posted November 21, 2005 02:46 AM         

Jeyam Thamotheram doyen of Thamil Diaspora

Friday, November 04, 2005 Posted : 7:44:44 AM Sri Lanka Time (11/4/2005 1:44:44 AM GMT)

CJT is no more. He was in his early nineties when he passed away last week. He did not cease working for the Tamil cause even during his last few days. Truly, the Sri Lankan Thamil nation the world over will miss him.
Son of C P Thamotheram, a great educationist and Principal of Hartley College Point Pedro during the early part of the last century, Jeyam graduated with honours in Mathematics from the London University and chose the teaching career which was close to his heart. He joined Hartley College, Point Pedro and then taught at St Patricks College Jaffna. In the early forties he joined Wesley College Colombo where he taught Advanced Mathematics for nearly twenty years. He was known endearingly to his students as “Thamma” for they held him in great awe and esteem for the manner in which he showed them to solve the most complex of problems with the greatest of ease. His turn to be principal came in 1962 and he was overlooked despite his brilliance and ability. His fault was that he did not belong to the right race. He experienced for the first time the real taste of racism He was forthright and never cringed for favours. His self-effacing nature and his modesty were his strengths as well as his weaknesses...

After serving the British Council in Colombo for a while he left with his family, in the early sixties to take up appointment as a mathematics teacher in Luton in England. Having experienced racism and discrimination first hand he realized its impact on young Thamils in Sri Lanka. While at the British Council he formed a network of Thamil professionals who could be of assistance to Thamil youth to find suitable careers. His sincere and pleasant personality helped him with a very wide circle of friends wherever he lived and worked.

To England he took along with him his fervour to fight for the Thamil cause and to expose the injustices towards the Thamils in Sri Lanka. In this he was a pioneer. He lifted the profile of the Thamil expatriates working for the cause. In England he helped the Tamil expatriates in many ways, in Greenford he founded the first Thamil school and established a Thamil church in Putney. By far his greatest Contribution was the founding of the first journal of the Thamil Diaspora, the Tamil Times run on professional journalistic lines. Although thousands of Thamils the world over read the paper, only a few knew that he was its first editor. In his characteristic manner, he unostentatiously s stayed on the sides guiding his enterprises and rarely pushed himself forward.

He lived a life of a good Christian. A good Christian need not be a “religious” person. He was a socialist at heart. He observed economies and charities for the benefit of those whom he served. He shunned the luxuries of life to serve the cause against injustice. His devotion to the Thamil cause was greater than his devotion to his religion. He was an example to other Christians in showing that one can be a good Christian and still be a part of the Thamil national liberation struggle.

CJT Thamotheram was great person. He was great not because he did great things. He did great things because he was great.

posted November 21, 2005 05:56 AM         

Any way , thank you for the information.

Yours truly
As old student of Hartely College