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According to reports reaching us, the 175th Anniversary was celebrated on a grand scale both in Colombo and in Jaffna. A first day cover and stamp were released to mark this occasion in Jaffna. A brief report of the proceedings in Jaffna appears elsewhere in this newsletter. In this newsletter we have several articles which appeared in the local newspapers in Sri Lanka during the period of our Anniversary.

Long Live St John's. May it continue to provide quality educational service in Jaffna for many more years and several more milestones.

We also regret to note the passing away of one of our loyal old boys - Dr Senthilvasan. At the time of his death he was the Mayor of Casino, a large town in Northern N.S.W. Some of us might remember his presence at a "Red & Black Ball" held a few years ago.

.Editor

Anniversary celebrations of St. John's College, Jaffna

from Jaffna special correspondent

The 175th anniversary celebrations of St. John's College, Jaffna commenced on May 7 with thanksgiving prayer and sermon by the Rt. Rev. Andrew Kumarage, Bishop of Kurunegala.

Mr. S. Thanabalan, Principal, St. John's College presided.

A commemorative stamp was released by Mr. K. C. Logeswaran, Secretary, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. Hundreds of Johnians queued to purchase the commemorative stamps and the first day cover.

The highlights of the first day program were the honouring of past principals, tutorial and non-tutorial staff who had served more than twenty-five years. They were presented with gold medals.

A new block consisting of six classrooms was opened by Mr. C. Kanagaratnam, Ex-president, Old Boys' Association and Attorney-at-Law. Mr. E. S. Devasagayam laid the foundation for the new administrative block. The principal entertained the invitees to tea.

The second day program started with the opening of the Rev. Arulanandam Memorial Science block followed by cricket and soccer matches.

The function concluded on the third day with a prize-giving where Mr. C. Sivathasan, President, Tamil Language Implementation Commission was the chief guest. Mr. S. Thanabalan, Principal, St. John's College presented his report. Mrs. Sivathasan presented the prizes.

THOUGHTS FOR THE MONTH
"It is easier to fight for principles than to live up to them".- Alfred Adler
"Fanaticism consists of redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim."
- George Santayana

St. John's Began with just seven students

By

Professor S. Ratnajeevan H. Hoole
(Extracted from The Sunday Leader, April 5, 1998)

This year St. John's celebrates its 175th anniversary. The dynamic enterprise that is St. John's must be judged in light of the motivation and dedication of its founders, who were determined to serve selflessly what must surely have been a strange people in a strange land.

The early years of the 19th century saw the expansion of Christian missions in the British colonies. Colonial administrative officials, with their eye on profit, wanted good relations with the locals and had forbidden any
Christian evangelical work and refused to employ those locals who had taken up the Christian faith. In the first year of British rule alone, 300 new Hindu temples were built in Jaffna by the British. Indeed, the antagonism to Christianity in the 20 year lull between the British take-over and the arrival of the first missionaries saw the number of temples in Jaffna growing 4 fold. The growing evangelical movement in England's Parliament put a stop to this and since 1813 Christian missions started to spread throughout the colonies.

Arrival of Rev. Knight

This development brought to Sri Lanka the Rev. Joseph Knight (born in Stroud, England, on October 17, 1787) and three others who were given the requisite training and ordained priest just before their departure in the Autumn of 1817 as missionaries of the Church Missionary Society, the CMS. It was a dangerous journey to the East with many a missionary dying or losing a family member before the journey's end. But they were undeterred. Their journey from Gravesend via The Cape and Madras to Galle, took 200 days.

Knight arrived in Jaffna as the first missionary of the CMS's Tamil Mission in July 1918 and took up residence at Nallur in November, using the premises of the disused Dutch church (which earlier had been a Roman Catholic church and before that the site of the king's temple).

