Sri Lanka Independence

On February 4, 1948, the Ceylon Independence Act (issued in 1947) came into force; he gave the island the status of a Dominion, d. H. within the Commonwealth of Nations. The UNP government under Senanayake (1947-52), his son Dudley Shelton Senanayake (* 1911, † 1973 ; 1952-53) and Sir John Lionel Kotelawala (* 1897, † 1980 ; 1953-56) tried the various ethnic groups as well as the to combine different religions into a political unit while preserving their cultural identity and social plurality. In terms of foreign policy, they tended more towards the West, an attitude that Kotelawala expressed particularly at the Bandung Conference (1955).

Economic difficulties (including falling rubber and tea prices, rising food prices) and their social consequences triggered discontent, which was associated with rising nationalism, especially among the Sinhalese majority population. Taking up this basic mood politically, the chairman of the socialist Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Solomon Bandaranaike was able to lead the “United Popular Front” led by his party to a major election victory in 1956. At the head of a Popular Front government, he took over the office of Prime Minister; In terms of foreign policy, he directed a policy of non-alignment (“Non-Alignment”). Internally, he pursued a course that combined socialist conceptions with Buddhist ideas and favored Sinhala nationalism (among other things, Sinhala was made the only official language instead of English in 1956). This led to bloody fighting between Sinhalese and Tamils ​​in 1958. In September 1959, Solomon Bandaranaike was murdered.

After a period of political instability (1959–60) and an election victory for the SLFP (1960), Sirimawo Bandaranaike, Bandaranaike’s widow and his successor at the head of the SLFP, became Prime Minister; she renewed the Popular Front government and continued her husband’s domestic and foreign policy; in addition, she tightened the policy of nationalizing foreign and domestic companies (including tea and rubber plantations) as well as oil companies and banks. The 1965 elections brought the UNP back to power. With the support of a government coalition of the UNP and the Federal Party (FP), which acts as the mouthpiece of the Tamil minority, Prime Minister Senanayake supported (1965–70) private enterprise and modernized agriculture, but could not contain rising unemployment and inflation.

With the renewed electoral victory of the Popular Front (1970), Sirimawo Bandaranaike steppedback to the top of the government, but was soon faced with severe social tensions. From March to June 1971 there were serious unrest among left-wing Sinhalese, mostly youthful forces; the uprising of their “People’s Liberation Front” (Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, abbreviation JVP) was put down with foreign arms aid. In the course of a constitutional reform, the island was renamed Sri Lanka Republic on May 22, 1972. Still active in foreign policy in the movement of the non-aligned states, the Bandaranaike government (1970-77) continued its domestic policy: implementation of a far-reaching land reform (1972), nationalization of the plantation economy (1975) and expansion of state control over commercial and industrial companies, at the same time an educational and social policy that discriminates against the Tamils. The allegations of nepotism and corruption in the extensive state economy as well as the gradual collapse of the Popular Front led to the electoral defeat of the ruling party in 1977. The new government under Prime Minister J. R. Jayawardene (UNP) introduced the presidential system in 1978; Jayawardene became President (re-elected in 1982), Ranasinghe Premadasa (* 1924, † 1993) Prime Minister. With the entry into force of the new constitution (September 7, 1978), the state adopted the official name “Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka”. Although Jayawardene repealed numerous laws discriminating against the Tamils ​​(including the repeal of the 1972 Citizenship Act, which declared Tamils ​​to be “registered citizens” as opposed to Sinhala “citizens by birth”), no domestic political détente took place.

Sri Jayewardenepura

According to youremailverifier, Sri Jayewardenepura [- d ʒ ajevardene pura], Kotte [ kə ʊ tei] is the capital (de jure) of Sri Lanka, in the eastern suburban area of Colombo, 107 900 residents (mainly Buddhist Sinhalese). In 1982 the seat of Parliament was moved from Colombo to Sri Jayewardenepura; The seat of the president is still Colombo. University; Rubber, cement, chemical industries.

The Sri Lankan parliament building (1978-80), which consists of several pavilions and was built according to plans by Geoffrey Bawa (* 1919, † 2003), is located in an artificial lake.

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia [- ma ʊ nt lə v ɪ njə], twin city in Sri Lanka, 10 km south of Colombo, (2012) 184 500 residents.

The villa and seaside resort of the British colonial era was developed into a tourist center; Zoological Garden.

Central Highlands of Sri Lanka (World Heritage)

The Peak Wilderness Reserve, Horton Plains National Park and Knuckles Conservation Forest in the central highlands of Sri Lanka are outstanding for the country’s biodiversity. The most striking animal there is the sambar, the third largest species of deer on earth. Over 1000 species of higher plants thrive in the Knuckles Conservation Forest alone.

Central highlands of Sri Lanka: facts