Nissanka Wijeyeratne

Deshamanya Nissanka Parakrama Wijeyeratne (නිශ්ශංක පරාක්‍රම විජයරත්න) (14 June 1924 – 7 January 2007), known as Nissanka Wijeyeratne, was a Sri Lankan politician, civil servant,

diplomat and English language poet.

Nissanka Wijeyeratne was born on 14 June 1924 to a leading family from Sabaragamuwa in Sri Lanka.

He was the second son of Sir Edwin and Lady Leela Wijeyeratne, of Buddenipola Walauwa, Kegalle.

Sir Edwin Wijeyeratne was a former Cabinet Minister of Home Affairs and Rural Development.

His elder brother, Tissa Wijeyeratne a barrister by profession, had served as Sri Lankan ambassador to France and Switzerland, Additional Secretary to Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Defence, and as the senior adviser on foreign affairs to Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike.

Nissanka Wijeyeratne also had one younger brother, Dr Cuda Wijeyeratne who is a consultant psychiatrist.

Wijeyeratne completed his primary and secondary education at the Royal College, Colombo.

He then pursued further studies at the University of Ceylon where he earned a BA Honours in history.

He also had a scholarly interest in Sri Lankan sociology, as well as in religious philosophy.

Nissanka Wijeyeratne after leaving university, served for a brief period for the Ceylon Artillery Volunteers as a (reservist) Second Lieutenant and successfully sat the Ceylon Civil Service (CCS) Examination Those were the days when only six were recruited in a year to civil service as compared with the fifty to hundred now recruited annually to the Ceylon Administrative Service, which replaced the former Ceylon Civil Service.

As a member of that Ceylon Civil service, he held several positions including permanent secretary to the Ministries of Information, Broadcasting, Transport and Cultural Affairs, Government Agent in Anuradhapura, Mannar and Jaffna and Assistant Government Agent in Galle.

He was also the Chairman of the Anuradhapura Preservation Board.

During his public service career, Nissanka Wijeyeratne was Government Agent of Anuradhapura District from 1958 to 1962.

He was arguably the best known of all government agents of his time.

His stature ensured that the voice of Anuradhapura was heard at the highest levels in Colombo.

Apart from being Government Agent, he was Chairman of the Anuradhapura Preservation Board.

This was the time when the city of Anuradhapura was in a period of historic transition.

The new town of Anuradhapura was being built, and the residents of the old were being transferred to the new town.

It was a time of some tension and of excitement.

He managed this process of change with courage and remarkable political skills.

While in Anuradhapura, he unveiled a memorial for H. R. Freeman, a popular British Government Agent who later was elected by the people of the district to represent them in the 1st State Council of Ceylon.

Coming events cast their shadows before.

A striking feature of Wijeyeratne's Anuradhapura days was his great ability to see the bigger picture and focus on the key issues, and delegate responsibilities to his staff officers.

He was never one to be enmeshed in detail.

He also set up the Sacred City of Anuradhapura shifted the urban city to the newly created Anuradhapura town and is responsible for the establishment of Anuradhapura Airport.

Nissanka Wijeyeratne served as Diyawadana Nilame (Chief lay Custodian) of Temple of the Tooth, Kandy for 10 years.

The present national emblem of Sri Lanka was created in 1972 under the ideas and guidance of Nissanka Wijeyeratne.

At the time, he was Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and Chairman of the National Emblem and Flag Design Committee.

The designer of the emblem was Venerable Mapalagama Wipulasara Maha Thera and Art Work by S.M Seneviratne.

During the same year (1972), four leaves of the Bo tree were added to the four corners of the Sri Lankan National flag under the direction of Nissanka Wijeyeratne.

Prior to 1972, the corners of the flag were occupied by symbols depicting spearheads.

The four Bo Leaves added by Wijeyeratne reflect the core principles of Mettha (loving kindness), Karuna (compassion), Upeksha (equanimity) and Muditha (happiness).

Wijeyeratne retired from the Sri Lanka Administrative Service in 1973.

He was also the Diyawadana Nilame (chief lay custodian) of the Sri Dalada Maligawa, Kandy from 1975 to 1985.

At the time of death he was serving as the chairman of The Law and Society Trust in Sri Lanka.

He was elected for the post in 1975.

Wijeyeratne was the first low country Govigama person in the history of Sri Lanka who successfully challenged the Kandyan Radala hierarchy for that post.

During his tenure as Diyawadana Nilame, he introduced administrative methods to Sri Dalada Maligawa and established the Gold Museum, and re-organised the Kandy Perahera.

He served as member of the Executive Board of UNESCO from 1987 to 1989.