Who is Maung Aye?

April 24, 2002 — Former commander of the Northeast Region, Maung Aye, in his early sixties, became deputy commander in chief of the army and named vice chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council [SLORC] in 1994. He graduated from the Defense Services Academy [DSA] First Batch [the first graduating class] in Maymyo with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1959. He became commander of the Northeast Region in 1968, served in the Infantry Battalion No 68 as a lieutenant colonel and was promoted to colonel in 1979. In 1988, he became commander of the Eastern Region with the rank of brigadier general. He was promoted to major general in 1990 and lieutenant general in 1993, when he was summoned to Rangoon to become the deputy commander in chief [Defense Services]. He was named deputy chairman of the SLORC in 1994, and now holds the same position in the SPDC. Regional journalists and analysts regard him as a hard-liner and rival to SPDC Secretary One and feared intelligence chief, Lt Gen Khin Nyunt. But Maung Aye had found his immediate enemies last year: Kyaw Ne Win and his gang, when Ne Win’s grandsons’ entourage tried to overtake the general’s motorcade. Some observers in Rangoon believed that Maung Aye was upset with the incident and informed officials to take action. Previously, Maung Aye was known to hold a grudge against the Thai Third Army Region based along the Thai-Burma border. Maung Aye reportedly expressed his unhappiness with the joint military exercises held in Thailand with US forces. Maung Aye cultivated strong ties with influential businessmen in Shan State. He and his family are well-connected with Aung Ko Win, chairman of Kanbawza Bank. Maung Aye is also the chairman of the National Industrial Development Committee, the National Agricultural and Economic Development Committee and the National Trade Committee that oversees cross-border trade with neighboring countries. It is believed that Maj Gen Thura Shwe Mann, who accompanied Maung Aye on his trip to Thailand, is taking over some of the army chief’s responsibilities indicating that Shwe Mann is being groomed to take a high-level position in the armed forces. His current position is joint chief of staff of the army, navy and air force. He is also a member of the SPDC. It is still not known whether Maung Aye will become the head of the SPDC. Though he is regarded as hard-liner he is not compatible with workaholic Khin Nyunt, some observers in Rangoon have noted. Richard Aung Myint, who also graduated from DSA First Batch and is now based in the US, told the Irrawaddy: "Maung Aye was trained as a professional soldier and as such must revert to his true self and do the same for his soldiers. He must take the army back to its roots and original role as protectors of the people. I am sure he is not proud to be called the leader of an army of oppression, especially an army that oppresses its own people." The former army officer said that if Maung Aye wants "good" things for Burma, the general will have to admit that "army men" are not trained to run the country and that the past fifty years provide the indisputable proof. Richard added: "Making mistakes is human. In the case of Burma and the military government, not learning from our mistakes is ‘inhumane’."