View source for J. R. Jayewardene

{{Short description|President of Sri Lanka from 1978 to 1989}}
{{More footnotes needed|date=December 2020}}
{{EngvarB|date=March 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| order               = 2nd
| office              = President of Sri Lanka
| primeminister       = [[Ranasinghe Premadasa]]
| honorific-prefix    = [[Excellency|His Excellency]]
| image               = J. R. Jayawardene, President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka on June 20, 1984.jpg
| imagesize           = 210px
| caption             = Jayewardene in 1984
| term_start          = 4 February 1978
| term_end            = 2 January 1989
| predecessor         = [[William Gopallawa]]
| successor           = [[Ranasinghe Premadasa]]
| office2             = 7th [[Prime Minister of Sri Lanka|Prime Minister of Sri Lanka]]
| president2          = [[William Gopallawa]]
| deputy2             = 
| term_start2         = 23 July 1977
| term_end2           = 4 February 1978
| predecessor2        = [[Sirimavo Bandaranaike]]
| successor2          = [[Ranasinghe Premadasa]]
| office3             = 6th [[Leader of the Opposition (Sri Lanka)|Leader of the Opposition]]
| primeminister3      = [[Sirimavo Bandaranaike]]
| predecessor3        = [[Sirimavo Bandaranaike]]
| successor3          = [[A. Amirthalingam]]
| term_start3         = 7 June 1970
| term_end3           = 18 May 1977
| office4             = [[Non-Aligned Movement#Chair|6th Secretary General of Non-Aligned Movement]]
| term_start4         = 4 February 1978
| term_end4           = 9 September 1979
| predecessor4        = [[William Gopallawa]]
| successor4          = [[Fidel Castro]]
| office5             = [[Minister of Finance (Sri Lanka)|Minister of Finance]]
| term_start5         = 24 April 1960
| term_end5           = 20 July 1960
| predecessor5        = [[Oliver Ernest Goonetilleke]]
| successor5          = [[Stanley de Zoysa]]
| primeminister5      = [[Dudley Senanayake]]
| term_start6         = 26 September 1947
| term_end6           = 13 October 1953
| predecessor6        = 
| successor6          = Oliver Ernest Goonetilleke
| primeminister6      = {{unbulleted list|[[Don Stephen Senanayake]]|Dudley Senanayake}}
| constituency_MP7    = [[Colombo West Electoral District|Colombo West]]
| parliament7         = Sri Lanka
| term_start7         = 4 August 1977
| term_end7           = 4 February 1978
| predecessor7        = ''Constituency created''
| successor7          = [[Anura Bastian]]
| constituency_MP8    = [[Colombo South Electoral District|Colombo South]]
| parliament8         = Sri Lanka
| term_start8         = 5 August 1960
| term_end8           = 18 May 1977
| predecessor8        = [[Edmund Samarawickrema]]
| successor8          = ''Constituency abolished''
| constituency_MP9    = [[Kelaniya Electoral District|Kelaniya]]
| parliament9         = Ceylonese
| term_start9         = 30 March 1960
| term_end9           = 23 April 1960
| predecessor9        = [[R.G. Senanayake]]
| successor9          = [[R.S. Perera]]
| term_start10        = 14 October 1947
| term_end10          = 18 February 1956
| predecessor10       = ''Constituency created''
| successor10         = [[R.G. Senanayake]]
| birth_name          = Junius Richard Jayewardene
| birth_date          = {{birth date|1906|9|17|df=y}}
| birth_place         = [[Colombo]], [[British Ceylon]] (now [[Sri Lanka]])
| death_date          = {{death date and age|1996|11|1|1906|9|17|df=y}}
| death_place         = [[Colombo]], Sri Lanka
| nationality         = 
| father              = [[Eugene Wilfred Jayewardene]]
| mother              = Agnes Helen Wijewardene
| spouse              = {{married|[[Elina Jayewardene]]|1935}}
| children            = [[Ravi Jayewardene]] <small>(Son)</small>
| alma_mater          = {{unbulleted list|[[Colombo Law College]],|[[University College, Colombo]],|[[Royal College, Colombo]],|[[Bishop's College (Sri Lanka)|Bishop's College Colombo]]}}
| party               = [[United National Party]]
| profession          = [[Advocate]]
| residence           = [[Braemar, Colombo|Braemar]]
| signature           = Signature of J. R. Jayewardene.svg
}}
'''Junius Richard Jayewardene''' ({{langx|si|ජුනියස් රිචඩ් ජයවර්ධන}}; {{langx|ta|ஜூனியஸ் ரிச்சட் ஜயவர்தனா}}; 17 September 1906 – 1 November 1996), commonly referred to by his initials '''JR''', was a [[Sri Lanka]]n lawyer, public official and statesman who served as [[Prime Minister of Sri Lanka|Prime Minister]] of Sri Lanka from 1977 to 1978 and as the second [[President of Sri Lanka]] from 1978 to 1989. He was a leader of the nationalist movement in [[Dominion of Ceylon|Ceylon]] (now Sri Lanka) and served in a variety of cabinet positions in the decades following [[Sri Lankan independence movement|independence]]. A longtime member of the [[United National Party]], he led the party to a landslide victory in the [[1977 Sri Lankan parliamentary election|1977 parliamentary elections]] and served as prime minister for half a year before becoming the country's first executive president under an [[Constitution of Sri Lanka|amended constitution]].<ref name="JRJ-britannica">{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9043459/JR-Jayewardene|title=J.R. Jayewardene|date=28 October 2023 |publisher=BRITANNICA-Online}}</ref>

