayawardane, Col. Vijaya Wimalaratne, Brig. Denzil Kobbekaduwa and Maj Gotabhaya Rajapakse [1987, Jaffna].
The commanders of "Operation Liberation" commonly known as "Vadamarachchi Operation". From left to right: Lt Col. Vipul Boteju, Lt Col. Sarath Jayawardane, Col. Vijaya Wimalaratne, Brig. Major General Vijaya Wimalaratne RWP, RSP, VSV, USP, psc GR (In Sinhalese: විජය විමලරත්න Denzil Kobbekaduwa and Maj Gotabhaya Rajapakse [1987, Jaffna]. Lieutenant General Denzil Lakshman Kobbekaduwa RWP, RSP, VSV, USP, rcds psc SLAC (In Sinhalese: ලුතිනන්

He joined the Sri Lanka Army on April 26, 1971 as a Cadet Officer, when Sri Lanka was the Dominion of Ceylon with the Governor-General as the acting head of state during the insurrection launched by the Communist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) on April 5, 1971. The Sri Lanka Army is the oldest and largest of the three armed services of Sri Lanka and is responsible for overseeing land-based military and Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. The St John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland ( SJAB) is a charitable voluntary Organisation in the Republic of Ireland. Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island The Governor-General of Ceylon was the representative of the King of Ceylon (1948-1952 and the Queen of Ceylon (1952-1972 The 1971 uprising led by the Sinhalese Sri Lankan People's Liberation Front or Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, was an unsuccessful Marxist Youth Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna ( Sinhala janatā vimukti peramuṇa, "People's Liberation Front" is a nationalist Marxist Political Events 456 - St Patrick returns to Ireland as a missionary bishop Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant on May 25, 1972 and given his first command as a platoon officer in the renowned Gajaba Regiment. Second Lieutenant is the lowest commissioned officer Military rank in many Armed forces. The Gajaba Regiment (GR was formed when 1st Battalion the Rajarata Rifles and 1st Battalion the Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment were amalgamated in 1983 to counter

He rose up the ranks in the military, serving as the second in command of the 1st Gajaba Regiment during the period of 1983 - 1990. He served in the battlefronts of Jaffna, participating in the famous Operation Liberation, the offensive mounted to liberate Vadamarachchi from LTTE in 1987. Jaffna or Yazhpanam (யாழ்ப்பாணம் in Tamil meaning யாழ்= The Operation Liberation or Vadamarachchi Operation, the military offensive carried out by the Sri Lankan military during May to June 1987, to re-gain the "LTTE" redirects here For the Led Zeppelin bootleg see Listen to This Eddie. He also commanded the same battalion in Operation "Strike Hard" and Operation "Thrivida Balaya" in 1990.


During the period of 21 years in military service he moved up to a Lieutenant Colonel, and was the Commandant of the Kotelawala Defence Academy, when he retired in 1992. Lieutenant Colonel ( Lieutenant-Colonel in English from the French grade 's spelling is a rank of Commissioned officer in the armies General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU located at Kandawala, Ratmalana, Colombo, is a joint services academy where Cadets of the

Retirement from Military

Upon retirement from the Army after a service of 20 years, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Technology from the Colombo University and was employed in the IT field of the local corporate sector. Then Gotabhaya migrated to the United States of America, where he worked as Seven Eleven Manager [1] and as Computer Systems UNIX Administrator at the Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. When in the USA, he used his English name George Rajapaksa. In order to assist his brother's Presidential election campaign, Mr Rajapaksa returned to Sri Lanka in 2005. [2], [3]

Defence secretary

Gotabhaya Rajapakse was appointed to the post of Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence in November 2005 by the President. The Permanent Secretary, in most departments officially titled the Permanent Under-Secretary of State (although the full title is rarely used is the most senior civil Ministry of Defence Public Security Law & Order is responsible for the formulation co-ordination and the execution of policies in relation to the security of the country Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He is a controversial figure in Sri Lanka for leading the military operation which drove out the LTTE from the entire Eastern Province of the country, while instigating arbitrary arrests and mass deportations of Tamils from the Colombo area. Eastern Province ( Tamil: கிழக்கு மாகாணம் Sinhala: Negenahira Palata) is a province of Sri Lanka. He is regularly accused of corruption by the opposition.

