Maritime Captain Somaasundram Sinnathamby Called to The Bar
On 27 February 2026, I stood in the High Court in Penang, watching my old friend step forward to don a new robe. That Friday morning, the courtroom was formal and composed, yet it was clear that this moment marked the culmination of many years of hard work. The man standing there, Somaasundram Sinnathamby, was not just another petitioner being admitted to the Bar. He was Soma, the boy I had known since Standard One at La Salle School.
We met as children at La Salle School, far too young to know where life would take us. From those early days through St Xavier’s Institution and then into our separate paths, we grew up and moved forward as friends often do.
Early Life and Family Roots
Soma was born on 30 September 1968 to Madam Reakayee d/o Periasamy Pillai and the late Mr S.P. Sinnathamby, into a close-knit family where he grew up as the eldest among his siblings. He shared his early years with his elder sister, Patmavathy Ganesan, and his three younger brothers, Visvanathan, Manoharan, and the late Shanmuganathan. They were raised under the watchful hopes of their parents, and it was his late father, in particular, who had always wanted him to become a lawyer. It was a simple wish, but life, as it often does, had other plans in mind.
Like many of us in those days, Soma did not step straight into a profession after school. He worked wherever work could be found, from waiting tables at the Penang Sports Club to working shifts as a production operator in Bayan Lepas, and later as a translator in a law firm. That last role now feels almost prophetic, as if life had, in its own way, placed him close to the law long before he was ready to embrace it.
Life at Sea
In 1991, he went to sea. What began as a job soon became a life. Soma joined Neptune Orient Lines, Singapore’s national carrier at the time, and entered a world few truly understand unless they have lived it. The sea is a demanding workplace that requires discipline and dedication, with long periods away from family.
He trained at Singapore Polytechnic and later at the Australian Maritime College, steadily rising through the ranks with a determination that, in hindsight, had always been part of him, even as a boy. Years of study, demanding examinations, and long stretches at sea followed, culminating in his attainment of the Certificate of Competency Class 1 Unlimited. It was a qualification earned through rigorous effort, requiring intellect, endurance, and an unshakeable sense of responsibility.
As a captain, Soma no longer took orders but gave them. Over the years at sea, he had experience in handling both deepsea and offshore vessels, moving between different types of operations with ease. The boy from La Salle had become master of a vessel, a role few on land can truly comprehend. Only in writing this story did I begin to understand the weight he carried all those years at sea as the final authority for the safety of his crew, the vessel, and all that was entrusted to him. The waters he sailed carried risks from unpredictable weather and the uncertainties of life at sea, demanding constant composure and decisive action.
In 2004, while serving aboard an anchor handling tug supply vessel with a crew of just twelve, Soma encountered a distressed fishing boat carrying around forty migrants. The situation was critical. The vessel was overcrowded, unstable, and rapidly becoming unsafe. Soma and his crew carried out a rescue operation, transferring all the migrants safely to the Libyan Navy as they called out for help. Once everyone had been accounted for and brought to safety, the fishing vessel had to be scuttled to prevent it from becoming a navigational hazard. It was a demanding operation carried out in open waters, where every decision mattered and the sea offered no margin for error.
Over 33 years, Soma saw more of the world than most of us ever will. He crossed vast oceans, faced storms that tested both man and machine, and bore the weight of command where every decision mattered. He once told me, in his usual understated way, that there is no room for panic at sea, that one learns to steady oneself because others depend on it. That, I think, defines him more than any title ever could. Even as he built a life at sea, his father’s wish for him to become a lawyer remained with him throughout.
The Path to Law
Somewhere between voyages, he began studying law. In 2008, he enrolled in the University of Malaya’s external Bachelor of Jurisprudence programme. There were no lectures to attend, no classmates to rely on, and little guidance to speak of. Much of his study was done alone, sometimes while the ship carried him across open waters, far from any classroom. He would spend long days working at sea, then return to his cabin to study legal principles, case law, and statutes. He passed almost all his papers on his first attempt and graduated in 2012.