A controversial figure in the [[history of Sri Lanka]], while the [[Open economy|open economic system]] he introduced in 1978 brought the country out of the economic turmoil Sri Lanka was facing as the result of the [[Sirimavo Bandaranaike|preceding government's]] [[Closed economies|closed economic]] policies,<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|last1=Stevens|first1=William K.|last2=Times|first2=Special To the New York|date=1982-10-20|title=ELECTION IN SRI LANKA CAPITALISM VERSUS SOCIALISM|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/10/20/world/election-in-sri-lanka-capitalism-versus-socialism.html|access-date=2021-08-07|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Jayawardene's social policies, including his response to the [[Black July|Black July riots of 1983]], have been accused of contributing to the beginnings of the [[Sri Lankan civil war|Sri Lankan Civil War]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|date=2011-09-18|title=Obituary : J. R. Jayawardene|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/incoming/obituary-j-r-jayawardene-5593575.html|access-date=2021-08-07|website=The Independent|language=en}}</ref>

==Early life and marriage==
[[File:J. R. Jayewardene with his Parents and Siblings.jpg|left|upright|thumb|270px|J. R. with his parents and siblings.]]

===Childhood===
Born in [[Colombo]] to the prominent [[Jayewardene family]] with a strong association with the legal profession, Jayewardene was the eldest of twelve children, of Hon. Justice [[Eugene Wilfred Jayewardene]] [[King's Counsel|KC]], a prominent lawyer and Agnes Helen Don Philip Wijewardena daughter of [[Muhandiram]] [[Wijewardene family|Tudugalage Don Philip Wijewardena]] a wealthy timber merchant. He was known as Dickie within his family. His younger brothers included [[Hector Wilfred Jayewardene]], [[Queen's Counsel|QC]] and [[Rolly Jayewardene]], [[Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians|FRCP]]. His uncles were the Colonel [[Theodore Godfrey Wijesinghe Jayewardene|Theodore Jayewardene]], Justice [[John Adrian St. Valentine Jayewardene|Valentine Jayewardene]] and the media baron [[D. R. Wijewardena]]. Raised by an English nanny,<ref name=":4">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/02/world/j-r-jayewardene-of-sri-lanka-dies-at-90-modernized-nation-he-led-for-11-years.html|title=J. R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka Dies at 90; Modernized Nation He Led for 11 Years|last=Crossette|first=Barbara|date=1996-11-02|work=The New York Times|access-date=2019-05-14|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> he received his primary education at [[Bishop's College (Sri Lanka)|Bishop's College, Colombo]].

===Education and early career===
Jayewardene gained admission to [[Royal College, Colombo]] for his secondary education. There he excelled in sports, played for the college [[cricket]] team, debuting in the [[Royal-Thomian]] series in 1925; captained the [[Rugby football|rugby]] team in 1924 at the annual "Royal-Trinity Encounter" (which later became known as the [[Bradby Shield Encounter]]); he was the vice-captain of the football team in 1924; and was a member of the boxing team winning sports colours. He was a [[National Cadet Corps (Sri Lanka)|Senior Cadet]]; Captain, Debating Team; editor of the college magazine; first Secretary of the Royal College Social Services League in 1921 and the [[Head Prefect|head prefect]] in 1925. In later life, he served as president, [[Sri Lanka Cricket|Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka]]; President, [[Sinhalese Sports Club]]; and Secretary, Royal College Union.<ref name="JR1">[https://archives.sundayobserver.lk/2002/09/15/fea22.html Remembering the most dominant Lankan political figure] </ref><ref>[https://archive.today/20130703021141/http://www.dailynews.lk/2006/11/01/news28.asp JR's 10th death anniversary today]</ref><!--  Reference: de Silva, K. M.; William Howard Wriggins (1988). J.R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press. pp. 133. ISBN 0-8248-1183-6.  -->

Following the family tradition, Jayewardene entered the [[University College, Colombo]] in 1926, pursuing the Advocate's course, reading English, Latin, Logic and Economics for two years, after which he entered [[Ceylon Law College]] in 1928. He formed the College Union based on that of the [[Oxford Union]] with the assistance of [[S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike]] who had recently returned to Ceylon. At the Ceylon Law College, he won the Hector Jayewardene Gold Medal and the Walter Pereira Prize in 1929. During this time he worked as his father's [[Private Secretary]], while later served as a [[List of Justices of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka|Puisne Justice of Supreme Court of Ceylon]] and in July 1929, he joined three others in forming a [[dining club]] they called ''The Honorable Society of Pushcannons'', which was later renamed as the ''Priya Sangamaya''. In 1931, he passed his [[advocate]]s exams, starting his legal practice in the [[Unofficial Bar|unofficial bar]].

