Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...
K.A.D. Amal Karunasekara,
RWP,
RSP,
VSV,
USP,
ndu,
psc is a retired senior Sri Lankan army officer who served as 51st
Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army.
Major General (Rtd) Karunasekara is also the first & incumbent Commandant of the
National Defence College, Sri Lanka.
Education
Educated at
Nalanda College Colombo, Karunasekara was a Senior Cadet in the school's
cadet platoon. Having received his basic training at the
Sri Lanka Military Academy, he is a graduate of the
Defence Services Command and Staff College
The Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC) is situated at Batalanda, Makola (South) 12 Kilometers away from Colombo and its aim to develop the professional knowledge and understanding of experienced officers of the Sri Lanka Army, Sri ...
, the
Defence Services Staff College
, motto_lang = sa
, mottoeng = ''To War with Wisdom''
, established = (as the ''Army Staff College'', Deolali)
, type = Defence Service Training Institute
, affiliation =
, endowment =
, administrative_staff =
, faculty =
, pres ...
and the
PLA National Defence University
The People's Liberation Army National Defence University () is a Beijing-based national military university administered by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and funded by the Central Military Commission. The university is the highest milita ...
having studied Defence and Stretegic Studies. He also holds a
MSc in Defence and Strategic Studies from the
University of Madras
The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...
; and a
MSc in Defense Management from
.
Military career
Karunasekara enlisted in the
Sri Lanka Army
ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம்
, image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png
, image_size = 180px
, caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army
, start_date ...
as an
Officer Cadet
Officer Cadet is a rank held by military cadets during their training to become commissioned officers. In the United Kingdom, the rank is also used by members of University Royal Naval Units, University Officer Training Corps and University Ai ...
in 1981, going on to earn his commission as a
Second Lieutenant in the
Sri Lanka Light Infantry
The Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLLI) is the oldest regiment in the Sri Lanka Army and the oldest infantry regiment in the army. It is made up of ten regular battalions and five volunteer battalions, and is headquartered at the Panagoda Cantonment ...
after completing training at the
Sri Lanka Military Academy,
Diyatalawa
Diyatalawa (දියතලාව, meaning “the watered plain”) is a former garrison town in the central highlands of Sri Lanka, in the Badulla District of Uva Province. It is situated at an altitude of and has become a popular destina ...
in 1984.
Over the next 35 years, he would rise through the ranks of the army, holding such key positions as Director Military Intelligence, Director Infantry, Master General of Ordnance Branch, and Military Secretary.
Karunasekara has held both battalion- and brigade-level commands during the
Eelam War, and has commanded the
53 Division during its course.
In addition, he was appointed the commander of the Sri Lankan contingent of the
UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) when first deployed in 2004.
He was the 15th
Colonel of the Regiment
Colonel (Col) is a rank of the British Army and Royal Marines, ranking below brigadier, and above lieutenant colonel. British colonels are not usually field commanders; typically they serve as staff officers between field commands at battalio ...
of the
Sri Lanka Light Infantry
The Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLLI) is the oldest regiment in the Sri Lanka Army and the oldest infantry regiment in the army. It is made up of ten regular battalions and five volunteer battalions, and is headquartered at the Panagoda Cantonment ...
regiment, having occupied this position once temporarily between 2007 and 2009.
He was an instructor at
Diyatalawa
Diyatalawa (දියතලාව, meaning “the watered plain”) is a former garrison town in the central highlands of Sri Lanka, in the Badulla District of Uva Province. It is situated at an altitude of and has become a popular destina ...
and Directing Staff at the
Defence Services Command and Staff College
The Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC) is situated at Batalanda, Makola (South) 12 Kilometers away from Colombo and its aim to develop the professional knowledge and understanding of experienced officers of the Sri Lanka Army, Sri ...
.
Karunasekara was appointed Commander of Security Forces Headquarters- Kilinochchi on 18 October 2015; he was promoted to Chief of Staff of the Army on 22 July 2017, after the promotion of
Mahesh Senanayake
General N.U.M. Mahesh W. Senanayke, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP is a retired Sri Lankan Army officer who served as the Commander of the Sri Lanka Army from 2017 to 2019. Senanayake had previously been the Commander, Security Forces Headquarters – ...
to
Army Commander earlier the same month left the position vacant.
He retired from service on 14 March 2018 with the rank of
Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...
.
Controversy
As commandant of the Sri Lankan contingent of
MINUSTAH
The United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (french: Mission des Nations Unies pour la stabilisation en Haïti), also known as MINUSTAH, an acronym of the French name, was a UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti that was in operation from 2004 ...
since 2004, Karunasekara has been at the center of the
child sexual abuse scandal that troops and officers under his command have been implicated in
On 5 April 2018, he was arrested by the
Sri Lanka Police Criminal Investigation Department
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is the branch of a police force to which most plainclothes detectives belong in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth nations. A force's CID is distinct from its Special Branch (though officers of b ...
on charges of aiding and abetting the abduction and assault on
The Nation
''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper t ...
journalist Keith Noyahr in 2008.
Karunasekara was accused of being part of a group of military intelligence operatives that functioned under the direction of the
Mahinda Rajapakse
Mahinda Rajapaksa ( si, මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ, ta, மஹிந்த ராஜபக்ஷ; born Percy Mahendra Rajapaksa; 18 November 1945) is a Sri Lankan politician. He served as the President of Sri Lanka from 2005 to ...
government between 2006 and 2010.
He is currently under investigation for several related acts of state-sanctioned violence, including the assassination of
Lasantha Wickrematunge
Lasantha Manilal Wickrematunge ( si, ලසන්ත වික්රමතුංග, ta, லசந்த விக்கிரமதுங்க; 5 April 1958 – 8 January 2009) was a high-profile Sri Lankan journalist, politician, br ...
.
Personal life
Karunasekara is married, and has one daughter with his wife Dananjanie.
Having been an avid hockey player at school level, he has represented Sri Lanka at national level in the sport and has gone on to be chairman of the Sri Lanka Army Hockey Committee
51st Army Chief of Staff Assumes Office
/ref>
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karunasekara, Amal
Sri Lankan Buddhists
Alumni of Nalanda College, Colombo
Living people
Sri Lanka Light Infantry officers
Year of birth missing (living people)
Sri Lankan major generals
Sinhalese military personnel