Aung Zaw, ( 1968), is a Burmese journalist, editor, and founder of major publishing media ''

The Irrawaddy ''The Irrawaddy'' () is a news website by the Irrawaddy Publishing Group (IPG), founded in 1990 by Burmese exiles living in Thailand. As a publication produced by former Burmese activists who fled violent crackdowns on anti-military protests in ...

''. He was jailed and tortured at the age of 20, then covertly escaped his home country after he began protesting the governments socialist military regime during the

8888 Uprising The 8888 Uprising, also known as the People Power Uprising and the 1988 Uprising, was a series of nationwide protests, marches, and riots in Burma (present-day Myanmar) that peaked in August 1988. Key events occurred on 8 August 1988 and ther ...

. His news magazine reported on event later during the

Saffron Revolution The Saffron Revolution (; ) was a series of economic and political protests and demonstrations that took place during August, September, and October 2007 in Myanmar. The protests were triggered by the decision of the national military govern ...

Personal

Aung Zaw studied

Botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

Yangon University The University of Yangon (also Yangon University; , ; formerly Rangoon College, University of Rangoon and Rangoon Arts and Sciences University), located in Kamayut Township, Kamayut, Yangon Region, Yangon, is the oldest university in Myanmar's m ...

in Rangoon, Burma (now Yangon, Myanmar). In 1988, at the age of 20, he was arrested at the Hlaing Campus of Yangon University during a student rally to protest the socialist regime of

Ne Win Ne Win (; ; 24 May 1911 – 5 December 2002), born Shu Maung (; ), was a Burmese army general, politician and Prime Minister of Burma from 1958 to 1960 and 1962 to 1974, and also President of Burma from 1962 to 1981. Ne Win was Burma's mili ...

. He was then detained for 10 days in the

Insein prison Insein Prison () is located in Yangon Division, near Yangon (Rangoon), the old capital of Myanmar (formerly Burma). From 1988 to 2011 it was run by the military junta of Myanmar, named the State Law and Order Restoration Council from 1988 to 2003 ...

. Before leaving his home country, he was a part of the Insein Literary Circle (အင်းစိန်စာပေဝိုင်း) Aung Zaw fled to

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

where he would start ''The Irrawaddy'', a news publication named after Myanmar's largest river. The publication later moved to

Chiang Mai Chiang Mai, sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population, second largest city in Thailan ...

in 1995–96. Aung Zaw, founder and editor of ''The Irrawaddy'', began publication of the news magazine, and formed the Burma Information Group, in exile from

in 1993. He operated out of Thailand for nearly two decades before being invited to return to Myanmar in 2012. Aung Zaw took ''The Irrawaddy'' online in 2001, but it was not readily available to Myanmar readers until 2011 due to online censorship. In 2014, ''The Irrawaddy'' launched its first printed publication in Myanmar. The printed publication was short lived and last printed in January 2016.

Notable works of journalism

After leaving Myanmar disguised as a monk, Aung Zaw fled to Bangkok where he started the Burma Information Group (BIG). Shortly after, he would start ''The Irrawaddy''. In 2012, the online news magazine was granted access back into Myanmar. Still under government restrictions, he said, "Since we're back in Burma our reports remain very strong. We focus on land confiscations, corruption, scandals, as well as ethnic and religious conflicts in our country." In addition to running ''The Irrawaddy'', he is also a contributor for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', ''

International Herald Tribune The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France, for international English-speaking readers. It published under the name ''International Herald Tribune'' starting in 1967, but its ...

'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' (UK), and ''

The Bangkok Post The ''Bangkok Post'' is an English-language daily newspaper published in Bangkok, Thailand. It is published in broadsheet and digital formats. The first issue was sold on 1 August 1946. It had four pages and cost one baht, a considerable amount ...

''.

Context

At the age of 25, Aung Zaw launched ''The Irrawaddy'', in efforts to cover Burma affairs, in the South East Asian Countries. Aung Zaw's arrests were part of the military regimes attempt to silence the spread of information. The publication was targeted by hackers in 2008, 2010–2011.

Impact

Aung Zaw notes the impact ''The Irrawaddy'' carries in the coverings of the Saffron Revolution. ''The Irrawaddy'' was receiving real time updates and publishing them online to shed light to the otherwise unnoticed protest. The Burmese government had a history of jailing and torturing journalist in attempts to silence them. Throughout constant oppression, Aung Zaw has kept his finger on the political and social pulse of Myanmar. He was labeled an "Enemy of The State" by former military regimes.

Awards

Aung Zaw was the 2010 recipient of the

Prince Claus Award The Prince Claus Fund was established in 1996 and named after Prince Claus of the Netherlands. It is annually subsidized by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since 1997, the Fund has annually presented the international Prince Claus Awa ...

, the 2013 Shorenstein Journalism Award, and the 2014

CPJ International Press Freedom Award The CPJ International Press Freedom Awards honor journalists or their publications around the world who show courage in defending press freedom despite facing attacks, threats, or imprisonment. Established in 1991, the awards are administered by ...

References

External links

Aung Zaw 2014 IPFA Acceptance Speech

Bertil Lintner on Myanmar's Peace Process
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aung Zaw 1968 births Living people Burmese democracy activists Burmese journalists