List of University of Colombo people

The following people spent time at the University of Colombo as either teaching staff or students.

Heads of state and government

J. R. Jayewardene – former President and Prime Minister of Sri Lanka
Gotabaya Rajapaksa – former President of Sri Lanka
Ranil Wickremesinghe – current President and former Prime Minister of Sri Lanka

Prominent figures in the independence movement

Dr Charles Alwis Hewavitharana, FRCS – leader in the independence movement

Legislators and political figures

Hector Abhayavardhana – Trotskyist
Professor Ranjith Bandara, Member of Parliament in Sri Lanka
A. Amirthalingam – former Opposition leader, Member of Parliament and Tamil separatist
Hon. Tissa Attanayake – former Cabinet Minister; former Member of Parliament
Professor Sir Nicholas Attygalle, FRCS – former President of the Senate of Ceylon, Vice-Chancellor of University of Ceylon, Dean Faculty of Medicine & Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Hon. Ronnie De Mel, CCS – former Cabinet Minister and Member of Parliament
Hon. William de Silva – former Cabinet Minister and Member of Parliament
Deshamanya Neville Kanakeratne – former Governor of the Southern Province
Hon. Anil Moonesinghe – former Cabinet Minister and Member of Parliament
Senator Somasundaram Nadesan – former Senator
Hon. Professor G. L. Peiris – former Cabinet Minister and Member of Parliament
Hon. M. Sivasithamparam – former Deputy Speaker of Parliament
Hon. Doctor Tissa Vitharana – current Cabinet Minister of Science and Technology and Member of Parliament
Hon. Doctor Nissanka Wijeyeratne, CCS – former Cabinet Minister of Education, Higher Education and Justice; Member of Parliament; Sri Lankan Ambassador to the Russian Federation; former Permanent Secretary; Diyawadana Nilame of the Temple of the Tooth

Clergy and religious figures

Cardinal Thomas Cooray, OMI – former Archbishop of Colombo; first Cardinal from Sri Lanka
Rt.Revd. Dr. Lakshman Wickremasinghe – Bishop of Kurunegala; youngest bishop in the Church of England

Civil servants

Hamilton Shirley Amerasinghe, CCS – former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance & Treasury, Ministry of Health (also listed in Diplomats)
Deshamanya C.A. Coorey, SLAS – former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance & Treasury
Deshamanya Dr Gamani Corea – former Secretary-General of the UNCTD (1974–1984); Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Affairs; Senior Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Ceylon^[1]
Tissa Devendra – former Chairman of Public Service Commission; Chairman of Salaries Commission; first President of the Colombo University Alumni Association
Hemasiri Fernando – former Secretary to the Prime Minister
Bernard Peiris, OBE, JP – former Cabinet Secretary^[2]
M. J. Perera, CCS – first Chairman of the Rupavahini Corporation; former Permanent Secretary of the Education and Cultural Affairs Ministry; Vice-Chancellor of University of Peradeniya
G.V.P. Samarasinghe, CCS – former Cabinet Secretary and Permanent Secretary of Defence and Foreign Affairs
S.J. Walpita, CCS – former Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Industries & Fisheries; Vice-Chancellor of University of Ceylon, Peradeniya^[3]
Bradman Weerakoon, CCS – former Secretary to the Prime Minister

Diplomats

T. D. S. A. Dissanayake – former Sri Lankan Ambassador to Indonesia and Egypt
Yogendra Duraiswamy, SLOS – former Sri Lankan diplomat
Deshamanya Dr Vernon Mendis, SLOS – former United Nations' Special Envoy to the Middle East, Sri Lankan High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Canada; Ambassador to USSR, Cuba and Secretary General of the Non Aligned Movement^[4]
Daya Perera, PC – former Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Canada; Ambassador to the United Nations in New York
Wickrema Weerasooria – former Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Australia and New Zealand; Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Plan Implementation

Military

General Deshamanya Sepala Attygalle, MVO, idc, psc, SLAC – former Commander of the Sri Lankan Army (1967–1977) and Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Defence
Major General Anton Muttukumaru – first Ceylonese Army officer to serve as Commander of the Ceylon Army
Major General Dr. Chelliah Thurairaja, USP, SLMC – former Director Army Medical Services and Colonel Commandant of the Sri Lanka Army Medical Corps

