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Anton Stanislaus Balasingham (March 4 1938 – December 14 2006) was the chief political strategist and chief negotiator of the separatist militant group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. He was a British citizen of minority Tamil origin from Sri Lanka.

Biography

He was born in Jaffna on the 4th of March in the minority Sri Lankan Tamil dominated Northern Province of Sri Lanka. His father was a Hindu and mother a Roman Catholic. His father also hailed from Eastern province where as his mother was a native Jaffna Tamil. Although brought up a Christian, he became an atheist in his adult life.

v t e Sri Lankan civil war (1983–2009)
Origins	Sri Lankan Tamil nationalism Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism Sinhala Only Act 1956 1958 Vaddukoddai Resolution 1977 1981 Burning of Jaffna Library Black July
Combatants	Sri Lanka Army (LRRP) Navy Air Force Police Special Task Force Home Guards Attacks on civilians Assassinations LTTE Divisions Air Tigers Sea Tigers Black Tigers Attacks in the 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s Assassinations Suicide bombings Other militants (list) ENDLF ENLF EPRLF EROS PLOTE TELO  India Indian Peace Keeping Force Paramilitary groups EPDP TMVP
Phases	Eelam War I Indian intervention Eelam War II III IV Eastern / Northern theatres
Major battles	Kokkilai Vadamarachchi Poomalai Pawan Jaffna University Helidrop Balavegaya 1st Elephant Pass Pooneryn Riviresa 1st Mullaitivu Weli Oya Sath Jaya Vavunathivu Jayasikurui Thandikulam–Omanthai 1st Kilinochchi Oddusuddan A-9 highway 2nd Elephant Pass Bandaranaike Airport attack Point Pedro Jaffna Thoppigala Vidattaltivu 2nd Kilinochchi 2nd Mullaitivu Puthukkudiyirippu
Major events	Air Lanka Flight 512 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord Expulsions from Northern province Assassination of Lalith Athulathmudali Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi Assassination of Ranasinghe Premadasa Temple of the Tooth attack Lionair Flight 602 Bandaranaike Airport attack Expulsions from Colombo 2009 suicide air raid on Colombo
Leaders	Sri Lanka Military Army Tissa Weeratunga Nalin Seneviratne Hamilton Wanasinghe Cecil Waidyaratne G. H. De Silva Rohan Daluwatte Srilal Weerasooriya L. P. Balagalle Shantha Kottegoda Sarath Fonseka Navy Asoka de Silva H. A. Silva Clancy Fernando D. A. M. R. Samarasekara H. C. A. C. Thisera Daya Sandagiri Wasantha Karannagoda Air Force Dick Perera Andibuduge Fernando Makalandage Gunawardena Oliver Ranasinghe Jayalath Weerakkody Donald Perera Roshan Goonetileke Civilian J. R. Jayewardene Ranasinghe Premadasa Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Chandrika Kumaratunga Mahinda Rajapaksa LTTE Militant Velupillai Prabhakaran Pottu Amman Soosai Karuna Amman Political Selvarasa Pathmanathan Anton Balasingham S. P. Thamilselvan India Military Harkirat Singh Ashok K. Mehta Kulwant Singh Depinder Singh Dalvir Singh Krishnaswamy Sundarji Civilian R. Venkataraman Rajiv Gandhi V. P. Singh Jyotindra Nath Dixit J. Jayalalithaa M. Karunanidhi Vaiko
Aftermath	Genocide Films NPC resolution LLRC Reactions (Protests) Remembrance Day UN Panel on Accountability War crimes Chemical weapons
Related topics	Casualties Assassinations Massacres Child soldiers Disappearances Office on Missing Persons Human rights Popular culture Terrorism Non-state State PTA Sexual violence Sixth Amendment Thirteenth Amendment 1988 Maldives coup attempt 1987–1989 JVP insurrection
Sri Lankan civil war at Wiktionary    Source texts at Wikisource    Textbooks at Wikibooks   Images and media at the Commons    Quotations at Wikiquote    News stories at Wikinews

Career

After his graduation from school in Jaffna, he worked as a journalist in a Colombo newspaper and as a translator at the British High Commission in Colombo. Balasingham was initially married to a Sri Lankan Tamil. After she died due to the complications of chronic renal failure, he married Adele Ann Wilby in London, UK, in 1978. Adele, an Australian citizen and a nurse by professional training, became a prominent member of the women’s wing of the LTTE.

In the past, Adele herself has been involved in the peace talks, as the secretary of the LTTE delegation. In April 2002, Anton Balasingaham appeared alongside LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran in a rare press conference in the LTTE held town of Kilinochchi in Sri Lanka.

