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Aung Thaung

Aung Thaung
အောင်သောင်း
Member of the Pyithu Hluttaw
In office
30 March 2011 – 23 July 2015
Constituency Taungtha Township
Majority 122,171 (92.92%)
Minister for Industry-1 of Myanmar
In office
15 November 1997 – 30 March 2011
Succeeded by Soe Thein
In office
1996–1997
Deputy Minister for Commerce
In office
1993–1996
Personal details
Born (1940-12-01)1 December 1940
Taungtha, Mandalay, Burma
Died July 23, 2015(2015-07-23) (aged 74)
Singapore
Cause of death Stroke
Nationality Burmese
Political party Union Solidarity and Development Party
Spouse(s) Khin Khin Yi
Children
  • Moe Aung
  • Nay Aung
  • Pyi Aung
  • Khin Ngu Yi Phyo
Alma mater Mandalay University
Officer Training School
Military service
Allegiance Myanmar
Service/branch Myanmar Army
Years of service 1964-1993
Rank Lieutenant Colonel

Aung Thaung (Burmese: အောင်သောင်း; 1 December 1940 – 23 July 2015) was a Burmese politician and businessman. He served as a member of the country's lower house, the Pyithu Hluttaw, representing the constituency of Taungtha Township, after being elected in the 2010 general election.

Aung Thaung was born on 1 December 1940 in Taungtha Township, Mandalay Division, Burma. He graduated from Mandalay University in 1964 and subsequently became a teacher. He joined the army in 1964 and remained active in the military until 1993, when he became a deputy commerce minister.

After serving in the army for several years, Aung Thaung served as the country's Ministry of Industry-1 from 1997 to 2011 and was known for his close ties to Than Shwe and Maung Aye. Widely considered a hardliner, he was known for his widespread business interests in Myanmar.

He also served in prominent leadership positions in the Union Solidarity and Development Association, the progenitor of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the country's military-backed political party. On 2 May 2011, Aung Thaung was appointed Secretary 1 of the USDP. He was also involved in brokering several ceasefire agreements with ethnic rebel groups, but was sidelined from the Burmese government's negotiating team with the Kachin Independence Organization in 2012, citing "health reasons."

He is often cited by opposition activists as one of the key architects of the Depayin massacre. Leaked diplomatic cables linked him to plainclothes paramilitary militias that opposed and attacked protesters to incite counterattack from the protesters, which could serve as a pretext for their arrest. These paramilitary militias were accused of inciting anti-Muslim riots in Myitkyina in March 2013.


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