Gnana Moonesinghe

Gnana Moonesinghe, who passed away recently had a multi-faceted life although never a career. A woman of many interests – in literature, politics, diplomacy, journalism – she spanned these divides with great felicity and charm.

Gnana Coomaraswamy was born into a well-known Jaffna family. Her father was educated at Cambridge University in England and was a barrister. He pursued a career in education being principal of a leading Jaffna school. Gnana herself had an education in Colombo, and she entered the University of Ceylon at Peradeniya, from Ladies College, in 1955.

Her sister had married Dr. Kumaran Ratnam, who was once a Mayor of Colombo. Gnana married Mangala Moonesinghe, a lawyer and politician who was a descendent of Anagarika Dharmapala. Mangala Moonesinghe was MP for Bulathsinhala in 1965-1977. During that period, Gnana was heavily engaged in looking after that electorate and developed a close relationship with many of his constituents. She enjoyed being a politician’ s wife.

When Mangala was appointed High Commissioner in New Delhi in the 1980s, Gnana found another congenial and productive occupation. She was the perfect wife of a diplomat, and the couple enjoyed the diplomatic life in New Delhi and the high profile among the New Delhi circles. Mangala and Gnana developed a close relationship with Prime Minister, Gujaral of India. While in Delhi, Gnana produced a book – “Footprints of the Buddha”. After New Delhi, Mangala and Gnana had a couple of years in London as Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner. On return to Sri Lanka, Gnana was engaged in domestic, political and civil society issues. She and Mangala had a particular interest in the ethnic issue. She was a regular contributor to the newspapers and particularly concerned with the politics of the time. She edited a book on Sri Lankan government structures some time during this period. She was a member of the Disputes Resolution Council of the Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka.

It is 70 years since I first met Gnana. We both entered university at Peradeniya in 1955. From 1956-1959, Gnana and I read for a special degree in Economics. There were three young women and over 20 men reading for this course. Gnana specialised in political science. Only a very few of us are still around. It is a pleasure to have known Gnana all these long years. She leaves a son, Sanath who lives in the United States, and daughter Avanti ,who is married to Murtaza Esufally.

Leelananda De Silva