LTTE demands SLMM inquiry into academic's murder

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 25 May 2004, 04:26 GMT]
Mr. E. Kausalyan, the political head of the Liberation Tigers in Batticaloa, Tuesday condemned the murder of the Eastern University academic, Mr. Kumaravel Thambaiah, and demanded a full and independent inquiry by the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, sources in the Eastern town said.

The LTTE’s political division has released a public statement condemning the killing and has sent its deepest condolences to the family of Mr. Thambaiah, saying the death of the academic, who worked for the educational, economic and social development of the Tamil society, was an irreparable loss to the Tamil nation.

“The head of the Department of Economics at the Eastern University has been murdered by enemies of the Tamil nation. These anti-national elements, determined to destroy the educational, social and economic development of the Tamil nation, and to weaken the liberation struggle, have murdered Mr.Thambaiah,” said the LTTE statement.

The statement added: “We have asked the SLMM to begin a full inquiry into the killing. Mr. Thambaiah who was fully dedicated to the development of the Batticaloa district was a courageous and concerned advocate for Tamil nationalism. He had a permanent place in the hearts of the Tamil people of Batticaloa. The anti-national forces that could not tolerate this have killed him.”

Meanwhile, the killing of Mr. Thambaiah by unidentified gunmen has shocked and dismayed the Tamil people across the North-East, sources said.

Born in Aasikulam in Vavuniya, Mr. Thambaiah graduated from the University of Jaffna with an honors degree in Economics, and for the past 14 years, he was at the Eastern University. At the time of his killing, in addition to heading the department of Economics, he was also the president of the University teachers’ union.

An academic who was dedicated to the University and teaching, he was admired and held in esteem by other lecturers as well as students. Mr. Thambaiah was also a founding member of the Tamil Renaissance Organization and the Batticaloa Education Development Council. In addition, he had held the position of President of the Batticaloa Multi-Purpose Cooperative Union.

White and black flags were seen at the Eastern University Tuesday to mourn the death of Mr. Thambaiah. Arrangements for his funeral rites have not been finalized.