Police

Sydney de Zoysa – former Deputy Inspector General of Police, Range II; Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Internal Security; a leader of the attempted military coup in 1962^[5]
C. C. Dissanayake – former Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police (SDIG) and a leader of the attempted military coup in 1962^[6]
S.A. Dissanayake – former Inspector General of Police (IGP) and Additional Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs and Defence
N. K. Illangakoon – current Inspector General of Police (IGP)^[7]

Academics

Vice Chancellors

Professor Savitri Goonesekere – former Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo
Professor Kshanika Hirimburegama – current Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo
Professor Vidya Jyothi V. K. Samaranayake – former Dean of the Faculty of Science, University of Colombo and founder of University of Colombo School of Computing
Professor Stanley Wijesundera – former Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo

Professors and scholars

Professor Hithanadura Janaka De Silva – Foundation Professor of Medicine, University of Kelaniya; Dean of Faculty of Medicine Kelaniya (Student Faculty of Medicine 1977-1982)
Professor Nalin de Silva – professor in the Department of Mathematics at the University of Kelaniya
Professor Rangita de Silva de Alwis – adjunct professor of Global Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania Law School^[8]
Dr Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri – historian and Head of the Department of History, University of Colombo
Professor Deshamanya J B Disanayake – professor and former Head of the Department of Sinhala, University of Colombo
Professor Devaka Fernando – Foundation Professor of Medicine, University of Sri Jayawardanapura; Visiting Professor of Endocrinology University of Newcastle upon Tyne, University of Sheffield; Honorary Professor Sheffield Hallam University (Student Faculty of Medicine 1976-1981 and Senior Lecturer in Medicine 1994-1996)
Dr. Brendon Gooneratne – Head and Senior Lecturer, Department of Parasitology, University of Ceylon, Peradeniya
Professor Yasmine Gooneratne – poet, short story writer and essayist
Professor Shan Ratnam – Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, National University Hospital of Singapore
Professor A. Suri Ratnapala – Professor of Law, T.C. Beirne School of Law, University of Queensland
Professor Ediriweera Sarachchandra – playwright, novelist and poet
Professor K. N. Seneviratne – Professor of Medicine; founder director of Sri Lanka's Postgraduate Institute of Medicine ^[9]^[10]
Professor Jayadeva Uyangoda – professor and former Head of the Department of Political Science, University of Colombo
Dr Maitree Wickramasinghe – academic and senior lecturer at the Department of English of the University of Kelaniya
Professor Nira Wickramasinghe – historian and Professor of Modern South Asian Studies at Leiden University in the Netherlands
Dr Gihan Wikramanayake – Head and Senior Lecturer, Department of Information Systems Engineering of the University of Colombo School of Computing

Artists

Novelists, poets and playwrights

Professor Ediriweera Sarachchandra – Sri Lanka's premier playwright

Actors

Jackson Anthony – actor, director, singer
Iranganie Serasinghe – actress

Visual artists

Malaka Dewapriya – filmmaker, short film director, video artist, radio play writer

Judges

Hon. Justice Saleem Marsoof – former Judge of the Supreme Court
Hon. Justice Neville Samarakoon – former Chief Justice of Sri Lanka
Sri Lankabhimanya Hon. Justice Christopher Weeramantry – former Judge of the International Court of Justice and the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka

Medicine

Hithanadura Janaka De Silva – Foundation Professor of Medicine University of Kelaniya, Dean Faculty of Medicine Kelaniya
Devaka Fernando – Foundation Professor of Medicine University of Sri Jayawardanapura; Visiting Professor of Endocrinology, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, University of Sheffield; Honorary Professor, Sheffield Hallam University
Brendon Gooneratne – scholar and author
Charles Alwis Hewavitharana – independence activist
Richard Lionel Spittel, CMG, CBE – naturalist and author

Journalists

Eva Ranaweera – feminist editor, poet and novelist
Regi Siriwardena – journalist and writer

Sportsmen

Brigadier Dr. H.I.K. Fernando – former Ceylon cricketer
Lasantha Fernando – tennis champion and Davis Cup player^[11]
Jehan Mubarak – cricketer
Tambyah Murugaser – former Vice President of the Board of Control for Cricket; Sri Lanka team manager^[12]
Dr Ajith C. S. Perera – former test-match-panel senior cricket umpire; disability activist
Mano Ponniah – former Ceylon cricketer and member of the Cambridge eleven^[13]
Kumar Sangakkara – captain of the Sri Lankan national cricket team

