Khin Nyunt

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Khin Nyunt (Template:MYname; {{#invoke:IPA|main}}; born 23 October 1939)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> is a retired Burmese army general widely recognized for his influential role in shaping Myanmar's political dynamics.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Serving as the Chief of Intelligence and Prime Minister of Myanmar from 25 August 2003 to 18 October 2004, he played a crucial part in the nation's history.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During his tenure, Khin Nyunt oversaw significant developments in Myanmar's intelligence and apparatus and government policies.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was instrumental in implementing reforms aimed at modernizing intelligence operations and promoting national security interests.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However his leadership faced challenges, and he was eventually removed from power in 2004 amid political reshuffles within the ruling military junta.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Despite his removal from office, Khin Nyunt's legacy continued to be debated, with some viewing him as a reformist figure and others critiquing his approach to governance.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Born on 23 October 1939 in Kyauktan Township, near Rangoon (now Yangon), His early life was marked by a unique cultural heritage.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Hailing from a family of Burmese Chinese descent, his parents were Hakkas from Meixian, Meizhou, Guangdong, China.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Khin Nyunt played a significant role in Myanmar's political landscape.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Khin Nyunt graduated from the 25th batch of the Officers Training School, Bahtoo, in 1960, after he dropped out of Yankin College in the 1950s, forging a path that would intertwine with intelligence operations and key political roles.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His military career led him to the position of Chief of Intelligence, where he played a crucial role in the country's internal security.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His political journey reached its pinnacle when he assumed the office of Prime Minister of Myanmar on 25 August 2003, succeeding Senior General Than Shwe.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, his tenure was short-lived, lasting until 18 October 2004.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As Prime Minister, Khin Nyunt faced challenges and controversies, including the proposal of a seven-point roadmap to democracy, criticized for its perceived lack of clarity and military involvement.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His leadership oversaw the recalling of the suspended National Convention, influencing Myanmar's political trajectory.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Dismissed from power on 18 October 2004 amid internal military struggles, Khin Nyunt faced corruption charges and received a 44-year prison sentence.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Released from house arrest on 13 January 2012, he entered a new phase, establishing a presence in Yangon with a coffee shop, art gallery, and souvenir shop.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In an interview in April 2012, Khin Nyunt claimed that he personally intervened to save Aung San Suu Kyi's life during the Depayin massacre, by ordering his men to take her to a safe location.

Early life and educationEdit

File:Lieutenant khin nyunt 1962.jpg

Khin Nyunt as a Lieutenant in 1962.

Khin Nyunt was born on 23 October 1939, in Kyauktan Township, near Rangoon (now Yangon).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He is of Burmese Chinese descent, with parents who were Hakkas from Meixian, Meizhou, Guangdong, China.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Khin Nyunt graduated from the 25th batch of the Officers Training School, Bahtoo in 1960, after dropping out of Yankin College in the late 1950s.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Political careerEdit

After his military career, he was ordered back to Rangoon in 1984 after an attack on a visiting South Korean delegation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Twenty-one people, including three South Korean cabinet ministers, died during the attack, which occurred on 9 October 1983 and was perpetrated by terrorists sent from North Korea.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Khin Nyunt was then appointed Chief of Intelligence.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> From the mid-1980s to the late 1990s Khin Nyunt was considered to be a protégé of General Ne Win, who supposedly retired from politics in 23 July 1988 but who is thought to have continued to be an influential figure behind the scenes until about the late 1990s.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The 1988 uprising that occurred from March to September 1988 was quelled by the military when the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) was formed on 18 September 1988.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) was renamed as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) in 15 November 1997, and Khin Nyunt was appointed as its first secretary (Secretary −1), a post which he held until his appointment as prime minister in 25 August 2003.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Shortly after Khin Nyunt was appointed as prime minister, he announced a seven-point roadmap to democracy on 30 August 2003; this roadmap was heavily criticized by the Burmese opposition as well as by many foreign governments especially Western ones as it envisaged a permanent military participation in the government.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The so-called 'systematic and step-by-step implementation of the road-map to democracy' also contained no time-line.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The first 'step' of the road map was the recalling of the suspended National Convention which first met in January 1993. The National Convention (NC) was supposed to 'lay down' the basic principles for a new Constitution.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The NC met sporadically until the approval of a new constitution in 2008 by what many observers considered the rigged 2008 constitutional referendum.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Prime ministerEdit

