About the Family

President Mahinda Rajapaksa is married to Shiranthi Rajapaksa, a keen social worker who heads the Seva Vanitha Movement – a women’s service movement in the public sector, and takes a keen interest in issues of the rights of women and children, as well the advance of the humanitarian policies in the Mahinda Chinthana. She has taken an important initiative in helping the women and children who are internally displaced in the north due to terrorism. Under the ‘Siriliya Saviya’ organization led by her, special action has been taken to provide cooked food and essential drugs to the IDPs, training in community culinary work among women IDPS and also for vocational training among them to help them have better livelihoods once resettled.

They have three sons. All of them are keen sportsmen and have represented their school St. Thomas’ College, Mt. Lavinia in Rugby. The eldest Namal, in addition to studies, is at present engaged in youth affairs, especially the participation of youth in development work. He is the key organizer of ‘Tharunyayata Hetak’ which seeks to empower youth in the rural sector for the purpose of uplifting the rural economy. Amidst his work in youth affairs he has studied law in the UK and has now returned to the country with greater commitment to rural development and the progress of youth.

The second son Yoshitha is a Sub-Lieutenant in the Sri Lanka Navy after training at Dartmouth in the UK.

The third, Rohitha is pursuing higher studies in Aeronautical Engineering and Astronautics at the University of Southampton, UK.

President Rajapaksa is himself a very keen sportsman. He represented his school in Athletics in Track events specializing in the 4 x 400 metres relay. When not restricted by the pressures of work and concerns of security he has always been present at the school rugby matches when his sons were playing, and was a frequent spectator at inter-club rugby games in Colombo and Kandy. A keen fan of both cricket and rugby, he follows the fortunes of the Sri Lanka cricket team and inter-club rugby with great interest, and offers much encouragement to Sri Lankan sportsmen and sportswomen.