U Razak (

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

: ; ; my, ဦးရာဇတ်, ; also Abdul Razak; 20 January 1898 – 19 July 1947) was a

Burmese Burmese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Myanmar, a country in Southeast Asia * Burmese people * Burmese language * Burmese alphabet * Burmese cuisine * Burmese culture Animals * Burmese cat * Burmese chicken * Burmese (hor ...

politician and an

educationalist Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. ...

. He was a Bamar of Tamil ancestry and also was a cabinet

minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

Aung San Aung San (, ; 13 February 191519 July 1947) was a Burmese politician, independence activist and revolutionary. He was instrumental in Myanmar's struggle for independence from British rule, but he was assassinated just six months before his goa ...

's pre-independence interim government, and was assassinated on 19 July 1947 along with six other cabinet ministers. July 19 is commemorated each year as Martyrs' Day in Myanmar. Razak was Minister of Education and National Planning, and was chairman of the

Burma Muslim Congress The Burma Muslim Congress (BMC) was a Muslim political party in Burma (present-day Myanmar). History The party was founded around the same time as the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL), which it became affiliated with in December 1945 ...

. Abdul Razak was born in

Meiktila Meiktila (; ) is a city in central Burma on the banks of Meiktila Lake in the Mandalay Region at the junctions of the Bagan- Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila- Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar ...

Upper Burma Upper Myanmar ( my, အထက်မြန်မာပြည်, also called Upper Burma) is a geographic region of Myanmar, traditionally encompassing Mandalay and its periphery (modern Mandalay, Sagaing, Magway Regions), or more broadly spe ...

, on 20 January 1898 to a Bamar Buddhist, Nyein Hla, and Sheik Abdul Rahman, a wealthy Indian police inspector. While his brothers and sisters chose to be Buddhists, he maintained the Muslim name Razak, in honor of his father. Although nominally Muslim, Razak was a secularist who deeply loved Burma and encouraged unity in diversity. He studied at the Wesleyan School in Mandalay, and continued his studies at the

Rangoon College The University of Yangon (also Yangon University; my, ရန်ကုန် တက္ကသိုလ်, ; formerly Rangoon College, Rangoon University and Rangoon Arts and Sciences University), located in Kamayut, Yangon, is the oldest univers ...

, earning a B.A. degree in English. Throughout his school years, Razak was involved in athletics. In 1920, Razak was the first Burmese organiser of a boycott to the British colonial education system. In 1921, he became headmaster of Mandalay National High School. Razak's natural charisma was effective in persuading the Mandalayans. Mandalay, where he taught, was a center of Burmese Buddhist faith and culture. Yet Razak, of ethnic Bamat, was fully accepted by the community. When Japan invaded Burma in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he was imprisoned. In 1945, Abdul Razak was named chairman of the Mandalay branch of

Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League The Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL), ; abbreviated , ''hpa hsa pa la'' was the dominant political alliance in Burma from 1945 to 1958. It consisted of political parties and mass and class organizations. The league evolved out of t ...

(AFPFL) and was elected a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...

to represent Mandalay. He was

Minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

of Education and National Planning in

's cabinet. He died on 19 July 1947 together with six other cabinet members. Razak initiated calls for unity between Burmese Muslims and

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

s. He was a Muslim, but maintained ties to Buddhism, educating himself on

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist '' Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Bud ...

, the sacred script of

Theravada Buddhism ''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...

, and helped found the Mandalay College (modern Mandalay University). Razak fathered three children.

References

*''Burmese Encyclopedia'', Vol. 11, p. 73 printed in 1970. {{DEFAULTSORT:Razak, U Assassinated Burmese politicians Deaths by firearm in Myanmar 1898 births 1947 deaths Burmese Muslims People murdered in Myanmar University of Yangon alumni Muslim activists Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League politicians Government ministers of Myanmar Burmese people of Indian descent People from Mandalay Region Burmese Muslim activists