Gerry de Silva | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1940-05-31)31 May 1940 (age 84) |
| Allegiance | Sri Lanka |
| Service |  Sri Lanka Army |
| Years of service | 1962–1996 |
| Rank |  General |
| Unit | Gemunu Watch |
| Commands | Commander of the Sri Lankan Army Chief of Staff of the Army |
| Awards |  Rana Wickrama Padakkama Vishista Seva Vibhushanaya Uttama Seva Padakkama |
| Other work | Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan |
GeneralGerard Hector "Gerry" de Silva,RWP,VSV,USP (born 31 May 1940) was a seniorSri Lanka Army officer. He is the 5th Chancellor ofGeneral Sir John Kotelawala Defence University since 20 January 2020. He was the 13thCommander of the Sri Lankan Army and Sri LankanHigh Commissioner toPakistan.[1]
Born tocaptain (QM) G.H. de Silva of theCeylon Light Infantry and Etta Anna Bianca de Silva, he had five siblings. Educated atSaint Joseph's College, Colombo, where he excelled in Cricket, Swimming and Water Polo.[2][3]
Gerry de Silva, joined theCeylon Army on 6 May 1960 as acadet officer and received his training atRoyal Military Academy Sandhurst along withDenzil Kobbekaduwa. He was commissioned as asecond lieutenant on 3 August 1962 in theCeylon Sinha Regiment and was transferred to the newly formedGemunu Watch a year later. In 1971, Captain de Silva was deployed incounterinsurgency operations inMonaragala[4] during the1971 Insurrection and thereafter served with theTask Force Anti Illicit Immigration (TaFAII) with the Gemunu Watch. He followed a Junior Command Course in Pakistan and the Senior Command Course at theArmy War College, Mhow.
In 1981 as alieutenant colonel he was theOfficer Commanding Troops Jaffna, before taking over as Commandant, Combat Training School and becoming the first Commandant ofInfantry Training School. As acolonel, he served asCommander Northern Command in 1985. Brigadier G.H. de Silva served as the Principal Staff Officer,JOC; Commanded 2 Brigade Group, tasked on deception planning and holding operations, whilst being theOverall Operational Commander for theVadamarachchi Operation in 1987. From 1988 to 1989 he served as the Colonel of the Regiment of the Gemunu Watch and attended theNational Defense College, India in 1989. On his return he was appointedGeneral officer commanding,3 Division in January 1990 on its formation and thereafter took over the 2 Division. Thereafter he served as theCommandant of the Volunteer Force andChief of Staff.[5][6]
He was appointed Commander of the Army on 1 January 1994. During his tenure the army launched theOperation Riviresa under the command of Major General Daluwatte which was successful in re-capturing theJaffna peninsula and pushing the LTTE to the jungles of Wanni with significant loss of men and martial. G.H. de Silva had concerns about capturing the Jaffna peninsula without a land route to supply the large number of troops needed to defend it. This was later proven when theOperation Jayasikurui failed to open the land route the army needed. He retired on 30 April 1996 being promoted to full general and was succeeded byRohan Daluwatte.[7]
He had been awarded theRana Wickrama Padakkama (RWP) for gallantry, theVishista Seva Vibhushanaya (VSV) and theUttama Seva Padakkama (USP) for distinguished service. His other medals include theRepublic of Sri Lanka Armed Services Medal,Sri Lanka Army 25th Anniversary Medal,Sri Lanka Armed Services Long Service Medal,President's Inauguration Medal,Purna Bhumi Padakkama and theVadamarachchi Operation Medal.
Following his retirement, he was appointed asSri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan while concurrently accredited as Ambassador to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzestan. He served in this capacity from 1996 to 1998. He was appointed as the 5th Chancellor ofGeneral Sir John Kotelawala Defence University by PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa with effect from 20 January 2020.[citation needed]
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Commander of the Sri Lankan Army 1994-1996 | Succeeded by |
