Sirimavo Bandaranaike - wikipedia Sirimavo Bandaranaike This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( April 2017 ) Hon. Sirimavo Bandaranaike Prime Minister of Sri Lanka In office 14 November 1994 -- 10 August 2000 President Chandrika Kumaratunga Preceded by Chandrika Kumaratunga Succeeded by Ratnasiri Wickremanayake In office 22 May 1972 -- 23 July 1977 President William Gopallawa Preceded by Position established Succeeded by J.R. Jayewardene Prime Minister of Ceylon In office 29 May 1970 -- 22 May 1972 Monarch Elizabeth II Governor General William Gopallawa Preceded by Dudley Senanayake Succeeded by Position abolished In office 21 July 1960 -- 25 March 1965 Monarch Elizabeth II Governor General Oliver Goonetilleke William Gopallawa Preceded by Dudley Senanayake Succeeded by Dudley Senanayake Leader of the Opposition In office 9 March 1989 -- 24 June 1994 Prime Minister Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Ranil Wickremesinghe Preceded by Anura Bandaranaike Succeeded by Gamini Dissanayake In office 5 April 1965 -- 25 March 1970 Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake Preceded by Dudley Senanayake Succeeded by J.R. Jayewardene Leader of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party In office 1960 -- 1994 Preceded by C.P. de Silva Succeeded by Chandrika Kumaratunga Member of the Sri Lankan Parliament for Attanagalla In office 5 April 1965 -- 1980 Preceded by James Obeysekera Succeeded by Lakshman Jayakody Personal details ( 1916 - 04 - 17 ) 17 April 1916 Ratnapura, British Ceylon 10 October 2000 ( 2000 - 10 - 10 ) ( aged 84 ) Colombo, Sri Lanka Political party Sri Lanka Freedom Party Spouse ( s ) Solomon Bandaranaike ( 1899 -- 1959 ) Children Sunethra Chandrika Anura Residence Horagolla Walauwa Sirima Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike ( Sinhalese : සිරිමා රත්වත්තේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක, Tamil : சிறிமா ரத்வத்தே டயஸ் பண்டாரநாயக்கே ; 17 April 1916 -- 10 October 2000 ), commonly known as Sirimavo Bandaranaike, was a Sri Lankan stateswoman. She became the world 's first female head of government when she became Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, serving three terms 1960 -- 1965, 1970 -- 1977 and 1994 -- 2000. The widow of S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, she filled the leadership void created in the Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( SLFP ) after his assassination. As Prime Minister, she moved Ceylon towards embracing a socialist of economy and undertook major constitutional changes that resulted in the island becoming a republic. An advocate of the Non-Aligned Movement, she developed and maintained strong international relations. Her daughter Chandrika Kumaratunga -- who succeeded her as leader of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party -- went on to become Sri Lanka 's fourth President, while her son Anura Bandaranaike went on to become Speaker and later, a Cabinet Minister. Contents 1 Early life 1.1 Family 1.2 Education 1.3 Marriage 2 Social work 3 Early political involvement 4 Entry into active politics 4.1 Leader of the SLFP 5 First female Prime Minister 5.1 Pact with India 6 Leader of the opposition 7 Second term 8 Opposition 8.1 Suspension of civic rights 8.2 Restoration of civic rights 8.3 Leader of the opposition 9 Minister without Portfolio 10 Third term 11 Death 12 See also 13 Notes 14 References 15 External links Early life The Mahawalatenne family, No. 3 Mahawalatenne Rate Mahattaya, No. 8 Agnes Mahawalatenne ( Nee Ellawala ). Maternal grandparents of Sirima Ratwatte. Family Sirima Ratwatte was born on 17 April 1916 at the Ellawala Walawwa in Ratnapura. Her father was Barnes Ratwatte, later Rate Mahatmaya of Balangoda, a native headman ; he was a member of the Ratwatte family, which was an old Radala family hailing from the Kingdom of Kandy. Her mother was Rosalind Mahawalatenne Kumarihamy, daughter of Mahawalatenne Rate Mahatmaya of Balangoda. Her parental ancestors were courtiers in the courts of Sinhalese monarchs, and one, Ratwatte, Dissawa of Matale was a signatory of to the Kandyan Convention. Sirima was the eldest in a family six children, which included four brothers, Barnes Ratwatte II, Dr Seevali Ratwatte, Dr Mackie Ratwatte and Clifford Ratwatte, and one sister Patsy Ratwatte who married Colonel Edward James Divitotawela. The family resided at her maternal grandfather 's Mahawalatenne Walawwa and later at their own Balangoda Walawwa. She remained a practicing Buddhist through her life. Education Sirima Ratwatte first attended a private school in Balangoda, then moved briefly in 1923 to the primary school of Ferguson High School, Ratnapura, and was then sent to boarding school in Colombo at St Bridget 's Convent. After completing schooling, she became involved in social work, distributing food and medicine during the malaria epidermic of 1934 / 35, organizing clinics and helping empower rural industry. Marriage In 1940, Sirima Ratwatte married Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike, a Oxford educated lawyer turned politician, who was at the time Minister of Local Administration in the State Council of Ceylon. Their wedding was dubbed `` the wedding of the century '', but caused a sensation within the Ratwatte family, as Bandaranaike was not considered to be an `` acceptable '' family ; as the Ratwattes were an old and established Radala family from Kandy, while the Bandaranaike 's were an old and wealthy family from the low - country which had been in service of the colonial rulers for centuries. This marriage, however, was noted to have helped break down social barriers in Sri Lanka over the years. The newly married couple moved into Wentworth in Guidford Cresent, Colombo which was taken on rent from Lionel Wendt. Their first two children, Sunethra and Chandrika were born and the family stayed at Wentworth till 1946, when Sir Solomon bought a mansion at Rosmead Place, Colombo for his son and the family settled into it. Here their only son Anura was born. Social work Following her marriage, Sirima Bandaranaike joined the Lanka Mahila Samiti which was the country 's largest women 's voluntary organisation. She became an active member undertaking many of the social projects initiated under the Mahila Samiti for the empowerment of rural women and disaster relief. She served as its treasurer for eight years and was elected vice president. Two years later she became president of the Lanka Mahila Samiti, holding the post till she resigned from it in 1960. Apart from the Mahila Samiti, she was an active member of the All Ceylon Buddhist Women 's Association ; Ceylon National Association for the prevention of Tuberculosis ; Nurses Welfare Association and the Cancer Society. Early political involvement Mrs Bandaranaike assisted her husband in his political and government work since her marriage. This included accompanying him on his official travels both local and overseas. She and her husband were the on site after the Mental Asylum in Angoda was bombed by the Japaneses during the Easter Sunday Raid resulting in many deaths. Mrs Bandaranaike was noted to have persuaded her husband to resign from government, resign from the United National Party, and establish the Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( SLFP ) in 1951. She campaigned for her husband during the 1952 parliamentary election in his constituency of Atthanagalla, as her husband campaigned across the country. While the SLFP only won 9 seats during that election, Bandaranaike won his seat in Parliament and became Leader of the Opposition. When fresh elections were called in 1956 by Prime Minister Sir John Kotelawala, sensing opportunity Bandaranaike formed a broad four - party coalition Mahajana Eksath Peramuna ( MEP ) and contested the 1956 elections. Mrs Bandaranaike once again campaigned for her husband in his constituency of Atthanagalla and also in her home town of Balangoda and Ratnapura for the SLFP. The MEP won a landslide victory at the 1956 elections and S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike formed a government as its Prime Minister. Given that the Governor General Sir Oliver Goonetilleke was a widower, Mrs Bandaranaike became the de-facto first lady of Ceylon. While on a state visit to Malaysia on it Independence in 1957, the couple had to cut short the visit and return when word reached of the grave illness of her father the Ratwatte Dissawa following a heart attack, he died two weeks after their hasty return in a RAF bomber from Singapore. Entry into active politics Main article : Assassination of S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike Mrs Bandaranaike was at home Rosmead Place on the morning of 25 September 1959, when her husband S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was shot multiple times by a Buddhist monk while meeting the public. She accompanied him to hospital where he succumbed to his wounds the following day. In the political chaos that followed under the caretaker government of Wijeyananda Dahanayake, many cabinet ministers were removed and some arrested and tried for the Bandaranaike assassination. The MEP collapsed without Bandaranaike to keep it together and elections were called for March 1960. In the weeks before the general elections in March 1960, Mrs Bandaranaike took to the stage supporting and speaking on behalf of her husband 's party the SLFP. In the election, the SLFP won 46 seats, but the UNP under Dudley Senanayake formed a short - lived government. During this time Mrs Bandaranaike was brought forward as the legitimate successor to her husband 's party leadership and she formally entered politics. Leader of the SLFP In May 1960, Mrs Bandaranaike was appointed President of the SLFP. With the UNP unable to form a stable government, fresh elections were called for in July 1960. SLFP formed around Mrs Bandaranaike 's leadership and she campaigned on carrying forward the policies of her late husband, notably the Sinhala Only Act, and to proceed with repatriation of the estate Tamils to India. During the campaign in the July 1960 elections, Bandaranaike toured the country and made emotional speeches, frequently bursting into tears as she pledged herself to continue her late husband 's policies. That earned her the title `` The Weeping Widow ''. First female Prime Minister On 21 July 1960, following a landslide victory of the SLFP, Sirima Bandaranaike took oaths as the first female Prime Minister in the world and Minister of Defence and External Affairs. As she was not an elected member of parliament at the time, but leader of the party holding the majority in parliament, a constitutional requirement required her to become a member of Parliament within three months to continue to hold office as Prime Minister. Therefore, Mrs Bandaranaike was appointed to the Senate of Ceylon ( upper house of Parliament ) on 5 August 1960 following the resignation of M.P. de Zoysa. She remained in the Senate until 1965. Soon after she undertook a trip with her family to India, on an invitation extended to her by Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Ministers of India following the assassination of her husband in 1959. Bandaranaike, accompanied by her brother and private secretary Dr Mackie Ratwatte and his family, traveled to India on Nehru 's personal aircraft and were guests at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, before traveling to a Buddhist site of pilgrimage. Mrs Bandaranaike was a socialist who continued her husband 's policies of nationalizing key sectors of the economy, such as banking and insurance, and also nationalizing all schools then owned by the Roman Catholic Church in 1961. Bandaranaike was on a roller - coaster ride from the moment she took office. Within a year of her 1960 election victory she declared a state of emergency. This followed a civil disobedience campaign by part of the country 's minority Tamil population who were outraged by her decision to drop English as an official language and her order to conduct all government business in Sinhala, the language of the majority Sinhalese. This they considered a highly discriminatory act and an attempt to deny Tamils access to all official posts and the law. This led to an increase in Tamil militancy which escalated under succeeding administrations. Further problems arose with the state