Kyaw Htin
| General Thura Kyaw Htin BC 5332 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
26 July 1925 Prome, Myanmar (Burma) |
| Died |
26 January 1996 (aged 70) Yangon, Myanmar (Burma) |
| Allegiance | Myanmar |
| Years of service | 1943–1985 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands held |
CO, Reinforce Battalion, Southern Command (1953) CO, 10th Infantry Brigade (1957) CO, 1st Chin Rifle Battalion (1962) CO, 77th Light Infantry Division (1966) CO, 99th Light Infantry Division (1969) Vice Chief of Staff (Army) - (1974) Commander in Chief, (1976) |
| Awards | Thura Medal |
General Thura Kyaw Htin (Burmese: ကျော်ထင်, pronounced: [tɕɔ̀ tʰɪ̀ɴ]) (26 July 1925 – 26 January 1996) is the former Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of Union of Myanmar and a highly decorated soldier. He was one of the longest serving Commander in Chief in the Tatmadaw and well respected to this day for his selfless service to the country.
Military career
[1] Kyaw Htin enlisted the then Burma Defense Army (BDA) on 8 May 1943 as a private during the Japanese occupation of Burma. He joined BDA to fight for independence from the British with the support of the Japanese. He served with Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion based in Ahlone, Rangoon. On 9 September 1944, he attended the 4th intake of Officer Training School in Mingalardon, Rangoon. After the graduation, he was posted as platoon commander to 4th Burma Rifle Battalion. During the fascist revolution against Japan, Kyaw Htin served in Patriotic Burma Force (PBF) as platoon commander for 104th Infantry Battalion. At the end of Second World War, Patriotic Burma Force was abolished on October, 1945 due to re-organisation, Kyaw Htin returned to his native town, Prome.[2]
On 29 January 1946, Kyaw Htin re-enlisted as a private in 4th Burma Rifle after the Burma National Army switched sides to the Allied to fight the Japanese. He rose through the ranks to Corporal, Sergeant and Platoon Commander. He was promoted to the rank of Sergeant Major on 15 February 1946. After the independence of Burma from the British, he continued his service to fight the Communist insurgents and other rebels that threatened the country's independence. He rose to the rank of Second Lieutenant on 20 September 1948. He was then transferred to 3rd Burma Rifle as platoon commander. Kyaw Htin was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 20 March 1949 and transferred back to 4th Burma Rifle as platoon commander on 22 March 1949. He was awarded with Thuya medal, prestigious award for gallantry and bravery in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to members of Myanmar Armed Forces on 9 June 1950. He was promoted to the rank of Captain on 6 December 1950 and served as Company Commander.[2]
Kyaw Htin was transferred to Reinforce Battalion under Southern Regional Military Command on 23 November 1953 and became acting battalion commander on 26 May 1955. He was then transferred to 10th Infantry Brigade on 9 March 1957. He was promoted to the rank of Major on 28 May 1957. Kyaw Htin was then transferred to 1st Chin Rifle Battalion on 31 January 1959 as acting battalion commander.
On 28 May 1962, Kyaw Htin became Lieutenant Colonel and became official commanding officer of 1st Chin Rifle Battalion.[2] Kyaw Htin was transferred to South Eastern Regional Military Command Headquarters as Colonel General Staff (GSO1) on 7 December 1963. On 19 September 1964, Kyaw Htin was posted to Military Operations Headquarters within the Ministry of Defense as Colonel General Staff (GSO1). He also became Deputy Director for Directorate of Armor and Artillery at the same time.
On 18 May 1966, he was posted to 77th Light Infantry Division (LID) as Deputy Commander. While serving with 77th LID, he was promoted to the rank of full Colonel. He was the posted to 99th Light Infantry Division as Division Commander on 12 August 1968, as Commander for Yangon Regional Military Command on 3 July 1969.
He was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General and became Vice Chief of Staff (Army) on 8 March 1974. Kyaw Htin was promoted to the rank of Lt-General on 6 March 1976 and became Commander in Chief of Tatmadaw. On 6 March 1977, Kyaw Htin was promoted to General and subsequently given the post of Minister for Defence while still serving as Commander in Chief of Tatmadaw.
On 9 November 1981, Kyaw Htin became Deputy Prime Minister and simultaneously serving as Commander in Chief of Tatmadaw. Kyaw Htin became Minister of Defense on 4 November 1985 and step down as Commander in Chief. General Saw Maung succeed him as Commander in Chief of Tatmadaw. Kyaw Htin honorably resigned from the Army on 30 November 1985.
Political career
Kyaw Htin joined Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) in 1969 as Chairman of Yangon Division Management Committee. He then served in various political posts within BSPP.
Personal life
On February 13, 1951, Kyaw Htin, then 25 years old, married Khin Win Myint in Pyinmana. He died on January 26, 1996, at age 70.
He had 3 daughters and 5 sons. Thant Kyaw, his eldest son, is the current Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs under Wunna Maung Lwin. Maung Maung Kyaw, his youngest son, is currently serving in the Myanmar Air Force .He was Brigadier General and Commander of Myeik Airbase (2012-2014) and Myeik Hti Lar Air Base HQ (2014-2015) .[3] He was promoted to Air Force Chief-of-Staff in June, 2015 and currently serving Myanmar Air Force in Naypyidaw. [4]
Notes
- ↑ DSHMRI Archives
- 1 2 3 Leaders of Myanmar Armed Forces - published by Defence Services Historical Museum and Research Institute (DSHMRI)
- ↑ by Tin Zar Aung (9 July 2014). "မဆလေခတ္ ကာခ်ဳပ္ေဟာင္း၏သား ၂၂ ႏွစ္အရြယ္ အမ်ဳိးသမီးအား ေတာင္းပန္". http://myanmarthandawsint.com. Retrieved 14 July 2014. External link in
|website=(help) - ↑ http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/29/us-myanmar-china-airforce-idUSKCN0P919620150629
See also
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Thura Tin Oo |
Commander in Chief 1976–1984 |
Succeeded by Saw Maung |