A Great Man in Tamil History

Written by: Gayathiri Sivakumar

Today, December 14th marks the  remembrance anniversary of political activist, and chief strategist Anton Balasingham. He passed away from bile duct cancer (cholangiocarcinoma) in 2006. He holds a special place in the hearts of Tamils, who refer to him as Bala Anna.

Bala Anna was the internationally recognized face of the Tamil Nation, he was seen as the voice of the nation.

He was born in Jaffna in 1938.

As a student, in the early 1960s, he served as a sub-editor for Virakesari, a Colombo based Tamil newspaper. There, he began to read a lot, and became quite aware and interested in political thought. To further his studies, he moved to London. There, he completed his Masters of Arts at the London South Bank Polytechnic, presented his thesis on the Politics of Marxism. While he began his Ph.D program under John Taylor, he was unable to continue it for he felt he would be better serving the Tamil people.

In 1978, he married an Australian nurse, Adele Ann Wilby, who became his supporter and partner in the struggle for Tamil independance. She has also written books about the Tamil journey for independence, including “The Will to Freedom,” “The Politics of Duplicity,” and “Women and Revolution.” In her book “The Will to Freedom” she reflects on her husband, Mr.Balasingam as such, “I married the collective consciousness and history of a people, a man who embodied the Tamil psyche with all its strengths and weaknesses, greatness and failings,” (2001).

Bala Anna served as Chief Negotiator, and led many delegations and peace talks, from Thimpu in 1985 to Geneva in 2006.

Even while suffering from cancer, Bala Anna, was concerned with the Tamil nation and Tamil people. He was deeply saddened of the oppression of the Tamil people, and remarked a few weeks before his passing, “It is an unfortunate personal tragedy. However, when compared to the vast ocean of the collective tragedy faced by my people, my illness is merely a pebble. I am deeply sad that I am crippled by this illness, unable to contribute anything substantial towards the alleviation of the immense suffering and oppression of my people.”

Bibliography:

Gardiner, B. (2, January 2007). Anton Balasingham: Chief Negotiator for the Tamil Tigers. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2007/jan/02/guardianobituaries.world

N.A. (14 December 2006). Anton Balasingam passes away. Tamilnet. Retrieved from http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=20610

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