takeover of foreign businesses, particularly petroleum companies, which upset the United States and Britain ; they ended aid to Sri Lanka. As a result, Bandaranaike moved her country closer to China and the Soviet Union and championed a policy of nonalignment. The Bank of Ceylon was nationalized and the scope of the Insurance Corporation was extended. The government took over private schools run by the Catholic church. In 1960 at home, she crushed an attempted military coup by Christian officers in 1962 and she again declared a state of emergency. That same year she had her uncle William Gopallawa appointed Governor General and also marked the death of her mother. In December, six non-aligned nations Egypt, Burma, Cambodia, Ceylon, Ghana and Indonesia, met in Colombo and she was selected to present their peace proposal for the Sino - Indian War. In 1963, her government abolished the independent Ceylon Civil Service and replaced it with the Ceylon Administrative Service which was subject to influence of government politicians. In 1964, she entered into a historic coalition with the Marxist Lanka Sama Samaja Party ( LSSP ). At the end of 1964, she lost a vote of confidence. The SLFP coalition was defeated in the 1965 elections, ending her first term as Prime Minister. Pact with India Under the terms of the 1964 agreement with India, 600,000 Indian Tamils were to be repatriated, while 375,000 were to be granted Sri Lankan citizenship. By 31 October 1981, when the two countries were to have settled this issue, India had taken more than 300,000 persons as repatriates. Sri Lanka had granted citizenship to over 185,000 plus over 62,000 post-1964 offspring. Over 207,000 Indian Tamils in Sri Lanka before 1964, plus nearly 45,000 offspring, were granted Indian citizenship but still awaited repatriation. In the wake of the July 1983 anti-Tamil violence, some in this latter group are being processed for repatriation or have emigrated to India. With the lapse of the 1964 agreement, India declined to consider any more applications for citizenship. The government of Sri Lanka believes that the 1964 pact remains in force until the citizenship cases and permanent residence of all Indian Tamils covered by the pact have been settled. The All - Party Conference has agreed that the government should grant Sri Lankan citizenship to stateless Indian Tamils who did not apply for Indian citizenship and were not granted Sri Lankan citizenship under the 1964 agreement. Leader of the opposition In the 1965 elections, she resigned from the Senate and contested from her late husband 's constituency of Atthanagalla and won a seat in parliament. With her party gaining 41 seats, she became the Leader of the opposition holding it till 1970. During the five years in the opposition, she established the party printing press of the SLFP, which printed the Sinhala Balaya followed by a daily Sirilaka. She restructured the party trade unions, women 's movements and youth leagues. In early March 1970, she began her election campaign. Second term Sirimavo Bandaranaike with Soviet Union Prime Minister Alexei Kosygin, Senior Advisor ( Foreign Affairs ) to the Prime Minister Tissa Wijeyeratne and her son Anura Bandaranaike She regained power after the United Front coalition ( SLFP, LSSP, and the Communists ) won the 1970 elections with a large majority in May 1970. But after just 16 months in power, the government was almost toppled by the 1971 JVP Insurrection of left - wing youths. Bandaranaike had disbanded the government 's intelligence service, suspecting that it was loyal to the opposition United National Party ( UNP ). Thus there was no warning of the uprising, and Sri Lanka 's small army was caught off guard. The army mobilized its reserves and held the capital, but some outlying areas were occupied by the insurgents. The government was saved by military aid from both India and Pakistan, thanks to Bandaranaike 's skillful foreign policy. In those tough political years, she turned herself into a formidable leader. `` She was the only man in her cabinet '', one of her officials commented during the height of the insurgency. Her second term saw a new constitution introduced in 1972, replacing the Soulbury constitution. Ceylon was renamed Sri Lanka and became a republic. The 1973 oil crisis had a traumatic effect on the Sri Lankan economy : the government had no access to Western aid and her socialist policies stifled economic activity. Rationing had to be imposed. Bandaranaike became more and more intolerant of criticism and forced the shut - down of the Independent newspaper group, whose publications were her fiercest critics. Earlier she had nationalized the country 's largest newspaper, Lake House, which has remained the government 's official mouthpiece. Bandaranaike enjoyed continued success in foreign affairs. She was chosen chairwoman of the Non-Aligned Movement in 1976, and hosted the Movement 's conference, attended by numerous heads of state. Despite her high international standing, she was losing Sri Lankan support rapidly amid allegations of corruption and against the background of a rapidly declining economy. Under the Soulbury constitution, elections would have been held in 1975. However, the government had become very unpopular. Bandaranaike used a clause of the 1972 constitution to delay elections until 1977, citing that the insurrection delayed the development plans of the administration. This did not help and in the 1977 general elections the United Front was routed, winning only 8 seats. Opposition Bandaranaike retained her parliamentary seat in Atthanagalla in 1977 general elections and remained a member of parliament. A. Amirthalingam became the leader of the opposition as the TULF became the largest opposition party in parliament, surpassing the SLFP. Suspension of civic rights A Special Presidential Commission appointed by J.R. Jayawardene to investigate allegations against Bandaranaike on abuse of power during her tenure as Prime Minister. Following the submission of the report to the President Jayawardene, the UNP government adopt a motion in parliament on 16 October 1980 imposing civic disability on Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Felix