Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Poland, Clarence Felician Chinniah passed away in Warsaw on Thursday following a cardiac arrest, the Foreign Ministry said. He was 58 years at the time of his death.

Ambassador Chinniah, a career Foreign Service officer joined the Sri Lanka Foreign Service in 1985, prior to which he had served with distinction as a member of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service since 1977. During this period, he served as Assistant Government Agent in the Trincomalee District.

Chinniah had a wide ranging and distinguished career in the Foreign Service, having served in the Sri Lankan Embassies in Beijing, Havana and Brussels. He held his first Head of Mission appointment as High Commissioner in the Maldives between 1998 and 2001. Thereafter, he served as Deputy High Commissioner (with Ambassadorial rank) in New Delhi.

Upon his return to the Foreign Ministry in July 2005, he was appointed as Senior Director General in charge of Administration and Consular Affairs. He was appointed as Additional Secretary in February 2006 and took up duties as Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Poland in August 2007, with concurrent accreditation to Bulgaria and Romania.

Ambassador Chinniah had represented Sri Lanka at many international and regional conferences and had also followed several training programme and seminars, during his career in the Foreign Service.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama have expressed their deepest condolences on the death of Ambassador Chinniah. The remains of the Ambassador are expected to be flown to Sri Lanka shortly and funeral arrangements will be finalised in due course.