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Patabendi Don Nandasiri Wijeweera (Sinhala:පටබැඳි දොන් නන්දසිරි විජෙවීර) or Rohana Wijeweera (14 July 1943 – 13 November 1989) was a Sri Lankan Marxist politician and the founding leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna. Wijeweera led the party during the two major armed campaigns happened in Sri Lanka, which led by the JVP in 1971 and 1987-89.^[1][2]

Early life[link]

He was born on July 14, 1943 (Bastille Day) to Patabendi Don Andris Wijeweera and Nasi Nona Wickrama Kulutota who lived in Kottegoda a coastal fishing village situated in southern Sri Lanka and belong to the Karava caste hierarchy.

He has a younger brother Ananda and a younger sister Chitranie also lived there.

Wijeweera had his primary education at Goda Uda government school in Kottegoda from 1947 to 1953. In 1954 he entered Goda Uda government senior school to obtain the secondary education and was there until mid 1959. He entered Ambalangoda Dharmashoka college in July 1959 to study GCE - Ordinary Level examination.

In September 1960 he went to USSR and entered into the Lumumba University to study medicine. He completed the Russian language examination within seven and a half months by obtaining a distinction and spent his holidays by travelling through the USSR and also worked as an agricultural worker at Moldavian Rupublic. He did the medical studies well up to third year and further has done the political economics by obtaining a distinction in 1963. In late 1963 he suffered from illnesses and received medical treatment from a hospital in Moscow but finally he requested a full academic term of medical leave and returned to Sri Lanka. At that time Communist Party of Sri Lanka was divided into two groups which were pro-Chinese and pro-Soviet. He did not get visa to return to USSR as he joined the pro-Chinese group.

His father was an active member of Communist Party of Sri Lanka (pro-Soviet wing) and very close to Dr. S.A. Wickramasinghe. He was disabled after an attack by the thugs believed to be the members of an opposing political party during the 1947 Parliamentary election campaign for the candidate Premalal Kumarasiri, and he died in 1965.^[3]

Political history and agenda[link]

Wijeweera returned to Sri Lanka without completing the studies and managed to form a new Marxist political party Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP, on the May 14, 1965 after a discussion held in a house at Akmeemana of Galle district, southern Sri Lanka.^[4]

After forming the political movement JVP, Wijeweera conducted a series of political lectures for the purpose of educating the people according to their political doctrine. These lectures popularly known as JVP five classes, is one of the key factor in their political agenda.'

• Crisis of the capitalist system in Sri Lanka
• The history of the left movement in Sri Lanka
• The history of the socialist revolutions
• Indian expansionism
• The path of revolution in Sri Lanka

Capturing the state power for the purpose of implementing the JVP's socio-economic policies in the country, is another key factor of Wijeweera's political agenda. Period of the late 1960s Wijeweera and the JVP believed that the armed struggle is the most suitable way to capture the state power. In April 1971 JVP led armed campaign known as the 1971 April Rebellion a failed attempt to capture the state power from the Royal British Ceylon Government, happened according to the Wijeweera-led JVP's political agenda.

Wijeweera was arrested by the Police before the armed attack would taken place in April 1971, and after that he was produced into a trial called Criminal Justice Commission under the charges of aiding and abetting to overthrow the Royal British Ceylon Government. The trial sentenced him to life imprisonment after which he made an historic speech, stating "we may be killed but our voice will never die" echoing "History Will Absolve Me" by Fidel Castro, at the end of Moncada Barracks trial in 1953.^[5]

Further reading[link]

• SRI LANKA - A LOST REVOLUTION? The Inside Story of the JVP by Rohan Gunaratna^[6]
• Insurgency – 1971 : An Account of the April Insurrection in Sri Lanka by Justice A.C. Alles^[7]
• Sri Lanka, the years of terror : The J.V.P. insurrection, 1987-1989 by C.A. Chandraprema^[8]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)
• Wijeweera - Did he find the enemy ?

News media (Sinhala)[link]

• Lankadeepa (Diyatha) 1
• Lankadeepa (Diyatha) 2
• Rohana Wijeweera 1
• Rohana Wijeweera 2
• Rohana Wijeweera 3
• Rohana Wijeweera 4
• Rohana Wijeweera 5