Dias Bandaranaike for a period of seven years and for her expulsion from parliament. The motion passed by 139 votes in favor and 19 against, while Bandaranaike declined to vote. She, however, remained leader of the SLFP. During this time she attended the funerals of two of her close friends, Marshal Tito and Indira Gandhi. Her son Anura Bandaranaike succeeded Amirthalingam in 1983 as leader of the opposition. Restoration of civic rights Her civic rights were restored in January 1986 by a presidential decree issued by President Jayewardene. The decree also posthumously restored the civic rights of Felix Dias Bandaranaike. Bandaranaike opposed the Indo - Sri Lanka Accord in 1987 and she contested in the 1988 presidential election, but was narrowly defeated by Ranasinghe Premadasa who succeeded Jayewardene as President. Leader of the opposition In 1989, under her leadership the SLFP contested the 1989 general election and was defeated by the UNP under Premadasa with the SLFP gaining 67 seats. This allowed her to take up the post of leader of the opposition again for a second term succeeding her son after having been re-elected to parliament from Atthanagalla in the Gampaha electoral district. During her tenure as opposition leader, she supported the impeachment of Premadasa in 1991, which was lead by senior UNP members such as Lalith Athulathmudali and Gamini Dissanayake. The impeachment failed, as Premadasa adjourned Parliament and the Speaker Mohamed dismissed the impeachment stating a lack of signatures. She held the post of opposition leader till the 1994 parliamentary election. In 1993, following the assassination of Premadasa ; her daughter Chandrika Kumaratunga returned to the island. She had left the SLFP to join her husband 's newly formed Sri Lanka Mahajana Party and thereafter left the island to the United Kingdom following the assignation of her husband Vijaya Kumaratunga in February 1988 ; on her return in 1993 she rejoined the SLFP. Kumaratunga soon gained popularity in the party over her mother and brother. Anura Bandaranaike left the party and crossed over to the UNP having been suspended from the party. SLFP gained a decisive victory at the southern provincial council elections and Kumaratunga was soon after elected as the Chief Minister of the Western Province of Sri Lanka in 1993 in a landslide election victory. Minister without Portfolio Kumaratunga lead a new coalition, the People 's Alliance ( PA ) to form a government in August 1994 following the 1994 general election, becoming its Prime Minister. Having been re-elected to parliament Sirimavo Bandaranaike was appointed to her daughter 's cabinet as Minister without Portfolio in August 1994. By this time her daughter has also succeeded her as the leader of the SLFP. Third term In the presidential election that followed, Kumaratunga won against Srima Dissanayake the widow of the recently assassinated Gamini Dissanayake. Becoming the first female President in Sri Lanka, Kumaratunga appointed her mother as prime minister. Constitutional changes in the years since her last term meant the office has been transformed into a mostly ceremonial post, devolved of any real power or authority ; with her daughter retaining complete executive power. Despite the office 's lack of powers, Bandaranaike was noted to have wielded great influence among her party 's faithful supporters.It was noted by the BBC in 2000 that Bandaranaike and Chandrika did not get along, largely due to leadership issues. Chandrika was known to be keen on Bandaranaike leaving, in order to make way for a younger face. She remained in office until August 2000, when she stepped down citing health reasons. Death Bandaranaike Samadhi ( the place where S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike and Sirimavo Bandaranaike were entombed ) at Horagolla, Sri Lanka Bandaranaike died on 10 October 2000 of a heart attack, as she was heading home after casting her vote in the parliamentary election that was held on that day. Sirimavo Bandaranaike 's remains lay in state in the parliament and her funeral took place at Horagolla where she was interned in the mausoleum built for her husband, Horagolla Bandaranaike Samadhi. See also List of political families in Sri Lanka Attempted military coup in Ceylon, 1962 Bandaranaike family Skard, Torild ( 2014 ) `` Sirimavo Bandaranaike ''. Women of Power, Half a century of female presidents and prime ministers, Bristol : Policy Press. ISBN 978 - 1 - 44731 - 578 - 0 Notes Jump up ^ The suffix `` vo '' denotes respect ; Mrs Bandaranaike, Mrs B, or Mathini References Jump up ^ `` Sessions of Parliament ''. parliament.lk. Parliament of Sri Lanka. Retrieved 17 May 2018. ^ Jump up to : Rettie, John ( 10 October 2000 ). `` Sirima Bandaranaike ''. The Guardian. Retrieved 14 February 2018. Jump up ^ SIVALI VIDYALAYA ^ Jump up to : `` Sirimavo Bandaranaike ''. The Daily Telegraph. 11 October 2000. Retrieved 15 February 2018. Jump up ^ Fernando, Manjula. `` 100 Years of Outstanding Performance ''. sundayobserver.lk. Sunday Observer. Retrieved 30 March 2018. Jump up ^ Jeyaraj, D.B.S. `` '' Stateswoman '' Sirimavo made history as the world 's first woman prime minister ``. The Daily Mirror. Retrieved 14 February 2018. Jump up ^ `` 1960 : Ceylon chooses world 's first woman PM ''. BBC News On This Day. Retrieved 13 February 2018. ^ Jump up to : `` Sirimavo Bandaranaike : First woman premier ''. BBC News. 10 October 2000. Retrieved 12 February 2018. Jump up ^ Sirimavo Bandaranaike : A leader in her own right Jump up ^ `` Ceylon : Sinhala Without Tears '' ( subscription required for full story ). Time Magazine. 5 May 1961. Retrieved 12 February 2018. Jump up ^ `` Indo China Time Line ''. Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 9 February 2017. Retrieved 10 March 2017. ^ Jump up to : `` Sirimavo Bandaranaike ; World 's First Female Prime Minister ''. Los Angeles Times. 