Knight's principal difficulties were in being accepted by the people (because of his out-caste status) and in learning the language. The American missionary Newell who preceded Knight by about 5 years losing his wife and baby on the way, perhaps had softened the landscape for Knight. For American records indicate that schools and churches were initially burnt by the high-caste sections of the public, teachers and students had their bones broken, and the missionary John Scudder and his wife were stoned. The objections were not to the new religion but because of the threat to the caste hierarchy. The missionaries carried on with patient endeavour and self-sacrificing commitment to the field of education and to cholera and small-pox patients. This witness ultimately made the missionaries accepted by 1843 when they would report that there was scarcely any opposition - a situation that changed again later only with the Hindu revival.

But Knight had to contend with the society's prejudices and opposition. People thought it necessary to bathe themselves and purify their houses after each visit by him. After higher-caste men of learning refused to teach him, he found a Brahmin who agreed to be his tutor for a hefty fee and purified himself at the nearby tank after each lesson. These early lessons in Tamil apparently bore much fruit as Knight's knowledge of Tamil grew. For Winslow's Comprehensive Tamil and English Dictionary (Madras, 1862) says in its preface that it "was commenced by the Rev. J. Knight, late of Jaffna."

Resistance overcome

It was not until 1823 that the resistance from the population was sufficiently overcome for Knight to start his "English Seminary for the higher education of Tamil youth" when 7 students, presumably from the not so fortunate sections of society, were found to live with him at home and undertake their studies. Knight's residence -- the present Mission House adjacent to today's St. James' Church, Nallur-was therefore the first site of St. John's College. The reputation of the school was made when the larger community saw the transforming process of modern education. The school grew and no longer had to beg for students.

Any biography on Knight must address two historical controversies. The first is the debate as to whether he was St. John's College's first principal. It might be contended that St. John's was founded not in 1823, but in 1841 when the English Seminary in Nallur was closed to make way for the boarding school for girls, and relocated to the present site of St. John's as "The Chundikuli Seminary." The debate arises because when the Chundikuli Seminary was renamed St. John's College in 1891, it was at what was called "the school's Jubilee celebrations." This meant that at that time, St. John's was considered as having been founded in 1841. However, the continuity of management, staff and students at the time of the move, and the closure of the English Seminary as the Chundikuli Seminary was founded, are taken to prove institutional continuity. The Jubilee celebrations of 1891 are therefore now cast as the Jubilee of St. John's at the Chundikuli site.

The second is about Knight's printing press. Joseph Knight is credited by the CMS with having founded the first printing press in Jaffna, which issued 1,002,800 tracts over 4 years. The American Mission, whose records were much more punctiliously kept, however, is probably correct in saying that it was their press which was gifted to Knight when the British forbade their running a press because of tensions between the US and British governments. It would appear that Knight received the press and operated it for the Americans to circumvent the ban. Oral traditions at St. James' Church Nallur aver that the press was in Knight's loft in the church vestry to prevent British officials from seeing it. Thus was begun some of the earliest printing in the Tamil language. When the printing ban on the Americans was lifted in 1836, the press was returned to the Americans. It was this same press that, under the guidance of the American missionary Daniel Poor, began publishing the bilingual Morning Star (Uthaya Tharahai), the second oldest newspaper in Ceylon (after the Observer) and the first Tamil newspaper.

The press is not the only area where the Anglicans and the American Congregationalists co-operated. Knight's sister, who had joined her brother, was given in marriage to Daniel Poor. And then Knight himself married the widows of American missionaries in Jaffna twice, first Mrs. S.B. Richards, and after her death, Mrs. E.S. Nichols, who were both buried in the churchyard of the American Mission in Tellippalai.

After founding St. John's, Knight handed over the school to other missionaries and devoted himself to full-time evangelism. The loss of his two wives in turn and despite having given 22 years of the most vibrant part of his life to the Tamil Mission, Knight was still resolved to be part of it. Taking a furlough in England, he was ship-wrecked at The Cape travelling back, and died shortly after his return on October 11, 1840, presumably from the effects of that experience. His mortal remains lie buried at Cotta.

Heritage

In an anniversary year, it is customary to utter empty platitudes about the founders and the heritage they gave us. We then go away feeling nice about ourselves. An honest evaluation however, must ask what the founders sought to do and assess if they accomplished it. Knight and the other founders of the mission schools, sought to Christianise the nation and to build men and women of character and genteel upbringing who would uplift the wider society that they saw as steeped in superstition.