The next step, the Certificate in Legal Practice, proved far more challenging. The pressure of the exams, combined with the lack of structured guidance, made it a formidable hurdle. He attempted it more than once, and like many before him, he faced disappointment. But giving up was never part of who he was. After returning from sea in 2024, with only a few months to prepare, he sat for the examination again, and this time, he passed.
By then, more than three decades had passed since he first went to sea. In completing that final requirement, he also brought that chapter of his life to a close with a sense of completion.
Father and Son Called to the Bar
What made the day he was called to Bar even sweeter is his eldest son Siva Prasad. Siva did not initially set out to follow in his father’s footsteps. Like many sons, he saw his father more as a distant figure during his childhood, shaped by long absences at sea and a strict sense of discipline when he was home. But as the years went by, something changed. Watching his father juggle work, studies, and family responsibilities left a lasting impression on him.
In time, both father and son found themselves studying law, not just at the same time, but together. They shared notes, discussed difficult subjects, and supported each other through the process. There is something deeply moving about that, a sense of time being returned in an unexpected way. And so, on that February morning, they stood side by side, both being called to the Bar on the same day.
That morning, I brought my camera to capture this momentous occasion for Soma and Siva. After the ceremony, as people gathered and photographs were taken, I found myself observing the family more closely through my lens. Soma’s mother was there, seated in a wheelchair, watching her son and grandson. There was pride in her eyes, unmistakable, but also something quieter and harder to define. Perhaps it was the absence of her husband who passed away in 2005, who had once wished for this very moment. Perhaps it was the memory of a son lost to cancer, or simply the weight of time.
La Salle and Where It All Began
One of our former La Salle School teachers, Mr Nurmal Singh, was there too, beaming with pride for Soma. La Salle was never just a school to us. It was where everything began, where childhood was shaped by laughter, imagination, and endless outdoor games that seemed to stretch whole afternoons into something timeless. It was an environment that steadily shaped who we were becoming.
The original La Salle School in Ayer Itam was founded in the early 1960s under the vision of the La Salle Brothers, guided by the motto “Seek the Truth". It was officially declared open by the Most Honourable Brother Nicet Joseph, Superior General of the Brothers. Well received by the community, the school’s enrolment quickly grew to around 900 students within a few years, eventually offering classes from Standard 1 to Form 3 and serving as an important feeder school for St. Xavier’s Institution.
La Salle lower secondary school teachers: standing from left: Mr Patrick Aiyathurai, En. Jaafar Din, Mr Chee Thoe Lay, Mr Ng Sen Yew, Mr Nurmal Singh, Chief clerk – Mr Arumugam, Mr Cheong Choi Lai, Mr Ng Kok Lum, Mr Lam See Yee; seated from left: Mrs Ooi, Mrs Lee Ewe Eong, Colin Andrew, Mr Khoo Beng Poh, Mrs Lim, Cikgu Jamilah; not in the photo: Ms Badhirama
By the early 1970s, the original Ayer Itam building was demolished due to structural concerns. Teaching continued in borrowed premises at SRK Batu Lanchang and SMK Georgetown. Soma and I were part of this later chapter, what we often half-jokingly referred to as the “squatting” years of La Salle. Despite the temporary settings, our results remained strong, and we carried with us a distinctly La Sallian spirit, a sense of discipline, curiosity, and resilience that defined us. Above all, it gave us something no syllabus could fully capture. This extended chapter eventually came to an end when the school was phased out in 1984.
Full Circle
At 58, Soma has begun a new chapter as many of us start to think about retirement. He has now fulfilled his father’s dream. As I watched him that day, I did not just see a newly minted lawyer. I saw a man who had lived fully, worked relentlessly, and remained faithful to something that mattered deeply to him. To me, he will always be Soma, the boy from Standard One who never quite let go of a promise, even when life carried him far from it. That is what makes his story so meaningful. Well done, old friend.
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Written and photographed by Adrian Cheah
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27 February 2026