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Window on Burma #11




BINA  -- The Burma Independent News Agency  --  

Window on Burma  #11  
  
(From ?The History of Burmese Democracy? (Special Insert), Mojo #5, August
1999)


Remembering 
DR. THAKIN KO DAW HMINE
Teacher and Hero of Burmese Students

While never entering Burmese politics himself, Dr. Thakin Ko Daw Hmine,
Professor of Burmese Literature and History at Rangoon National College,
1876-1964, had a profound influence on the course of the struggle for
democracy
in Burma.  His enthusiastic support for national liberty and for world peace
won him recognition from the Burmese people themselves, as well as from other
countries in his later years. 

But it was his students who loved him the most.  Many of them went on to serve
in high positions in politics, both during the British occupation until 1947,
and then during Independence, before Ne Win?s military coup in 1962 put an end
to all hope for democracy.  They never forgot Dr. Hmine, and the devotion they
felt for him inspired their policies, and their careers.  

Dr. Thakin Ko Daw Hmine was no friend of the British Imperialists, and they
considered him a prime enemy because of his brilliant and prolific writings
against colonial rule.  The late Burmese writer U Thein Pe Myint called him
?the author of the students and the revolutionaries.?  

His greatest passion was the country?s youth, and he always encouraged them to
unify and to study, and he tried to develop an education system in Burma with
all the advantages of those in western societies.  He was an active supporter
of demonstrations for student rights and freedom, in both the 1920 student
strike, and the 1939 strike, and gave honors to the now-famous ?O-way?
Magazine, published by the University Students Union under its leader, Aung
San.  He also made a point of mentioning the names of the student leaders in
his poetry.

The education system in Burma was never a high priority for the government. 
Even during the U Nu administration, little help and attention was given to
the
students.  In 1960, the three existing student unions  the All-Burma Students
Union, the University Students Union, and the Rangoon University Students
Union  joined together in a unified demonstration against government policy
towards education, with a 50-hour hunger strike on Anawrata Street at the
Sulay
Pagoda.  At the successful conclusion of their strike, the students marched to

see their mentor Dr. Hmine, now 84 years old, and received his blessings and
advice.

Dr. Hmine?s last action for his students was perhaps the most poignant.  In
November 1963, after Ne Win and his cronies had taken over the government by
armed force, general unrest pervaded the country. The so-called ?Revolutionary
Council? government had failed to achieve peace and reconciliation after
meeting with the ethnic minorities, to the great disappointment of Dr. Hmine,
the students, and the Burmese people.  Over 100,000 people in six provinces
were massing for demonstrations against the illegal military coup.  

In response, Ne Win commanded all civil servants and workers to attend a
meeting in support of the military government. The students, however,
protested, marched, and blocked the streets leading to Ne Win?s meeting.
Their
behavior was intolerable to Ne Win, so he ordered all colleges and
universities
closed, with no student allowed in the hostels from the following day.

The students took up Ne Win?s challenge, and occupied the buildings in the
Rangoon campus, closing the main gate on Convocation Road.  The government
again issued the ultimatum that the students would be fired upon if they did
not leave, but they remained firm, ready to sacrifice their lives for their
country.

Dr. Thakin Ko Daw Hmine, now 87 years old, was distressed at the prospect of
his students being mercilessly gunned down by the Burmese army.  He wrote a
message to the students pleading with them to peacefully avoid a violent
outcome, and prevailed upon Army General Kyaw Zaw to read the statement to
them.  Listening to their leader?s words, the students finally decided to
accept his request, and abandoned the hopeless battle.  

Dr. Thakin Ko Daw Hmine died a few months later on July 23, 1964.  Before he
died, he said that he would like to see a genuine peace in Burma.  As we all
know, 35 years have passed and his wish has not yet been fulfilled, in fact it
has become worse, but we continue to fight unceasingly for peace and freedom.

In 1976, the Centenary of Dr. Hmine?s birth was the occasion of a great
student
uprising against the military dictatorship.  Today, patriotic politicians and
peace-loving people everywhere in Burma respect and honor his memory. 


***********

[WHAT IS MOJO?  MOJO means ?Lightning? in Burmese.  MOJO is an independent
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social, political, and economic news from all over Burma, and its intended
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?Dialogue is inevitable.  We will not just sit and wait.  We will continue
doing what has to be done.?
NLD General Secretary Daw Aung San Suu Kyi]