St. John's certainly has produced many well-rounded men of learning and stature who made no mean contribution to the making of our island nation. Equally remarkable is that by the close of the last century, St. John's had achieved collegiate status under Calcutta University. That an unlettered but creatively dedicated Knight could have pioneered that massive enterprise is amazing. That the missionary-run schools (including schools like Royal that were once staffed at the top by missionaries) brought out the best in the men and women they trained, is freely admitted and rarely questioned.

However, these very same schools in the late-colonial and post-independence era with emphasis mainly on examination results, have produced many undesirable citizens, both Sinhalese and Tamil. Though some of these products are highly qualified, education has not muted the bestial and fascist side in all of us. Indeed, they - that is, most of those who unleashed a reign of government terror in this nation; enjoyed watching torture sessions; commanded the rampages among civilians in the Northeast; bombed schools and Churches in Jaffna and burnt the public library; urged young children at Church, school and university functions in the North to join the Tamil militancy; and glorified and justified every act of Tamil terror from western capitals and Jaffna's pulpits - are all the proud products of these elite schools. They are often considered the most civilised men among us.

There is clearly something awfully wrong. It is time we asked ourselves "Why? Where did we go wrong?" To do so would be the fittest way to honour the high-minded founders of these august institutions.

St. John's College, Jaffna - 175th anniversary

by

Dr. E. S. Thevasagayam
Chairman, Governing Body of CMS Schools, Former Principal
(Extracted from Sunday Island of 26th April 1998)

St. John's College, Jaffna, one of the leading and certainly one of the oldest educational institutions in the country celebrates her 175th anniversary this year. From small beginnings she has become the most sought after boys' school in the north and enjoys a very high reputation in the academic sphere as well as in sports and other co-curricular activities.

Three missionaries of the Church Missionary Society arrived in Ceylon, in the year 1818, soon after the British took over the island. One of them, Rev. Joseph Knight went over to Jaffna to establish a mission there, one went to Baddegama and the third to Kotte. Rev. Knight settled in Nallur, which was the seat of the ancient kings of Jaffna and started his evangelistic work. It was in 1823, he decided to start the Nallur English Seminary, to train native agents for evangelistic work.

This Seminary was later to become St. John's College. There were 7 boys to start with, increasing to 13 in 1824, 30 in 1825 and picking up in later years. All boys were boarded, clothed and educated free, with the main purpose of making them Christians and training them for evangelistic work. One of the earliest students Mr. Hensman, who joined the school in 1828, was ordained minister in 1863 and served as Head Master for a period.

There was another, Mr. Handy, who also took holy orders and was Actg. Principal from 1889 to 1892. Robert Williams and T. H. Crosette were two others who started life as students and rose to hold administrative positions in the school during the missionary era.

In 1841, the need was felt to start a girls' school and the Nallur Seminary was shifted to Chundikuli so that the bungalow at Nallur could be used as a girls' school. This is the present site occupied by St. John's College for the past 157 years. It appears that the girls school did not materialise at that time but had to wait till 1896, for the wife of another Principal of St. John's, Mrs. Carter to start classes for a few Hindu girls' in the Principal's Bungalow, which has now grown into Chundikuli Girls' College.

From the church at Nallur built by the Dutch used by the school, the school moved close to the church of St. John the Baptist built by the Portuguese. This church which was in a dilapidated condition was demolished and rebuilt in 1859 by the government. An interesting feature of this church was its roof, which was covered with slate brought from Portugal, thereby the common reference to St. John's as the 'slate school'. The slate was replaced by tiles in the thirties except for the vestry which also was replaced in the fifties, when slate became unavailable.

Six Forms
In the early days, the school had six forms, the lowest being the 6th going up to the 1st from which candidates were presented to the Matriculation of the Madras University.

