Ernest Perera

Ernest Edward Boniface Perera (29 November 1932 – 16 August 2013) was the 23rd Inspector General of the Sri Lanka Police, serving between 1988 and 1993.

Ernest Perera
23rd Inspector General of Police (Sri Lanka)
In office
1 August 1988 – 29 November 1993
Preceded byCyril Herath
Succeeded byFrank de Silva
Personal details
Born
Ernest Edward Boniface Perera

(1932-11-29)29 November 1932
Dalugama, Sri Lanka
Died16 August 2013(2013-08-16) (aged 80)
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Resting placeGeneral Cemetery (Kanatte)
SpouseEnid
ProfessionPolice officer

Ernest Edward Boniface Perera was born on 29 November 1932 in Dalugama, a suburb of Colombo, the son of John Henry Perera and Agnes.[1] He went to school at St. Benedict's College, Colombo[2] and later Saint Joseph's College, Colombo,[3] graduating with a Bachelor of Economics (BEc Hons)[4] from the University of Peradeniya[1] in 1956.

Perera then joined the Ceylon Police on 5 January 1957 as a probationary Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP).[1][5] His first appointment, following training, was the ASP in charge of the Galle District in 1958. In 1970, he was appointed as the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) of the Nuwara Eliya division and the following year, was placed in charge of the Matara District.[1][6] In 1977, he served as Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) of Colombo Range[5] before he was appointed as Inspector General of the Sri Lanka Police (IGP) on 1 August 1988.[3]

He also served as the chairman of Police Rugby Club during the club's dominance of local rugby in the late 1980s and early 1990s.[3][4]

In June 1990, during his tenure as IGP, Perera instructed police officers at all police stations in the Eastern Province to surrender to members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), at the request of President Ranasinghe Premadasa, which resulted in the subsequent mass murder of over 600 unarmed police by the LTTE.[7][8][9] The massacre triggered the start of the second Eelam War.

Perera retired from the police service on 29 November 1993.[3] After his retirement, from 1994 to 1995, he served as Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Malaysia.[1][4][5]

Perera died on 16 August 2013, at the age of 80, and is buried in the General Cemetery (Kanatte).[5]

References
  1. "Former IGP Ernest Perera's funeral today". The Island. 17 August 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  2. "Some of St Benedict's College Illustrious Alumni". St. Benedict's College, Colombo. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  3. "Former IGP Ernest Perera - An unsung hero of Police Rugby". The Daily Mirror. 28 August 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  4. "A simple and humble officer and gentleman". The Daily Mirror. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  5. "Former IGP Ernest Perera's funeral today". The Sunday Times. 18 August 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  6. Abeyagunawardene, Lakshman (21 September 2007). "My friends and days in Matara". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  7. Ferdinando, Shamindra (19 February 2013). "President's shocking complicity in massacre of policemen". The Island. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  8. Hettiarachchi, Kumudini (1 May 2011). "Into the valley of death marched the 600". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  9. "The forgotten sacrificial police officers". The Sunday Times. 5 June 2016. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
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