Myint Thein
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Myint Thein (October 8, 1947[1] - March 28, 2008) was a Burmese pro-democracy activist and spokesman for the National League for Democracy (NLD), the political party of Aung San Suu Kyi, the widely respected political prisoner.[1] He regularly met with journalists, usually in secret, both inside and outside Myanmar, in order to draw international attention to the pro-democracy struggle against the military government of the country.[1]
Thein first became active in Burma's since 1988.[1] During that same year, thousands of Burmese civilians were killed by the military during a pro-democracy uprising against the government.[1] He also became active in politics. He was first elected as a MP in 1990 in Kyaikmayaw Township, a constituency in the country's Mon State, which is heavily populated by Burma's Mon people.[1] He became a leading party official in Mon State's National League for Democracy following the Burmese general election of 1990 in which Aung San Suu Kyi's NLD took the majority of the seats in the Burmese parliament.[1] The results were ignored by the Burmese generals who overturned the election and imprisoned NLD members.
Myint Thein remained a close ally of the NLD's imprisoned leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. he was appointed the party spokesperson in 2004.[1]
Thien was imprisoned numerous times encompassing several years between 1988 and 2007.[1] His most recent imprisonment occurred during the crackdown on the 2007 Burmese anti-government protests by Burmese civilians and the country's revered Buddhist monks.[1] Thien was held at the Insein Jail, a notorious prison located in Rangoon.[1] His health rapidly deteriorated while he was incarcerated at Insein, and he was released in October 2007.[1] Doctors diagnosed him with gall bladder problems and severe gastritis.[1] His doctors recommended that he travel to Singapore for immediate medical treatment.[1]
It took two months for Thien to get the needed permission from the military junta to leave Burma for treatment in Singapore.[1] Government authorities refused to speed up the process.[1] He was finally allowed to leave Burma for Singapore at the end of January 2008.[1] Thien was diagnosed with stomach cancer at Singapore General Hospital.[1]
U Myint Thein died in Singapore on March 28, 2008, at the age of 62.[1] He was survived by his wife and one son.[1]
