Ye Htoon
Encyclopedia
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, sometime-jailed political dissident, and a successful entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, and one of the notables of the now-extinct Scouting movement in Burma
Scouting and Guiding in Burma
Today, Burma is one of only five of the world's independent countries that do not have Scouting, however Scouting in Burma had a rich five-decade history...
.
Ye Htoon was the eldest son of Chan Htoon
Chan Htoon
Justice Chan Htoon was Attorney General and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Burma, and the architect of the first constitution of Burma in 1947. Chan Htoon served as the President of the World Fellowship of Buddhists from 1958 to 1963. He was imprisoned from 1963 to 1967 by the Burmese...
, former Attorney General and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court and the architect of the first constitution of Burma
Constitution of Burma
The Constitution of Burma ) has changed several times since the country became independent from the United Kingdom. Burma's third and current constitution was published in September 2008 after a referendum.-1947 Constitution:...
in 1947, and Khin Khin Thein. He attended Myoma National High School, Ananda College, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Ananda College
Ananda College , Colombo which is considered as the leading National school in Sri Lanka, was established on November 1, 1886, by the Buddhist Theosophical Society led by Colonel Henry Steel Olcott...
and Thacher School, Ojai Valley, California
The Thacher School
The Thacher School is a co-educational independent boarding school located on 425 acres of hillside overlooking the Ojai Valley in Ojai, California, United States. Founded in 1889 as a boys' school, it is now the oldest co-ed boarding school in California. Girls were first admitted in 1977. The...
, is a 1961 graduate of Bucknell University
Bucknell University
Bucknell University is a private liberal arts university located alongside the West Branch Susquehanna River in the rolling countryside of Central Pennsylvania in the town of Lewisburg, 30 miles southeast of Williamsport and 60 miles north of Harrisburg. The university consists of the College of...
, and received a postgraduate Bachelor of Law degree from the Rangoon University in 1965. His wife Onma Maw is the daughter of statesman
Statesman
A statesman is usually a politician or other notable public figure who has had a long and respected career in politics or government at the national and international level. As a term of respect, it is usually left to supporters or commentators to use the term...
Dr. Ba Maw
Ba Maw
Dr. Ba Maw was a Burmese political leader, active during the interwar and World War II period.-Early life and education:Ba Maw was born in Maubin. Ba Maw came from a distinguished family of mixed Mon-Burmese parentage which bred many scholars and lawyers...
, the first Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
and the Head of State
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
of Burma.
Then-Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Ye Htoon served as the last Director General of the Union of Burma Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, and reported that the military government dissolved the Union of Burma Boy Scouts, on March 1, 1964.
Ye Htoon was under detention for the first time from 1962 to 1963 for alleged participation in the July 7 Upheaval. He was arrested again from November 1971 to July 1972 for his connection with Burmese expatriates and foreign firms, and action was taken against him the third time in January 1975 for participation in what has come to be known as the U Thant
U Thant
U Thant was a Burmese diplomat and the third Secretary-General of the United Nations, from 1961 to 1971. He was chosen for the post when his predecessor, Dag Hammarskjöld, died in September 1961....
crisis, student-led protests over the shabby treatment by the Ne Win
Ne Win
Ne Win was Burmese a politician and military commander. He was Prime Minister of Burma from 1958 to 1960 and 1962 to 1974 and also head of state from 1962 to 1981...
government of the remains of U Thant which were crushed by the military government, when he was given a 10-year prison term. He was freed in July 1980 under the Government's Amnesty Order No. 2180. He was detained in June 1986, accused of involvement in illegal dollar transaction, but was freed two weeks later under a personal surety.
He was a pioneer in bringing digital switching telephone exchange
Telephone exchange
In the field of telecommunications, a telephone exchange or telephone switch is a system of electronic components that connects telephone calls...
s to Burma, and has amassed a vast experience with the country's economic system. A business consultant to many international companies, he is now Chairman of Maw Htoon and Partners Co., Ltd., Shambhala Tours Co., Ltd., Shambhala Financial Services and the Myanmar Thai Gypsum Co., Ltd.
At a lengthy press conference on September 9, 1989, State Law and Order Restoration Council First Secretary Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
Khin Nyunt
Khin Nyunt
General Khin Nyunt is an officer and politician in Myanmar. Khin Nyunt is of Burmese Chinese descent. He held the office of Chief of Intelligence and was Prime Minister from 25 August 2003 until 18 October 2004. He is married to Khin Win Shwe, a medical doctor, and father to a daughter, Thin Le Le...
stated, "Fifty-two persons including Ye Htoon, who were in charge of the underground youth organization and who were trying to cause unrest in the country, were interrogated, and consequently documentary and other evidence (was) seized... We received information that a person called Ye Htoon, resident at 5/A Po Sein Road, Bahann Township, had been in contact with an organization called 'Da Nya Ta' (Alliance for Democratic Solidarity, Union of Burma) led by Thanmani Bo Khin Maung, and was aiding and abetting that group's work from Yangon
Yangon
Yangon is a former capital of Burma and the capital of Yangon Region . Although the military government has officially relocated the capital to Naypyidaw since March 2006, Yangon, with a population of over four million, continues to be the country's largest city and the most important commercial...
since. Information was also received that he had formed the underground youth organization called FFB (National Freedom Fighters of Burma) and was striving to cause unrest in the country under his supervision; the National Intelligence Bureau
National Intelligence Bureau
The State Intelligence Service is an intelligence agency of the Sri Lankan government. It is tasked with both internal and external intelligence...
called in and interrogated 52 persons including Ye Htoon beginning 31 July 1989."
Ye Htoon was picked up, had his teeth kicked out and was sentenced to 19 years hard-labor rigorous imprisonment, for participating in the 1988 democratic uprising
8888 Uprising
The 8888 Nationwide Popular Pro-Democracy Protests was a series of marches, demonstrations, protests, and riots in the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma...
. The specific crime, according to the junta, was that he had met Bertil Lintner
Bertil Lintner
Bertil Lintner is a Swedish journalist based in Thailand and the author of several works on Asia, including Blood Brothers: The Criminal Underworld of Asia and Great Leader, Dear Leader: Demystifying North Korea Under The Kim Clan....
and provided him with information. He is also accused of being a ghostwriter
Ghostwriter
A ghostwriter is a professional writer who is paid to write books, articles, stories, reports, or other texts that are officially credited to another person. Celebrities, executives, and political leaders often hire ghostwriters to draft or edit autobiographies, magazine articles, or other written...
for Outrage, a book authored by Lintner. He was imprisoned for four years, from 1989 to 1993.
Ye Htoon, as the leader of the Myanmar Mingala Foundation, appears to be making preparations for the 2010 Burmese elections before his death.