QUEEN ELIZABETH II 2021 NEW YEAR HONOURS LIST INCLUDES SEVERAL BRITISH-SRI LANKANS – BY UPALI OBEYESEKERE
Source: The Sri Lankan Anchorman
The British Honors’ System is steeped in tradition and decorum. Throughout history, monarchs have rewarded those who have shown service, loyalty or gallantry with gifts or titles. After medieval times, physical gifts such as land or money were replaced by the awarding of knighthoods and of membership within Orders of chivalry, accompanied by insignia such as gold or silver chains. As ‘fountain of honour’ in the UK, The Queen has the sole right of conferring titles of honour on deserving people from all walks of life, in public recognition of their merit, service or bravery. The most well-known honours are probably MBEs, OBEs, and CBEs, but there are a whole range of other honours that The Queen awards in addition to these, such as The Order of Merit, or The Order of St Michael and St George. Recipients collect their awards from The Queen or another Member of the Royal Family at an Investiture ceremony.
Honours recipients are announced twice a year, once in the New Year’s Honours List, and once on The Queen’s official birthday. The five classes of both civil and military divisions, listed in descending order and conferred on men and women equally, are Knight and Dame Grand Cross (GBE), Knight and Dame Commander (KBE and DBE, respectively, Commander (CBE), Officer (OBE), and Member (MBE). Commander of the Order of the British Empire, the CBE is the highest-ranking Order of the British Empire award (excluding a knighthood/damehood), followed by OBE and then MBE.
The UK New Year Honours List 2021 was published to commemorate the contributions made by people of all backgrounds across the UK, including British Asians to British society. For the New Year Honours, a total of 1,239 people have been recognised for their contributions. 1,123 were selected at BEM, MBE, and OBE level, 397 at BEM, 476 at MBE and 250 at OBE. Of the total, 14,2% of successful candidates come from a BAME background, making the 2021 Honours List the most diverse ever.
A bit of history retold here. It may interest our readers to know that Lady Catherine de Soysa was the first Ceylonese (Sri Lankan) to be knighted way back in the 19th Century, in 1892. The story goes like this. Charles Henry de Soysa (1836-1890) would have been the island’s first Knight Bachelor, but having died prior, his widow was given the rare honour of the use of the style and dignity of Widow of the Knight Bachelor and was known as Lady Catherine de Soysa. CH de Soysa was made a Knight Bachelor posthumously, a first in Ceylon; the rank title of Widow of Knight Bachelor was conferred by Royal Warrant on Catherine, Lady de Soysa by Empress Victoria on 22 January 1892.
Coming back to the present – 129 years later, several British-Sri Lankans have been enlisted in the Queen’s 2021 New Year honours list which recognizes the outstanding achievements of people across the United Kingdom (UK).
This recognition is yet another illustration of first, second or third generation British-Sri Lankans making an indelible mark with their commitment to excellence in whatever profession or work type they are engaged in. As Sri Lankan expatriates, we extend our warmest congratulations to all the recipients of 2021 Queen’s Honours. The Queen’s New Year’s Honors List highlights the achievements made by people across the UK in different sectors including sport, the arts, and media, education, health, and science. “Congratulations, we are proud of you. May you go from strength to strength.”
HERE BELOW ARE THE BRITISH-SRI LANKANS HONORED IN THE QUEEN’S 2021 NEW YEAR’S HONORS LIST.
Professor Ravi Silva, Director of the Advanced Technology Institute, University of Surrey earned a CBE for his outstanding services and global contributions to Science, Education, and Research over the last 30 years. Prof. Silva has conducted major research activities in China, India, Sri Lanka, and the UK.
Dr. Shikandhini Kanagasundrem was recognized for outstanding services in Microbiology and Infection Prevention & Control, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.K.
Professor Mohan Edirisinghe was granted the OBE and now holds the Bonfield Chair of Biomaterials in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at University College London (UCL). He has been in the frontline of advancing new methods to manufacture modern materials, especially in healthcare. His invention for producing micro-bubbles and nanoparticles has established new methods of manufacturing drug delivery systems.
Professor Ramani Moonesinghe is a professor of Perioperative Medicine and Consultant Anaesthetist at the University College London. She receives the OBE for services to Anaesthesia, Perioperative, and Critical Care. She was the clinical lead for the national critical care response to the COVID-19 pandemic in her NHS England role.