In 1889, the school became affiliated to the Calcutta University and was given the status of a College and presented candidates to the FA (First in Arts) of the University. In 1862, the school declined the grant from the government as the missionaries felt that it was not compatible with their principles. It was run from fees charged from the students for the first time, as well as subsidy from the CMS. Government grant was resumed after ten years. As a result of a cholera outbreak in 1866 in which Head Master Robert Williams also died, the school remained closed for almost an year.

With successive missionary Principals the school made steady progress and completed the centenary in style in 1923 under the principalship of Rev. Henry Peto. It was during Peto's time, the school started excelling in sports being schools cricket and soccer champions on the north for several years in succession. The numbers on roll remained around 450.

Schooling started at the age of five when students spent the first four years in a 'vernacular school' and came into the English school at the age of 8 or 9. After five years students were presented to the Cambridge Junior Examination and after another two years, to either the Cambridge Senior of London Matriculation. After the London Matriculation, most found jobs in the government which was easily available and the select few who chose to, went on to university College for which entrance was there for the asking.

Rev. Peto was Principal from 1920 to 1940. He died at the age of 50 in a drowning accident at Thonda-manaru. To succeed him, the first national Principal was appointed in the person of Rev. J. T. Arula-nantham who was then vice Principal.

It was during this period that the school started to expand both in extent and in numbers. Free education had been introduced and there was pressure for admission and from around 450, numbers rose to well over one thousand by the time Rev. Arulanantham retired in 1957. The 125th Anniversary was celebrated in 1948.

Advanced Level
University entrance examination was started in the forties due to pressure for admission and St. John's started post Matriculation classes and later university entrance classes followed by Advanced Level, for which better laboratory facilities were needed. It was also in 1940 when girls were admitted to the post matriculation classes as girls' schools in Jaffna were not equipped to handle science. This was discontinued only in the late fifties when the girls' schools caught up.

1936 was also a memorable year in the life of the college when Chundikuli Girls' College shifted to their new premises across the road. What started as a past time for a Principal's wife to educate a few girls in Jaffna in 1896, had grown into a full blown girl's college occupying about a third of the St. John's campus. Both schools benefited by the move.

The Arulanantham era was a period of expansion. Several neighbouring houses were acquired to house teachers. More important was the acquisition of the cinema which had come up right opposite the school and church, against all protests. The cinema went bankrupt and the college promptly acquired it and made it into a hostel and master's quarters.

Take over
Then came the big blow of the schools take over in 1962 and serious consideration was given to handing over the school to the government as the feeling was that it could not be run as a non fee levying school without government grant. But the wisdom and foresight of a few prevailed and St. John's remained private non-fee levying school taking tremendous risks going into the unknown future entirely on faith.

One may consider the following years as the most traumatic in the recent history of the school. Money was hard to come by. Buildings acquired during the good days had to be sold to pay salaries. Majestic mahogany trees that were the hallmark of the school had to be sacrificed for the same purpose. It was a heroic struggle and we pay a special tribute to those who helped maintain the school, especially to Mr. J. C. Handy, Manager, Mr. A. W. Rajasekeram, Principal and may others, who were instrumental in raising the funds.

The prestige that the school now enjoys has more than vindicated their dream, their faith and their untiring efforts to run the school against all odds. When in 1982 the government relented and decided to pay the salaries of staff, there was a sense of relief. Even then, this grant covers only about 50% of the cost of running the school. For the other 50% the school still depends on the goodwill of parents, old boys and some foreign Christian organisations.

The Ter Jubilee (150) years were celebrated in 1975 and to commemorate that event, the old boys collected funds and put up the Peto Memorial Hall, probably the largest in Jaffna.

1987 was another bad year when many of the buildings were damaged by the Indian army offensive of that year. Minor damages were repaired by the Indian army. A major part of the laboratory which was badly damaged was demolished and its place a magnificent structure, a new science complex has been built with six laboratories and twelve classrooms with a small pavilion incorporated.

The Swiss Government, the Norwegian Church and the World Council of Churches gave generously towards this project. This is the Arulanantham Memorial Science Block which will be declared open as part of the 175th Anniversary celebrations in May 1998.

