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Srilal Weerasooriya | |
|---|---|
| Native name | ශ්රීලාල් වීරසූරිය |
| Birth name | Chandrika Srilal Weerasooriya |
| Nickname | Lal |
| Born | (1943-12-22)22 December 1943 (age 81) Karawanella, Ceylon |
| Allegiance |  Sri Lanka |
| Branch |  Sri Lanka Army |
| Years of service | 1963–2000 |
| Rank |  General |
| Service number | O/50417 |
| Unit | Sri Lanka Artillery |
| Commands | Commander of the Sri Lankan Army |
| Wars/Battles | |
| Awards | |
| Alma mater | |
| Spouse | Dilhani Weerasooriya |
| Relations | |
| Other work | Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan (2000-2007) |
GeneralChandrika Srilal Weerasooriya (Sinhala :චන්ද්රිකා ශ්රීලාල් වීරසූරිය) or 'C.S. Weerasooriya',RWP,RSP,VSV,USP is a retiredSri Lankan Army officer. He was the 15thCommander of the Sri Lankan Army (1998-2000) and a formerSri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan (2000-2007).[1]
C.S. Weerasooriya was born in Karawanella, Ceylon, on 22 December 1943, to Charles Richard Percival Weerasooriya and his wife Harriet Freda. C.S. Weerasooriya had his primary and secondary education atS. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia. He is the nephew ofDavid Paynter and the grand nephew ofArnolis Weerasooriya of theWeerasooriya family ofDodanduwa,Hikkaduwa.[2][3][4]
C.S. Weerasooriya was enlisted into the Ceylon Army on 09 May 1963 as an Officer Cadet. He was a member of the first batch that was trained at thePakistan Military Academy from 1963 to 1965.
He was commissioned on 11 September 1965 into the 4th RegimentCeylon Artillery.
Over the years, C.S. Weerasooriya followed the Regimental Officers Survey Course, Long Gunnery Staff Course, and the Senior Command (Artillery) Course, all of these in India.
On 08 March 1985, he was promoted to the rank ofLieutenant Colonel, subsequently assuming the role of Commanding Officer of the 4th Field Artillery Regiment from March 1985 to March 1987. His dedication and competence led to his promotion toColonel on 01 October 1988 and Brigadier on 01 May 1989.[5] In 1994, C.S. Weerasooriya followed theNational Defense College Course in New Delhi, India, subsequent to which he was promoted to the rank ofMajor General.
During his military career, apart from regimental appointments, he held the appointment ofMilitary Assistant (MA) to the Commander, GenDenis Perera, in 1981. Thereafter, he held the senior appointments of Regimental Commander Artillery,CommandantArmy Training Centre Diyatalawa, Commander 22 Brigade and Coordinating Officer Trincomalee, Commander 12 Brigade Colombo, Commander 1 Brigade and Coordinating Officer Ampara District, Commander 5 Brigade Group Mannar and Coordinating Officer Mannar District, Commander Artillery Brigade, Director Operations Army Headquarters (D Ops), General Officer Commanding Task Force 1 and Coordinator in Chief Jaffna District, Overall Operations Commander - Joint Operations Headquarters - Vuvuniya, Deputy Chief of Staff, and Chief of Staff.[6]
On 16 December 1998 C.S. Weerasooriya was appointedCommander of the Sri Lanka Army with the rank ofLieutenant General. He held this position until his retirement on 24 August 2000. Upon his retirement, he was promoted to the rank ofGeneral. C.S. Weerasooriya was succeeded byL. P. Balagalle.[7][8][9][10]
C.S. Weerasooriya has received some of the highest awards in the Sri Lankan armed forces, which include theRana Wickrama Padakkama,Rana Sura Padakkama,Vishista Seva Vibhushanaya, and theUttama Seva Padakkama. He was awarded theSitara-e-Pakistan (Star of Pakistan) by the Government of Pakistan for services to Pakistan during his tenure as High Commissioner.[8][9][10]
In 2000 he was appointed Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan and served in this capacity for six years. Pakistan signed its first ever Free Trade Agreement, during C.S. Weerasooriya's tenure as High Commissioner, with Sri Lanka. His close friendship with former Chief of Army Staff and President, Pervez Musharraf, resulted in much support being given by Pakistan towards Sri Lanka's war effort, during C.S. Weerasooriya's tenure as High Commissioner.
Upon his return to Sri Lanka, C.S. Weerasooriya served as an Independent Non-executive Director of Ceylinco Life PLC from 2010 to 2022[11].[citation needed] and as the International President of the Association of Military Christian Fellowships (AMCF), from 2012 to 2022.[12][13][14] He was the first South Asian to hold this position.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lieutenant GeneralRohan Daluwatte | Commander of the Sri Lankan Army 1998-2000 | Succeeded by Lieutenant GeneralLionel Balagalle |
| Preceded by Major General H.S. Hapuarachchi | Chief of Staff of the Sri Lankan Army 1998-1998 | Succeeded by Major General Patrick Fernando |
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