S. P. Thamilselvan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Suppayya Paramu Thamilselvan (1967-08-29)29 August 1967 Chavakacheri, Sri Lanka |
| Died | 2 November 2007(2007-11-02) (aged 40) Kilinochchi, Sri Lanka |
| Occupation | Political leader ofTamil Tigers |
| Political party | Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) |
| Spouse | Sasirekha |
| Children | 2 |
Suppayya Paramu Thamilselvan, commonly known asS. P. Tamilselvan, (sometimestranscribed as "Tamilchelvan"),[1] was the leader of the political wing of theLiberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, an organisation fighting for a separate state for the ethnic Tamil minority in the north and east of Sri Lanka from majority Sinhalese government. He was a prominent negotiator and one of the closest associates of LTTE leaderVelupillai Prabhakaran.[2][3]
Thamilselvan, who was born inChavakacheri, Jaffna in 1967, joined the LTTE in 1984.[1][4] At one point, he was the personal bodyguard for the LTTE's leader,Vellupillai Prabhakaran. He became the LTTE organisation area commander forJaffna during theIPKF intervention in the late 1980s. In 1993, he suffered a shrapnel wound at thePunarin battle which left him with a permanent limp and since then he walked with the aid of a cane.[5] In 2001, he narrowly avoided being killed by the Sri Lankan Army'sDeep Penetration Unit.
Thamilselvan was appointed in 1994 as the LTTE”s political commissar as his leg wound made combat duties hard. He was the international face of the LTTE which was outlawed as a terrorist organisation by some countries. WhenNorway began mediating in the peace efforts, he began to become more prominent due to the worsening health of the LTTE's international spokesman,Anton Balasingham, and led the LTTE's delegation during peace talks inGeneva.[6] In 2007 he again received military duties and was placed in charge of defences at Pooneryn due to his familiarity with the area while continuing to carry out his political duties.[6]
Thamilselvan spent three days from 29 October to 1 November in 2007 after which he returned to Kilinochchi town which was acting as the headquarters of the LTTE. In Kilinochchi after communicating with his contact he went to a fortified and camouflaged bunker to sleep. However theSri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) was monitoring LTTE activities using drones and the bunker was exposed.[6]
Thamilselvan, along with 5 other high-ranking Tamil Tiger rebels Muthukkumaru Soundarakrishnan (Lt. Col. Anpumani), Dharmarajah Vijayakumar (Major Mikunthan), Karunanidhi Vasanthakumar (Capt. Kalaiyarasan), Panchatcharam Sajeeban (Lt. Aatchivel), Muthukkumaarakkurukkal Srigayathrinatha Sarma (Lt. Maavaikumaran), Sivalingam Aathavan (Major Selvam) were killed on November 2, 2007 by a precision air strike carried out by the SLAF on an undisclosed location near the LTTE's stronghold town of Kilinochchi. Thamilselvan's fortified bunker was hit by Sri Lankan Bunker Blaster bombs of the SLAF fighter jets (MiG-27,IAI Kfir), igniting fuel tanks stored inside and collapsing the structure.[7][8][9][10]
With the end of theSri Lankan civil war and the defeat ofLTTE, Thamilselvan's widow Sasirekha and two children surrendered to the government forces. From May 2009 to May 2011, they were kept under protective custody at a chalet in thePanagoda army cantonment. They were allowed to maintain "supervised" contact with close relatives. In May 2011, they were released under a restricted release order.[11]