Then came 1995 and the Sri Lankan army offensive and the school was extensively damaged, The damaged buildings have been repaired and the school is thankful to the President's Fund and the British Government for their generous grant for rebuilding. To commemorate the 175th anniversary, the school plans to build an Administrative block, thanks to a generous grant from the Norwegian Government.

25 Principals
During the 175 years history, the school had had 25 Principals to all of whom the school owes a deep debt of gratitude, to have brought this school from small beginnings to this pre-eminent position. During the last century, the turn over was high for reasons of travel and illness. But starting from the turn of this century, St. John's has had Rev. Jacob Thompson for 20 years, Rev. Henry Peto for another 20 from 1920 to 1940 and Rev. Arulanantham for another 17 from 1940 to 1957. During those 57 years there had been just three Principals and they more than anyone else held to shape the school and leave an indelible mark of their tenure.

The aims of starting the school in the early part of the last century, as stated earlier, was to make evangelists to preach the Gospel. Over the years, conversion to Christianity has been given up as an objective and even the compulsory teaching of the Bible had to be given up in the late thirties.

However St. John's and other CMS schools still continue to inculcate among students, Christian values of equality, fair play, charity, discipline and such like which are appreciated by Christians and non Christians alike who seek admission to these schools not only for their academic excellence but for the overall training that they receive.

Trauma
In spite of all the trauma of recent years St. John's has become the most sought after school in the north from the sixties up to this date. Academically, her results have always been excellent and hardly an year passes when the school is not among the first ten in the country in the A/L results. In sport too, she has always been at the top in the North.

Over the years Johnians have held the highest positions in the country in all walks of life. St. John's may take pride in the fact that she has produced the bulk of the Anglican Tamil clergy, right from the start up to the present. St. John's can justly be proud of her products. Statesmen of the calibre like Mr. Maithripala Sena-nayake and Mr. S. J. V. Chelvanayagam, Chief Justice Nagalingam, and a host of others in all walks of life have brought credit to the school.

Those of us who had the privilege of having studied there owe a deep debt of gratitude to the school which made something of us. She has certainly left an indelible mark in our lives. Johnians are now spread all over the world and there are Old Boy's Associations in UK, Canada and Australia. Where they are their love and loyalty to the school is always evident.

With such loyalty and support, the future of the school is assured. I would like to wish the Principal, Mr. Thanapalan, the staff, students and parents, the very best for the future. We now move into the next century and the next millennium in faith. By the year 2023 we would be celebrating the second century. Most of us would be gone by then and to those who would be around for that event, we wish you all the very best to take the school to even greater heights.

May God Bless St. John's.

In our earlier newsletter, the last for the year 1997, there appeared a copy of a letter; the letter sent by the CGC-OGA (vic) to SJC-OBA (vic) to consider an amalgamation of the two associations. Reasons given were that some functions that the OBA and OGA organise annually are already done so with the co-operation of each other (eg: Red and Black Ball, Carol Service). Furthermore, a combined membership will be sustainable given that the long-term prospects for the associations to function separately are dim.

However, there are reasons against a merger, too. The financial and other needs of our respective Colleges are different; hence, the calendar of events that each association plans every year would be different. Levels of commitment among members of a united association may be divided when it come to activities that pertain to one College and not the other. (eg: the 175th anniversary of SJC).

What do you think? Now, you can have your say! Make your opinion heard by writing to the secretary,
Mr L.N.Sureshkumar at
3 /10 Alvina Street
Ferntree Gully
VIC 3156
or contacting him by phone on 9758 1901.or Email :- suresh@alphalink.com.au

Remember, Your Judgment Matters.

St. John's College - A citadel of education

St. John's College Jaffna, one of the oldest schools in Sri Lanka, is currently celebrating the 175th anniversary of its founding. Its reputation for excellence has remained undiminished despite repeatedand extensive destruction in recent years. In fact, its response has beento go beyond reconstruction to the ambitious planned programme of development that is now under way. Here V.R. Amarasingham , a retired Vice Principal of St. John's looks back
(Extracted from The Sunday Times of 3rd May 1998)

There are four im portant phases in the lifespan of any individual - child, youth, adult and old age. As a teacher at St. John's, Jaffna for nearly 28 years it was my rare privilege and fortune to be associated with child, youth and adult. The students formed the first two segments and the adults were the co-workers from both tutorial and non-tutorial staff.