12 October 2000. Retrieved 13 February 2018. Jump up ^ Unsuccessful Impeachments and legal arguments ^ Jump up to : Ganguly, Dilip ( 10 August 2000 ). `` World 's First Woman Prime Minister Resigns ''. ABC News. Retrieved 13 February 2018. Jump up ^ `` Veteran Sri Lankan PM resigns ''. BBC News. 10 August 2000. Retrieved 13 February 2018. Jump up ^ Kirinde, Chandani ( 15 October 2000 ). `` People 's Mathiniya buried amidst people 's tears ''. Retrieved 4 May 2018. Jump up ^ Dugger, Celia W. ( 11 October 2000 ). `` Sirimavo Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka Dies at 84 ; First Woman Premier ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 12 February 2018. Jump up ^ SWRD 's vision lives on External links The Ratwatte Ancestry The Bandaranaike Ancestry Golden memories of a political prodigy Website of the Parliament of Sri Lanka New York Times : Sirimavo Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka Dies at 84 ; First Woman Premier Sirimavo Bandaranaike The resolute woman who put Sri Lanka firmly on the political world map Political offices Preceded by Dudley Senanayake Prime Minister of Ceylon 1960 -- 1965 Succeeded by Dudley Senanayake Prime Minister of Ceylon 1970 -- 1972 Position abolished New office Prime Minister of Sri Lanka 1972 -- 1977 Succeeded by Junius Jayewardene Preceded by Chandrika Kumaratunga Prime Minister of Sri Lanka 1994 -- 2000 Succeeded by Ratnasiri Wickremanayake Prime Ministers of Sri Lanka Don Stephen Senanayake Dudley Senanayake John Kotelawala S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike Wijeyananda Dahanayake Dudley Senanayake Sirimavo Bandaranaike Dudley Senanayake Sirimavo Bandaranaike Junius Richard Jayewardene Ranasinghe Premadasa Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Ranil Wickremesinghe Chandrika Kumaratunga Sirimavo Bandaranaike Ratnasiri Wickremanayake Ranil Wickremesinghe Mahinda Rajapaksa Ratnasiri Wickremanayake Disanayaka Jayaratne Ranil Wickremesinghe Foreign Ministers of Sri Lanka External Affairs and Defence ( 1947 - 1978 ) Senanayake Senanayake Kotelawala Bandaranaike Dahanayake Senanayake Bandaranaike Senanayake Bandaranaike Jayewardene Foreign Affairs ( 1978 - Present ) Hameed Wijeratne Herath Hameed Kadirgamar Fernando Kadirgamar Bandaranaike Samaraweera Bogollagama Peiris Samaraweera Karunanayake Marapana Defence Ministers of Sri Lanka External Affairs and Defence ( 1947 -- 1978 ) Senanayake Senanayake Kotelawala Bandaranaike Dahanayake Senanayake Bandaranaike Senanayake Bandaranaike Defence ( 1978 -- present ) Jayewardene Premadasa Wijeratne Wijetunga Marapana Rajapaksa Sirisena ← Members of the 6th Parliament of Ceylon ( 1965 ( 1965 ) - 1970 ) → Speaker : Albert Peries / Shirley Corea Prime Minister : Dudley Senanayake Leader of the Opposition : Sirimavo Bandaranaike Central Province ( 23 ) George Abeyagoonasekera S.S. Abeysundara Alick Aluwihare W.M.G.T. Banda M.A. Daniel L.B. Dassanayake Abdul Cader Shahul Hameed T.B.M. Herath C. Karunaratne R. Kulatillake P.G. Muthubanda H.M. Navaratne D.B. Ranatunga D.J. Ranaweera E.L. Senanayake Hemachandra Sirisena T.B. Tennekoon P.B. Weerakoon R.P. Wijesiri Edmund Wijesuriya Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Noel Wimalasena S.B. Yalegama Eastern Province ( 11 ) K.W. Devanayagam M.S. Kariapper M.C. Ahamed A.L. Abdul Majeed M.A. Abdul Majeed S.M. Manickarajah M.E.H. Mohamed Ali M.M. Mustapha C. Rajadurai S.M. Rasamanickam Abdul Lathiff Sinnalebbe Senerath Somaratne Northern Province ( 13 ) V.A. Alegacone A. Amirthalingam S.J.V. Chelvanayakam V. Dharmalingam S. Kathiravelupillai E.M.V. Naganathan V. Navaratnam V.N. Navaratnam G.G. Ponnambalam K.P. Ratnam M. Sivasithamparam T. Sivasithamparam K. Thurairatnam North Central Province ( 8 ) C.P. de Silva E.L.B. Hurulle S.B. Lenawa R.B. Ratnamalala K.B. Ratnayake Maithripala Senanayake P.M.K. Tennakoon Leelaratne Wijesinghe North Western Province ( 16 ) M.D. Banda D.M. Tilakaratna Bandara Shirley Corea Herath Ekanayake S.B. Herat I.M.R.A. Iriyagolla M.H. Naina Marikkar Festus Perera Albert Peries Hugh Fernando R.R.W. Rajapakse Leticia Rajapakse Richard Gotabhaya Senanayake J.L. Sirisena Tikiri Banda Subasinghe Mudiyanse Tennakoon U.B. Wanninayake Dingiri Bandara Welagedara Sabaragamuwa Province ( 16 ) Dhanapala Attygalle C.R. Beligammana D.F. Hettiarachchi P.C. Imbulana P.B.G. Kalugalla Wimala Kannangara Asoka Karunaratne W.A. Karunasena W.A. Dharmadasa H. Kularatne Cyril Mathew N.M. Perera Abeyratne Pilapitiya Clifford Ratwatte Mallikka Ellawala Ratwatte Dudley Senanayake Dhanapala Weerasekera P.B. Wijesundara Southern Province ( 19 ) Matarage Sirisena Amarasiri D.P. Atapattu Wijeyananda Dahanayake Neal de Alwis A.D.S. de Silva L.C. de Silva Lakshman de Silva William de Silva Ronnie de Mel Charles Edirisuriya Prins Gunasekera Sirisena Hettige Montague Jayawickrama C.N. Kannangara George Rajapaksa M.H. Saddhasena R.G. Samaranayake Albert Kariyawasam Edwin Tillekeratne B.Y. Tudawe Percy Wickremasinghe S.A. Wickramasinghe Uva Province ( 10 ) W.P.G. Ariyadasa K.Y.M. Wijeratne Banda Dharmadasa Banda B.H. Bandara J.G. Gunasekera R.M. Appuhamy S.A. Peeris Kusuma Rajaratne Percy Samaraweera C.P.J. Seneviratne Raja Welegama Western Province ( 35 ) Felix Dias Bandaranaike S.D. Bandaranayake Sirimavo Bandaranaike Falil Caffoor Somaweera Chandrasiri M. Ruskin Fernando T. Quintin Fernando Denzil Fernando Cholomondeley Goonewardene Leslie Goonewardena Philip Gunawardena Lakshman Jayakody D. Shelton Jayasinghe S. de Silva Jayasinghe Gamini Jayasuriya M.D.H. Jayawardena J.R. Jayewardene Pieter Keuneman Abdul Bakeer Markar Wijayapala Mendis M.H. Mohamed Anil Moonesinghe Colvin R. de Silva Mangala Moonesinghe S. Obeyesekera Dayasena Pasqual K.D. David Perera Paris Perera R.S. Perera Ranasinghe Premadasa D.S. Samarasinghe T.B. Ilangaratne M.P. de Z. Siriwardena Bernard Soysa V.A. Sugathadasa S.K.K. Suriarachchi Stanley Tillekeratne Ratnasiri Wickremanayake Appointed ( 6 ) V. Annamalai Razik Fareed R. Singleton - Salmon Savumiamoorthy Thondaman * This list is unfinished. ← Members of the 7th Parliament of Sri Lanka ( 1970 ( 1970 ) -- 1977 ) → Speaker : Stanley Tillekeratne Prime Minister : Sirimavo Bandaranaike Leader of the Opposition : J.R. Jayewardene Central Province ( 23 ) M.S. Aluthgamage P.G. Ariyatillake Gamini Dissanayake A.G. Fernando Monty Gopallawa Abdul Cader Shahul Hameed T.B.M. Herath Tamara Kumari Ilangaratne D.M. Jayaratne T.B. Jayasundera U.P.Y. Jinadasa Hector Kobbekaduwa R. Kulatillake