From the Thimphu talks in 1985 to the first round of the Geneva talks held on February 22-23, 2006 Balasingham was the head of the LTTE delegation in all the peace negotiations with the government of Sri Lanka. But he could not participate in an October round because of ill health and few months after, In November 2006, Balasingham was diagnosed with cancer. He was suffered from diabetes, Motor Neurone Disease, a degenerative disease of the nervous system, and possibly medicine-induced bile duct cancer..

Death and funeral

He died due to terminal cancer on December 14, 2006.

An eloborate funeral was organized at Alexandra Palace in north London. Many Expatriate Tamils and others from London and from places such as Switzerland, France, Canada, US, Australia, Norway and Germany came by coaches and planes to pay pay their last respect to Anton Balasingham.

His casket was placed at the front of the Palace’s Great Hall and was escorted in by an honour guard, white gloved and dressed in black suits. After a brief initial ceremony, where many activists around the world participated by placing flower petals on Balasingham’s body, followed by a long line of families with children, youth and older people and distinguished personalities.

While paying respects, many were seen to weep openly, others prayed and some lifted their young children so they also could place petals. Community organizations from across the world had sent representatives and they placed dozens of wreaths and bouquets alongside the casket. Balasingham was cremated shortly afterwards at a private ceremony. .

According to the pro-Sri Lankan government Asian Tribune, posters condemning the funeral extravaganza for Anton Balasingham were seen pasted all over Britain. The posters written in Tamil were critical of the renting of the Palace's Great Hall at the cost of 8 millions of Sri Lankan rupees by the LTTE for the final funeral rites, while they cited that people in the north and east of Sri Lanka were facing possible death due to starvation.

Reactions

LTTE

Rebel leader Vellupillai Prabhakaran said in a rare emotional statements that

The light of our nation is extinguished, there is no Bala with me today to seek counsel and solace.

and that:

His death comes at a time when we needed him most, as our freedom struggle intensifies. I cannot find words to express my grief and loss.

Government of Sri Lanka

The Ministry of Defence of Sri Lanka commented

His life long achievement is considered to be his ability to manipulate peace negotiations and postpone them indefinitely under various ruses until his movement could raise enough funds from the Tamil Diaspora and rearm the Tamil Tiger cadres strong enough to face the Sri Lanka army.

.

State Government of Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Karunanidhi who in his condolence message had stated

I am unable to bear the sorrow over the death of my friend Mr Anton Balasingham, who I have known for many years.

According to the pro-Sri Lankan government Asian Tribune, he was criticised by Dr. Subramanian Swamy a prominent Indian politician who is a staunch critic of the LTTE who claimed

Balasingham was a terrorist who at least once has publicly and arrogantly relished the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. In 1995 he had warned the then President of Sri Lanka, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga that she would face the same fate as Rajiv Gandhi if she confronted the LTTE.

.

International Media

Priyath Liyanage the Editor of BBC Sinhala service wrote that Balasingham's death is a loss to both sides of the Sri Lankan civil war. He credited Balasingam as the only moderating force within an otherwise belligerent rebel group and the only man within the group that could criticize and influence the leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. He added that Balasingam was known for his relentless attempts to bring the Tigers to the international negotiating arena. It was mainly due to his perseverance that the Tigers acquired a reputation as a progressive organization among certain liberals in the west.

He also credited Balasingam with bringing the attention of the world to a forgotten war in this small island nation. Although Balasingham was plagued with physical ailments he valiantly attended all the peace talks. According to Liyanage, Balasingam’s death will be a blow not only to the Tamil Tigers but also to many in the south of the country as he provided a thread of hope for a peaceful resolution to the seemingly intractable and escalating conflict of Sri Lanka. .

References

1. "Anton Balasingham afflicted by rare cancer". TamilNet. Retrieved 2006-11-26.
2. "Ceasefire Talks". Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process. Retrieved 2006-11-26.
3. "Anton Balasingham – will he or will he not lead LTTE delegation to Geneva talks?". Asiantribune. Retrieved 2006-11-26.
4. "Thousands show up for funeral for Anton Balasingham". Tamilnet. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
5. "Posters condemn funeral show for Anton Balasingham". Asian Tribune. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
6. LTTE's Anton Balasingham 68, Dies of Cancer. (2006, December 22). India-West, p. A8.
7. Tamil Tigers mourn for ideologue BBC - December 15, 2006
8. "Anton Balasingham". BBC world. Retrieved 2006-12-22.

External links

• Anton Balasingham
• Anton Balasingham's Apology to India
• BBC report on his death
• Obituaries TIMES ONLINE
• Top Tamil Tiger negotiator dies of cancer, rebels say, The Star, December 15, 2006.
• Anton Balasingham: The Early Years of Life
• Google Images: Anton Balasingham

• Terrorists
• Tamil Sri Lankans
• Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
• Tamil militants
• Tamil British
• 2006 deaths
• 1938 births
• Cancer deaths