===Marriage===
On 28 February 1935, Jayewardene married the heiress [[Elina Jayewardene|Elina Bandara Rupasinghe]], only daughter of Nancy Margaret Suriyabandara and Gilbert Leonard Rupasinghe, a [[notary public]] turned successful businessman.<!-- Reference in Sinhala:  http://www.rivira.lk/2011/01/02/rivinetha2.htm  --> Their only child [[Ravi Jayewardene|Ravindra "Ravi" Vimal Jayewardene]] was born the year after.<ref>[http://www.dailynews.lk/2018/04/03/features/147321/tribute-my-father-had-many-facets-not-many-faces  Tribute: My father had many facets, not many faces]. Daily News (Sri Lanka), Retrieved on 3 April 2018.</ref>  Having originally settled at Jayewardene's parents house, [[Vaijantha]], the Jayewardenes moved to their own house [[Braemar, Colombo|Braemar]] in 1938, where they remained the rest of their lives, when not holidaying at their [[Jayewardene House, Mirissa|holiday home]] in [[Mirissa]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2002/06/17/stories/2002061704170100.htm |title=India may train Sri Lankan troops |access-date=11 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100726012049/http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2002/06/17/stories/2002061704170100.htm |archive-date=26 July 2010 |url-status=usurped}}</ref><ref>[http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=2015/12/14/features/humble-son-humble-president Humble son of a humble President]</ref>

==Early political career==
[[File:First Cabinet of Ceylon.jpg|left|thumb|280px|The first Cabinet of Ministers of Ceylon]]
Jayewardene was attracted to national politics in his student years and developed strong nationalist views. He converted from [[Anglicanism]] to [[Buddhism]] and adopted the national dress as his formal attire.<ref>{{cite book |title=J.R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka |last=de Silva |first=K. M. |author2=William Howard Wriggins |year=1988 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |location=Honolulu, HI |isbn=0-8248-1183-6 |pages=133 }}</ref><ref name="JR1"/><ref>[https://archives.sundayobserver.lk/2008/09/14/new24.asp "JRJ's 102nd birth anniversary on Sept. 17"] </ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=De Silva |first1=K. M. |last2=Wriggins |first2=William Howard |title=J.R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka: 1906-1956 |date=1988 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |isbn=9780824811839 |access-date=29 June 2020 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6orPBJCSPhIC&q=Justin+Kotalawela&pg=PA65}}</ref>

Jayewardene did not practice law for long. In 1943 he gave up his full-time legal practice to become an activist in the [[Ceylon National Congress]] (CNC), which provided the organizational platform for Ceylon's nationalist movement (the island was officially renamed Sri Lanka in 1972).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/J-R-Jayewardene|title=J.R. Jayewardene {{!}} president of Sri Lanka|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|access-date=2020-03-10}}</ref> He became its Joint Secretary with [[Dudley Senanayake]] in 1939 and 1940 he was elected to the [[Colombo Municipal Council]] from the New Bazaar Ward.

===State Council===
He was elected to the colonial legislature, the [[State Council of Ceylon|State Council]] in 1943 by winning the [[Kelaniya Electoral District|Kelaniya by-election]] following the resignation of incumbent [[D. B. Jayatilaka]]. His victory is credited to his use of an anti-Christian campaign against his opponent the nationalist [[E. W. Perera]].<ref name="JRJ: Farsighted statesman">{{Cite web |title=JRJ: Farsighted statesman? |url=https://island.lk/2009/05/09/opinion1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190929080212/https://island.lk/2009/05/09/opinion1.html |archive-date=29 September 2019 |url-status=dead}}</ref> During [[World War II]], Jayewardene, along with other nationalists, contacted the Japanese and discussed a rebellion to drive the [[United Kingdom|British]] from the island. In 1944, Jayewardene moved a motion in the State Council that [[Sinhala language|Sinhala]] alone should replace English as the official language.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mr.J.R.Jayawardene on 'Sinhala Only and Tamil Also' in the Ceylon State Council|url=http://www.tamilnation.co/indictment/indict004.htm#Mr.J.R.Jayawardene}}</ref>

