Thelmuth Harris Wilhelm Woutersz (19 July 1939 - 16 November 2003) was a prominent Sri Lankan diplomat and civil servant, who served as the Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka. He had served as Sri Lankan Ambassador to

People’s Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

Education

Wilhelm Woutersz was educated at the

Royal College Colombo Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in Janu ...

. He then pursued further studies at the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya graduating in 1961 with

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

in English literature, western classics and European history.

Diplomatic career

For a short while after graduating, he joined the tutorial staff of S. Thomas' College, Mt Lavinia before joining the Ceylon Civil Service in 1962 and transferred to the Ceylon Overseas Service in 1965. After joining the Foreign Service he served in India, Germany, Pakistan and Bangladesh before being appointed Ambassador to Yugoslavia (1986–1991) where he was the

Dean of the Diplomatic Corps The diplomatic corps (french: corps diplomatique) is the collective body of foreign diplomats accredited to a particular country or body. The diplomatic corps may, in certain contexts, refer to the collection of accredited heads of mission (amb ...

. Thereafter he was posted as ambassador to the People’s Republic of China (1993–1997) with concurrent accreditation as ambassador to

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

. Having served as director of various divisions and a Director General in the Foreign Ministry, he was appointed to the post of Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (known as Foreign Secretary) in 1997 and held the post till 1999, in this capacity he served as the head of the Foreign Service. In 1999 he was sent as Sri Lanka’s ambassador in Italy and the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

and was concurrently ambassador to

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

and high commissioner to

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

and

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

. During his tenure he had been Sri Lanka’s accredited

permanent representative A permanent representative is a diplomat who is the head of a country’s diplomatic mission to an international organisation. Organizations that receive permanent representatives from their member states include the United Nations, the World Tr ...

to the UN’s

Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...

(FAO), the

World Food Programme The World Food Programme; it, Programma alimentare mondiale; es, Programa Mundial de Alimentos; ar, برنامج الأغذية العالمي, translit=barnamaj al'aghdhiat alealami; russian: Всемирная продовольствен� ...

(WFP), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and had served as the chairman of the Group of 77 (G77) Conference as chairman of the Rome Chapter from 1999 to 2002. In 2003 upon his return after completing his tenure, he retired from the Foreign Service. Wilhelm would serve as president of the

Dutch Burgher Union of Ceylon The Dutch Burgher Union of Ceylon (abbreviated as: DBUC; ), known commonly as the Dutch Burgher Union (DBU), is an organisation of Dutch Burghers in Sri Lanka. It was established on 18 January 1908 by Richard Gerald Anthonisz. History On 12 ...

until suffering from a debilitating stroke and tragic death with his loving wife Desiree Frederick Rita Hills at his bedside. For those who were fortunate to have the rare honor to have known Wilhelm would know what it was to bask in his generosity, compassion and enjoy his intellectual wit. He is fondly remembered and forever missed.

External links

Wilhelm Woutersz, Dutch Burgher Union President BY J. B. Muller

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woutersz, Wilhelm 1939 births 2003 deaths Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Alumni of the University of Ceylon (Peradeniya) Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to China Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Greece Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Italy Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Mongolia Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to the Holy See Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Yugoslavia Burgher people Sri Lankan civil servants Burgher educators High Commissioners of Sri Lanka to Cyprus High Commissioners of Sri Lanka to Malta People associated with S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia Permanent secretaries of Sri Lanka Representatives of Sri Lanka to the Food and Agriculture Organization Sri Lankan Christians World Food Programme people Sri Lankan officials of the United Nations Sri Lankan expatriates in India