Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa assumed duties as Secretary,
Ministry of Defence, Public Security, Law & Order
on 25th November 2005. Before this appointment, he was
the Unix System Administrator of Loyola Law School at
Los Angeles, USA.
Hailing from the village of Weeraketiya in the South
of Sri Lanka, he had his education at the respected
educational institution, Ananda College, Colombo.
A career soldier, Mr. Rajapaksa joined the Sri Lanka
Army in 1971, spent two decades in service to his mother
land. He completed his basic officer cadet training
at prestigious Military Academy at Diyatalawa, and proceeded
to Pakistan to complete the Young Officers' Course at
Rawalpindi and later the mid-carrier course at Quetta.
He was also undergone advanced training in Counter Insurgency
and Jungle Warfare at Assam, India. Later in his career,
Mr. Rajapaksa was graduated on advanced Infantry Training
from Infantry School Fort Benning, USA.
As a staff officer, Mr. Rajapaksa completed his Staff
Course at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington,
India in1983. He obtained his Masters degree on Defence
Studies from the University of Madras in 1983. He has
also obtained a Postgraduate degree in Information Technology
from the University of Colombo in 1992.
He was the Deputy Commander of the Sir John Kotelawela
Defence Academy in 1991 and as a Lieutenant Colonel,
he was the Coordinating Officer for the Welioya area
from 1990 to 1991, before taking up an appointment as
the Coordinating Officer of the Matale District and
later as the Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion,
Gajaba Regiment from 1989 to 1990. He has also held
numerous other positions in the Sri Lanka Army such
as Instructor, Adjutant, and Staff officer to the Operations
Officer commanding contingents.
During his military career, Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa
was among the elite who received much praise for his
service to the National Cause. He was the recipient
of the President's Commendation letter by former President
J R Jayewardene and medals for valour in combat such
as Rana Wickrama Padakkama and Rana Sura Padakkama (at
two occasions) by former Presidents R Premadasa and
D B Wijetunga. He has also received a commendation from
the Commander of the Army for his bravery in action.
Having commanded many anti-terrorist operations in
the North and East in different capacities, he is no
stranger to the challenges and realities of the military
conflict. He was in command of the 1st Battalion of
the Gajaba Regiment in the important Vadamarachhci Operation
in 1987 and Operation Thrividabalaya in 1990 respectively,
to rescue Jaffna peninsula and the Jaffna Fort from
terrorist control.
Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his wife Ioma have one son;
he is brother the President of Sri Lanka H.E. Mahinda
Rajapaksa and the son of parliamentarian and former
Deputy Speaker of Parliament, the late Mr. D.A Rajapaksa.
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Part I