==First finance minister of Ceylon==
After joining the [[United National Party]] on its formation in 1946 as a founder member, he was reelected from the [[Kelaniya Electoral District|Kelaniya electorate]] in the [[1947 Ceylonese parliamentary election|1st parliamentary election]] and was appointed by [[D. S. Senanayake]] as the [[Minister of Finance]] in the island's first Cabinet in 1947. Initiating post-independence reforms, he was instrumental in the establishment of the [[Central Bank of Sri Lanka|Central Bank of Ceylon]] under the guidance of the American economist [[John Exter]]. In 1951 Jayewardene was a member of the committee to select a National Anthem for Sri Lanka headed by Sir [[Edwin Wijeyeratne]]. The following year he was elected as the President of the [[Sri Lanka Cricket|Board of Control for Cricket]] in Ceylon. He [[Treaty of San Francisco#Sri Lanka's defence of Japan|played a major role in re-admitting]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/sri-lankas-role-in-japanese-peace-treaty-1952-in-retrospect/|title = Sri Lanka's Role in Japanese Peace Treaty 1952: In Retrospect|date = 27 April 2015}}</ref> [[Japan]] to the world community at the [[San Francisco Conference]]. Jayewardene struggled to balance the budget, faced with mounting government expenditures, particularly for rice subsidies. He was re-elected in [[1952 Ceylonese parliamentary election|1952 parliamentary election]] and remained as finance minister.

==Minister of agriculture and food==
His 1953 proposal to cut the subsidies on which many poor people depended for survival provoked fierce opposition and the [[Hartal 1953|1953 Hartal]] campaign and had to be called off. Following the resignation of Prime Minister [[Dudley Senanayake]] after the 1953 Hartal, the new Prime Minister [[John Kotelawala|Sir John Kotelawala]] appointed Jayewardene as [[Ministry of Agriculture (Sri Lanka)|minister of agriculture and food]] and [[Leader of the House (Sri Lanka)|leader of the house]].

==Defeat and opposition==
Prime Minister Sir John Kotelawala called for early elections in 1956 with confidence that the United National Party would win the election. The [[1956 Ceylonese parliamentary election|1956 parliamentary election]] saw the United National Party suffering a crushing defeat at the hands of the socialist and nationalist coalition led by the [[Sri Lanka Freedom Party]] headed by [[S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike]]. Jayewardene himself lost his parliamentary seat in Kelaniya to [[R. G. Senanayake]], who had contested both his constituency Dambadeniya and Jayewardene's constituency of Kelaniya to defeat the latter after he had forced Senanayake out of the party.

Having lost his seat in parliament, Jayewardene pushed the party to accommodate nationalism and endorse the [[Sinhala Only Act]], which was bitterly opposed by the island's minorities. When Bandaranaike agreed with [[S.J.V. Chelvanayagam]] in 1957, to solve the outstanding problems of the minorities, Jayawardene led a "March on Kandy" against it, but was stopped at Imbulgoda [[S. D. Bandaranayake]].<ref name="JRJ: Farsighted statesman"/> The U.N.P.'s official organ the ''Siyarata'' subsequently ran several anti-Tamil articles, including a poem, containing an exhortation to kill Tamils in almost every line.<ref>{{Cite web|title=State of Emergency|url=http://www.swrdbandaranaike.lk/files/speeches/language_issues/emergency.pdf}}</ref>
Throughout the 1960s Jayewardene clashed over this issue with party leader [[Dudley Senanayake]]. Jayewardene felt the UNP should be willing to play the ethnic card, even if it meant losing the support of ethnic minorities.

==Minister of finance==
Jayewardene became the vice-president and chief organizer of the United National Party, which achieved a narrow win in the [[March 1960 Ceylonese parliamentary election|March 1960 parliamentary election]], forming a government under Dudley Senanayake. Jayewardene having been elected to parliament once again from the Kelaniya electorate was appointed once again as minister of finance. The government lasted only three months and lost the [[July 1960 Ceylonese parliamentary election|July 1960 parliamentary election]] to a new coalition led by Bandaranayake's widow. Jayewardene remained in parliament in the opposition having been elected from the [[Colombo South Electoral District|Colombo South electorate]].<ref>{{cite book |title=1960-61 Ferguson's Ceylon Directory |date=1961 |publisher=Ferguson's Directory |url=https://www.historyofceylontea.com/ceylon-publications/fergusons-directory/1960-61-fergusons-ceylon-directory/pdf/viewer.php |access-date=8 June 2021}}</ref>

==Minister of state==
[[File:J. R. Jayewardene.jpg|left|thumb|150px|J. R. Jayewardene in the 1970s]]

