U Maw Thiri passed away

DVB ( July 09,2003 )

It is reported that U Maw Thiri, the constant supporter of democracy in Burma and the founder of Irrawaddy Press in India has passed away suddenly at his home in New Delhi at the age of 70.

He was born of Mr Hans Raj Prabhakar and Smt Sushila at Kyaukme, Northern Shan State.

DVB’s Thet Naing reports on U Maw Thiri’s lifelong struggle for democracy in Burma and his efforts for the promotion of Hindu-Burmese relation as follows.

Thet Naing : U Maw Thiri was born in Kyaukme in Northern Shan State and he made his living by teaching. After the military coup led by General Ne Win occurred in 1962 and many private schools were nationalised, U Maw Thiri had to go to India, a land he never knew in 1965. He worked for All India Radio [Burmese section] and when the 1988 nationwide uprising occurred in Burma, he continuously wrote and broadcast pro-democracy articles and denounced the military government. He also translated famous works of Burmese writers into Hindi and introduced them to Indian readers. Moreover, he translated Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s ‘Letters from Burma’ into Hindi for Indian readers. Burmese activists in India say that his death is a great loss to Burma and its people. U Maw Thiri was born on the February 25th of 1934.