Cyril Dissanayake - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Cyril Cyrus "Jungle" Dissanayake is a Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

n senior police officer

Police officer

A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...

. He was one of the leaders of the attempted military coup of 1962

Attempted military coup in Ceylon, 1962

The 1962 Ceylonese coup d'état attempt was a failed military coup planned in Sri Lanka . Several Christian senior military and policy officers planned to topple the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Mrs...

Education

Dissanayake was educated at Royal College, Colombo and at University College, Ceylon

University of Ceylon

The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the University of Sri Lanka which existed from 1973 to 1978. In 1978 it was...

where he was active sportsmen.

Career

After graduating from University joined the Ceylon Police Force

Sri Lanka Police Service

The Sri Lanka Police Service is the civilian national police force of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. The police force has a manpower of approximately 85,000. It is responsible for enforcing criminal and traffic law, enhancing public safety, maintaining order and keeping the peace...

as a Probationary

Probation (workplace)

In a workplace setting, probation is a status given to new employees of a company or business.It is widely termed as Probation Period of an employee...

Assistant Superintendent of Police. During World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

Dissanayake along with Captain

Police captain

- France :France uses the rank of capitaine for management duties in both uniformed and plain-clothed policing. The rank comes senior to lieutenant and junior to commandant....

(later Colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

) F. C. de Saram were selected by British Intelligence to serve with their underground resistance should Ceylon fall to the Japanese in 1942, after the fall of Burma, Malaya and Singapore in 1942. He was Superintendent of Police of Colombo

Colombo

Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...

during the Hartal 1953

Hartal 1953

Hartal 1953 was a country-wide demonstration, commonly known as a hartal, held in Ceylon on August 12, 1953. It was organized to protest of the policies and actions of the incumbent United National Party government, and resulted in the resignation of the Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake...

and during riots of 1958

Sri Lankan riots of 1958

1958 riots in Ceylon also known as 58 riots was first island wide ethnic riots that targeted the minority Sri Lankan Tamils in Ceylon after it became an independent country from Britain in 1948. The riots lasted from May 22 until May 27, 1958 although sporadic disturbances happened even after the...

he was the Deputy Inspector-General of Police of Range I.

During police serviced he received the Ceylon Police Medal for Meritorious Service, Defence Medal 1939-45, Ceylon Police Independence Medal and the Service Medal of the Order of St John

Service Medal of the Order of St John

The Service Medal of the Order of St John is an award given to those that have provided a requisite number or years service to the Venerable Order of St John...

Coup

As member of the Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

elite

Elite

Elite refers to an exceptional or privileged group that wields considerable power within its sphere of influence...

, who ever being deprived of the influence they once had due to the Sihinalaisation process started by Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike and carried on by Sirimavo Bandaranaike

Sirimavo Bandaranaike

Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike was a Sri Lankan politician and the world's first female head of government...

, several disgruntled christian

Christian

officers of the army, navy and police began to plot a coup similar to that of General Ayub Khan.

The coup members intended to carry out the coups d'état at midnight 27 January 1962 under the instigation of J.F.D. Liyanage of the Ceylon Civil Service

Ceylon Civil Service

The Ceylon Civil Service, popularly known by its acronym CCS, originated as the elite civil service of the Government of Ceylon under British colonial rule in 1833 and carried on after independence, until May 1, 1963 when it was abolished and the much larger Ceylon Administrative Service was...

and leadership of Colonel

Colonel

F. C. de Saram and C.C. Dissanayake. Colonel de Saram, who would command the military units of the corp and C.C. Dissanayake the police units. The plan was to use troops from the Ceylon Artillery and several other volunteer units along with scout cars of the Ceylon Armoured Corps and policemen to detain the Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike

Sirimavo Bandaranaike

Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike was a Sri Lankan politician and the world's first female head of government...

at Temple Trees (the official residence of the prime minister) and round up cabinet ministers, the Permanent Secretary for Defence and External affairs, the Inspector General of Police

Inspector General of Police (Sri Lanka)

The Inspector General of Police is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Police. He is the most senior police officer in Sri Lanka and oversees all police personnel throughout the country. The IGP reports to the minister of defense, when the Police Service is under the Ministry of Defence as it...

, DIG (Director of CID

Criminal Investigation Department

The Crime Investigation Department is the branch of all Territorial police forces within the British Police and many other Commonwealth police forces, to which plain clothes detectives belong. It is thus distinct from the Uniformed Branch and the Special Branch.The Metropolitan Police Service CID,...

), SP (CID

Criminal Investigation Department

) and the acting Navy Commander

Commander of the Navy (Sri Lanka)

The Commander of the Navy is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Navy. The current Commander of the Navy is Vice Admiral D.W.S. Dissanayake...

. The Army Commander

Commander of the Army (Sri Lanka)

Commander of the Army is the title of the professional head of the Sri Lanka Army. The current Commander of the Army is Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya...

were to be restrained too. Colombo placed under curfew and cut off from regular army units based at the Panagoda Cantonment

Panagoda Cantonment

Panagoda Cantonment is a cantonment located in the western Western Province of Sri Lanka. It serves as the regimental headquarters of many regiments of the Sri Lanka Army and is an arsenal. The 11 Division of the Sri Lanka Army is based at the Panagoda cantonment...

. After the coup members gain control, the newly-self appointed Major-General F. C. De Saram, General Officer Commanding

General Officer Commanding

General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...

Ceylon, was to command all Military establishments and would have the Governor general Sir

Sir

Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...

Oliver Goonetilleke to dissolve parliament. C.C. Dissanayake would become acting Inspector General of Police

Inspector General of Police (Sri Lanka)

.

However one of the plotters, SP of Colombo Stanley Senanayake who was brought in to the plot that morning by Dissanayake warned the government and all the plotters were arrested. Since no actual coup had happen the government was determined to punish the accused and with the cabinet carrying out the investigation instead of the police, had them confined to solitary confinement in hope of getting a confession. Finlay F. C. de Saram did make a confession, taking all blame for the coup that would become the prosecutions main article of evidence. Dissanayake made no confession, however the day after his arrest he was removed of his post in the police. On 3 June 1963, he was convicted with 11 others out of the 24 accused and sentenced to 10 years in jail and confiscation of property after laws had been modified the government in order to convicted the plotters. The conviction was over ruled on appeal to the Privy Council

Privy council

A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...

, which ruled that the new Act had denied fair trial, since the new laws only effect the accused.

Family

He and his wife had two daughters and a son. His son T.D.S.A. Dissanayake became a Sri Lanka and UN diplomat going on to become Sri Lankan Ambassador to Indonesia and Egypt. The current Colombo district Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

Ravi Karunanayake

Ravindra Sandresh Karunanayagam, MP is a Sri Lankan politician and chartered accountant by profession...

is his grandson. His brother was DIG S.A. Dissanayake

S.A. Dissanayake

S.A. "Jingle" Dissanayaka is a former Sri Lankan Inspector-General of Police. He was played a major role as Director of the Criminal Investigation Department in stopping the attempted military coup of 1962...

, who was the Director of the Criminal Investigation Department

Criminal Investigation Department

, he was on the list of those to be arrested during the coup, but in turn played a pivotal role in stopping the coup. S. A. Dissanayake went on to become the Inspector General of Police

Inspector General of Police (Sri Lanka)

External links and references

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