The moment a teacher focuses his attention on monetary gains he loses the excitement that is so richly potent with youthful ingenuity and creativity. I once asked Rev. A.J.C. Selvaratnam who was the Warden of S. Thomas' College Mt. Lavinia, and later Vicar of St. John's Church, Jaffna, "Sir, do you like to teach or to preach?" "Do you prefer to be Warden of a school or Vicar of a Church?" He said, "A school is like a flowing river always bringing in new students, where one can learn as you teach. A Church is like a lake with stagnant water and one very often sees off faces and old people" and humorously added, "where there is death there is hope".

I shall confine this article mainly to my period as a teacher from 1953-1980. This period illustrates the community life in our school. It was long enough for a teacher to become part, of the very ethos of the school community. For 175 years St. John's with its rich traditions and noble ideas has continued to stand tall in educational culture. I never taught in any school earlier, and all my teaching career in Sri Lanka was at St. John's. Having heard of great teachers who were there and others who continue to be there, I went in with much fear. With Oliver Goldsmith in his poem, The Village School Master, I gazed and gazed (at the senior teachers) and the more I gazed the more the wonder grew that these small heads could carry all they knew.
The Rev. J.T. Arulananthan, the then Principal offered me Science in the middle and upper school and Botany in A/L classes. He also wanted me to be a boarding master. It did not take me long to realize that the senior teachers were down to earth men. They gave the juniors so much encouragement that work as a teacher became pleasant and interesting. Mr. E.M. Ponnudurai, in particular, who did A/L teaching and was senior boarding house master, encouraged me in both class and boarding work. He was a very strict disciplinarian and, loved St. John's. For many old boys EMP was St. John's and St. John's was EMP.
St. John's, by any standard, is one of the leading schools in the island. For decades many Sinhalese students sought admission because of the school's reputation for discipline. It is perhaps the best intangible quality that any institution can have. Freedom with responsibility and transparent honesty are hallmarks of self discipline. Education is that which is left behind after the facts are forgotten.
In 1962 six Cabinet Ministers visited Jaffna. They were felicitated at a dinner hosted by the OBA. Maitripala Senanayake, an old boy of the school, addressed the school assembly. He recalled happy memories as a student here. He recalled with gratitude what St. John's had done to him, Mr. A.W. Rajasekeran, the Principal at that time, was equal to the task. He reminded the Minister that such was the generous treatment that St. John's gave to minority communities. He went on to say that St. John's expects her old boys to give the same treatment to minority communities. Mr. Senanayake is now one of the Vice Patrons of South Sri Lanka SJCOBA. Mr. K.B. Basnayake, a retired Senior Supdt. of Prisons, has many friends from his school days at St. John's. He was a hosteler and was well looked after during the 1958 riots. He is a very loyal old boy and it is fitting that he is one of the Vice Presidents of the South Sri Lanka OBA.
In the daily life of the school, the school assembly sets the tone for the whole day. Many senior teachers were fully equipped for inculcating educational and moral standards. Mr. Subramaniam (Kadavul), gifted in Tamil and in English spiced with Latin considered the assembly hall as the stage to groom future leaders.
St. John's has reached Himalayan heights in games, matching any school in the island, especially in cricket and athletics. A peak period was in the early sixties.
In 1963 St. John's athletic team just missed the trophy for the Tarbat Challenge Cup in the All Ceylon Public Schools Athletics Championship. In this meet right from the first event till the final relays, we were leading Royal College who eventually became champions.
We had regular annual cricket fixtures with St. Sylvester's, Kandy and Nalanda, and occasionally with other outstation schools. In 1965, Royal College, Colombo had to eat humble pie when they played against us in Jaffna. Not even the fiery pace bowling of Thalayasingam could contain the onslaught of our batsmen Kanagadurai, Deivendra and others. A shadow of one day cricket was in the offing in this match when we had to make a little over 100 runs in less than half that number of minutes. The Combined Jaffna Schools cricket team had six St. John's players at that time. This team defeated the Colombo Combined schools team on St. Peter's College grounds.
Hostel life perhaps brings the best nostalgic memories of a student. Having had 17 years experience as a hostel master in various dormitories, ending up as senior hostel master, it gave me sufficient experience of 'boys are boys' pranks from young to old. It is the discipline in the boarding that sets the tone for the whole school.
In 1960 schools were taken over by the government and St. John's had to take a crucial decision. We opted to be a non-fee levying school. The educational well-being of St. John's was not sacrificed at the altar of financial benefits. This great institution launched out into the unknown future. With great faith, Mr. J.C. Handy, the manager of the school with a band of dedicated old boys, parents and teachers saw great visions of the distant scene. The school strained every sinew to find the money. Even the rich mahoganies and compound buildings were sold. When the mind opens its portals, paradise is unfolded. Gradually the nets were cast on the right side and the money to run the school did not pose a serious problem. St. John's today after 38 years continues to stand as a citadel of educational calibre, thanks to Principals, teachers, old boys and parents all over the globe who rally round to keep the school at its best in every turn of changing scenes.

