Nay Phone Latt
| Nay Phone Latt MP | |
|---|---|
| နေဘုန်းလတ် | |
| Member of the Yangon Region Hluttaw for Thingangyun Township | |
|
Assumed office 8 February 2016 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Nay Myo Kyaw 28 June 1980 Burma |
| Nationality | Burmese |
| Political party | National League for Democracy |
| Alma mater | Yangon Technological University |
| Occupation |
Blogger Politician |
| Religion | Theravada Buddhism |
| Awards | PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award |
| Website |
www |
Nay Phone Latt (Burmese: နေဘုန်းလတ်; born Nay Myo Kyaw in 1980) is a Burmese blogger and activist, currently serving as a Yangon Region Hluttaw MP for Thingangyun Township. He was a recipient of PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award[1] and selected for 2010 Time 100 list under Hero Categories.[2] From 2008 to 2012, he was detained at Hpa-An Prison and was listed as a political prisoner by Assistance Association for Political Prisoners of Burma.[3]
Background
Nay Phone Latt graduated with Engineering degree from Yangon Technological University. He worked in Singapore for a few years before he went back to Myanmar to start his Internet Cafe business. He is also a co-founder of Myanmar ICT for Development Organization (MIDO)MIDO, a local NGO focusing on ICT for Development, Internet Freedom and Civic Technology.
Political imprisonment
Nay Phone Latt was arrested in January 2008 and sentenced to total of 20 years and 6 months in prison under Electronic act, creating public alarm and video act due to his alleged involvement in spreading news during 2007 Saffron Revolution using his blogs.[4] He wrote regularly in a Burmese internet magazine Thanlwin Ainmat (သံလွင်အိမ်မက်, Dream of Salween River) and his personal blog, The City that I have dropped (ကနော်လွတ်ကျခဲ့တဲ့မြို့တော်) before he was arrested. On February 20, 2009, his sentence was reduced on appeal to 12 years.[5] He was released on 13 January 2012 as part of a mass presidential pardon of political prisoners.[6]
International recognition
In 2010, Nay Phone Latt was awarded the PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award, which honors "writers who have fought courageously in the face of adversity for the right to freedom of expression".[5]
Political career
He successfully ran for a seat in parliament in 2015 general elections from National League for Democracy.[7]
References
- ↑ "The 2010 TIME 100". Time. 2010-04-29. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
- ↑ Bono (2010-04-29). "Heroes". Time. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
- ↑ "Data - Political Prisoners List". Assistance Association for Political Prisoners of Burma. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
- ↑ "Burma blogger jailed for 20 years". BBC. 2008-11-11. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
- 1 2 "PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award". PEN American Center. 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
- ↑ "Burma prisoner amnesty – Hla Hla Win walks". Democratic Voice of Burma. 2012-01-13. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
- ↑ Joshua Lipes (20 July 2015). "88 Generation Leader to Contest Myanmar Election Despite Pending Charges". Radio Free Asia. Retrieved 21 July 2015.