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Former Sri Lanka president dies, leaves mixed legacy
November 1, 1996
Web posted at: 9:00 a.m. EST (1400 GMT)COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (CNN) -- Former Sri Lankan President Junius Richard Jayewardene, who was credited with moving his nation toward an open economy but blamed for failing to prevent a bloody ethnic war that still rages, died Friday. He was 90 years old.
Jayewardene died of heart failure at a private hospital in Colombo where he was being treated for cancer, hospital officials said.
Elected prime minister in 1977, Jayewardene rewrote the country's constitution, changed the island nation's British-style parliamentary system and became Sri Lanka's first president with true executive powers in 1978. In 1982, he called a presidential election 16 months early and was re-elected.
He is credited with liberalizing a rigid socialist economy, but was criticized for an authoritarian-like rule and for failing to quickly crush an uprising by Sri Lanka's Tamil minority that fueled a 1983 insurrection, which still continues to this day.
Nicknamed "the old fox" for his political shrewdness, Jayewardene survived four assassination attempts.
"He showed Sri Lanka the path to the new world," said Ranil Wickremesinghe, head of Jayewardene's United National Party. "He set us on the path to modernization, a path which has been followed by successive governments."
Failure to deal with Tamil rebels
But the ultimate legacy of the late leader is the war that broke out during his presidency. More than 46,000 people have been killed since the fighting began 13 years ago.
Sri Lanka's mostly Hindu Tamil minority complains of discrimination by the predominantly Buddhist Sinhalese majority, and Tamil rebels are fighting for an independent homeland in the north and east. Jayewardene's unsuccessful early attempts to negotiate with the Tamils fostered resentment and rebellion among the Sinhalese.
He will also be remembered for a controversial pact with India in 1987 aimed at ending the war. The accord led to the arrival of tens of thousands of Indian troops on the island in a bloody but unsuccessful bid to disarm the Tamil separatists.
During his decade as president, Jayewardene also dismantled import and international monetary exchange controls, opening the economy with the words "let the robber barons come in." Cynics called him "Yankee Dickie" for his slant towards Western capitalist states.
Jayewardene all but dropped out of public life at the end of his second term in 1988.
He is survived by a wife, Elina, and a son, Ravi. There was no immediate information on funeral services.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- Sri Lanka pays high price for endless war - August 28, 1996
- Sri Lanka lifts blockade of food for refugees - August 12, 1996
- Sri Lanka tightens siege on rebel stronghold - August 10, 1996
- Sri Lankan warplanes, artillery pound Tamil rebels - August 8, 1996
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