Gajan Wallooppillai, a former Conservative councillor in Richmond earned the OBE for services to Equality and Community Cohesion. Former Royal Borough of Kingston-Upon-Thames local councillor, he currently serves as the Special Advisor to the Conservative Party Chairman and the party’s International Secretary.
Mohamed Hazrath Haleem Ossman received the OBE for services to the Sri Lankan community in the U.K.
Standing for Commander of the British Empire, the CBE is the highest-ranking Order of the British Empire award (excluding a knighthood/damehood). The order was established in June 1917. The CBE is awarded to individuals for having a prominent role at national level, or a leading role at regional level.
Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)
Professor Ravi Silva received the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Professor Ravi Silva, Director, Advanced Technology Institute, University of Surrey receives a CBE for his outstanding services to Science, Education and Research over the last three decades, with contributions that extend around the world. The CBE is awarded to individuals for having a prominent role at national level, or a leading role at regional level.
Prof. Silva has conducted major research activities in China, India, Sri Lanka, and the UK. They have helped to elevate research and the translation of research into useful national products. He has also helped set up one of the largest carbon nanotechnology laboratories at Surrey, and his research into energy materials will play a key role in next generation solar cells and energy storage, the University of Surrey website states.
He has won numerous international awards including the Albert Einstein Silver Medal and Javed Husain Prize by UNESCO (2003), and the Institute of Physics James Joule Medal and Prize (2018) for contributions to sustainable energy research. He is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences Sri Lanka.
MBE – Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire: What is an MBE? Standing for Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, an MBE is the third highest ranking Order of the British Empire award system.
Dr. Shikandhini Kanagasundrem (known by her maiden/professional name Dr. ‘Shico’ Visuvanathan), has been recognized in the Queen’s 2021 New Year Honours list with an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire), for outstanding services in Microbiology and Infection Prevention and Control, particularly during the coronavirus pandemic in the U.K. Dr. Visuvanathan studied Medicine at The Middlesex Hospital Medical School, London.
She went on to specialize in Medical Microbiology at University College Hospital London, and completed her MD (Doctor of Medicine), MSc in Clinical Microbiology, and FRCPath (Fellowship of the Royal College of Pathologists). With the support of the Infection Prevention and Control team, Dr. Visuvanathan has led and controlled the Hospital’s response to many infection challenges.
Dr. Visuvanathan has worked at The Princess Alexandra Hospital Trust (PAHT), Essex, UK, as a Consultant Microbiologist since 1994, and became the first Director of Infection Prevention and Control at the hospital in 2003.
She was an outstanding student winning many prizes including The Sidney Kaye prize in Physiology, The Charlotte Dixon Memorial Prize in Neurology, The Peter Flintan prize in Clinical Pharmacology and Anesthetics, The Meyerstein Scholarship, The Allen Goldsmith prize in Ophthalmology, The Kingston Fowler Prize in Pathology, and the Harold Boldero Scholarship in Medicine. Dr. Visuvanathan graduated as the first Broderip Scholar of the Middlesex Hospital Medical School and was awarded the William Henry Rean Dean’s Prize for the Most Promising Young Doctor in the medical school in 1983. Dr. Visuvanathan is a Past Pupil of St Bridget’s Convent, Colombo and then went to UK for further studies.
Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)
Prof. Mohan Jayantha Edirisinghe who was conferred the OBE holds the Bonfield Chair of Biomaterials in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at University College London (UCL). Prof. Edirisinghe has been in the forefront of developing new methods to manufacture advanced materials, particularly in healthcare. His patented technology for producing micro-bubbles and nanoparticles has enabled the manufacture of whole new drug delivery systems, the UCL website states.
Mohan Edirisinghe and his team carry out internationally leading research in novel processing and innovative forming of advanced functional materials, especially biomaterials. This work has created numerous seminal engineering outcomes generating an enormous impact on the global status-quo of manufacturing, causing a paradigm shift in newer disciplines crucial to the betterment of life, particularly biomedical engineering. This research has won a record number of grants, prestigious prizes and numerous scholars from many countries work in his laboratory.
Prof. Edirisinghe has won many awards including the Royal Society Brian Mercer (Innovation) Feasibility Award a record three times, the Royal Academy of Engineering Armourers & Brasiers prize for excellence in Materials Engineering in 2017 and the Premier IOM3 Chapman Medal for his distinguished research in the field of biomedical materials. He was elected as a Fellow of The Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK and in 2020, as a Fellow of the European Academy of Sciences.