The United National Party won the [[1965 Ceylonese parliamentary election|next election in 1965]] and formed a [[Coalition government|national government]] with the [[Sri Lanka Freedom Socialist Party]] led by [[C. P. de Silva]]. Jayewardene was reelected from the Colombo South electorate uncontested and was appointed [[Chief Government Whip (Sri Lanka)|Chief Government Whip]]. Senanayake appointed Jayewardene to his cabinet as Minister of State and [[Parliamentary Secretary]] to the Minister of Defence and External Affairs thereby becoming the ''[[de facto]]'' [[deputy prime minister]]. No government had given serious thought to the development of the tourism industry as an economically viable venture until the United National Party came to power in 1965 and the subject came under the purview of J. R. Jayewardene. Jayewardene saw tourism as a great industry capable of earning foreign exchange, providing avenues of mass employment, and creating a workforce which commanded high employment potential globally. He was determined to place this industry on a solid foundation, providing it a 'conceptional base and institutional support.' This was necessary to bring dynamism and cohesiveness into an industry, shunned by leaders in the past, and ignored by investors who were inhibited by the lack of incentive to invest in projects which were uncertain of a satisfactory return. Jayewardene considered it essential for the government to give that assurance and with this objective in view, he tabled the Ceylon Tourist Board Act No 10 of 1966 followed by [[Ceylon Hotels Corporation|Ceylon Hotels Corporation Act No 14 of 1966]]. At present the [[Tourism in Sri Lanka|tourism industry in Sri Lanka]] is a major foreign exchange earner with tourist resorts in almost all cities and an annual turnover of over 500,000 tourists enjoying the tropical climes and beaches.<ref name="JR-death-AsiaWeek">{{cite news|url=http://www-cgi.cnn.com/ASIANOW/asiaweek/96/1115/feat7.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090510072137/http://www-cgi.cnn.com/ASIANOW/asiaweek/96/1115/feat7.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=10 May 2009|title=DIED JUNIUS RICHARD JAYEWARDENE|publisher=Asia Week|date=15 November 1996}}</ref><ref name="JR-Economist">{{cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/countries/SriLanka/profile.cfm?folder=Profile-Political+Forces|title=Political forces - The constitution remains controversial|newspaper=The Economist|date=16 August 2006}}</ref>

==Leader of the opposition==
In the general election of 1970, the UNP suffered a major defeat, when the SLFP and its newly formed coalition of leftist parties won almost 2/3 of the parliamentary seats. Once again elected to parliament J. R. Jayewardene took over as opposition leader and de facto leader of the UNP due to the ill health of Dudley Senanayake. After Senanayake died in 1973, Jayewardene succeeded him as UNP leader. He gave the SLFP government his fullest support during the [[1971 JVP Insurrection (Sri Lanka)|1971 JVP Insurrection]] (even though his son was arrested by the police without charges) and in 1972 when the new constitution was enacted proclaiming Ceylon a republic. However, he opposed the government in many moves, which he saw as short-sighted and damaging to the country's economy in the long run. These included the adaptation of the closed economy and nationalization of many private businesses and lands. In 1976 he resigned from his seat in parliament in protest, when the government used its large majority in parliament to extend the duration of the government by two more years at the end of its six-year term without holding a general election or a referendum requesting public approval.

==Prime minister==
[[File:Sri Lanka 1977 Cabinet Ministers.jpg|250px|thumb|right|President [[William Gopallawa]] and Prime Minister J.R. Jayewardene with the cabinet of ministers in 1977 after being sworn in.]]
Tapping into growing anger with the SLFP government, Jayewardene led the UNP to a crushing victory in the [[1977 Sri Lankan parliamentary election|1977 election]]. The UNP won a staggering five-sixths of the seats in parliament—a total that was magnified by the first-past-the-post system, and one of the most lopsided victories ever recorded for a democratic election. Having been elected to parliament from the [[Colombo West Electoral District]], Jayewardene became Prime Minister and [[Jayewardene cabinet|formed a new government]].

==Presidency==
[[File:Presidential Standard of Sri Lanka (1978-1989).svg|thumb|left|200px|Presidential Standard of Junius Richard Jayewardene]]

Shortly thereafter, he amended the [[Sri Lankan Constitution of 1972|constitution of 1972]] to make the presidency an executive post. The provisions of the amendment automatically made the incumbent prime minister—himself—president, and he was sworn in as president on 4 February 1978. He passed a [[Constitution of Sri Lanka|new constitution]] on 31 August 1978 which came into operation on 7 September of the same year, which granted the president sweeping—and according to some critics, almost dictatorial—powers. He moved the legislative capital from Colombo to [[Sri Jayawardanapura Kotte]]. He had likely SLFP presidential nominee [[Sirimavo Bandaranaike]] stripped of her civic rights and barred from running for office for six years, based on her decision in 1976 to extend the term of parliament. This ensured that the SLFP would be unable to field a strong candidate against him in the [[1982 Sri Lankan presidential election|1982 election]], leaving his path to victory clear. This election was held under the 3rd amendment to the constitution which empowered the president to hold a Presidential Election anytime after the expiration of four years of his first term. He held a referendum to cancel the 1983 parliamentary elections, and allow the 1977 parliament to continue until 1989. He also passed a constitutional amendment barring from Parliament any MP who supported [[separatism]]; this effectively eliminated the main opposition party, the [[Tamil United Liberation Front]].

