Prince Hso Khan Pha of Yawnghwe (, aka Tiger; 15 April 1938 – 4 October 2016) was a prince of

Yawnghwe Yawnghwe (), known as Nyaungshwe () in Burmese, was a Shan state in what is today Myanmar. It was one of the most important of the Southern Shan States. Yawnghwe state included the Inle Lake. The administrative capital was Taunggyi, located ...

. He was a son of

Sao Shwe Thaik Sao Shwe Thaik (, ''Tsaw³ Kham⁴soek³''; , ; 16 October 1895 – 21 November 1962) was a Burmese politician who served as the first president of the Union of Burma and the last Saopha of Yawnghwe. His full royal title was ''Kambawsaraht ...

, the last

Saopha Saopha (), also spelled Sawbwa, was the title used by hereditary rulers of Shan states in Upper Myanmar. Chaopha and Chao Fa were similar titles used by the hereditary Tai rulers in mainland Southeast Asia and the Ahom kingdom in India. Nam ...

and

Sao Nang Hearn Kham Sao Nang Hearn Kham (; 26 May 1916 – 17 January 2003) was the Mahadevi of Yawnghwe one of the most important Shan States. Her husband Sao Shwe Thaik was the 23d and last Saopha of Yawnghwe and became the first President of Burma and she beca ...

, the Mahadevi (consort). He was a consulting

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

based in Canada.

Education

His education was first started at a local school in Yawnghwe ( Nyaung Shwe) at convents run by

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

nuns at

Kalaw Kalaw (; Shan: ) is a hill town in the Shan State of Myanmar. It is the capital of Kalaw District and Kalaw Township. Overview The town was popular with the British during colonial rule. Kalaw is the main setting of the novel ''Das Herzenh ...

and Hsenwi (

Theinni Theinni or Hsenwi (; , ; , , ) is a town in northern Shan State of Burma, situated near the north bank of the Nam Tu River and now the centre of Hsenwi Township in Lashio District. It is north of Lashio and above sea level. After the disru ...

) in the

Shan State Shan State (, ; , ) is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos (Louang Namtha Province, Louang Namtha and Bokeo Provinces) to the east, and Thailand (Chiang Rai Province, Chia ...

. Later in 1949, he attended

The Doon School The Doon School (informally Doon School or Doon) is a Selective school, selective all-boys Private school, private boarding school in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India, which was established in 1935. It was envisioned by Satish Ranjan Das, a lawyer ...

at Dehra Dun (

Dehradun Dehradun (), also known as Dehra Doon, is the winter capital and the List of cities in Uttarakhand by population, most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous Dehradun district, d ...

) in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, graduating in 1954; studied for two years at

Rangoon University The University of Yangon (also Yangon University; , ; formerly Rangoon College, University of Rangoon and Rangoon Arts and Sciences University), located in Kamayut, Yangon, is the oldest university in Myanmar's modern education system and the b ...

; attended the Bell School of Languages at

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and the Cambridgeshire Technical College; graduated in 1964 from the

University of Keele Keele University is a public research university in Keele, approximately from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as the University College of North Staffordshire, it was granted university status by Royal Charter as ...

, England, with a BA (Hons) in Geology and Political Institutions.

Life

His mother fled with her family to

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 ...

in October 1963 after Sao Shwe Thaik had been deposed in the March 1962 Burmese coup d'état and died in prison in November 1962. Upon crossing the Thai border, the Provincial governor called on the Mahadevi with a message of protection from the king. During her time in Thailand she organized and founded the Shan State War Council (SSWC) and

Shan State Army The Shan State Army (; abbreviated SSA) was one of the largest insurgent groups that fought government forces in Shan State, Myanmar (Burma). The SSA was founded in 1964 after the merging of two existing insurgent groups. The SSA recruite ...

(of resistance to Ne Win’s dictatorship) in 1964. She became its leader and commander-in-chief and her second son Chao Tzang served as her right-hand man. At the time of his father’s death, he was studying in

. While in exile he participated in the independence struggle of the Shan State. Hso Khan Pha was politically active in many groups, pressuring the government of Burma. He also worked with Shan exiles abroad to help provide schooling for displaced Shan children whose parents were unable to send them to school. He tried to make the Shan State an independent country. The case has been presented to many heads of state in western countries as well as to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

. He was proclaimed Head of State and President of the Federated Shan States, declared Shan State independence, by Shan State exiles and sympathizers in 2005. Hso Khan Pha worked with exiled Prince Shwebomin of

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

to promote the protection of the

Shan People The Shan people (, , or , ), also known as the Tai Long (တႆးလူင်, ) or Tai Yai, are a Tai ethnic group of Southeast Asia. The Shan are the biggest minority of Burma (Myanmar) and primarily live in the Shan State, but also inhabi ...