His commitment and passion towards the military sometimes cause him to become emotional when anyone tries to criticise service personnel. The reason could be because while serving in the Army, Gotabhaya Rajapakse has received awards for gallantry by three Presidents of Sri Lanka, J. R. Jayewardene, Ranasinghe Premadasa and D. Ranasinghe Premadasa ( June 23, 1924 - May 1, 1993) was the 3rd President of Sri Lanka from January 2, 1989 B. Wijetunga. [4]

After the military victory in east Gotabhaya Rajapaksa told media, that the next target is to re-capture Wanni from LTTE. [5]

Controversies

Stifling of media freedom

Gotabhaya Rajapaksa is known to have a short temper, especially when it comes to defending the Armed Forces. He has been accused of threathening journalists on several occasions, including telling two journalists attached to the state-owned Lake House Publications that unless they stop criticising the armed forces "what has to happen to you will happen". When asked by the two journalists if he was threathening them, he replied "No, No. I am not doing it. I am definitely not threatening your lives. I am not. It will happen from where it happens. Our services are appreciated by 99 per cent of the people. They love the Army Commander (Lt. Gen. Fonseka) and the Army. Those who love us do what is required. " [6] This incident prompted one independent Sri Lankan newspaper to publish a picture of Rajapaksa with images of Hitler superimposed. [7] In April 2007 he allegedly called the Editor of the Daily Mirror Champika Liyanaarachchi and threatened her, saying that she would escape reprisals only if the resigned. [8] He also threatened to “exterminate” the Daily Mirror journalist Uditha Jayasinghe, for writing articles about the plight of civilian war casualties. Mr. Rajapaksa denied these claims. Further controversy was created when the British High Commissioner in Sri Lanka was summoned to Mr. Rajapaksa to explain why he had visited the allegedly threatened editor. [9]

The Karuna Link

The former LTTE commander Vinayagamoorthi Muralitharan, better known as Colonel Karuna, has stated to British authorities that Rajapaksa was instrumental in arranging for him to be issued with a false diplomatic passport so that he could flee to Britain in September 2007. "LTTE" redirects here For the Led Zeppelin bootleg see Listen to This Eddie. Colonel Karuna Amman is the Nom de guerre of Vinayagamoorthi Muralitharan (born 1966 the President of the TMVP ( TamilEela Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal These allegations were denied by the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohita Bogollogama at the time, [10] and later by Mr Rajapaksa himself.

Criticism of UN and western countries

In June 2007, Mr. Rajapaksa was severely critical of the UN in Sri Lanka and of western governments. He accused the UN in Sri Lanka of having been infiltrated by terrorists "for 30 years or so", and as a result the UN was fed incorrect information. He also alleged that Britain and the EU were bullying Sri Lanka, and concluded that Sri Lanka "does not need them", and that they don't provide any significant amount of aid to the country. [11]

Attempted assassination

The LTTE attempted to assassinate him by driving an explosive laden auto-rikshaw into his motorcade around 10:35 AM on December 01, 2006 at Kollupitiya, Colombo. Events 800 - Charlemagne judges the accusations against Pope Leo III in the Vatican Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Colombo ( Sinhala:, ˈkoləmbə Tamil: கொழும்பு is the largest city and commercial capital of Sri Lanka. The army Commandos guarding him obstructed the vehicle carrying the explosives before it reached Rajapakse's vehicle and two commandos died on the spot, whereas Rajapakse escaped unhurt. The Sri Lanka Army Commando Regiment (CR is an elite special operations unit which is a Regiment of the Sri Lanka army. [12]

See also

Reading

References

  1. ^ The Ecenomist - A war strange as fiction
  2. ^ Gotabhaya to sue Sunday Leader for defamation
  3. ^ Daily News - Defence Secretary sues The Leader
  4. ^ :: Daily Mirror - Opinion ::
  5. ^ "Lanka troops 'focusing on north'", BBC News, 26 August, 2007.  
  6. ^ Sunday Times - Death bells toll for the free media
  7. ^ http://www.lakbimanews.lk/special/spe2.htm Lakbima news - Gota lays down his law to journos.
  8. ^ http://www.dailymirror.lk/2007/04/19/front/4.asp
  9. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2007/04/070419_britishghota.shtml
  10. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2008/01/080125_karunajail.shtml BBC Sinhala - Gotabhaya 'gave me passport'
  11. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6745553.stm
  12. ^ CHRONOLOGY-Attacks blamed on Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers. Reuters (January 08, 2008).

External links

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