===Economy===
There was a complete turnaround in economic policy under him as the previous policies had led to economic stagnation. He opened the heavily state-controlled economy to market forces, which many credit with subsequent economic growth. He opened up the economy and introduced more [[Economic liberalism|liberal economic]] policies emphasizing private sector-led development. Policies were changed to create an environment conducive to foreign and local investment, to promote export-led growth shifting from previous policies of import substitution. To facilitate export-oriented enterprises and to administer Export Processing Zones the Greater Colombo Economic Commission was established. Food subsidies were curtailed and targeted through a Food Stamps Scheme extended to the poor. The system of rice rationing was abolished. The Floor Price Scheme and the Fertilizer Subsidy Scheme were withdrawn. New welfare schemes, such as free school books and the [[Mahapola Higher Education Scholarship Trust Fund|Mahapola Scholarship Programme]], were introduced. The rural credit programme expanded with the introduction of the New Comprehensive Rural Credit Scheme and several other medium and long-term credit schemes aimed at small farmers and the [[Self-employment|self-employed]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title = President Junius R. Jayawardena (1978-1988)|url = http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/sri-lanka/jayewardene.htm|website = www.globalsecurity.org|access-date = 2015-10-25}}</ref>

He also launched large-scale infrastructure development projects. He launched an extensive housing development program to meet housing shortages in urban and rural areas. The [[Mahaweli Development programme|Accelerated Mahaweli Programme]] built new reservoirs and large [[hydropower]] projects such as the [[Kotmale Dam|Kotmale]], [[Victoria Dam (Sri Lanka)|Victoria]], [[Randenigala Dam|Randenigala]], [[Rantembe Dam|Rantembe]] and [[Ulhitiya]]. Several Trans Basin Canals were also built to divert water to the Dry Zone.<ref name=":0" />

===Conservation===
His administration launched several wildlife conservation initiatives. This included stopping commercial logging in [[rain forest]]s such as [[Sinharaja Forest Reserve]] which was designated a [[World Biosphere Reserve]] in 1978 and a [[World Heritage Site]] in 1988.

===Tamil militancy and civil war===
Jayewardene moved to crack down on the growing activity of [[List of Tamil militant groups|Tamil militant groups]] active since the mid-1970s. He passed the [[Prevention of Terrorism Act (Sri Lanka)|Prevention of Terrorism Act]] in 1979, giving police sweeping powers to arrest and detain. This only escalated the ethnic tensions. Jayewardene claimed he needed overwhelming power to deal with the militants. After the [[Sri Lankan riots of 1977|1977 riots]], the government made one concession to the Tamils; it lifted the [[policy of standardization]] for university admission that had driven many Tamil youths into militancy. The concession was regarded by the militants as too little and too late, and violent attacks continued, culminating in the ambush of [[Four Four Bravo]] which led to the [[Black July|Black July riots]]. Black July riots transformed the militancy into a civil war, with the swelling ranks of the militant groups. By 1987, the [[LTTE]] had emerged as the dominant of the Tamil militant groups and had a free hand over the [[Jaffna Peninsula]], limiting government activities in that region. Jayewardene's administration responded with a massive military operation codenamed [[Vadamarachchi Operation|Operation Liberation]] to eliminate the LTTE leadership. Jayewardene had to halt the offensive after pressure from [[India]] pushed for a negotiated solution to the conflict after executing [[Operation Poomalai]]. Jayewardene and Indian Prime Minister [[Rajiv Gandhi]] finally concluded the [[Indo-Sri Lanka Accord]], which provided for [[devolution]] of powers to Tamil-dominated regions, an [[IPKF|Indian peacekeeping force]] in the north, and the demobilization of the LTTE.

The LTTE rejected the accord, as it fell short of even an autonomous state. The provincial councils suggested by India did not have powers to control revenue, policing, or government-sponsored [[Sinhalese people|Sinhala]] settlements in Tamil provinces.  Sinhala nationalists were outraged by both the devolution and the presence of foreign troops on Sri Lankan soil. An [[1987 grenade attack in the Sri Lankan Parliament|attempt]] was made on Jayewardene's life in 1987 as a result of his signing of the accord. Young, deprived Sinhalese soon rose in a [[Insurrection 1987-89|revolt]], organized by the [[Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna]] (JVP) which was eventually put down by the government by 1989.

===Foreign policy===
[[File:Jayewardene presents elephant to Reagan.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Jayewardene presenting a baby elephant to US President [[Ronald Reagan]] and the American people, 1984]]In contrast with his predecessor, [[Sirimavo Bandaranaike]], Jayewardena's foreign policy was aligned with American policies (earning him the nickname 'Yankie Dickie') much to the chagrin of India. Before Jayewardena's ascendency into the presidency, Sri Lanka had doors widely open to neighboring India. Jayewardena's tenure in the office restricted the doors to India several times; once an American company tender was granted over an Indian company tender.

Jayewardene hosted Queen [[Elizabeth II]] on a visit to Sri Lanka in October 1981.

In 1984, Jayewardene made an official [[State visit]] the United States; first Sri Lankan President to do so, upon the invitation of then US President [[Ronald Reagan]].

