G. L. Peiris

Hon.
Gamini Lakshman Peiris
MP
ගාමිණී ලක්ශ්මන් පීරිස්
காமினி லக்ஷ்மன் பீரிஸ்
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
16 August 2021 – 22 July 2022
PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa
Prime MinisterMahinda Rajapaksa
Ranil Wickramasinghe
Preceded byDinesh Gunawardena
Succeeded byAli Sabry
In office
23 April 2010 – 12 January 2015
PresidentMahinda Rajapaksa
Prime MinisterD. M. Jayaratne
Preceded byRohitha Bogollagama
Succeeded byMangala Samaraweera
State Minister of Defense
In office
18 April 2022 – 21 July 2022
PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa
Prime MinisterMahinda Rajapaksa
Ranil Wickramasinghe
Preceded byChamal Rajapaksa
Minister of Education
In office
12 August 2020 – 16 August 2021
PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa
Prime MinisterMahinda Rajapaksa
Preceded byDullas Alahapperuma
Succeeded byDinesh Gunawardena
Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo
In office
1989–1994
Preceded byStanley Wijesundera
Succeeded byNandadasa Kodagoda
Minister of Justice
In office
1994–2001
PresidentChandrika Kumaratunga
Preceded byHarold Herath
Succeeded byW. J. M. Lokubandara
Member of Parliament
for Colombo District
In office
2000–2001
Member of Parliament
for National List
Incumbent
Assumed office
2020
In office
2001–2015
In office
1994–2000
Personal details
Born (1946-08-13) 13 August 1946 (age 78)
Political partyNidahasa Janatha Sabha (since 2022)
Other political
affiliations		United National Party
Sri Lanka Freedom Party
Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (2016–2022)
Alma materUniversity of Ceylon, Colombo
University College, Oxford

Gamini Lakshman Peiris (Sinhala: ගාමීණි ලක්ෂ්මණ් පීරිස්, Tamil: காமினி லக்ஷ்மன் பீரிஸ்) (born 13 August 1946) is a Sri Lankan politician and academic.[1] He was the Cabinet Minister of External Affairs and is a member of the Parliament of Sri Lanka from the National List.[1][2] He was also the State Minister of Defense on 18 April 2022, serving until 11 July 2022.[3] He previously served as the Minister of Education, Minister of Justice in previous Sri Lankan Governments.[4][5] He belongs to the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, serving as its chairperson.[1][6][7]

Early life and education

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Peiris was born to Glanville Peiris, a diplomat who was the former Director-General of External Affairs and Ceylon's Ambassador to West Germany and Myanmar, and Lakshmi Chandrika Peiris.[8] His uncle was Bernard Peiris, the former Cabinet Secretary. Educated at Sri Sumangala College, Panadura and S. Thomas' College, Mt Lavinia, he entered the Department of Law of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ceylon, Colombo and won the Mudliyar Edmond Peiris award. He won a Rhodes Scholarship to read for a PhD at University College, Oxford, and graduated in 1971. He also gained a second PhD from the University of Colombo in 1974.[9]

Academic career

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Joining the academic staff of the University of Ceylon, he went on to become a Professor of Law and the Dean of the Faculty of Law before taking office as the second Vice-Chancellor of the University of Colombo following the assassination of Prof. Stanley Wijesundera during the height of the 1987–89 JVP Insurrection. He served as Vice-Chancellor from 1988 to 1994 until leaving to take up politics. He had Fellowships from Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and London. He was a Rhodes Scholar of the University of Oxford (1968-1971) and All Souls College of the University of Oxford in 1980–1981. He was a visiting fellow of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies of the University of London in 1984, distinguished Visiting Fellow of Christ College, University of Cambridge and SMUTS Visiting Fellow in Commonwealth Studies at the Cambridge University (1985-1986). He was also Associate member of the International Academy of Comparative Law in 1980 and once became a Senior British Council Fellow in 1987.

Political career

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People's Alliance Government (1994–2001)

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Peiris was a close confidant of the former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, who appointed him as a national list member of the parliament following the 1994 election. Thereafter, Mrs Kumaratunga, then Prime Minister, appointed him as Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and Deputy Minister of Finance. He was also given the portfolio of External Trade at the start. In a subsequent Cabinet reshuffle, he was given two additional portfolios—Ethnic Affairs and National Integration—which were hitherto held by the President. During his tenure as Justice Minister, he brought in over 30 pieces of new legislation which were considered innovative and in accordance with the needs of modern times.[9]

In 2001, Peiris fell out with President Kumaratunga and defected to the opposition, effectively bringing down the government.

United National Front Government (2001–2004)

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After leaving the PA, Peiris joined the opposition United National Party led United National Front (UNF), which captured power in the subsequent general election.[10]

When the UNF government headed by the then Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe engaged in peace talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Peiris was appointed as the chief negotiator.[11]

Defeated government (2004–2007)

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The UNP government was defeated in 2004 and was in the opposition.

Rejoin UPFA (2007–2016)

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He was amongst the many who defected to the government alongside Karu Jayasuriya in 2007 and gain ministerial portfolios. [12][13] On 9 January 2015, he shifted as opposition MP representing UPFA. In the 2015 election, he lost his seat in parliament as he was not selected from the UPFA national list.[14]

SLPP (2016–2022)

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He was named the chairman of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna on 1 November 2016.[15] Following the appointment he was removed from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party.[16]

The SLPP achieved a landslide victory in the 2020 general election and Peris was appointed to parliament from the national list and made the Minister of education. In the Cabinet reshuffle of August 2021 he was made minister of foreign affairs once again.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "G.L Peiris". Manthri.lk. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  2. ^ "FOREIGN MINISTER". Ministry of Foreign Affairs -Sri Lanka. Government of Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 19 April 2022. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  3. ^ "New State Ministers sworn in before the President". Ada Derana.lk. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  4. ^ Bandara, Kelum (13 August 2020). "newly sworn Cabinet: New MPs receive more executive authority in new government". Daily Mirror. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  5. ^ "The New Cabinet" (PDF). Tamil Times. XIII (8). 15 August 1994. ISSN 0266-4488. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  6. ^ "GL named Chairman of Podujana Peramuna". The Daily Mirror. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  7. ^ Sri Abeyratne, Dharma (3 November 2016). "Renamed political party under GL's chairmanship". Daily News. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  8. ^ "Gentleman politician". Archived from the original on 17 January 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2011.
  9. ^ a b "G.L. Peiris CV". Asian-affairs.com. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  10. ^ "Sri Lanka". Archived from the original on 27 March 2010. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
  11. ^ "Sri Lanka talks snag 'resolved'". BBC News. 7 January 2003. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  12. ^ "UNP dissidents join Government". Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  13. ^ "Ranil vows to 'continue fight'". BBC Sinhala. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  14. ^ "Daily Mirror - UPFA, UNP national lists announced". Dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  15. ^ "'Our Sri Lanka Freedom Front' changes name; GL named Chairman". Adaderana.lk. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  16. ^ "SLFP membership of G.L Peries cancelled - Gold FM News - Srilanka's Number One News Portal". Hirunews.lk. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
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