Vivienne Goonewardene
Violet Vivienne Goonewardene, was a prominent Sri Lankan socialist, independence activist, feminist, Member of Parliament and Shadow-Cabinet Minister. Her ideas were shaped during the ‘Golden age’ of the Sri Lankan Left, and she was, in turn, one of its more colourful personalities. She was also one of the main contributors to the Lanka Sama Samaja Party. She became one of the world's first female ministers and for her struggle to gain independence for Sri Lanka, was made a National Hero of Sri Lanka
Born into an aristocratic family, Goonewardene was educated in English-medium schools, but remained a Buddhist and spoke Sinhala and Hindi as well as English. During her time at school, and later on graduating, she continued her struggle for independence from the British colonialists. While Goonewardene was fighting for independence, she and her husband, fled to India where they formed the Bolshevik–Leninist Party of India, Ceylon and Burma, and she was an active member of the Quit India Movement, her work abroad led to the Independence of India in 1947 from Britain. When back in Sri Lanka, Goonewardene attempted to reform the former British Colony of Ceylon into a socialist republic by reforming industry, trade and the economic system.
She was a member of the municipal council of Colombo from 1950, and was elected to parliament three times: she represented Colombo North from 1956 to 1960, Borella in 1964–1965, and Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia from 1970 to 1977. She was married to Leslie Goonewardene, one of the founders of the Marxist Lanka Sama Samaja Party; Philip Gunawardena was her uncle.
