Citation delivered at the First Convocation on conferring the Posthumous Degree of Doctor of Letters, honoris causa
Late Janab Aboobucker Mohamed Abdul Azeez
Presented by: The Head of the Department of Geography
Professor W.L. Jeyasingham
Chancellor,
Aboobucker Mohamed Abdul Azeez, was born in Jaffna on 4th October 1911. Like most Muslim children he had three years of learning in the Quran cum Tamil school before he set out on his educational career. Starting his formal education at Vaidyeshwara Vidyalaya, he moved on to Jaffna Hindu College, and then to the Ceylon University College in Colombo, where he won the Exhibition in History and later on the final results of the B.A. Honours Examination of the University of London, won the Ceylon Government Arts Scholarship and proceeded to St. Catherine’s College, Cambridge. His academic credentials were impeccable. His success in the Ceylon Civil Service Examination in 1935, earning the distinction of being the first Muslim to enter the Ceylon Civil Service, brought him home sooner than anticipated.
From 1936 he spent 13 years of his life in the service of the state holding several responsible positions. He ended his distinguished career in the public service in order to accept the principalship of Zahira College, Colombo from where he could serve the Muslim community in a more enduring manner. During a spell of 13 years he became one of the most outstanding principals of Zahira College. His work in raising the educational standards of Zahira remain unsurpassed. He promoted the educational and cultural advancement of his community through several meaningful steps. The Muslim scholarship fund initiated by him, proved to be a potent instrument creating leadership in several fields for Muslims. The Young Men’s Muslim Association of which he was the founder President has now grown into the YMMA Conference having a membership of over 100 branches. This conference incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1968 is a broad based non political youth movement serving effectively the religious, cultural and educational needs of the Muslim Community. In its objectives this included fostering of inter communal harmony. The promotion of Arabic Tamil Literature something very much after his heart, the founding of the Ceylon Muslim Cultural Centre were also fostered by him. He thus raised the intellectual and cultural consciousness of the Muslims of Sri Lanka.
In 1952 he was appointed a member of the Senate of the Ceylon Parliament. His contribution in the Senate especially on matters educational were scholarly and impressive. He was also the President of the All Ceylon Union of Teachers. He travelled widely in the U.S.S.R., U.S.A., East and South Africa and the Middle East representing Ceylon in a number of International conferences and seminars.
Mr. Azeez was a distinguished Tamil scholar and an eminent literary figure who wrote extensively on literary, cultural and historical matters. His article “Ceylon” in the Encyclopaedia of Islam and the books titled “The West Re-appraised”, “Islam in Ceylon”, “Misrin Vasiyam” and Tamil Yathirai are noteworthy contributions. He was an extremely cultivated man who left a deep impression on the intellectual history of Sri Lanka. His close familial and cultural links with Jaffna naturally makes him specially endearing to the University of Jaffna.
Chancellor,
It is my pleasure and privilege to present to you, the name of Aboobucker Mohamed Abdul Azeez for the posthumous conferment of the Degree of Doctor of Letters, honoris causa.
The first convocation of the University of Jaffna was held at the Veerasingham Hall in Jaffna on 13th September, 1980 presided over by the Chancellor V. Manicavasagar. Several eminent academics and scholars were conferred with doctorates. They were V. Manicavasagar, James T. Ratnam, Prof. E.R. Saratchandra, Dr. K.N. Wijerama, late A.M.A. Azeez, Prof. A.W. Mailvaganam, Prof. C.J. Eliezer, Prof. Milroy Paul and Prof. A. Sinnathamby.
The Vice-chancellor, Prof. S. Vithiananthan, had written to my mother Mrs. Azeez on 2nd July, 1980 informing of the happy event, and had sent the letter to Dr. Ifthikar Ismail (her son-in-law) not being aware that Mrs. Azeez pre-deceased my father in 1972.
I was a resident in Dubai at that time, on a transfer by my employers Lipton Ceylon Ltd., and was not aware of above. A cousin of mine from Jaffna had attended the convocation. While I was a resident in Jeddah in 1986 I read some news items in the local newspapers referring to my father as Dr. A.M.A. Azeez. This aroused my interest and I made inquiries from Mr. S.M. Kamaldeen, a confidante of my father. He informed me of the reasons, and later sent me a copy of the Citation, probably obtained through his student Prof. K. Sivathamby, an old boy and later teacher at Zahira College during the Azeez era, who was on the staff of the University of Jaffna. I was keen to obtain the original certificate but was not able to do so due to the problems that had arisen, and Jaffna was cut-off later.
In September 1994 the Medical Institute of Tamils in UK (comprising Sri Lankan Tamil doctors) organized a health conference in London, and I was requested to make a presentation on the Muslim refugees. There were about 23 participants from Sri Lanka including academics from the University of Jaffna. I was closely associated with Prof. Daya Somasundaram of the Department of Psychiatry. I informed him about the certificate awarded to my father and he agreed to make inquiries. A few weeks after our return he sent a message to say that the original certificate was available, and that he would send it through a doctor who was coming to Colombo (at that time there were no communication facilities nor travel to Colombo which was by ship to Trincomalee and then by road to Colombo).
However, the certificate arrived and it is framed and hanging in the study of my residence.
It was a great tribute as the Tamil community had a great respect for A.M.A. Azeez, and the University of Jaffna undoubtedly honoured an illustrious Muslim son of Jaffna at its very first convocation.
Ali Azeez
