Michael Kyaw Myint Hua Hu ( my, ကျော်မြင့်; ), also known as Zakhung Zung Sau, is a

Sino-Burmese Chinese Burmese, also Sino-Burmese or Tayoke, are a Burmese citizens of full or partial Chinese ancestry. They are group of overseas Chinese born or raised in Myanmar (Burma). As of 2012, the Burmese Chinese population is estimated to be as hi ...

businessman, known for his ties to the

United Wa State Army The United Wa State Army (; my, ဝပြည် သွေးစည်းညီညွတ်ရေး တပ်မတော်, ), abbreviated as the UWSA or the UWS Army, is the military wing of the United Wa State Party (UWSP), the ''de facto'' ...

(UWSA) and for founding the now-defunct United Democratic Party.

Early life

Kyaw Myint was born in 1951, in

Kachin State Kachin State ( my, ကချင်ပြည်နယ်; Kachin: ), also known by the endonym Kachinland, is the northernmost state of Myanmar. It is bordered by China to the north and east (Tibet and Yunnan, specifically and respectively); Sh ...

, Burma (now Myanmar). He married Nan Bauk, the youngest daughter of Zau Mai, a high-ranking officer in the

and

Communist Party of Burma The Communist Party of Burma (CPB), also known as the Burma Communist Party (BCP), is a clandestine communist party in Myanmar (Burma). It is the oldest existing political party in the country. Founded in 1939, the CPB initially fought aga ...

, of Kachin descent. Kyaw Myint became intimately involved in the UWSA's illicit business activities, including heroin and methamphetamine trafficking.

Criminal activities

Money laundering

In the 1990s, Kyaw Myint established Myanmar Kyone Yeom, to launder the UWSA's drug proceeds. The company was ultimately closed in 1998 by the

Myanmar Investment Commission The Myanmar Investment Commission ( my, မြန်မာနိုင်ငံ ရင်းနှီးမြှုပ်နှံမှု ကော်မရှင်, abbreviated MIC) is a government-appointed body under the Ministry of Inv ...

for involvement in money laundering activities. Kyaw Myint was sentenced to ten years in prison, but he escaped from Mandalay's Obo Prison in 1999. He successfully sought political asylum in the United States, in exchange for cooperating with the US

Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within th ...

. In 2002, Kyaw Myint gained political asylum in Canada, and subsequently migrated to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

Insider trading

In January 2009, the

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...

halted trading on Future Canada China Environment, which has ties to Kyaw Myint, after its stock market value soared to over $1 billion USD. In 2011, the

British Columbia Securities Commission The British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) is a regulatory agency which administers and enforces securities legislation in the Canadian province of British Columbia. See also * Canadian securities regulation * Securities Commission * Ca ...

permanently banned Kyaw Myint from participating in British Columbia's securities markets and fined him for illegal insider trading and perjury, for using insider knowledge to buy shares in Maple Leaf Reforestation, and for lying to investigators. In 2012, he moved to

Kunming Kunming (; ), also known as Yunnan-Fu, is the capital and largest city of Yunnan province, China. It is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province as well as the seat of the provincial government. The headquar ...

, China, exporting goods to Myanmar. In 2013, Kyaw Myint returned to Myanmar, living in Yangon, where he established the Myanmar Kyaw Investment Group Company.

Political activities

In 2007, Kyaw Myint founded the United Democratic Party (UDP) while living in Canada. In 2010, he formally registered UDP under the name "Hla Myint" to contest the

2010 Myanmar general election General elections were held in Myanmar on 2010, in accordance with the new constitution, which was approved in a referendum held in . The election date was announced by the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) on . The elections were th ...

. On 17 October 2020, the Union Election Commission formally dissolved the party, finding that the party had violated the Political Parties Registration Law.

Re-arrest

On 29 September 2020, he was detained on a fugitive warrant. A government investigation also found that he had breached money laundering laws and financial regulations, after authorities found that at least $12.5 million USD had been illegally transferred from China into his company's bank accounts, and that Kyaw Myint's company had provided illegal loans to individuals. On 20 October, Kyaw Myint was charged with absconding from prison, under article 224 of the penal code. On 19 November, he was sentenced to 2 years in prison, pending an potential criminal prosecution for breaching money laundering laws.

Personal life

Kyaw Myint is married to Nan Bauk and has four children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kyaw Myint, Michael 1951 births Living people Burmese criminals People from Kachin State Burmese people of Chinese descent Burmese businesspeople