Aung San

General Aung San (); February 13, 1915 – July 19, 1947) was a Burmese revolutionary, nationalist, general, and politician.

He was born to lawyer U Phar and Daw Suu in the town of Natmauk, in the district of Magwe, in central Burma. His family was already known in the resistance movement, having fought the British annexation in 1886. At the time, Burma was still part of British India.

Youth

He continued his education at Rangoon University, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature, Modern History, and Political Science. Soon, he was elected to the executive committee of the Rangoon University Students' Union. He then became editor of their magazine.

In February, 1936, he was expelled from the university, along with Ko Nu, for refusing to reveal the name of the author who wrote an article entitled Hell Hound At Large directed at a senior University official. This led to a university students strike, and the university subsequently retracted their expulsion orders. In 1938, Aung San was elected president of both the Rangoon University Students Union (RUSU) and the All-Burma Students Union (ABSU). In the same year, the government appointed him as a student representative on the Rangoon University Act Amendment Committee.

In October 1938, Aung San moved from student politics to nationalist politics. At this point, he was quite anti-British. He joined the Dohbama Asi-ayone organization (which translates as "We-Burmese"), and acted as their general secretary until August, 1940. While in this role, he helped organize the series of strikes that became known as the Revolution of Year 1300. He also helped to found another nationalist organization, Bama-htwet-yat Ghine (Freedom Bloc), and became its general secretary. What remains relatively unknown is the fact that he also became a founding member and first secretary-general of the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) in August 1939. in In March, 1940, he attended the Indian National Congress Assembly in Ramgarh, India. However, the government issued a warrant for his arrest due to Thakin attempts to organize a revolt against the British, and he had to flee Burma. He went first to China, seeking assistance from the communist Chinese. He was intercepted by the Japanese military occupiers, and was convinced by them to go to Japan.

World War II Period

In February, 1941, Aung San returned to Burma, with an offer of arms and financial support from the Fumimaro Konoe government. He returned briefly to Japan to receive military training, along with the first batch of the Thirty Comrades. In December, with the help of the Minami Kikan, he founded the Burmese Independence Army (BIA) in Bangkok, Thailand (under Japanese occupation at the time), with Japanese assistance. He became chief of staff, and took on the rank of Major-General.

The capital of Burma, Rangoon, fell to the Japanese in March 1942 (as part of the Burma Campaign in World War II), and the Japanese military admistration took over the country. In July, Aung San re-organised the BIA as the Burma Defence Army (BDA). He remained its commander in chief - this time as Colonel Aung San. In March 1943, he was once again promoted to the rank of Major-General. Soon after, he was invited to Japan, and was presented with the Order of the Rising Sun.

On August 1, 1943, the Japanese declared Burma to be an independent nation. Aung San was appointed war minister, and his army was again renamed, as the Burma National Army. His cooperation with the Japanese authorities was to be short-lived: Aung San became skeptical about their promises of true independence, and was displeased with their treatment of Burmese people.

Post World War II

After negotiations with the British, the Anti-Fascist Organization was transformed into a political party and renamed the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League, or AFPFL. The Burma National Army was renamed the Patriotic Burmese Forces, and then gradually disarmed by the British as the Japanese were driven out of various parts of the country. The Patriotic Burmese Forces, while disbanded, were offered positions in the Burma Army, which was under British command. Aung San was offered the rank of Deputy Inspector General of the Burma Army, but declined it in favor of becoming a civilian political leader.

In January 1946, Aung San became the President of the AFPFL. This followed the return of civil government to Burma the previous October. In September, he was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Executive Council of Burma, and was made responsible for defence and external affairs. In effect, he was Prime Minister, although he was still subject to a British veto. On January 27, 1947, Aung San and Clement Attlee signed an agreement guaranteeing Burma's independence within a year - he had been responsible for its negotiation. He is also believed to have been responsible, in part, for the persecution of the Karen people, based on their loyalty to the British and widespread adoption of the Christian religion.

Two weeks later, Aung San signed the Panglong Agreement, with leaders from other national groups, expressing solidarity and support for a united Burma. In April, the AFPFL won 196 of 202 seats in the election for a constituent assembly. In July, Aung San convened a series of conferences at the Sorrenta Villa in Rangoon to discuss the rehabilitation of Burma.

Only months before independence, in July 1947, Aung San and six of his newly formed cabinet members, including his elder brother U Ba Win, were assassinated. The assassination was supposedly carried out on the orders of U Saw, a rival politician; but there are aspects of U Saw's trial that give rise to doubt. Burma regained its independence on the 4th of January, 1948.

Family

While he was Minister of Defense in 1942, Aung San met and married Khin Kyi, around the same time her sister met and married Thakin Than Tun, the communist leader. Aung San's daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi, is now the leader of the Burmese opposition to the current military regime. One of his sons, Aung San Lin, died as a child at eight years old, when he drowned in an ornamental lake in the grounds of the house. Another son, Aung San Oo, is an engineer working in the United States. Aung San's wife, Khin Kyi, the mother of his children, died in December 27, 1988.

Although the military regime has tried to eradicate signs of Aung San's memory, several statues of him adorn the capital, and a market is named in his honor. The day of his death, 19 July, is celebrated as Martyr's Day (Azani nei).

External links

Gourt Home::Gourt :: Aung San

Youth

World War II Period

Post World War II

Family

External links