After Khin Nyunt's appointment as Prime Minister of Myanmar, his role in the government gave rise to some hope and speculation that there might be some 'liberalization', as Khin Nyunt was considered a moderate pragmatist who saw the need of a dialogue with the democratic opposition.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The SPDC Chairman Senior General Than Shwe and his deputy, Vice-Senior General Maung Aye, were seen as hardliners who opposed any relaxation of the military's iron grip of the country.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

ControversyEdit

From 1988 until his purge in 2004, Khin Nyunt oversaw the arrest of around 10,000 people. Many were subjected to torture and farcical trials that resulted in decades-long prison sentences.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Dozens of his military intelligence units harassed, intimidated and detained opposition activists.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His military intelligence units infiltrated almost every organization in the country and maintained networks of spies in almost every neighbourhood.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Their agents were placed in customs, immigration and police departments, and officers military intelligence even monitored other senior military officials, including top generals.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Khin Nyunt was instrumental in closing the universities, then reopening them after they had been relocated to remote, ill-equipped campuses where students could no longer organise protests or get a meaningful education.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Arrest and releaseEdit

On 18 October 2004, in a one-sentence announcement signed by SPDC Chairman Than Shwe, Khin Nyunt was "permitted to retire on health grounds". However, he was immediately arrested and placed under protective custody.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Allegations of Khin Nyunt's corruption were officially made several days later. His dismissal and arrest were the result of a power struggle in which the junta's strongman, Than Shwe, successfully managed to clip the power of the "intelligence faction" of the Myanmar Armed Forces which Khin Nyunt led. Most of the Generals and military officers in the SPDC, like Senior General Than Shwe, did not want to negotiate with Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy (NLD).

On 5 July 2005, Khin Nyunt was tried by a Special Tribunal inside Insein Prison near Rangoon on various corruption charges.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 21 July 2005, he was sentenced to 44 years in prison, though it is believed that he is ostensibly serving his sentence under house arrest instead of in prison. His sons were also sentenced to 51 and 68 years respectively. It is unclear whether his wife was also indicted.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In July 2009, a video of Khin Nyunt at the home of former Burmese minister Brigadier-General Tint Swe, taken on 7 July 2009, was leaked to the public and there have been reports that Khin Nyunt and his wife have been able to travel outside their home on occasion, since March 2008.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In December 2010, another 16-minute video of Khin Nyunt meeting with the Chief of Police Khin Yi and other senior police officers was circulated on YouTube.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Khin Nyunt's brother-in-law was Than Nyein, a long-term political prisoner under military regime and founder of National Democratic Force Party, who died of lung cancer in Yangon on 21 May 2014.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Khin Nyunt was released from house arrest on 13 January 2012 by the order of President Thein Sein.<ref>[1] Template:Webarchive</ref>

Later lifeEdit

After his release from house arrest, Khin Nyunt resettled in a villa in Yangon. There, he established a coffee shop, art gallery, and a souvenir shop featuring items like wood carvings for tourists.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On 2 March 2015, Khin Nyunt published a 657-page autobiography, providing insights into various aspects of his life. On 5 December 2021, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the current Commander-in-Chief of the Tatmadaw, visited Khin Nyunt's home. It has been reported that the former general is facing health challenges, specifically from Alzheimer's disease.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Personal lifeEdit

Khin Nyunt is married to Khin Win Shwe, a medical doctor, and has two sons.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He reportedly has seven grandchildren.

KhinNyunt-Vietnam.jpg

General Khin Nyunt inspecting a Vietnamese honor guard at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi, Vietnam, on 9 August 2004.
KhinNyunt-PMSoeWin.jpg

Prime Minister Soe Win (left) and former prime minister Khin Nyunt (right) on 21 October 2004.
Khin-nyunt.jpg

Khin Nyunt shortly after release from house arrest on 13 January 2012.

ReferencesEdit

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External linksEdit

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