Doctor championed country practices

Obituary
Senthilvasan
Doctor,country mayor
Born Karuh,Malaysia August 30 1936
Died Mt Chinghee, Queensland May 3 1998 aged 61
(Extracted from "The Australian" )

A champion for the health - both physical and metaphysical - of regional N.S.W, Casino mayor and general practioner Dr Senthilvasan was an optimist on the matter of a cure for the ailing rural sector.

Taking up the call for more rural doctors in country areas 20 years ago, Vasan moved to Casino in Northern N.S.W. He liked what he saw and gave to his adopted region a civic-mindedness that improved the quality of life not just of local residents, but of rural dwellers throughout the state.

While focussing at a local level on rebuilding investment opportunities and community pride, he used his platform as a civic leader to campaign loudly for better rural services, most noticeably in health and education. This commitment to bettering a society he beleived was being unfairly disadvantaged by city decision makers could be attributed in part to a sense of moral duty as a beneficiary of the Colombo plan, the British Commonwealth's long term development package for South-east Asia. In the truest tradition of community service, he simply felt that Casino had been good to accept him, and he wanted to give something back.

Selvadurai Senthilvasan was born in Malaysia in 1936 and received his school education there and in Sri Lanka. He won a Colombo plan scholarship to study Medicine at the University of Gauhati, Assam, India graduating in 1964 as Dux of the medical school. He completed his internship in Singapore in 1965, worked in Malaysia and in 1969 undertook postgraduate studies in Melbourne, gaining his fellowship of the Royal Australian College of General Practioners. In 1971, he returned to general practice in Malaysia before emigrating in 1977 to Australia and Casino., "the beef capital of NSW", where he started his own practice.

On his decision to enter local government in 1991, he said frankly that just being a councillor did not appeal to him; in September that year he won the mayoral election in a landslide. Under his leadership, the town was put on a sound footing both financially and in resources and infrastructure. But it was his appreciation for the bigger picture that made him more than just a town mayor.

For some years Vasan was President of the Country Mayors Association, an organisation representing 35 regional cities and shires with a total population of more than 1 Million people. He used his term to highlight the need for more doctors in the bush and working with State government to find ways to ameliorate this burgeoning crisis. He was an outspoken critic of cutbacks to country hospitals and of high insurance premiums, which had forced some doctors, particularly in rural areas out of obstetrics. He was appointed to the Primier's taskforce for Regional investment and served on the Local Government reform Task force and the executive of the NSW local government and Shire's association. Respected by all sides of politics for his strong stance on regional issues, Vasan shunned the Liberal and Labor parties, who were both keen to see him represent them in either Macquarie Street or Canberra.

Vasan was just as much at home sporting an Akubra hat during Casino's beef week, representing local government in the chains of office, encouraging business activity, marching for a good cause or telling the prime minister just how it was in regional Australia. But despite his civic roles, he was first and foremost known as a good doctor who was gentle and kind, characteristics he also displayed in public life.

During an official speech at a carols by candlelight service one december, Vasan was interrupted by a young boy tugging at his suit coat, who loudly told the doctor and everyone present he had "finished my medicine and am feeling really good".

His great recreation was flying and he received his pilot's licence 10 years ago. He was a leading light in the local aero and was a member of the Australian Flying Doctors Association and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.

But while flying enabled him to escape from the demands of medical practice and local politics, it was a passion that ultimately robbed northern NSW of a much loved man recognised for his vision and integrity who had much left to contribute. Vasan was killed when his single-engine Grumman Cheetah aircraft crashed on the 766m Mt Chinghee near Rathdowney on the Queensland- NSW border on the way to Brisbane's Archerfield airport.

He is survived by his wife Vicki and two sons, Anand and Vinod.

* TIM HUGHES
Tim Hughes is a farmer and writer based in northern NSW

Late News Item - Extracted from Sunday Times of 14th June 1998

Cricket match to mark St. John's Jaffna 175th year

St. John's College, Jaffna, a school with a great tradition, will be celebrating their 175th anniversary on June 21, with a limited over cricket match organised by the St. John's College, Jaffna O.B.A. South Sri Lanka, at the Colts C.C. ground, Havelock Park, play commences at 9.30 a.m.

This match will be St. John's College Jaffna South Sri Lanka O.B.A. team versus Jaffna Combined College XI (with team include players drawn from Jaffna College, Jaffna Central, Hartley, Jaffna, Hindu, Skandavarodaya, St. Patrick's and Kokuwil Hindu.

This was revealed at a press briefing held at the Colts CC boardroom by the Vice President of the St. John's College Jaffna, South Sri Lanka OBA M.W. Rajasingham, who is the convenor of this match.

The meeting was chaired by R.R. Scott, chairman S.J.C. Sports Committee, who is a legend in Sri Lanka track and field sports in the 1940's. Scott, an allround sportsman joined the Police when the late Sir Richard Aluwihare was the IGP. He was running in the company of Duncan White (Olympic silver medalist), Dr. H.M. P. Perera and many others. He represented the country in the Indo-Sri Lanka meet in 1940. The Lankans got the better of India in many events, including the 4x400m relay where Scott was one of its members. He retired as an S.P., and now leads a quiet life.

According to Rajasingham, St. John's Jaffna, has produced some outstanding sportsmen, who did proud for the country. Name like Dr. C. Balakrishnan who played for the University and for Bloomfield. He opened batting for the country. Dr. V. Sivanandan kept wickets for Nomads CC under D.H. de Silva. K. Shanthikumar, C. Sooriyakumar were some of the products of SJC.

Its wings were spread to other areas too. Today, S. Sivadhasan is one of the advisors to President Chandrika Kumaratunga and there are many others holding responsible posts in the administration, added Rajasingham.

It's a great year for S.J.C. and this match organised by its South Sri Lanka branch, is not confined to cricket alone, but to bring about togetherness among its old boys, who are now domiciled abroad.

They will be here for this fellowship match as part of its 175th year celebrations .

S.D. Kulanathan (Canada) will lead the SJC South Sri Lanka team. For the last ten years, the OBA S. Sri Lanka has played against the above mentioned schools and are still unbeaten. The present Speaker of the House Mr. K.B. Ratnayake, an allround sportsman, is a product of Hartley College, while Mr. Maithripala Senanayake, is an old boy of St. John's Jaffna.

The Jaffna Combined Schools XI will be led by K. Mathivanan of Hartley College. Those desirous of playing could contact him on 077-677677. There are cash prizes - a plenty for individual performances, winners and the runners-up. Former Colts cricketer, Lanka Perera will be the adjudicator.

The President of the Cricket Board, Thilanga Sumathipala will be the Chief Guest and give away the awards.

From the Secretary...............................