H.M. Navaratne E.L. Senanayake Hemachandra Sirisena P. Tennakoon T.B. Tennekoon Richard Udugama P.B. Unantenne J.D. Weerasekera Noel Wimalasena S.B. Yalegama Eastern Province ( 11 ) M.C. Ahamed K.W. Devanayagam A.L. Abdul Majeed M.A. Abdul Majeed M.M. Mustapha B. Neminathan C. Rajadurai P.R. Selvanayagam Senerath Somaratne S. Thambirajah A. Thangathurai Northern Province ( 13 ) V.A. Alegacone S.A. Raheem V. Anandasangaree C. Arulampalam S.J.V. Chelvanayakam V. Dharmalingam K. Jeyakody S. Kathiravelupillai C.X. Martyn V.N. Navaratnam K.P. Ratnam X.M. Sellathambu A. Thiagarajah K. Thurairatnam North Central Province ( 8 ) T.B. Herath A.M. Jinadasa R.B. Ratnamalala A.M.S. Adhikari K.B. Ratnayake Maithripala Senanayake Ratna Deshapriya Senanayake P.M.K. Tennakoon Leelaratne Wijesinghe North Western Province ( 16 ) S.M. Asenkudhoos M.H. Naina Marikkar Tissa Balalla Augustheenu Fonseka M. Herat S.B. Herat S.D.R. Jayaratne L.B. Jayasena G.W. Samarasinghe Tikiri Banda Subasinghe Mudiyanse Tennakoon Protus Tissera P.B. Wettewa D.P. Wickramasinghe M.A.J. Wijesinghe P. Wijesinghe S. Wijewardena Sabaragamuwa Province ( 16 ) B.A.P.B. Balasuriya Nanda Ellawala Piyadasa Harischandra P.B.G. Kalugalla V.T.G. Karunaratne Sarath Muttetuwegama Vasudeva Nanayakkara N.M. Perera P.R. Ratnayake Mallikka Ellawala Ratwatte Dudley Senanayake Rukman Senanayake Athauda Seneviratne W.A.A. Sirisena Dharmadasa Wanniarachchi Dhanapala Weerasekera P.O. Wimalanaga Southern Province ( 19 ) Sumanapala Dahanayake Wijeyananda Dahanayake Neal de Alwis Ronnie de Mel L.C. de Silva Weerasinghe de Silva Henry William Dissanayake Prins Gunasekera Panini Ilangakoon Albert Kariyawasam M.G. Mendis Aelian Mahanaga Nanayakkara George Rajapaksa Lakshman Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa Roy Don Rajapaksa Senapala Samarasekera Edirisuriya Tennyson B.Y. Tudawe S.A. Wickramasinghe Uva Province ( 10 ) R.M. Appuhamy W.P.G. Ariyadasa K.Y.M. Wijeratne Banda B.H. Bandara R.M. Bandara W.M.R.S.B. Delungahawatta A.M. Jayawardena S.A.S. Somapala Raja Welegama D.D.E. Wickremaratne Western Province ( 35 ) Kusala Abhayawardana Felix Dias Bandaranaike Sirimavo Bandaranaike A.T. Basnayake I.A. Cader Falil Caffoor Somaweera Chandrasiri Dharmasena Attygalle Wimalasiri de Mel Colvin R. de Silva K.C. de Silva Wijayapala Mendis Denzil Fernando Cholmondeley Goonewardena Leslie Goonewardena Vivienne Goonewardena Chandra Gunasekera T.B. Ilangaratne Lakshman Jayakody Bonnie Jayasuriya J.R. Jayewardene Pieter Keuneman A.D.J.L. Leo Mangala Moonesinghe S. Obeyesekera Dayasena Turnolius Pasqual Paris Perera Joseph Michael Perera R.S. Perera Ranasinghe Premadasa Wilfred Senanayake M.P. de Z. Siriwardena Bernard Soysa V.A. Sugathadasa Vincent Perera S.K.K. Suriarachchi Stanley Tillekeratne Herbert Wickramasinghe Ratnasiri Wickremanayake Appointed ( 6 ) Abdul Aziz M.D.S. Jayawardene S.S. Kulatileke Badi - ud - din Mahmud J.E.J. Rodrigo M.C. Subramaniam Chelliah Kumarasuriyar * Appointed MPs were abolished in 1972 by the First Republican Constitution ← Members of the 8th Parliament of Sri Lanka ( 1977 ( 1977 ) -- 1989 ) → Speaker : Anandatissa de Alwis / Abdul Bakeer Markar / E.L. Senanayake Prime Minister : J.R. Jayewardene / Ranasinghe Premadasa Leader of the Opposition : A. Amirthalingam / Anura Bandaranaike Central Province ( 24 ) George Abeyagoonasekera S.S. Abeysundara Alick Aluwihare R.B. Attanayake J.G. Wijeratne Banda W.M.G.T. Banda Anura Bandaranaike D.M. Chandrapala R.P. Wijesiri M.A. Daniel Ananda Dassanayake Gamini Dissanayake W.M.P.B. Dissanayake K.W.R.M. Ekananayake Abdul Cader Shahul Hameed Renuka Herath C. Karunaratne P.B. Kaviratne Gamini Rajapakse Shelton Ranaraja E.L. Senanayake Savumiamoorthy Thondaman T.B. Werapitiya R.P. Wijesiri L.M. Wijesiri Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Eastern Province ( 12 ) M.L. Ahamed Fareeth Ahamed Rizvi Sinnalebbe M. Canagaratnam Ranganayaki Pathmanathan P. Dayaratna K.W. Devanayagam P. Ganeshalingam M.A.M. Jalaldeen H.D.L. Leelaratne M.E.H. Maharoof M.A. Abdul Majeed Abdul Rasak Mansoor C. Rajadurai R. Sampanthan Northern Province ( 14 ) A. Amirthalingam V. Anandasangaree V. Dharmalingam S. Kathiravelupillai M. Alalasundaram V.N. Navaratnam T. Rasalingam K.P. Ratnam X.M. Sellathambu M. Sivasithamparam T. Sivasithamparam P.S. Soosaithasan T. Thirunavukarasu Neelan Tiruchelvam K. Thurairatnam V. Yogeswaran North Central Province ( 10 ) A.M.S. Adikari K.D.M.C. Bandara Merril de Silva S.B. Wijekoon A.D.B. Ekanayake W.Y. Herath E.L.B. Hurulle G.D. Mahindasoma H.G.P. Nelson Maithripala Senanayake Dayaratne Walagambahu North Western Province ( 19 ) H.B. Abeyratne S.W. Alawatuwala Harindra Corea S.B. Herat Harold Herath J.A.D.S.R. Jayakody Lionel Jayatilleke H.M.A. Lokubanda M.H. Naina Marikkar Festus Perera Gamini Jayawickrama Perera G.M. Premachandra Amarawathie Piyaseeli Ratnayake Kalubanda Ratnayake J.L. Sirisena Saddhatissa Wadigamangawa Asoka Wadigamangawa H.B. Wanninayake Dingiri Bandara Welagedara Ukkubanda Wijekoon Sabaragamuwa Province ( 17 ) M.L.M. Aboosally Gamini Atukorale C.R. Beligammana Chandrasekera Gankanda P.C. Imbulana Wimala Kannangara Asoka Karunaratne H. Kularatne Mervyn Kularatne Leonard Kiriella, Wimal Wickramasinghe Nanda Mathew K. Vincent Perera Abeyratne Pilapitiya Sarath Mutteguwegama G.V. Punchinilame N.A. Seneviratne Wasantha Udayaratne A.K.D. Wanigaratne Nissanka Wijeyeratne Southern Province ( 21 ) Keerthisena Abeywickrama Sumanadasa Abeywickrema Richard Pathirana Matarage Sirisena Amarasiri Ranjit Atapattu P.M.B. Cyril Ronnie de Mel P.S. Galappaththi Albert de Silva Wijeyananda Dahanayake T.D. Fransisku K. Ananda Kularatne Montague Jayawickrama Rupasena Karunatilake D.E. Malawaraarachchi Chandrakumara Wijaya Gunawardena S.K. Piyadasa Bandulahewa Senadheera P. Sumathiratne G.V.S. de Silva Raitor Thilakasekara M.H.K. Jagathsena Edwin Tillekeratne Somaratne Asokaweera Norman Waidyaratna Harshanath Wanigasekera Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena Jinadasa Weerasinghe Dayananda Wickremasinghe E.D. Wickrematilaka Amarasiri Dodangoda Uva Province ( 12 ) R.M. Abeykoon R.M. Apphamy Dharmadasa Banda R.M. Punchi Bandara R.M. Karunaratne W.M. Karunaratne J.M. Kumaradasa W.J.M. Lokubandara