==Post-presidency==
Jayewardene left office and retired from politics in 1989 after the conclusion of his second term as president at the age of 82;<ref>[http://www.ft.lk/article/450847/Election-heat-and-%E2%80%98Yahapalana%E2%80%99-antics Election heat and ‘Yahapalana’ antics]</ref> after his successor [[Ranasinghe Premadasa]] was formally inaugurated on 2 January 1989. He did not re-enter politics during his retirement even after the assassination of Premadasa in 1993.
[[File:Jr and elina.jpg|thumb|President Jayawardene with his wife and first lady, [[Elina Jayewardene|Elina]], on their 50th Wedding Anniversary in 1985.]]

==Death==
Jayewardene died of colon cancer, on 1 November 1996, aged 90, at a hospital in Colombo.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Junius Jayewardene Dies|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1996/11/02/junius-jayewardene-dies/8d6ab60c-9c72-444b-a299-1448cb4f0aaf/|access-date=4 April 2021|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> He was survived by his wife, [[Elina Jayewardene|Elina]], and his son, [[Ravi Jayewardene|Ravi]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|last=Crossette|first=Barbara|date=1996-11-02|title=J. R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka Dies at 90; Modernized Nation He Led for 11 Years|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/02/world/j-r-jayewardene-of-sri-lanka-dies-at-90-modernized-nation-he-led-for-11-years.html|access-date=2020-05-12|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
The government had announced that the state funeral would be held at Independence Square, a site of national significance where many of Sri Lanka’s greatest leaders have been cremated. United National Party (UNP) leader Ranil Wickremesinghe also expressed his support for this location, honoring the late President’s stature and legacy.

However, a compelling personal request emerged from the late President's only son, Ravi Jayewardene. He revealed a diary entry written by his father in 1991, in which the former President had clearly expressed his final wish. The note read:

"Please cremate my body within 24 hours of my death on the Kelaniya river bank." 

This request reflected the President's deep connection to Kelaniya, his original political electorate, and highlighted his desire for a more personal and symbolic farewell.<ref>https://www.sundaytimes.lk/961103/frontm.html</ref>

== Legacy ==
On the economic front, Jayewardene's legacy is decisively a positive one.<ref name=":0" /> His economic policies are often credited with saving the Sri Lankan economy from ruin.<ref name=":6" /> For thirty years after independence, Sri Lanka had struggled in vain with slow growth and high unemployment. By opening up the country for extensive foreign investments, lifting price controls and promoting private enterprise (which had taken a heavy hit because of the policies of the preceding administration), Jayewardene ensured that the island maintained healthy growth despite the civil war. William K. Steven of [[The New York Times]] observes, "President Jayawardene's economic policies were credited with transforming the economy from one of scarcity to one of abundance."<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite news|last=Stevens|first=William K.|date=1984-04-22|title=RECENT FIGHTING IN SRI LANKA DIMS HOPES FOR ETHNIC PEACE|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/04/22/world/recent-fighting-in-sri-lanka-dims-hopes-for-ethnic-peace.html|access-date=2021-08-07|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>[[File:Photograph of Raja (elephant) with Hon J.R Jayewardene & Dr. Nissanka Wijeyeratne.jpg|thumb|right|200px|President J. R. Jayewardene and Diyawadana Nilame [[Nissanka Wijeyeratne|Dr. Nissanka Wijeyeratne]] with [[Raja (elephant)]]]]

On the ethnic question, Jayewardene's legacy is bitterly divisive. When he took office, ethnic tensions were present in the country but were not overtly volatile. But relations between the two ethnicities heavily deteriorated during his administration and his response to these tensions and the signs of conflict has been heavily criticized.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /> President Jayewardene saw these differences between the Sinhalese and Tamils as being <nowiki>''an unbridgeable gap''</nowiki>.<ref name=":5" /> Jayewardene said in an interview with the Daily Telegraph, 11 July 1983, "Really, if I starve the [[Tamils]] out, the Sinhala people will be happy"<ref>{{cite book|last1=Fernando|first1=Jude Lal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lhv5BgAAQBAJ|title=Loss and Hope: Global, Interreligious and Interdisciplinary Perspectives|date=2014|publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]]|isbn=978-1-4725-2907-7|editor1-last=Admirand|editor1-first=Peter|location=London, U.K.|page=30|chapter=The Politics of Represenatations of Mass Atrocity in Sri Lanka and Human Rights Discourse: Challenge to Justice and Recovery}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_oBmDwAAQBAJ|title=Genocide & Persecution: Sri Lanka|date=2014|publisher=[[Greenhaven Press]]|isbn=9780737770162|editor1-last=Berlatsky|editor1-first=Noah|location=Farmington Hills, U.S.|page=126}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Short|first1=Damien|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vudiDgAAQBAJ|title=Redefining Genocide: Settler Colonialism, Social Death and Ecocide|date=2016|publisher=[[Zed Books]]|isbn=9781783601707|location=London, U.K.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Sriskanda Rajah|first1=A. R.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xDAlDwAAQBAJ|title=Government and Politics in Sri Lanka: Biopolitics and Security|date=2017|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=978-1-315-26571-1|location=London, U.K.|page=62}}</ref> about the widespread anti-Tamil sentiments among the Sinhalese at that time.<ref name=":5" />

