A. T. Moorthy
A. T. Moorthy | |
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Sri Lankan High Commissioner to the United Kingdom | |
In office January 1981 – May 1984 | |
Preceded by | Noel Wimalasena |
Succeeded by | Chandra Monerawela |
Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan | |
In office 1978–1981 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Batticaloa District, Ceylon | 10 August 1928
Died | 1 April 2008 London, United Kingdom | (aged 79)
Alma mater | University of Ceylon, Colombo |
Profession | Diplomat |
Ethnicity | Sri Lankan Tamil |
Arambamoorthy Thedchana Moorthy (10 August 1928 – 1 April 2008) was a Sri Lankan Tamil diplomat and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
Early life and family
[edit]Moorthy was born on 10 August 1928 in Batticaloa District in eastern Ceylon.[1] He was educated at Sivananda Vidyalayam, Batticaloa and Jaffna College.[1] After school he joined the University of Ceylon, Colombo, graduating in 1948 with a degree in economics.[1]
Moorthy married Suseela, daughter of P. Sriskandarajah, in 1959.[1] They had two daughters (Uma and Ima) and a son (Sri Ayilavan).[1]
Career
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/A.T._Moorthy_and_Premier_Chou_En_Lai%2C_1958..jpg/260px-A.T._Moorthy_and_Premier_Chou_En_Lai%2C_1958..jpg)
Moorthy joined the Ceylon Overseas Service in 1953 and his first diplomatic posting was in Jakarta, Indonesia.[1] He became chargé d'affaires of the Ceylonese embassy in Beijing, China in 1957, meeting leaders such as Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai.[1] He was first secretary at the High Commission of Ceylon, London between 1961 and 1963.[1] During this time Moorthy and Suseela studied for the bar at Gray's Inn.[1] He was called to the bar in 1965.[1]
Moorthy then served in various diplomatic positions: first secretary in West Germany (1964–66); chargé d'affaires in Thailand (1969–70); permanent representative to the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East; and chargé d'affaires in Iraq (1970).[1] He returned to Sri Lanka in 1974 to co-ordinate the fifth Non-Aligned Summit which was to be held in Colombo in 1976.[1] He was appointed High Commissioner to Pakistan in 1978 (also accredited to Iran).[1] After the 1979 Iranian Revolution Moorthy played an important role in Sri Lankan government's attempts to free the US hostages in Iran.[1]
In 1981 Moorthy was appointed High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.[1][2][3] Back in Sri Lanka violence against the country's Tamils escalated, culminating in the Black July riots of 1983.[1] Sinhalese expatriates living in the UK started a campaign to have Moorthy replaced by a Buddhist Sinhalese.[4] He received a letter, allegedly from a member of the Sinhala Association in UK, threatening his life.[5] The Sri Lankan government ordered Moorthy to declare that his appointment was evidence that there was no serious discrimination against the Tamils.[1] Moorthy refused make such a declaration and resigned in 1984.[1]
Moorthy and his family remained in the UK.[6] He died on 1 April 2008 in London.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Farrell, Tom (19 May 2008). "Obituary: AT Moorthy". The Guardian.
- ^ "The History of the High Commission". High Commission of Sri Lanka, London. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
- ^ de Silva, Bandu (21 February 2007). "Reply to I. P. C. Mendis: Sri Lanka Foreign Service". The Island (Sri Lanka).
- ^ "The London Hilton Jamboree" (PDF). Tamil Times. IV (11): 12. September 1985. ISSN 0266-4488.
- ^ Niwunhella, Sujeeva (18 February 2001). "Britain will not name banned terrorists tomorrow". The Island (Sri Lanka).
- ^ "The chimes of peace". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 11 August 2002.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- 1928 births
- 2008 deaths
- People from Eastern Province, Sri Lanka
- Alumni of the University of Ceylon (Colombo)
- Alumni of Jaffna College
- High commissioners of Sri Lanka to Pakistan
- High commissioners of Sri Lanka to the United Kingdom
- Members of Gray's Inn
- English people of Sri Lankan Tamil descent
- People from British Ceylon
- Sri Lankan diplomats
- Tamil people
- Sri Lankan Tamil people
- Sri Lankan lawyers