D. Vincent Perera Percy Samaraweera C.P.J. Seneviratne Lakshman Senewiratne Samaraweera Weerawanni Western Province ( 39 ) Lalith Athulathmudali Dharmasena Attygalle Gamini Lokuge Sirimavo Bandaranaike S.D. Bandaranayake M. Jabir A. Cader Anandatissa de Alwis N. Denzil Fernando Neville Fernando Tyronne Fernando Bennet Gunasekera Premaratne Gunasekera Dinesh Gunawardena Tudor Gunasekera Jayakody Kamalawarana Indradasa Hettiarachchi M. Haleem Ishak D. Shelton Jayasinghe S. de Silva Jayasinghe Sunethra Ranasinghe Gamini Jayasuriya Ariyaratne Jayatillake M.D.H. Jayawardena J.R. Jayewardene Anura Bastian Merrill Kariyawasam Weerasinghe Mallimarachchi Abdul Bakeer Markar Cyril Mathew Wijayapala Mendis M.H. Mohamed Joseph Michael Perera Vincent Perera O.S. Perera Ranasinghe Premadasa M.D. Premaratne Sarathchandra Rajakaruna R.G. Samaranayake Senaraja Samaranayake A. Edmund Samarawickrema Ranil Wickremesinghe Reginald V. Wijegunaratne Anil Moonesinghe V.L. Wijemanne Mahendra Wijeratne ← Members of the 9th Parliament of Sri Lanka ( 1989 ( 1989 ) -- 1994 ( 1994 ) ) → Speaker : M.H. Mohamed Prime Minister : Dingiri Banda Wijetunga / Ranil Wickremesinghe Leader of the Opposition : Sirimavo Bandaranaike Central Province Kandy Mahinda Abeykoon Tissa Attanayake A.R.M. Abdul Cader Chandraman de Silva Harindra Dunuwille Abdul Cader Shahul Hameed D.M. Jayaratne Lakshman Kiriella Anura Daniel Mahavithanaarachchige Yasaratne Tennakoon Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Premachandra Wijesiri Matale Alick Aluwihare Nandimithra Ekanayake Wijeratne Banda Jambugahapitiyagedera V.G. Jinadasa Punchi Banda Kaviratne Nuwara Eliya Tissa Abeyagoonasekera Ananda Dassanayake S.B. Dissanayake Gamini Dissanayake Renuka Herath Wijesundara Bandara Ranatunga Eastern Province Ampara M.H.M. Ashraff Nihal Bakmeewewa Ahangama Polwatte Galappatthige Chandradasa P. Dayaratna Karunasinghe Thewarapperuma J. Thiviyanathan Batticaloa Prince Casinader Alathipody Gunaseelan M.L.A.M. Hizbullah G. Karunakaran Sam Tambimuttu Trincomalee M.K.A.D.S. Gunawardana M.E.H. Maharoof Konamalai Mathavarajah Sivapragasam Ratnarajah Northern Province Jaffna Sebastiyampillai Edward Thambu Loganathapillai K. Navaratnam Eliyathamby Pararasasingam Suresh Premachandran Arunasalam Ponniah Selliah Kanapathy Selvanayagam S. Sivamaharajah Joseph George Rajenthiram Eliyathamby Ratnasabapathy G. Yogasangari Vanni Innasimuthu Alfred S.S.M. Abu Bakar R. Kuhaneswaran Rasamanohari Pulendran A.E. Silva North Central Province Anuradhapura Janak Mahendra Adhikari Sompala Adhikari D.M. Ariyadasa Chandrasoma Bandara Berty Premalal Dissanayake Lal Dharmapriya Gamage Themiya Hurulle K.B. Ratnayake Polonnaruwa Seid Ahamed Abdul Majeed Nelson Paththinige Samarasinghe Arachchilage Muthubanda Maithripala Sirisena C.A. Suriyaarachchi North Western Province Kurunegala Dissanayaka Mudiyanselage Bandaranayaka Upali Mervin Senarath Dasanayaka Herath Mudiyanselage Ariyawardanage Lokubanda S.B. Nawinne Upali Piyasoma A.M. Munidasa Premachandra G.M. Premachandra Lionel Rajapaksa Jayasena Rajakaruna Amara Piyaseeli Ratnayake Ariya Rekawa Herath Banda Wanninayaka Sarathchandra Bandara Welagedara Diunugallage Peter Wickramasinghe Ukkubanda Wijekoon Puttalam Harindra Jayanthi Corea Sujatha Dharmawardana Milroy Fernando Harold Herath Robert Jayaratne Festus Perera Ashoka Wadigamangawa Sabaragamuwa Province Kegalle Jagath Balasuriya Mohamed Farook Dharmadewa Jayasinghe Samantha Devi Karunaratne Vincent Perera Chandradasa Ranatunga Dharmasiri Senanayake Athauda Seneviratne Mano Wijeyeratne Ratnapura M.L.M. Aboosally Athula Kularatne Attygale Gamini Atukorale Nanda Ellawala Chandrasekara Gankande Helen Mahattaya Liyanage Nanda Mathew Vasudeva Nanayakkara John Seneviratne Wimal Wickramasinghe Southern Province Galle Upali Sarath Danston Amarasiri Nandimithra de Soyza Amarasiri Dodangoda Piyasena Gamage Vincent Jayawardene Noel Kariyawasam Rupa Karunathilake Nanda Kumarage Buddhika Kurukularatne Hemakumara Nanayakkara Richard Pathirana Hambantota Hary Abeydheera Ranjit Atapattu Ananda Kularatne Cyril Madduma Baduge Chamal Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa Gunapala Tissakuttiarachchi Matara Gamini Fonseka Madurapala Ediriweera H.R. Piyasiri Mangala Samaraweera Peter Silva Hewagampolage Sirisena Dayananda Wickremasinghe Ranjan Wijayawardhana Mahinda Wijesekara Uva Province Badulla Chandra Karunaratne W.J.M. Lokubandara Hema Ratnayake Ravindra Samaraweera Lakshman Senewiratne Madduma Bandara Sethapenage Edwin Wickramarathne Samaraweera Weerawanni Monaragala Dissanayake Mudiyanselage Ariyaratna Dharmadasa Banda Ranjith Madduma Bandara Gunavathi Dissanayake Gamini Vijith Vijithamuni Soysa Western Province Colombo Lalith Athulathmudali Mohamed Jabir Abdul Cader Sirisena Cooray Nimal Siripala de Silva Tyronne Fernando C.V. Gunaratne Premaratne Gunasekera Bandula Gunawardane Dinesh Gunawardena Gamini Lokuge Weerasinghe Mallimarachchi M.H. Mohamed Jinadasa Niyathapala Nimal Ransiri Peiris Dickson Sarathchandra Dela Vincent Perera Sunethra Ranasinghe M.S. Sellasamy Stanley Tillekeratne Kingsley Wickramaratne Gampaha John Amaratunga Anura Bandaranaike Sirimavo Bandaranaike Donald Dissanayake Jeyaraj Fernandopulle Mahen Gunasekera Lakshman Jayakody Ariyarathna Jayathilaka Wijayapala Mendis Joseph Michael Perera Peter Perera Sarathchandra Rajakaruna Reggie Ranatunga Sardhatissa Sakalasooriya Ranil Wickremesinghe Mahindra Wijerathna Kalutara Pathirage Don Abeyratne Sumitha Priyanganie Abeyweera Mervin Joseph Cooray Neville Fernando Indradasa Hettiarachchi Thilak Karunaratne Imthiaz Bakeer Markar Anil Moonesinghe Mangala Moonesinghe Sarath Ranawaka Punsiri Samaranayake National List ( 29 ) Alec Robertson Unfinished ← Members of the 10th Parliament of Sri Lanka ( 1994 ( 1994 ) -- 2000 ( 2000 ) ) → Speaker : K.B. Ratnayake Prime Minister : Chandrika Kumaratunga / Sirimavo Bandaranaike / Ratnasiri Wickremanayake Leader of the Opposition : Ranil Wickremesinghe Central Province Kandy Sarath Amunugama Tissa Attanayake A.R.M. Abdul Cader Gamini Dissanayake Abdul Cader Shahul Hameed D.M. Jayaratne Lucky Jayawardena Lakshman Kiriella Wilson Kuruppuarachchi Anuruddha Ratwatte Irajarathnan Sivasamy Ediriweera Weerawardena Matale Alick Aluwihare Nandimithra Ekanayake Monty Gopallawa Janaka Bandara Tennakoon Jinadasa Vidanagamage Nuwara Eliya Tissa Abhayagunasekara P. Chandrasekaran S.B. Dissanayake Renuka Herath C.B. Ratnayake Suppaiah Sathasivam Muthu Sivalingam Arumugam Thondaman Eastern Province Ampara M.H.M. Ashraff Nihal Bakmeewewa P. Dayaratna Chandradasa Galappaththi U.L.M. Mohideen H.M. Weerasinghe Batticaloa M.L.A.M. Hizbullah Seyed Ali Zahir Moulana Joseph Pararajasingham P. Selvarasa K. Thurairajasingam Trincomalee M.E.H. Maharoof M.N. Abdul Majeed Sunil Ranaweera A. Thangathurai Northern Province Jaffna Unfinished Vanni S.S.M. Abu Bakar V. Balachandran Rasamanohari Pulendran S. Shanmuganathan D. Siddarthan Premaratnage Sumathipala North Central Province Anuradhapura Somapala Adikari Chandrasoma Bandara Berty Premalal Dissanayake Punchi Banda Dissanayake P. Harrison Tissa Karalliyadde Shantha Premarathna A.H.B. Semasinghe Polonnaruwa Nandasena Herath T.B. Mahalekam H.G.P. Nelson Rukman Senanayake Maithripala Sirisena North Western Province Kurunegala A.H.M Alavi D.M. Bandaranayake Bandula Basnayake Jayadeva Chandrawansha Salinda Dissanayake T.B. Ekanayake H.M.A. Loku Bandara S.B. Nawinne Gamini Jayawickrama Perera Munidasa Premachandra Amara Piyaseeli Ratnayake Jayasena Rajakaruna Piyasoma Upali D.P. Wickramasinghe Anura Priyadharshana Yapa Puttalam D.M. Dassanayake Joseph Fernando Milroy Fernando Harold Herath Festus Perera D.R.J. Silva Asoka Wadigamangawa Sabaragamuwa Province Kegalle Jagath Balasooriya Y.L.M. Farook Maheepala Herath P.B.G. Kalugalla K. Vincent Perera H.R.J. Podinilame Athauda Seneviratne R.A.D. Sirisena Mano Wijeyeratne Ratnapura Gamini Atukorale Nalanda Ellawala U.L. Heenmahaththaya K.D. Nanda Mathew Vasudeva Nanayakkara Susantha Punchinilame Jayatissa Ranaweera John Seneviratne H.M.U. Silva Pavithra Wanniarachchi Southern Province Galle Vajira Abeywardena M.U.S.D. Amarasiri Asoka Weerasinghe de Silva Amarasiri Dodangoda Piyasena Gamage Sarath Gunawardena Nandadasa Gunasinghe H.G.N.P. Kariyawasam Rupa Karunathilake Richard Pathirana Hambantota Mahinda Amaraweera Ananda Kularatne Chamal Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa Nirupama Rajapaksa Mervyn Silva J.P.V. Vipulaguna Nihal Galappaththi Matara Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena Dullas Alahapperuma Ronnie de Mel Chandrasiri Gajadeera E.A. Samarasinghe Mangala Samaraweera Mahinda Wijesekara H.R. Wimalasiri Uva Province Badulla W.J.M. Lokubandara Dilan Perera Hema Ratnayake R.M. Ratnayake Ravindra Samaraweera Lakshman Senewiratne Sennan Veera Samaraweera Weerawanni Monaragala Dharmadasa Banda Ranjith Madduma Bandara Sumedha Jayasena A.M. Jayawardana Jagath Pushpakumara Western Province Colombo Ossie Abeygunasekera P.P. Devaraj Srimani Athulathmudali Nawalaage Benet Cooray Nimal Siripala de Silva Tyronne Fernando A.H.M. Fowzie C.V. Gunaratne Indika Gunawardena Karunasena Kodituwakku Jeewan Kumaranatunga Gamini Lokuge Weerasinghe Mallimarachchi R. Yogarajan M.H. Mohamed Susil Moonesinghe Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra Gunasekara Premaratne Amal Senalankadikara Bernard Soysa Kingsley Wickramaratne Ranil Wickremesinghe Gampaha John Amaratunga Chandrika Kumaratunga Jeyaraj Fernandopulle Upali Gunaratne Lionel Gunawardena Anura Hapangama Lakshman Jayakody Wijayapala Mendis Jinadasa Nandasena Athula Nimalasiri Felix Perera Joseph Michael Perera Reginold Perera Sarathchandra Rajakaruna Suranimala Rajapaksha Reggie Ranatunga Neil Rupasinghe A.V. Suraweera Kalutara Sumithra Priyanganie Abeyweera Imthiaz Bakeer Markar Reginald Cooray Thilak Karunarathna Anil Moonesinghe Ediriweera Premarathna Sarath Ranawaka Mahinda Samarasinghe Kumara Welgama Ratnasiri Wickremanayake National List ( 29 ) Unfinished GND : 1017986649 ISNI : 0000 0000 2673 8469 LCCN : n88000500 NLA : 49004808 SNAC : w6w096v0 SUDOC : 079902960 VIAF : 35990804 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sirimavo_Bandaranaike&oldid=853598991 '' Categories : Foreign ministers of Sri Lanka Defence ministers of Sri Lanka 1916 births 2000 deaths 20th - century women politicians 21st - century women politicians Alumni of St Bridget 's Convent, Colombo Bandaranaike family Bandaranaike -- Ratwatte family Democratic socialists Female defence ministers Female foreign ministers Female heads of government Leaders of the Opposition ( Sri Lanka ) Members of the 6th Parliament of Ceylon Members of the 7th Parliament of Ceylon Members of the 8th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the 9th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the 10th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the Senate of Ceylon People of British Ceylon Prime Ministers of Sri Lanka Ratwatte family Sinhalese people Sinhalese politicians Sri Lanka Freedom Party politicians Sri Lankan Theravada Buddhists Women legislators in Sri Lanka Women prime ministers Sri Lankan women diplomats Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from April 2017 All articles needing additional references Use dmy dates from October 2012 Pages using deprecated image syntax Articles containing Sinhalese - language text Articles containing Tamil - language text All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from June 2016 Articles with hCards Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with NLA identifiers Wikipedia articles with SNAC - ID identifiers Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Afrikaans Asturianu Aymar aru বাংলা Bân - lâm - gú Български Català Čeština Deutsch Eesti Español Euskara فارسی Français 한국어 Hrvatski Ido Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית ಕನ್ನಡ ქართული Қазақша Magyar മലയാളം मराठी Nederlands नेपाली 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk Polski Português Română Runa Simi Русский Shqip සිංහල Simple English Slovenčina Српски / srpski Suomi Svenska தமிழ் Татарча / tatarça తెలుగు Türkçe Українська 粵語 中文 42 more Edit links This page was last edited on 5 August 2018, at 21 : 49 ( UTC ). 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Question: who was the first woman to became the prime minister of a country
Answer: Sirima Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike