A man dedicated to the Palestinian cause

We deeply mourn the passing away of Dr. Tiss Jayasinghe the first Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the State of Palestine. He was the first to garner approval for the Palestinian cause in our country and got the support of senior media personnel such as Sunimal Fernando and Latheef Farook in the formation of the solidarity association. When others in the front benches in Parliament flinched, this coterie of men were able to convince Mahinda Rajapaksa, a first timer in the back bench to accept the Chairmanship of the Sri Lanka-Palestine Solidarity Association. Until he became the President; Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa headed this solidarity movement and earned the goodwill and close friendship of Yasser Arafat and the incumbent President

Dr. W.T. Jayasinghe was a great personality and a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause. He was a social and human rights activist who firmly believed in justice. He spared no effort in forging a close link between Sri Lanka and Palestine as founder member of the Sri Lanka Solidarity with Palestine Movement and was the first appointed secretary of the organization, doing yeoman service in the Palestinian cause. Mahmoud Abbas.

There can be no other person from the majority community who showed so much concern for the suffering Palestinians. He was truly sincere and dedicated to espouse the cause of Palestinians for the last 40 years. When he was serving as ambassador in this war torn desert country, he kept in close touch with us and regularly e-mailed us all writings and documents he wrote emotionally on the subject. For all his dedication and commitment, he was decorated with the medal of the “Star of Jerusalem” by the head of the Palestinian State, a rare honour to be received by a Sri Lankan. May he attain the best he craved for hereafter! Former MP, Minister and General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Muslim Progressive Front

Dr. T. Jayasinghe was the first appointed Ambassador for Sri Lanka in the State of Palestine and was decorated with the “Order of the Star of Jerusalem,” which is one of the highest levels of honours awarded to distinguished persons in recognition of the exemplary performance of function while serving in Palestine and abroad.

We pray for his family members to have mental and physical courage to pass through this difficult time in their life. Sri Lanka and Palestine will miss him immensely.