Professor Ramani Moonesinghe is a professor of Perioperative Medicine and Consultant Anaesthetist at the University College London. She receives the OBE for services to Anaesthesia, Perioperative, and Critical Care. She was the clinical lead for the national critical care response to the COVID-19 pandemic in her NHS England role. Prof. Moonesinghe was the clinical lead for the national critical care response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She is Head of the Centre for Perioperative Medicine and Head of the Department of Targeted Intervention, both at UCL. She is also the NHS England/NHS Improvement’s National Clinical Director for Critical Care and an honorary Consultant Anaesthetist at University College London Hospitals NHS Trust, the UCL website states.
Professor Moonesinghe has been a Board Member of the National Institute for Academic Anaesthesia (NIAA) since 2009 and was the NIAA’s academic training advisor between 2012 and 2016; she was also the academic Training Programme Director for the London Academy of Anaesthesia for 5 years. She was a Council Member of the RCoA from 2008-2012. She was the local NIHR clinical research network lead for Anaesthesia, Perioperative Medicine and Pain in North Thames (2015-2017) and remains on the NIHR’s national specialty group representing the HSRC. In 2016, she was appointed as Associate National Clinical Director for Elective Care at NHS England, and in 2019 became transferred from this into a new role of National Specialty Advisor for Perioperative Care.
Gajan Lavan Wallooppillai is the International Secretary of the world’s oldest political party, receives the honour of Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire – OBE for services to Equality and to Community Cohesion. Wallooppillai, a former Conservative councilor in Richmond receives the OBE for services to Equality and Community Cohesion. A former local councilor in the Royal Borough of Kingston-Upon-Thames, he is currently a Special Advisor to the Conservative Party Chairman and the party’s International Secretary.
Gajan started his career working for Conservative Party grandee and former Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind. After his advice, Gajan continued his further education at the University of Oxford studying Indian Economics under the world-famous Professor Kate Sullivan de Estrada. He had a glittering career in Local Government in London becoming Deputy Leader of Kingston Council. Leading their campaign for victory in 2014 making them the only Conservative gained London borough for Mayor Boris Johnson and Prime Minister Cameron. He went one to serve at the heart of the Party under Prime Ministers Cameron, May and now Johnson.
The Wallooppillai Family is one of the old Tamil families and is a household name in Colombo after the famous Dr Wallooppillai, Sri Lanka’s leading cardiologist.
Mohamed Hazrath Haleem Ossman receives the OBE for services to the Sri Lankan community in the UK (London, Greater London). An old boy of S. Thomas College, he is an accountant by profession with businesses in the UK and Sri Lanka and an active member of the Sri Lanka Islamic (UK) Association.
These honorary titles are awarded to these individuals in recognition for their commitment to serve and help Britain in their areas of work and services. The Asian recipients of these awards have proved their specific dedication without a doubt to their contributions. The Sri Lankan Anchorman congratulates all recipients on the New Year Honours List 2021!
In November 2020, the Government of United Kingdom appointed a British-Sri Lankan to the high position of Governor of Anguilla, an island in eastern Caribbean Sea which is a British Overseas Territory.
Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam has been appointed Governor of Anguilla in succession to Mr. Tim Foy OBE. The newly appointed governor will take up her appointment in January 2021. Anguilla is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, a British overseas Territory.
Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam is a British-Sri Lankan and her appointment was announced by the Government of the United Kingdom. The total land area of Anguilla is 35 sq miles and it has a population of 18,090. Selvaratnam has extensive experience in the government with her previous roles at the UK Department of Business and the Ministry of Justice. She received her Master of Laws (LLM), Public International Law from the University of London. Selvaratnam was called to the Bar of England & Wales in 1999. She earned her Master of Laws (LLM) in Public International Law from the University of London. She worked as Policy Advisor for the department of Constitutional Affairs from 2004-2007.
She was Private Secretary to the Minister of State for Justice from 2007-2010. She held high profile jobs in the Ministry of Justice from 2011-2015. Moving from Justice department to Busines, Energy and Industrial Strategy department she was director of Strategy and Change. Her last posting was in the Cabinet Office – Director, Grenfell Tower Independent Public Inquiry.
The governor’s parents, Vasantha and Arulampalam Selvaratnam live in the U.K. while her grandparents and rest of the family are domiciled in Mitcham, Victoria, Australia.
This article is the second in an ongoing series where this writer will share news of “People on The Move”, focusing on Sri Lankan expatriates who have excelled and gained recognition in their adopted countries.