Highly respected in Japan for his call for peace and reconciliation with post-war Japan at the [[Treaty of San Francisco|Peace Conference in San Francisco]] in 1951, a statue of Jayewardene was erected at [[Kōtoku-in|the Kamakura Temple]] in the [[Kanagawa Prefecture]] in [[Japan]] in his honor.<ref>[http://www.sundaytimes.lk/070916/Plus/plus00018.html A visionary strategist]</ref>

===J.R. Jayewardene Centre===
In 1988, the [[J.R. Jayewardene Centre]] was established by the J.R. Jayewardene Centre Act No. 77 of 1988 by Parliament at the childhood home of J. R. Jayewardene Dharmapala Mawatha, Colombo. It serves as an archive for J.R. Jayewardene's library and papers as well as papers, records from the [[Presidential Secretariat (Sri Lanka)|Presidential Secretariat]] and gifts he received in his tenure as president.

==Further reading==
* De Silva, K. M., & Wriggins, W. H. (1988), ''J.R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka: a political biography'', University of Hawaii Press  {{ISBN|0-8248-1183-6}}
* Jayewardene, J. R. (1988), ''My quest for peace: a collection of speeches on international affairs'', {{OCLC|20515117}}
* Dissanayaka, T. D. S. A. (1977), ''J.R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka: the inside story of how the Prime Minister led the UNP to victory in 1977'', Swastika Press {{OCLC|4497112}}
*{{cite web|title=We can look after ourselves: Sri Lankan President Jayewardene|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/neighbours/story/19840430-we-can-look-after-ourselves-sri-lankan-president-jayewardene-802985-1984-04-30|date=1984-04-30|magazine=[[India Today]]|author=S. Venkatnarayan}}
*{{cite web|title=India cannot support violence whatever the cause may be: J.R. Jayewardene|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/interview/story/19851215-india-cannot-support-violence-whatever-the-cause-may-be-j-r-jayewardene-802266-2014-01-22|date=1985-12-15|author1=S.H. Venkatramani|author2=Prabhu Chawla|authorlink2=Prabhu Chawla|magazine=[[India Today]]}}

==See also==
* [[Jayewardene cabinet]]
* [[Braemar, Colombo]]
* [[Vaijantha]]
* [[List of political families in Sri Lanka]]
* [[1987 grenade attack in the Sri Lankan Parliament]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

 <!-- Reference in Sinhala:  http://www.divaina.com/2011/11/28/mano01.html   -->

==External links==
* [http://www.worldgenweb.org/lkawgw/gen3002.htm  The JAYEWARDENE Ancestry]
* [http://www.worldgenweb.org/lkawgw/gen3062.htm The WIJEWARDENA Ancestry]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160108033328/http://epaper.dailynews.lk/art.asp?id=2015%2F12%2F07%2Fpg06_0&pt=p&h=  The Statesman Misunderstood] 
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160108033329/http://epaper.dailynews.lk/art.asp?id=2015%2F12%2F14%2Fpg05_1&pt=p&h=  Humble son of a humble President]  
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080325034304/http://www.parliament.lk/handbook_of_parliament/prime_ministers.jsp Website of the Parliament of Sri Lanka]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080418182701/http://www.unp.lk/portal/ Official Website of United National Party (UNP)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060820212011/http://www.jic.net/ J.R. Jayewardene Centre]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110604161706/http://www.dailynews.lk/2001/09/17/fea05.html   95th Birth Anniversary]
* [https://archives.sundayobserver.lk/2002/09/15/fea22.html Remembering the most dominant Lankan political figure. by Padma Edirisinghe]
* [https://archives.sundayobserver.lk/2008/09/14/new24.asp J.R. Jayewardene  by Ananda  Kannangara]
* [http://www.island.lk/2008/09/21/features6.html   President JRJ and the Export Processing Zone   By K. Godage]
* [http://www.divaina.com/2008/09/15/mano04.html   Methek Kathawa  '''Divaina'''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515021314/http://www.divaina.com/2008/09/15/mano04.html |date=15 May 2013 }}
* [http://www.divaina.com/2008/09/22/mano04.html   Methek Kathawa  '''Divaina'''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515002833/http://www.divaina.com/2008/09/22/mano04.html |date=15 May 2013 }}

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{{s-gov}}
{{succession box | title=[[President of Sri Lanka]] | before=[[William Gopallawa]] | after=[[Ranasinghe Premadasa]] | years=1978&ndash;1989}}
{{succession box | title=[[Prime Minister of Sri Lanka]] | before=[[Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike]] | after=[[Ranasinghe Premadasa]] | years=1977&ndash;1978}}
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{{succession box | title= [[Non-Aligned Movement#Chair|Secretary General of Non-Aligned Movement]]| before=[[William Gopallawa]] | after=[[Fidel Castro]] | years=1978&ndash;1979}}
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