Veteran Sri Lanka MP who fought for Tamil rights dies

Rajavarothiam Sampanthan, 1 of Sri Lanka's astir salient politicians and a seasoned campaigner for the country's Tamil minority, has died astatine the property of 91.

Sampanthan, a lawyer and 1 of the country's longest serving MPs, died successful the superior Colombo precocious connected Sunday.

For the past 23 years, helium had led a divers conjugation called the Tamil National Alliance (TNA)- the main governmental radical representing Tamils of Sri Lanka’s northbound and east.

Since the decision of Tamil Tiger separatists successful 2009 helium continued to request adjacent rights for his often marginalised taste group.

His decease was confirmed by TNA person MA Sumanthiran connected X, formerly known arsenic Twitter.

In 2015, Sampanthan was appointed person of the opposition, making him the archetypal subordinate of the taste number radical to clasp the parliamentary station successful 32 years.

In 2022, Mr Sampanthan sent a missive to the UN's Human Rights Council, calling connected the planetary assemblage to denounce what helium alleged were the Sri Lanka government's "failure to analyse allegations of violations" towards the Tamil minority.

His decease has seen tributes determination successful from crossed Sri Lanka's governmental divide.

Among those to wage tribute to him was erstwhile president Mahinda Rajapaksa, who oversaw the bloody extremity to Sri Lanka's civilian warfare successful 2009.