Shwe Maung Explained

Shwe Maung
Native Name Lang:Burmese
Order:Member of the Pyithu Hluttaw
Constituency:Buthidaung Township
Term Start:31 January 2011
Term End:29 January 2016
Predecessor:Position established
Successor:Aung Thaung Shwe
Party:Union Solidarity and Development Party (2009–15)
Independent (2015–present)
Birth Date:30 June 1965
Birth Place:Buthidaung, Myanmar (Burma)
Residence:Pazundaung Township, Yangon, Myanmar
Nationality:Burmese
Known For:Rohingya Rights Activist
Occupation:Burmese Politician
Spouse:Tin Tin Win
Children:Shwe Yi Win
Min Shwe Maung Htet
Min Sithu Maung
Parents:Abdul Hardi (father)
Aye Sein (mother)

Shwe Maung (Burmese: ရွှေမောင်, also spelt Shwe Mg, aka Abdul Razak; born 30 June 1965) is a Rohingya rights activist in Myanmar and politician who served as a member of parliament in the House of Representatives for Buthidaung constituency from 2011 to 2016.[1] [2]

Early life and family

Shwe Maung was born in Buthidaung, Rakhine State to Rohingya Muslim parents, Abdul Hadi and Aye Sein. Although his parents are Myanmar citizens, the Union Election Commission of Myanmar ruled that they were not in order to bar U Shwe Maung from the 2015 General Election.[3]

Political career

U Shwe Maung is a former member of the Union Solidarity and Development Party. He served political development since 2010, Rohingya rights and prospects for reconciliation in Rakhine State.[4] [5]

In the 2010 Myanmar general election, he contested the Buthidaung Township constituency and won a House of Representatives seat, the country's lower house. He is a one of Rohingya member in the Myanmar's parliament.[6]

During his time in parliament, he was a member of the Reform and Modernization Assessment Committee. He was an outspoken inside and outside of parliament about human rights and full citizenship for Rohingya people. He was purposely deemed ineligible for his voice for Rohingya, to run for re-election due to supposed issues of citizenship, Myanmar's parliament barred from contesting 2015 Myanmar general election.[7] [8]

Shwe Maung currently serves as a board member of the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) and founding member of the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief (IPPFoRB), also serving President of Arakan Institute for Peace and Human Rights (AiPAH, formerly AiPAD).[9] [10]

On 8 September 2017, police captain of Buthidaung Police Station opened a case against Shwe Maung under the Counter-Terrorism Law for allegedly supporting the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) and defending them via his Facebook page. In fact, U Shwe Maung never supports ARSA. He just requested State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Myanmar Military Chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing via his Facebook Page to protect innocent Rohingya people from his constituency from being killed by Myanmar Security Forces.[11] The case against U Shwe Maung is a retaliation by Myanmar Military for his voice for Rohingya and truth telling.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Pyithu Hluttaw Gov Shwe Maung's MP Profile
  2. Web site: Sitting Rohingya MP in Myanmar plans to appeal election ban. Reuters. 24 August 2015. 16 September 2017.
  3. Web site: Rohingya groups in Europe angered by election ban on candidates. Mizzima. 29 August 2015. 16 September 2017.
  4. Web site: U Shwe Maung on Rohingya Genocide in Myanmar. YouTube. 16 September 2017.
  5. Web site: Burma: Govt moves to silence Rohingya MP after homes torched. World Observer Online. 6 February 2014. 16 September 2017.
  6. Web site: Shwe Maung may be ‘responsible for defamation’ over police allegations, says Ye Htut. Arakan Rohingya Union. 5 February 2014. 16 September 2017.
  7. Web site: U Shwe Maung, former USDP MP: 'This is illogical and ridiculous'. Frontier Myanmar. 31 August 2015. 16 September 2017.
  8. Web site: Myanmar's Disenfranchised Rohingya. burmamuslims.org. 16 September 2017.
  9. Web site: Board Members. ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights. 16 September 2017.
  10. Web site: Berlin Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief. ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights. 16 September 2017.
  11. Web site: Police Open Case Against Former Buthidaung MP. San Yamin Aung. The Irrawaddy. 8 September 2017. 17 September 2017.