Aung San

Politician, revolutionary

• Born: February 13, 1915
• Birthplace: Natmauk, Magwe (Magway), British Burma
• Died: July 19, 1947
• Place of death: Rangoon, British Burma

Significance: Aung San was a Burmese politician, activist, and revolutionary who served as the fifth premier of the British Crown Colony of Burma from 1946 to 1947. Aung San is considered the father of modern Myanmar (formerly Burma). He was involved in the Burmese independence movement and founded the Communist Party of Burma and the Tatmadaw, the official army of Burma (Myanmar). Aung San spent most of his career working to free Burma from British rule. He was assassinated several months prior to Burma's total independence, however.

Background

Aung San was born on February 13, 1915, in Natmauk in central British Burma. Aung San grew up in a Burma under British control. His grandfather had been killed by British soldiers during the region's annexation in the late nineteenth century. Aung San was the youngest of six born to his father, U Pha, and his mother, Daw Su. Aung San was quiet, shy, and very attached to his mother as a child, so the family delayed schooling until he could function more independently.

Aung San attended a monastery school, which provided regular education and Buddhist training. He was an excellent student with great self-discipline. He learned to speak fluent English on his own so he could attend an institution of higher learning. At thirteen, he began attending a national boarding school that instilled in him Burmese nationalist ideals. He continued to perform well in school and became interested in politics, participating in the school's debate team and editing the school journal.

After graduating high school, Aung San enrolled at Rangoon University. His university education further encouraged his nationalist viewpoints. Nationalism was a popular subject among university students during this period, and the political sphere was growing increasingly frustrated with British rule. Aung San furthered his interest in politics on the university's debate team. He became a vocal nationalist proponent, and in 1935, he and his fellow nationalist students sought control of the Students' Union of Rangoon University. The group managed to gain election to the executive committee and eventually harnessed political control of the union. Aung San also became editor of the union's magazine.

Aung San routinely featured articles that were critical of school administrators in the union's magazine. His actions got him expelled in 1936. An outraged student body led a strike against the expulsion, however, and he was later readmitted. By 1938, he was president of the university's student union and cofounder and president of the All Burma Students' Union. He was appointed a student representative of the Rangoon University Act Amendment Committee by the British governor of Burma.

Overview

Aung San joined the newly formed political party Dobama Asiayone (We Burmese) in 1938, and was appointed its secretary general. With this party, he served on the working committee for the All Burma Cultivators' League. He then organized a new party called the Freedom Bloc, a combination of the Dobama Asiayone and another party known as the Poor Man's Party. After founding the Communist Party of Burma in late 1939, Aung San was arrested, accused of trying to forcefully overthrow the government. He never was prosecuted, however. The British authorities repeatedly attempted to arrest Aung San for his nationalist activities, but he escaped to India, where he remained hidden for some time. He briefly snuck into Burma to help with student protests against the war in Europe but had to leave again to avoid arrest. At this point, he decided it was time to organize a rebellion against British rule.

Aung San planned to ask for assistance from the Chinese communists, but the Japanese military intercepted him before he could reach China. The Japanese convinced Aung San to join them in their plans to overthrow the British authority in Burma. Starting in 1941, Aung San began recruiting his Burmese supporters for Japanese military training. This group developed into the Burmese Independence Army (later the Patriotic Burmese Forces). Together with the Burmese Independence Army, the Japanese successfully overthrew British authority in Burma in March 1942.

Both Japanese and Burmese political leaders recognized Aung San's role in the rebellion. He was named a major general in the Japanese Army and minister of defense in the newly created government of Burma established in 1943. Although Japan had declared Burma an independent state following the British defeat, Aung San was wary of Japan's promises. In 1944, he founded the Anti-Fascist Organisation (AFO) and became its leader. He led the Burmese Independence Army and British Allied forces in a revolt against the Japanese in 1945, driving them out of Burma.

Following the Burmese uprising, the AFO was expanded and renamed the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL). The newly designated Patriotic Burmese Forces and the Burmese Army under British command then joined forces. Aung San was elected president of the AFPFL in 1946. His association with the British government displeased some Burmese communist leaders, however, which created tensions within the AFPFL. When Aung San accepted a position as deputy chairman on the British Executive Council of Burma, communist members of the AFPFL became agitated and were eventually expelled from the organization.

In January of 1947, Aung San signed an agreement with the British government guaranteeing Burma's total independence within a year. Despite the formation of a rival political party by the expelled communists, Aung San's AFPFL political party had support from most of Burma. The AFPFL won 196 of 202 seats in the 1947 general election for a constituent assembly. As leader of the AFPFL, Aung San took charge of what was then referred to as the Union of Burma. Throughout early 1947, the AFPFL made preparations for a new constitution. These plans were frozen on July 19, 1947, after a group of armed men stormed an executive council meeting and gunned down seven council members, including Aung San. Authorities later discovered that Aung San's political rival U Saw had planned the attack. The assassins were tried and executed.

Impact

Aung San played a huge role in Burma's push for independence, though he never managed to see that independence fully realized. He succeeded in uniting the country during his time in power. Aung San's legacy lived on during the 8888 Uprising in Burma in the 1980s, led partly by Aung San's daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi.

Personal Life

Aung San married Daw Khin Kyi on September 6, 1942. They had four children, including Burmese politician and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi.

Bibliography

"Aung San of Burma Time Line." Aung San of Burma, www.aungsan.com/timeline.htm. Accessed 12 Feb. 2018.

Aung Zaw. "Rewards of Independence Remain Elusive." Irrawaddy, 3 Jan. 2018, www.irrawaddy.com/from-the-archive/rewards-independence-remain-elusive.html. Accessed 12 Feb. 2018.

"Independence & General Aung San." Oxford Burma Alliance, www.oxfordburmaalliance.org/independence--general-aung-san.html. Accessed 12 Feb. 2018.

"The Life of Aung San." San Jose State University, www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/burma2.htm#AUNGSAN. Accessed 12 Feb. 2018.

The Political Legacy of Aung San. Edited by Josef Silverstein, Southeast Asia Program, 1993.