Sao Kya Seng
စဝ်ကြာဆိုင်
ၸဝ်ႈၵျႃႇသႅင်
Sao Kya Seng and his family
Born1924 (1924)
Hsipaw, Federated Shan States, British Burma
Disappeared3 March 1962 (aged 37–38)
near Taunggyi, Burma
SpouseInge Eberhard
ChildrenSao Kennari
Sao Mayari
Saopha of Hsipaw State
In office
1947–1959
Prime MinisterU Nu
Ba Swe
Ne Win
Minister of Shan StateSao Hkun Hkio
Preceded bySao Ohn Kya
Succeeded byposition abolished
Member of Chamber of Nationalities
In office
1954–1962
Prime MinisterU Nu
Ba Swe
Ne Win
Preceded byposition established
Succeeded byposition abolished
ConstituencyHsipaw
Personal details
Political partyAFPFL
Union Party
Alma materColorado School of Mines
Profession

Sao Kya Seng or Sao Kya Hseng (Burmese: စဝ်ကြာဆိုင်; Shan: ၸဝ်ႈၵျႃႇသႅင်; 1924 – disappeared 3 March 1962) was a politician, a mining engineer, an agriculturalist and the last Saopha of Hsipaw State, Myanmar, from 1947 to 1959.

Biography

He studied mining engineering at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado, United States, from 1949 to 1953.[1] He graduated with a BSc degree in 1953 and then married. His bride, Sao Nang Thu Sandi or Inge Eberhard, a German-speaking Austrian student who had received a Fulbright Scholarship in 1951, was studying at Colorado Women's College, a constituent college of University of Denver. In 1954, he returned to Burma with her, and they had two daughters, Mayari and Kennari.[1]

After arrival, they were crowned as saopha and mahadevi although Sao Kya Seng had already held this title since 1947. He abdicated in 1959. He served as a member of the Chamber of Nationalities from 1954 to 1962 which was upper house of Burma from 1948 to 1962, member for Shan State Council and secretary for the Association of Shan Princes from 1954 to 1962, representing Hsipaw constituency, Shan State. He was arrested in 1962 after General Ne Win's 1962 Burmese coup d'état. Sao Kya Seng was last seen being taken into custody at an army checkpoint near Taunggyi.[1][2] It was later revealed that he was killed during his detention that year by the military government, who never admitted responsibility.[3]

Sao Kya Seng was considered by the Shan people as one of the Shan national leaders who promoted federalism and democracy, together with Sao Shwe Thaik and Sao Hkun Hkio. His nephew, Khun Htun Oo, son of his elder brother Sao Kyar Zon, served as president of Shan National League for Democracy, a major political party representing Shan people.

Sao Kya Seng's wife, Inge, wrote a book, Twilight Over Burma: My Life as a Shan Princess, in 1994 about her marriage and life in Burma.[4] The book became the film, Twilight Over Burma, in 2015.[5] The film was banned in both Myanmar and Thailand.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Huanok, Withaya (2015-10-08). "Posthumous Award Revives Memories of a Shan Prince". The Irrawaddy. Irrawaddy Publishing Group. Retrieved 2016-03-27.
  2. ↑ Graber, Janna L. (2001-02-14). "A Royal Duty—Inge Sargent, A Former Princess Of Burma, Works To Help Those Still Caught In Country's Turmoil". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2016-03-27.
  3. ↑ Kyaw Phyo Tha (2017-08-18). "The Tragedy and Hope of a Palace". The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  4. ↑ Sargent, Inge (1994). Twilight Over Burma: My Life as a Shan Princess (Paper ed.). Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 0824816285. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "Twilight Over Burma". iMDB. 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  6. ↑ "Thailand joins Myanmar in banning movie". The Nation. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.