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by Rodney Martinesz

Blood ties and family connections continue to dominate Sri Lankan politics as seen in the composition of the 12th Parliament that will be sworn in today. Some of the names are so familiar to the public that the list is a veritable who's who of past parliaments.

A significant entry this time is Sri Lanka's World Cup winning cricket captain Arjuna Ranatunga into the hurly burly world of Parliamentary politics. He will join his father Reggie in the opposition ranks to wage a battle different from the one he was used to in the playing field.

To rival the Ranatungas' there are the titans from Matale, the father-son duo of Alick and Ranjith Aluvihare elected together for the second time running.

The father-daughter combine of Dharmadasa and Pavitra Wanniarachchi failed to make it together this time with the former being ousted by the electorate while former Speaker Anura Bandaranaike would have to sit alone sans his mother, the illustrious Sirimavo Bandaranaike who passed away on election day last year.

The Giruwapattuwa siblings Mahinda and Chamal Rajapakse returned together for the third successive time while young Naveen Dissanayake who lays proud claims to being a third generation Parliamentarian after his grandfather Andrew Dissanayake and father Gamini Dissanayake will this time too sit together with his father-in-law Deshabandu Karu Jayasuriya on the same side.

Rukman Senanayake will again carry the mantle of the Senanayakes of 'Botale' in the 12th Parliament.

Prominent among the siblings of past legislators to gain re-entry are Sajith Premadasa, son of Sri Lanka's second Executive President Ranasinghe Premadasa who has this time been rewarded with a Deputy Minister's post. Others include Lakshman Seneviratne, son of Captain C.P.J. Seneviratne, Bakeer Markar's son Imtiaz Barkeer Markar, G.V. Punchinilame's son Susantha Punchinilame and Chandra Bandara's daughter Chandrani Bandara.

From the Opposition side there is Mahanama Samaraweera's son Mangala Samaraweera, Berty Premalal Dissanayke's son Duminda Dissanayake, R. Siyambalapitiya's son Ranjith Siyambalapitiya and Lionel Gunawardane's son Sarana Gunawardane.

Ronnie and Mallika de Mel become the first husband-wife combine to enter Parliament since 'Parliament couples' Leslie and Vivien Gunawardhana, Philip and Kusuma Gunawardane, K.M.P. Rajaratne and Kusuma Rajaratne and T.B. and Tamara Kumari Ilangaratne in the sixties and seventies.

Thilina Bandara Tennekoon, the son of late MP for Galagedara Yasaratne Tennekoon makes his Parliamentary debut to be on the same side with his uncle Janaka Bandara Tennekoon who was re-elected while P.B. Kaviratne's son Sanjeewa Kaviratne sits in the Government side.

K.B. Lilantha Perera son of prominent UNPer K.B. Christie Perera who died in the Totalanga bomb scraped through in the preference vote to re-enter parliament from the Colombo district.

Among the nephews of past legislators in the 12th parliament are Dhramadasa Banda's nephew Ranjith Maddumabandara, A.C.S. Hameed's nephew A.H.M. Haleem, Maitripala Senanayake's nephew Tissa Karaliyadda, Vijaya Kumaratunga's nephew Jeevan Kumaratunga, Rupa Karunatilaka's nephew Gayantha Karunathilaka, Victor Ratnayake's nephew Sagala Ratnayake, Paris Perera's nephew Niyomal Perera and Percy Samaraweera'a nephews Raveendra and Upali Samaraweera.

Cousins Mahinda and Lakshman Yapa Abeywardanes who were elected from the Matara district will sit on opposite sides in the new Parliament as they did for a brief while in the last parliament before the former was appointed Southern Province Chief Min0ister.

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Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
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