Khin Shwe

Khin Shwe (Burmese: ခင်ရွှေ; born 21 January 1952) Burmese business tycoon and politician who served as a Member of parliament in the House of Nationalities for Yangon Region № 9 constituency from 2011 to 2016. He is the chairman of Zaykabar Construction, one of the country's largest construction companies.[2][3] He also serves as chairman for the National Development Group of Companies, Myanmar Tourism Board and the Myanmar Construction Entrepreneurs Association.[4][5][6]

Khin Shwe
ခင်ရွှေ
Member of the House of Nationalities
In office
31 January 2011 – 29 January 2016
Preceded byPosition established
ConstituencyYangon Region № 9
Twante, Kawhmu, and Kungyangon Townships
Majority173,208 (73.76%)
Personal details
Born (1952-01-21) 21 January 1952
Moulmein, Burma
NationalityBurmese
Political partyUnion Solidarity and Development Party
Spouse
San San Kywe
​
(m. 1975)​
ChildrenZay Thiha[1]
Zay Zin Latt[1]
Parent(s)Saw Nyunt[1] (father)
Daw Daung[1] (mother)
Residence(s)Bahan Township, Yangon[1]
OccupationChairman of Zaykabar Company

Early life and education

Khin Shwe was born in Moulmein (now Mawlamyaing), Burma to ethnic Mon-Burmese parents, Saw Nyunt and Daw Daung.[7] He attended a technical high school in Maymyo and worked for the Burmese government until 1988, as a construction and survey engineer.[7] Khin Shwe claims to hold two honorary doctorate degrees in business administration.[8] However, both are from unaccredited for-profit diploma mills, Washington University and Cal Southern University.[9][10][11][12]

Business holding

In 1988, he established Padamya Company with Htein Win and 2 other partners.[7] In 1990, he formed his own construction company, Zaykabar Company, one of the country's largest construction companies. Later, he became chairman of the National Development Group of Companies, Myanmar Tourism Board and the Myanmar Construction Entrepreneurs Association.[7]

The Burmese government has awarded him two titles: Thiri Thudhamma Manijotadhara (1998) and Agga Maha Thirithudhamma Manijhotadhara (2001).[7] Khin Shwe is head of Sasana Nogghaha, a religious organization supported by the Burmese government.[13] Khin Shwe was featured on the US’s Specially Designated Nationals list for more than ten years. He saw his name removed with the lifting of sanctions by the White House in October 2016, a move deemed controversial by rights groups who criticize the lack of transparency in the business landscape and continued involvement in the economy by individuals and companies with military ties.

Along with Htay Myint, Dagon Win Aung and Nay Zin Latt, Khin Shwe serves as a patron of the Myanmar Hoteliers Association.[14]

Shwe Mann and Khin Shwe are related by marriage: Shwe Mann's son, Toe Naing Mann, is married to Zay Zin Latt (ဇေဇင်လတ်), Khin Shwe's daughter.[15] Khin Shwe's son Zay Thiha (ဇေသီဟ), promoter of the World Lethwei Championship, is married to Nanda Hlaing, a Burmese actress and model.[16][17]

In 2021, he opened Zaykabar Museum, the largest private museum in Myanmar, in Yangon.[18]

Political career

He is a member of the Union Solidarity and Development Party. In the 2010 Myanmar general election, he contested the Yangon Region № 9 constituency winning a majority of 173,208 (73.76 percent of the votes), won a House of Nationalities seat.

In the aftermath of the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, he was arrested and sent to Insein Prison on 21 March 2022 along with his son Zay Thiha, following a conflict over a failed building development on military-owned land in Yangon.[19][20] They are the first major cronies to be arrested after the coup.[21]

References
  1. "လွှတ်တော်ကိုယ်စားလှယ် ကိုယ်ရေးမှတ်တမ်းအကျဉ်းချုပ် - ဒေါက်တာခင်ရွှေ". အမျိုးသားလွှတ်တော် (in Burmese). 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-03-01. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  2. Kyaw Hsu Mon (13 September 2010). "Construction moguls to join USDP as candidates". Myanmar Times. Archived from the original on 12 June 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  3. Ko Wild (12 November 2010). "Junta crony Khin Shwe wins upper house seat". Mizzima. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  4. Myo Thein (15 November 2011). "Tourism chairman Khin Shwe calls Burmese media pessimistic". Mizzima. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  5. Kyaw Hsu Mon (11 October 2010). "Business associations ease way for members to enter parliament". Myanmar Times. Archived from the original on 12 June 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  6. "Company Profile". National Development Company Group Ltd. 25 April 2006. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
  7. "DR KHIN SHWE". AFG Venture Group. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  8. "5. Profile of developer". Zaykabar. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
  9. "Institutions Whose Degrees are Illegal to Use in Texas". Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. 2012. Archived from the original on 12 July 2017. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
  10. "University settles suit to stop business from using its name". Washington University in St. Louis. Archived from the original on 27 December 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  11. Aung Zaw (September 2005). "Tycoon Turf". The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  12. ""Washington University," the No. 2 "diploma mill" in the world?". Student Life. 30 August 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  13. Myo Thant (27 April 2011). "Government's religious group should work to release jailed monks: ABMA". Mizzima. Archived from the original on 28 October 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2012.
  14. "Organization Chart". Myanmar Hotelier Association. Archived from the original on 14 April 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2012.
  15. "Former PM lands $5,000-a-month job". Democratic Voice of Burma. 25 January 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  16. "Commission Regulation (EU) No 411/2010 of 10 May 2010 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 194/2008 renewing and strengthening the restrictive measures in respect of Burma/Myanmar". European Commission. 10 May 2010. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  17. "Drug investigation, heavy punishment likely for Maung Weik". Mizzima. 3 July 2008. Archived from the original on 29 January 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  18. "Zaykabar Group's U Khin Shwe to Open Private Museum". The Irrawaddy. 18 November 2016.
  19. "Myanmar military revives years-old case and arrests Yangon business tycoon". Myanmar NOW. Retrieved 2023-02-14.
  20. Chau, Thompson; Oo, Dominic (2022-04-17). "Myanmar's purge of tycoon highlights tension within regime". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  21. Sai, Ko (2022-03-24). "Myanmar Junta Detains Crony Over Failed Building Project on Military-Owned Land". The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 2023-02-14.
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