Ernest Corea (1932–11 May 2017) was a

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

n journalist and a diplomat noted for his work to maintain a free and independent press and for negotiations involving Sri Lanka's development programs.

Early life

Corea was born in 1932 in

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. His parents were Reverend Ivan Corea and Ouida Corea. His brother, Vernon, was a pioneering broadcaster with

Radio Ceylon Radio Ceylon ( si, ලංකා ගුවන් විදුලි සේවය ''Lanka Guwan Viduli Sevaya'', ta, இலங்கை வானொலி, ''ilankai vanoli'') is a radio station based in Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) and the first ...

/SLBC and Ethnic Minorities Adviser to the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

. His father was Rural Dean of Colombo in the Church of Ceylon, Vicar of

St. Luke's Church Borella St Luke's Church is situated in the Borella district of Colombo, the commercial capital of Sri Lanka. The church plays an important role within the history of the Church Missionary Society (CMS) on the island and is prominent within the Anglican ...

and St. Paul's Church, Milagiriya. His family hailed from the west coast town of

Chilaw Chilaw ( si, හලාවත, translit=Halāvata, ta, சிலாபம், translit=Cilāpam) is a large town in Puttalam District, North Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is governed by an urban council. The town is located 80 kilometres away ...

in Sri Lanka and were direct descendants of King

Dominicus Corea Dominicus Corea (Sinhalese family name Edirille Bandara) also known as Domingos Corea and Edirille Rala, was the son of Don Jeronimo Corea and Anna Corea. Don Jeronimo Corea was also known as Mudaliyar Vikramasinha, Commander-in-Chief of King May ...

, also known as Edirille Rala who was crowned King of Kotte and Sitawaka in 1596. Corea was educated at the

Royal College, Colombo Royal College, Colombo is a Single-sex education, selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academ ...

and the

University of Peradeniya The University of Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ta, பேராதனைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is a public university in Sri Lanka, funded by the University ...

Media

He was a journalist with the Lake House Group in Colombo, rising to the top as Editor of the '' Ceylon Daily News'' and '' The Ceylon Observer''. Corea was appointed Features Editor and a Foreign Affairs Columnist at the Singapore Straits Times in the 1970s.

Diplomat

In April 1982 he was appointed Sri Lanka's High Commissioner in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

and served as Sri Lanka's

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

and

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

. Corea presented his credentials to U.S. President Ronald Reagan at the White House, in Washington D.C. He spearheaded the first ever State Visit to the United States of a Sri Lankan Head of State when President

Junius Richard Jayewardene Junius Richard Jayewardene ( si, ජුනියස් රිචඩ් ජයවර්ධන, ta, ஜூனியஸ் ரிச்சட் ஜயவர்தனா; 17 September 1906 – 1 November 1996), commonly abbreviated in Sri Lanka as ...

was invited to the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington, D.C., NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. preside ...

by President Reagan in 1984. When he left the diplomatic service he joined the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

in Washington D.C. as a consultant. After retirement, he worked for ''IDN-InDepthNews'' and the Berlin-based Global Cooperation Council. He died on 11 May 2017 at his home in Springfield, Virginia, USA.

References

External links

The veterans were from Lake House
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corea, Ernest Sri Lankan journalists Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to the United States Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Cuba Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to Mexico High Commissioners of Sri Lanka to Canada

Ernest Ernest is a given name derived from Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious". Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People * Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), son of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor *Ernest, ...

1932 births 2017 deaths

Early life

Media

Diplomat

See also

References

External links