Htin Kyaw

In 1973, Htin Kyaw married Su Su Lwin, the daughter of U Lwin, a co-founder of the NLD. His wife has an MA in English from University of Washington in the United States and is also a politician who has been the incumbent MP for Thongwa Township in the House of Representatives since May 2012. The couple has no children.

Htin Kyaw was born on 20 July 1946 in Rangoon, British Burma (now Myanmar), to Min Thu Wun and Kyi Kyi. His father was a prominent poet, writer and scholar who helped launch a new age literary movement called Khit-San.

He graduated from English Methodist High School in 1962 and joined the Rangoon Institute of Economics (then part of the Rangoon Arts and Science University) from where he graduated with an M.Econ. in statistics in 1968.

He worked as a teacher for a while before moving to the Institute of Computer Science, University of London, on a scholarship in 1971. He also attended computer studies in Asia Electronics Union, Tokyo in 1974.

He furthered his education by earning another master's degree in computer science in 1975.

Htin Kyaw returned to Burma and became active in politics. He joined the Ministry of Industry as a Deputy Division Chief in 1975. His political career flourished and he was appointed as a Deputy Director in the Foreign Economic Relations Department, Ministry of Planning and Treasury in 1980. He resigned in 1992.

A long-time associate and friend of Aung San Suu Kyi, he became a founding executive committee member of the Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, founded by Suu Kyi and named after her mother Khin Kyi.

Kyaw’s father-in-law was a co-founder of the National League for Democracy (NLD), a democratic socialist and liberal democratic political party. Due to this he had close associations with the party members and advised them on diplomatic affairs and international relations.

When Suu Kyi was under house arrest, he played the role of a loyal ally and visited her regularly, becoming a link between Suu Kyi and the outside world. In 2000, Suu Kyi was freed for a brief period during which she wanted to visit the central Burmese city of Mandalay.

He joined her in her attempted visit but was arrested along with his comrades after a confrontation with an army officer at a railway station. Suu Kyi was again put under house arrest while Htin Kyaw was sent to the infamous Insein Prison. He gained much respect for maintaining a calm and dignified demeanor over the duration of his four-and-a-half months’ imprisonment.