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Sri Lanka The United National Party Returns to Power
After Dudley Senanayake died in 1973, a struggle for the
leadership of the UNP ensued between his nephew, Rukman
Senanayake, and Junius Richard (J.R.) Jayewardene, a more distant
relative. Jayewardene had been involved in politics for years,
having been elected to the State Council, the parliament's
colonial predecessor, as early as 1943. A leader of the UNP since
independence, Jayewardene had deferred to the Senanayake family.
But in 1970, when the UNP suffered a resounding defeat to the
United Front, Jayewardene became more assertive. His party
manifesto--The UNP in Opposition, 1970--contended that the
majority of Sri Lankans perceived the party as the party of the
"haves, the affluent, and the employers." He also contended that
the people had come to perceive the SLFP as the party of the
"have nots, the needy, and the unemployed." Jayewardene moved
forcefully to refurbish UNP's image and announced that the party
would inaugurate an era of a just and righteous
(dharmishta) society. After becoming president of the
party, Jayewardene began to restructure the UNP and make the
party more attractive, especially to young people. By the time of
the general election of 1977, Jayewardene had developed an
extensive grass roots party organization.
Data as of October 1988
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