| The Honourable Wilmot A. Perera |
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|---|---|
| Ceylonese Ambassador to China | |
| Member of the Sri Lankan Parliament for Matugama |
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| In office 1947–1956 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 1905 |
| Died | 1973 |
| Nationality | Sri Lankan |
| Political party | Viplavakari Lanka Sama Samaja Party |
| Other political affiliations |
Lanka Sama Samaja Party |
| Alma mater | Royal College, Colombo |
| Occupation | Business |
Wilmot A. Perera (1905–1973) was a Sri Lankan statesman and philanthropist. A Member of Parliament, he was Ceylonese's first Ambassador to China.
Born in Horana to Abraham Perera, a wealthy landowner he was educated at Cyril Jansze College, Panadura and at the prestigious Royal College Colombo.
Taking over the family business, he became active in his home area, establishing the first rural development society in Raigam Korale and went on to establish Sri Palee College (Sripali Academy) in Horana, based on the Rabindranath Tagore’s Santiniketan in 1934. The Sri Palee Trust established by him with his lands, donated to the University of Sri Lanka in his memory in 1974, this later became the Sri Palee Campus of the University of Colombo.
In 1935 he became a founding member of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party, becoming active politics and the Independence movement he was elected to the first post independence parliament in 1947 as a member of the Viplavakari Lanka Sama Samaja Party. Thereafter he was appointed as Ceylonese's first Ambassador to China in 1957 when Ceylon established diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China. In 1961 he was appointed to head the Salaries and Cadres Commission (known thereafter as the Wilmot Perera Commission). Later he donated his Panadura house to the Sri Sumangala Girl School. He was married to Esme Perera Abeywardena.
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by New Post |
Ceylonese Ambassador to China 1957–1960 |
Succeeded by William Gopallawa |
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