Soe Moe Hlaing (; 1968 — 24 May 2021), also known as Mae Gyi (), was a Burmese pro-democracy activist and political prisoner.

Personal life and family

Born in 1968, Soe Moe Hlaing was one of eleven siblings. The most notable of these siblings is Lt. General Than Hlaing, who was Deputy Minister of Home Affairs and Chief of the Myanmar Police Force (MPF) until 2 May 2022, appointed by the

State Administration Council The State Administration Council (; abbreviated SAC or နစက) is the military junta currently governing Myanmar, established by Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Min Aung Hlaing following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, February 2021 c ...

after the

2021 Myanmar coup d'état A coup d'état in Myanmar began on the morning of 1 February 2021, when Elections in Myanmar, democratically elected members of the country's ruling party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), were deposed by the Tatmadaw, Myanmar's milita ...

. Soe Moe Hlaing was a chemistry honours student at

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 2006, he married Myat Muyar Win, with whom he had five children. He died in military custody on 24 May 2021.

Political career

Soe Moe Hlaing was active in the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, before joining the

All Burma Students' Democratic Front The All Burma Students' Democratic Front (; abbreviated ABSDF or မကဒတ) is an opposition group in Myanmar (also known as Burma). It was founded on 1 November 1988, after the 8888 protests in Yangon. The group's leadership consists mos ...

(ABSDF), an armed, pro-democracy group as a battalion commander. He was allegedly threatened with decapitation by his brother Than Hlaing, as he had taken up arms against the Myanmar military. After returning home in 1991, he was arrested and sentenced to 13 years in prison for his involvement in the ABSDF. When released in 2001, he volunteered to do charity work. During this time he founded a community based tourism network for local development, and also established the Winkabaw Ex-Political Prisoner Education Network, which offered free education to family members of political prisoners. On 22 May 2021, in the aftermath of the

, an informant allegedly told troops about their whereabouts and he was arrested along with eight others. On 24 May 2021, his family was notified that he had died.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soe Moe Hlaing Burmese activists Burmese politicians Prisoners and detainees of Myanmar 1968 births 2021 deaths University of Yangon alumni