Lawyers

T.B. Dissanayake – former Commissioner of Assize
Palitha Fernando, PC – current Attorney General of Sri Lanka and Judge Advocate of the Sri Lanka Navy^[14]^[15]

Engineers

B.D Rampala – former chief mechanical engineer and general manager of the Ceylon Government Railway

Activists

Rajini Thiranagama – human rights activist and feminist

Faculty

Professor Sir Nicholas Attygalle
Professor Sir Charles Irwin Ball
Professor Nalin de Silva
Dr Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri
Professor Deshamanya J B Disanayake
Professor J B Disanayake
Professor Christie Jayaratnam Eliezer, AM
Professor Savitri Goonesekere
Professor Kshanika Hirimburegama
Professor Kumari Jayawardena
Professor Amal Jayawardane
Professor Sir William Ivor Jennings
Professor Kusuma Karunaratne
Professor Sarath Kotagama
Professor S.R. Kottegoda
Professor Gunapala Piyasena Malalasekera
Professor Dharmasena Pathiraja
Professor G. L. Peiris
Professor Vidya Jyothi V. K. Samaranayake
Professor Ediriweera Sarachchandra
Professor Anuradha Seneviratna
Professor K. N. Seneviratne
Professor Priyani Soysa
Hedi Stadlen
Professor Deepika Udagama
Professor Jayadeva Uyangoda
Professor Nira Wickramasinghe
Professor Stanley Wijesundera

References

^ Gamani Corea of Sri Lanka, Secretary-General UNCTD Archived 2007-01-07 at the Wayback Machine
^ Memoirs of a Cabinet Secretary - Bernard Percival Peiris
^ In times of turbulence he showed courage and compassion, S. J. Walpita
^ Sri Lanka’s Father of Diplomacy Dr. Vernon L. B. Mendis reminisces his trail blazing career spanning over a half century with Nation Eye
^ Sydney Zoysa was tough
^ Coup of 1962: an inside story
^ New Police chief assumes duties tomorrow
^ "Rangita de Silva de Alwis". www.law.upenn.edu. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
^ http://www.doctorndtv.com/profile/profile.asp?alias=CGoonaratna Archived 2011-06-29 at the Wayback Machine
^ He was many things all rolled into one
^ Appreciation 'King Lasantha' reigns no more
^ Tamil Union felicitates Tambyah Murugaser
^ "Mano Ponniah: Bashful batsman and articulate architect". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
^ "New silks in the AG's Dept". Nation.lk. Retrieved 2011-09-10.
^ Kirinde, Chandani. "Court-martial of Southern Naval Area Commander". Sundaytimes.lk. Retrieved 2011-09-10.

[Gamani_Corea-1] Gamani Corea of Sri Lanka, Secretary-General UNCTD Archived 2007-01-07 at the Wayback Machine

[2] Memoirs of a Cabinet Secretary - Bernard Percival Peiris

[3] In times of turbulence he showed courage and compassion, S. J. Walpita

[4] Sri Lanka’s Father of Diplomacy Dr. Vernon L. B. Mendis reminisces his trail blazing career spanning over a half century with Nation Eye

[5] Sydney Zoysa was tough

[Coup-6] Coup of 1962: an inside story

[7] New Police chief assumes duties tomorrow

[8] "Rangita de Silva de Alwis". www.law.upenn.edu. Retrieved 2023-06-21.

[9] ttp://www.doctorndtv.com/profile/profile.asp?alias=CGoonaratna Archived 2011-06-29 at the Wayback Machine

[10] He was many things all rolled into one

[11] Appreciation 'King Lasantha' reigns no more

[12] Tamil Union felicitates Tambyah Murugaser

[13] "Mano Ponniah: Bashful batsman and articulate architect". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2010-06-14.

[New_silks_in_the_AG’s_Dept-14] "New silks in the AG's Dept". Nation.lk. Retrieved 2011-09-10.

[sundaytimes.lk-15] Kirinde, Chandani. "Court-martial of Southern Naval Area Commander". Sundaytimes.lk. Retrieved 2011-09-10.

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