Sarath Fonseka

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Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka RWP, RSP, VSV, USP
සරත් ෆොන්සේකා சரத் பொன்சேகா
Fonseka at a press conference, 2010
Minister of Wildlife and Sustainable Development
In office 1 May 2018 – 26 October 2018
President	Maithripala Sirisena
Prime Minister	Ranil Wickremesinghe
Preceded by	Ravindra Samaraweera
Minister of Regional Development
In office 25 February 2016 – 26 October 2018
President	Maithripala Sirisena
Prime Minister	Ranil Wickremesinghe
Preceded by	Office Established
Succeeded by	S. B. Nawinne
Chairman of Samagi Jana Balawegaya
In office 10 February 2020 – 9 August 2024
Member of Parliament for Gampaha District
Incumbent
Assumed office 20 August 2020
Majority	110,555 Preferential Votes (2020)
Member of Parliament for National List
In office 9 February 2016 – 3 March 2020
Preceded by	M. K. A. D. S. Gunawardana
Member of Parliament for Colombo District
In office 22 April 2010 – 7 October 2010
Succeeded by	Jayantha Ketagoda
Majority	98,456 Preferential Votes
Chief of the Defence Staff
In office 15 July 2009 – 30 November 2009
Preceded by	Donald Perera
Succeeded by	Roshan Goonetileke
Commander of the Army
In office 6 December 2005 – 15 July 2009
Preceded by	Shantha Kottegoda
Succeeded by	Jagath Jayasuriya
Personal details
Born	Gardihewa Sarath Chandralal Fonseka (1950-12-18) 18 December 1950 (age 73) Ambalangoda, Dominion of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka)
Political party	New Democratic Front (2009–2010)[a] Democratic National Alliance (2010–2013) Democratic Party (2013–2016) United National Party (2016–2020) Samagi Jana Balawegaya (2020-2024)
Spouse	Anoma Fonseka
Children	Two daughters
Alma mater	Dharmasoka College Ananda College
Occupation	Politician Military officer
Military service
Allegiance	Sri Lanka
Branch/service	Sri Lanka Army
Years of service	1971–2009
Rank	Field Marshal
Unit	Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment
Commands	Security Forces Headquarters - Jaffna Security Forces Headquarters - Wanni Commander of the Army Chief of the Defence Staff
Battles/wars	Sri Lankan Civil War, Insurrection 1987–89
Awards	Rana Wickrama Padakkama Rana Sura Padakkama Vishista Seva Vibhushanaya Uttama Seva Padakkama Desha Putra Sammanaya

Field Marshal Gardihewa Sarath Chandralal Fonseka (born 18 December 1950) is a retired Sri Lankan army officer. He was the eighteenth Commander of the Sri Lankan Army, and under his command the Sri Lankan Army ended the 26-year Sri Lankan Civil War in 2009, defeating the militant group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam; he thereafter briefly served as the Chief of Defence Staff.^[1] After retiring from the Army with the rank of General, he entered politics as the common opposition candidate in the 2010 presidential election contesting against President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Following his controversial defeat in the presidential election he was elected to Parliament in the general election that followed. Soon after he was made a political prisoner and lost his parliamentary seat.^[2][3][4] Fonseka supported Maithripala Sirisena in the 2015 presidential election, and, following his victory, the newly appointed President Sirisena gave Fonseka a full pardon, reinstating his civic rights, military rank and decorations. Later he was promoted to the newly created rank of Field Marshal on 22 March 2015, becoming the first Sri Lankan Army officer to be promoted to the rank.^[5][6][7][8]

On 9 February 2016, he was appointed to Parliament as a national list candidate and served in the Cabinet of Ministers from 2016 to 2018 as Minister of Regional Development and thereafter as Minister of Wildlife and Sustainable Development until the 2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis.

Fonseka had joined the Ceylon Army in 1970 and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in June 1971 and rose through the ranks while completing training stints across South Asia and in the United Kingdom. He saw extensive action throughout the 26-year civil war and over the years acquired a reputation as a tough battlefield commander and was often in the thick of the action in fighting against the Tamil Tigers, culminating in a term as Commander of the Army from 6 December 2005 – 15 July 2009.^[9][10][11] As commander, he oversaw the final phase of the Sri Lankan Civil War, which resulted in the total defeat of the militant Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. He also survived an assassination attempt when an LTTE suicide bomber attacked his motorcade in April 2006.^[12][13][14] Following the end of the war Fonseka was promoted to a four star rank in the Sri Lanka Army, becoming the first serving army commander to hold a four star rank.^[15] He has been described as Sri Lanka's most successful army commander.^{[4][16][17][18]}

A few months after the defeat of the Tamil Tigers, Fonseka was appointed Chief of Defence Staff by President Mahinda Rajapaksa. While his new post was of a higher rank, Fonseka saw the move as an attempt to sideline him. Amid rumours of his desire to enter politics, he subsequently retired from the post on 16 November 2009.^[19][20] On 29 November 2009, Fonseka formally announced his candidature in the 2010 Sri Lankan presidential election. His candidacy was endorsed by the main opposition parties, and Fonseka became the main opposition candidate challenging President Rajapaksa. He campaigned under the sign of a swan, and the slogan Vishvasaniya Venasak (A Credible Change).

Following his election defeat, Fonseka was arrested on 8 February 2010, and the government announced he would be court-martialed for committing "military offences".^[21][22] He was convicted for corrupt military supply deals and sentenced to three years in prison.^[23] After serving more than 2 years in prison, Fonseka was released amidst local and international pressure on 21 May 2012.^[7][24] As per the pre-election statement, President Maithripala Sirisena, gave him the complete presidential pardon and acquitted him of all the charges against him on 22 January 2015, restoring his civic rights.^[25][26]

On 29 June 2024, Fonseka launched his own written book titled The Army Commander’s Promise to the Nation – I will not leave this war to the next Army Commander.^[27]

On 25 July 2024, he announced his candidacy in the upcoming presidential election.^[28]

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