Khin Kyi
| Khin Kyi ခင်ကြည် | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Burmese Ambassador to India | |
| In office 1960–1967 | |
| 1st Minister of Social Welfare | |
| In office 1953–1960 | |
| Preceded by | None |
| MP of the Pyithu Hluttaw | |
| In office 1947–1948 | |
| Constituency | Lanmadaw Township |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 16 April 1912 Myaungmya, Irrawaddy Province, British Burma |
| Died | 28 December 1988 (aged 76) Rangoon, Burma |
| Nationality | Burmese |
| Spouse(s) | Aung San (m. 1942; wid. 1947) |
| Relations | Pho Hnyin (father) Phwa Su (mother) |
| Children | Aung San Oo Aung San Lin Aung San Suu Kyi |
| Alma mater | Teachers' Training College Kemmendine Girls School |
| Occupation | Diplomat, Politician |
| Religion | Theravada Buddhism |
Maha Thiri Thudhamma Khin Kyi (Burmese: ခင်ကြည်) was a Burmese politician and diplomat, best known for her marriage to the country's leader, Aung San, with whom she had a daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi.
She grew up in Myaungmya, an Irrawaddy delta town, the eighth of 10 brothers and sisters.[1] Khin Kyi attended the American Baptist Mission-run Kemmendine Girls School (now Basic Education High School No. 1 Kyimyindaing) in Rangoon, and continued her tertiary education at the Teachers' Training College (TTC) in Moulmein.[1] She then went on to become a teacher at the National School in her hometown, before deciding to give it up altogether to join the nursing profession against her mother's wishes, following the footsteps of her two elder sisters, who were at the time, training to become nurses.[1] Khin Kyi moved to Rangoon and joined the staff of the Rangoon General Hospital as a nursing probationer.[1]
Khin Kyi first met Aung San, who was recovering from injuries sustained during the Burma Campaign, at the Rangoon General Hospital, where she served as a senior nurse.[2] The couple wed in September of that year.
She served as a member of parliament in the country's first post-independent government from 1947 to 1948, representing Rangoon's Lanmadaw Township, the constituency that her husband had won.[3][4] In 1953, she was appointed as Burma's first Minister of Social Welfare.[5]
In 1953, following the death of her second oldest son, Aung San Lin, the family moved from their house on Tower Lane (now Bogyoke Museum Lane), near Kandawgyi Lake, to a colonial-era villa by the shores of Inya Lake, on University Avenue Road.[6] Their former house was converted to the Bogyoke Aung San Museum in 1962.
In 1960, Khin Kyi was appointed as Burma's Ambassador to India, and became the country's first woman to serve as the head of a diplomatic mission.[5] During her tenure in New Delhi, she and Suu Kyi lived on 24 Akbar Road, in a colonial-era complex designed by Edwin Lutyens, specially arranged by Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru.[6]
She died in Rangoon on 28 December 1988, at the age of 76, after suffering a severe stroke.[7][8] Her funeral, held on 2 January 1989, was attended by over 200,000 people, despite the presence of military trunks to intervene and prevent this gathering.[9][10] She is buried at a tomb on Shwedagon Pagoda Road in Yangon.[11]
Family
Khin Kyi was born in Myaungmya to parents Pho Hnyin and Phwa Su.[12][13] Although it is rumored that Khin Kyi herself was an ethnic Karen Christian, she was in fact a Buddhist of Bamar ancestry.[13] As her family lived in the Irrawaddy delta, heavily populated by ethnic Karens, her father Pho Hnyin converted to Christianity (baptised in the Baptist Church) as a young man, while her mother was a staunch Buddhist.[6][13]
She wed Aung San on 6 September 1942.[13] The pair had four children, 2 sons: Aung San Oo and Aung San Lin (who died by drowning at the age of 8) and 2 daughters: Aung San Suu Kyi and another daughter who died immediately after delivery.[13]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Aung San Suu Kyi (29 April 2012). "Letter from Burma: Flowers in her hair". The Mainichi. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
- ↑ Jensen, Vickie (2011). Women Criminals: An Encyclopedia of People and Issues. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9780313337130.
- ↑ Edwards, Louise P.; Mina Roces (2000). Women in Asia: Tradition, Modernity, and Globalisation. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 9780472087518.
- ↑ "Burma and the role of Burmese women". Documentation and Research Centre. All Burma Students' Democratic Front. 31 July 1995. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Ling, Bettina (1999). Aung San Suu Kyi: Standing Up for Democracy in Burma. Feminist Pres. ISBN 9781558611962.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Wintle, Justin (2007). Perfect Hostage. Skyhorse Publishing. p. 9781602392663.
- ↑ "Suu Kyi Pays Tribute to Her Mother". The Irrawaddy. 27 December 2010. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
- ↑ "Daw Khin Kyi, Burmese Leader's Widow, 76". Associated Press (New York Times). 28 December 1988. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
- ↑ Abrams, Irwin (1999). Peace 1991-1995. World Scientific. pp. 13–15. ISBN 9789810227234.
- ↑ Aung Zaw (18 October 2011). "A Spirit That Never Dies". The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
- ↑ BBS U Win Tin (6 February 2012). "Shedding light on shadows from our country’s past". Myanmar Times. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
- ↑ Shwe Yinn Mar Oo (13 February 2012). "Daw Aung San Suu Kyi welcomed in delta ‘home’". Myanmar Times. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 Bengtsson, Jesper (2012). Aung San Suu Kyi: A Biography. Potomac Books. ISBN 9781612341590.