Richard de Zoysa
| Richard de Zoysa | |
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Born |
18 March 1958 Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| Died | 18 February 1990 (aged 31) Sri Lanka |
| Nationality |
 Sri Lankan
|
Richard Manik de Zoysa (Sinhala:රිචඩ් ද සොයිසා) (18 March 1958– 18 February 1990) was a well-known Sri Lankan journalist, author, human rights activist and actor, who was abducted and murdered on 18 February 1990. His murder caused widespread outrage inside the country, and is widely believed to have been carried out by a death squad linked to elements within the government.
de Zoysa was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He was of mixed ethnicity, his father a majority Sinhalese and mother Dr. Manorani Saravanamuttu, a prominent medical surgeon from the minority Sri Lankan Tamil community. His mother's father, Manicasothy Saravanamuttu, was a prominent journalist and diplomat of Malaya. Educated at S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia, where his acting talents in Sinhala were encouraged by D.S. Jayasekera. He was adjudged Best Actor in the English medium at the nationional inter school, Shakespeare Drama Competition in 1972. He was a member of the Debating Team and Drama Society along with Chanaka Amaratunga.
In 1983, de Zoysa starred in Lester James Peries's film Yuganthaya alongside Gamini Fonseka. The role of socialist Malin Kabalana in the movie closely mirrored de Zoysa's own beliefs.
At the time of his abduction and murder, de Zoysa was the head of the Colombo office of the Inter Press Service He lived in the Welikadawatte housing estate with his mother, Dr. Manorani Saravanamuttu and associate A. V. Karunaratne. In the early morning of 18 February 1990, an armed group broke into their home, and forcibly removed de Zoysa and drove off without explanation.
Saravanamuttu then hastily traveled to the Welikada police station and lodged a complaint. The following day, de Zoysa's lifeless body was dumped on the beach at Moratuwa, some 12 miles south of Colombo. He had been shot in the head and the throat, and his jaw had been broken. His body was identified by his friend Taraki Sivaram, who suffered a similar fate in 2005.
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