Pirapaharan confers Maamanithar award to Raviraj

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 November 2006, 05:10 GMT]
Leader of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Velupillai Pirapaharan, bestowed the title Maamanithar (Great Humanbeing) on the slain Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Parliamentarian Nadarajah Raviraj Friday. "As a parliamentarian he worked tirelessly for the Tamil nation... He shattered the false propaganda of the Sinhala state infusing his arguments with his legal expertise. He stood firm and fought injustice in the face of threats from paramilitary violence," Pirapaharan said in the statement conferring the award.

Full text the letter conferring the Maamanithar title follows:

Head Quarters
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
Tamil Eelam
10 November 2006

A great soul who carried the ideal of the liberation of our homeland as a burning flame in his heart has been made a victim of the Sinhala oppression. The shock waves created by this tragic news has descended into the depth of our hearts like an earth quake. It has shaken the soul of our nation. It has heaped further grief on a people facing death and destruction at the hands of Sinhala oppression on a daily basis.

Mr Nadaraja Raviraj is a great man. He possessed rare characteristics. He is not the one to be pushed and pulled around for personal gains. He had a deep affection for the Tamil homeland and its people. He is an exceptional politician. He understood law and justice in its true sense. He possessed a progressive spirit and a desire to follow novel approaches. He was brave and he possessed a purity of heart. His youthful energy with all of the above stole the hearts of all who came in contact with him.

His clarity and level of consciousness about the freedom struggle was born by observing the tragic living conditions of the Tamil people. This awareness inevitably pushed him on the path of freedom struggle. Along this path he whole heartedly accepted the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and their goals and served the nation. He contributed on several fronts in this freedom struggle.

As a parliamentarian he worked tirelessly for the Tamil nation. He spoke loudly to the world about the Sinhala Buddhist chauvinistic state terror. He shattered the false propaganda of the Sinhala state infusing his arguments with his legal expertise. He stood firm and fought injustice in the face of threats from paramilitary violence.

In recognition of, Mr Nadaraja Raviraj’s love of freedom, his patriotism and his services to our freedom struggle, I am proud to bestow the title of Mamanithar on him. Death never destroys the great souls who lived their life for truth. They will live for ever in our nation’s soul as heroes of our history.

V.Pirapaharan
Leader,
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

Chronology: