COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s new president has appointed Harini Amarasuriya as prime minister, marking a historic moment as she becomes the third woman to hold this position in the country’s history.
Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who recently won the presidency in Sri Lanka’s first election since the economic crisis of 2022, selected Amarasuriya, a former university lecturer and current MP, to lead the cabinet.
Amarasuriya, part of the left-leaning National People’s Power alliance, will also oversee the ministries of justice, education, and labor. The alliance holds just three seats in the 225-member parliament. The remaining cabinet positions were distributed among the party’s two other MPs, as discussions about a potential parliamentary election intensified.
“We will have the smallest cabinet in Sri Lanka’s history,” stated party member Namal Karunaratne, hinting that parliament could be dissolved within the next 24 hours. Dissanayake has indicated his intention to disband parliament soon, believing it no longer reflects the people’s will.
Dissanayake’s rise is notable, considering he garnered only 3% of the vote in the 2019 presidential election. Amarasuriya campaigned alongside him in 2019 and was elected as an MP the following year. A public activist since 2011, she has been a vocal advocate for free education, youth development, child protection, and gender equality.
With her appointment, Amarasuriya became Sri Lanka’s 16th prime minister and the first academic to assume this role, following the legacies of Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, both of whom had strong political family ties. No woman has held the position since 2000.