's religious, traditional, culture, and indigenous land rights in Burma. In 2007, he attended an international peace conference in Los Angeles to speak out against the government of Burma. Upon graduating he was hired as a geologist in England, and went to prospect for diamonds in the

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

, for the DeBeers, Diamond Corporation Limited; in 1966 transferred t
Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Company Limited
starting first in

Flin Flon Flin Flon (pop. 5,185 in 2016 census; 4,982 in Manitoba and 203 in Saskatchewan) is a mining city, located on a correction line on the border of the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with the majority of the city located withi ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, and on to exploration projects in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

and

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

; joined Mattagami Lake Mines as a Senior Exploration Geologist in 1970; in 1972 became Senior Project Geologist in charge of all explorations in western

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

; opened the Western Exploration Office for Mattagami Lake Mines in

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

, 1975; became an independent geological consultant in 1976, working briefly in 1977 fo
Alberta Environment
in 1978 started consulting in the oil-patch; sought the Liberal nomination in the federal riding of Elk Island in April 1993. He died in his sleep of a heart attack on 4 October 2016.

Associations

*APEGGA
Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists, and Geophysicists of Alberta

Fellow, Geological Association of Canada and former member, Association of Alberta Petroleum Geologists. *Founding member and past President of the human rights society - .
Royal Alberta United Services Institute
Associate of th
Garrison Officers Club

Mewata Armouries Mewata Armoury is a Canadian Forces reserve Armory (military), armoury in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. ''Mewata'' ( is derived from the Cree language, Cree word (), meaning "Oh, be joyful". The building was built between 1915 and 1918 for an ori ...

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

Family

Tiger married Rosemary Catherine Otte in 1976 and had four children, including: Rebecca Sanda-Devi, Haŏ Shwe-Thaike, Jessica Ying Sita, and Hsŏ Kham-Serk.

Genealogy

The Yawnghwe royal family is descended from King Beingyayett (who ruled in 661-600 BC). The family ruled in what is now northern Burma and southwestern China. In 1358, the Saopha (King/Ruler) Si Hseng Hpa, a direct ancestor of this family formed his capital at Yawnghwe. In 1850, Sao Suu Deva, Crown Prince of Yawnghwe, was assassinated by a rival claimant. King Mindon of Burma helped Prince Deva's son Sao Maung (aka Sir Sao Maung - knighted by

George V of the United Kingdom George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

) regain the crown of Yawnghwe. In 1927, Sao Shwe Thaike ascended the throne of Yangwhe, succeeding his uncle Sao Maung.
Sao Shwe Thaike
(b. October 1896) was instrumental in laying the foundation in 1945 for what was to become the Union of Burma in 1948. Thaike served as President of the Constitutional Assembly and was elected by Parliament to serve as the first President of the Union in 1948. On 4 January 1948

Louis Mountbatten Admiral of the Fleet Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (born Prince Louis of Battenberg; 25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979), commonly known as Lord Mountbatten, was a British statesman, Royal Navy of ...

, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, handed the Union of Burma its independence. The Mahadevi

(b. May 1916), Tiger’s mother, is sister to Saopha of

Hsenwi Theinni or Hsenwi (; , ; , , ) is a town in northern Shan State of Burma, situated near the north bank of the Nam Tu River and now the centre of Hsenwi Township in Lashio District. It is north of Lashio and above sea level. After the disrupt ...

, another ancient House. It is said by some Thai scholars that King Ramakhamheng of Sukhothai (the 13th Century precursor of modern Thailand ) was a scion of the House of Hsenwi.

Quote

*"I support all ethnic groups' rights to have their own federal states, probably in US style or Canadian style. I understand that Quebec Province in Canada is an autonomic federal state. Shan state can be like that?".Peace Hall
/ref>

Ancestry

References

External links

Talks With Hso Khan Pha Who Declared Shan Independence
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hso Khan Pha 1938 births 2016 deaths 20th-century Burmese people 20th-century philanthropists Alumni of Keele University Burmese exiles Burmese human rights activists Burmese Shan people Burmese philanthropists Burmese politicians Burmese royalty People from Shan State University of Yangon alumni