8th Parliament of Sri Lanka
| 8th Parliament of Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||
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The New Parliament building at Kotte | |||||||||||||||||
| Overview | |||||||||||||||||
| Legislative body | Parliament of Sri Lanka | ||||||||||||||||
| Term | 04 August 1977 – 20 December 1988 | ||||||||||||||||
| Election | 21 July 1977 | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior parliamentarians | |||||||||||||||||
| Speaker | Anandatissa de Alwis, UNP (1977–78) Abdul Bakeer Markar, UNP (1978–83) E. L. Senanayake, UNP (1983–88) | ||||||||||||||||
| Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees | M. A. Bakeer Markar, UNP (1977–78) Norman Waidyaratne, UNP (1978–88) | ||||||||||||||||
| Deputy Chairman of Committees | Edmund Samarawickrema, UNP | ||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | J. R. Jayewardene, UNP (1977–78) Ranasinghe Premadasa, UNP (1978–89) | ||||||||||||||||
| Leader of the Opposition | A. Amirthalingam, TULF (1977–83) Anura Bandaranaike, SLFP (1983–88) | ||||||||||||||||
| Leader of the House | Ranasinghe Premadasa, UNP (1977–88) Ranil Wickremesinghe, UNP (1989) | ||||||||||||||||
| Chief Government Whip | Vincent Perera, UNP | ||||||||||||||||
| Chief Opposition Whip | X. M. Sellathambu, TULF (1977–83) Lakshman Jayakody, SLFP (1983–89) | ||||||||||||||||
| Structure | |||||||||||||||||
| Sessions | |||||||||||||||||
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The 8th Parliament of Sri Lanka, known officially as the 1st Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, was a meeting of the Parliament of Sri Lanka, with the membership determined by the results of the 1977 parliamentary election held on 21 July 1977 and first convened on 4 August 1977. It remained in session until its dissolution on 20 December 1988, making it the longest-serving Parliament in Sri Lankan history.
Dominated by the United National Party (UNP) under the leadership of J.R. Jayewardene, this Parliament is widely regarded as one of the most influential in the country’s political history. It oversaw the transition from a Westminster-style parliamentary democracy to an Executive presidential system with the adoption of the Second Republican Constitution in 1978, and it played a central role in shaping Sri Lanka’s modern political and constitutional framework. Because of its unprecedented longevity consisting of Eight Parliamentary sessions and far-reaching impact, some historians refer to it as the "Long Parliament" of Sri Lanka.
At the 1977 general election, the United National Party (UNP) led by J.R. Jayewardene achieved a historic landslide victory, winning 140 out of 168 seats, thereby securing a supermajority of 5⁄6 seats in Parliament. Following the election, Jayewardene was appointed Prime Minister, and using the overwhelming parliamentary majority, his government passed the Second Amendment to the 1972 Constitution, which enabled him to assume office as Sri Lanka’s first Executive President on 4 February 1978, marking a pivotal shift in the nation’s system of governance.
In 1982, the Parliament’s term, originally set to expire in 1983, was extended by six more years through a national referendum held on 22 December 1982. This was the first and only referendum of its kind in Sri Lanka’s history, and it allowed the existing Parliament to continue without holding a general election. The move, initiated by President J.R. Jayewardene and backed by the UNP’s supermajority, was widely debated and criticized by opposition parties and civil society groups, who viewed it as a blow to democratic norms.