P. R. B. Wimalarathna
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4 May 1946
P. R. B. Wimalarathna | |
|---|---|
පී. ආර්. බී. විමලරත්න | |
| Member of Central Committee of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna | |
| In office 1983–1989 | |
| Leader | Rohana Wijeweera |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Polwatta Rathu Baduge Wimalaratne 4 May 1946 |
| Died | 19 September 1989 (aged 43) Battaramulla, Sri Lanka |
| Party | Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna |
| Spouse | Kamani Jayasekara (1978-1989) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Trincomalee Junior College Abhayapura Maha Vidyalaya |
| Alma mater | Hingurakgoda Teacher Training College |
| Occupation | Politician, teacher |
Polwatta Rathu Baduge Wimalaratne (4 May 1946 – 19 September 1989: Sinhala: ලලිත් විජේරත්න), popularly as P. R. B. Wimalarathna, was a Sri Lankan politician and militant leader. He was a member of the JVP party in the period 1978–1989 and leader of the National Center for Workers' Struggle.[1] He was also known as Wimal Ranbadu, Trinco Wimal, Leslie and Batty Aiya.[2]
Wimalaratne's grandfather was Polwatta Rathubaduge Davith Singho from Gandara, Matara. His Grandmother was Punchihewage Punchi Nona. The couple had 6 children, where four of them were sons. In 1939, Davith settled in Trincomalee with his family. Wimalarathna's father Daniel Silva was born 7 March 1926 as the third child of Davith Singho and Punchi Nona. Wimalarathna's mother Manikku Baduge Kusumawathi was born on 29 February 1929. Daniel Silva and Kusumawathi were niece and nephew where they married on 4 October 1944. The couple had 12 children: 10 boys: Wimalaratne, Ariyaratne, Premaratne, Sumathipala, Hemapala, Jagath, Gamini, Kithsiri, Kapila, Anura Kumara; and two daughters: Swarnalatha, and Subashini. Wimalaratne's mother died on 7 February 2005 at the age of 79.[3]
Wimalaratne was born on 4 May 1946 in Polwatta, Trincomalee, Sri Lanka as the eldest child in the family.[4] He was educated at Trincomalee Junior College (now Rajakeeya Vidyaloka National School) and Abhayapura Maha Vidyalaya. He passed the GCE Ordinary Level Examination in 1962 and the GCE Advanced Level Examination in 1965 with good distinctions.[3]
Wimalaratne's brother Premaratne was about 18 years old at the time and an activist in the group that attacked the Horowpothana police. Premaratne was later arrested by the Horowpathana Police on 16 April 1971 while on his way to a house in the Morawewa Govi Janapadaya. Later, Premaratne's legs were tied to a jeep and dragged off the road, killing him. The other brother, 17-year-old Sumathipala, was arrested on 17 April 1971, and killed along with 16 other rebels near the Yan-Oya Bridge, the border between Trincomalee and Anuradhapura districts.[3]
On 11 July 1978, he married Kamani Jayasekara,[4] a JVP member born in Galle in 1947 and lived in Trincomalee, Kinniya. Her father Don James Jayasekara was a former naval officer. Kamani's mother was Piyaseeli Kandamby. Kamani was the 4th child in a family of 9 siblings: 5 brothers and three sisters. One of Kamani 's brothers, D. Kumarasiri Jayasekara alias Sudu Aiya had joined the JVP in 1969. Another brother, Dayasiri, later became the JVP Nuwara Eliya district secretary and was assassinated in 1989. Another brother, Ranjith, served as the JVP's Trincomalee district secretary before the party's ban, later became the owner of the Ocean Hotel in Trincomalee and later died in an accident. At the time of the murder of Wimalaratne and Kamani, their three children were very young. The two daughters were Achala Madhavi and Dinushka Subandhani and the youngest child was Janith Prabhashana.[3]
