Eelathunathan demise irreparable loss to Tamil nation- Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 January 2005, 16:45 GMT]
The sudden death of Mr.S.Pathmanathan also known as Eelathunathan, President of the Trincomalee district branch of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) and a member of the central working committee of the TULF has come as a great shock to Tamils of the country, said Mr.R.Sampanthan, Secretary General of the TULF and parliamentary group leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in a condolence message issued Saturday.

The funeral of late Mr.Pathmanathan will be held on Sunday afternoon in Trincomalee Hindu cemetery. He passed away in a Colombo hospital Wednesday after a brief illness, family sources said.

"Mr.Eelathunathan's active involvement in Tamil politics spanned a space of over four decades. He was an active member of the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi and also of the TULF. He was committed to the concept of regional autonomy based on the right to internal self-determination in the areas of historical habitation of the Tamil speaking people, the Tamil and Muslim peoples, in the northeast region.

"He actively engaged political work amongst the people. He was in the forefront of any political campaign. He firmly believed that the Tamil speaking had the fundamental right to substantial self-rule based upon their distinctiveness. He strived to promote unit amongst the Tamil and Muslim people. He was convinced that such unity was in the interests of both peoples," Mr.Sampanthan stated in his condolence message.

Trincomalee district parliamentarian Mr.K.Thurairatnasingham also issued a condolence message. He said the sudden demise of Mr.Eelathunathan has removed a dedicated Tamil activist from the northeast Tamil political arena.