Posted on April 29th, 2021
KAMALIKA PIERIS
SWRD Bandaranaike was
assassinated in 1959. This was followed by two attempts to remove his successor,
Sirimavo. First, the failed coup of 1962
and second, the JVP insurgency of 1971. The 1971
rebellion was the first armed uprising against the state.
Mano
Ratwatte, son of Mackie Ratwatte, Private Secretary to Prime Minister Sirimavo,
recalls that in January 1966, at a political rally the Air Force guard had threatened to open fire
on Prime Minister Sirimavo and Dr. Baduiddin Mohammed.
The 1971 JVP
insurgency has been described as a romantic, innocent revolution, an unplanned
spontaneous attack. It was nothing of the sort. It was pre-planned and well