Message of Condolence on the passing of Mr. Upali Stanley Jayasekera

The Embassy of Japan expresses its profound sorrow and grief on the demise of Mr. Upali Stanley Jayasekera, who passed away on November 27, 2019. In respect of the late Jayasekera’s contribution in promoting friendship and mutual understanding between Sri Lanka and Japan, H.E Sugiyama Akira, Ambassador of Japan to Sri Lanka, attended the last rites at a funeral parlor in Colombo.

To honour his great contribution, Ambassador Sugiyama formally conferred “the Order of the Rising Sun, Silver Rays” upon Mr. Jayasekera on behalf of His Majesty the Emperor on Tuesday, 26^th November 2019 at Mr. Jayasekera’s residence in Colombo, in the presence of his family members. The news of his demise came the very next morning.

Mr. Jayasekera, a former Deputy Postmaster General of Postal Services, was associated with the Government of Japan through the participation of an executive seminar conducted by JICA under patronage of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications in 1987. His active involvement with Japan commenced after retirement in 1991 where he was appointed as the Secretary of JICA Alumni Association of Sri Lanka in 1998 and subsequently as the Chairman of the Sasakawa Memorial Sri Lanka- Japan Cultural Centre Trust in 2014.

In his capacity as the Secretary of JICA Alumni Association and the Chairman of the Sasakawa Memorial Trust, Mr. Jayasekera for over three decades made concerted efforts to deepening the understanding of Japan and strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries through numerous fund raising activities, cultural events, lectures and seminars. This provided an array of opportunities for interaction among people from both Sri Lanka and Japan, thus cementing friendly ties between the two nations. Mr. Jayasekera also spearheaded many welfare-promoting-activities such as health camps and blood donation programmes in the outskirts of Colombo, which also contributed to bringing people from all walks of life closer to the culture of Japan. Mr. Jayasekera’s demise is a great loss both to Sri Lanka and Japan.

May he attain the supreme bliss of Nibbana.