Myanmar's No. 1 military leader’s son goes on party spree

Top Myanmar's political leaders were reported to enjoy a luxury party at a high-end resort owned by Aung Pyae Sone, or the son of Myanmar's Commander in Chief Min Aung Hlaing who seized power by leading a military coup.

Public anger has only been escalating across Myanmar since military and police troops suppressed protestors and took more than 260 lives after the military coup swept the nation on Feb. 1. Furious citizens are spreading news across social media that Aung Pyae Sone threw a party while his father was at the center of the mass killing of innocent citizens.

An exclusive banquet was held on Sunday at Azura Beach Resort on Chaung Tha Beach in the Ayeyarwady Region near the nation’s largest city of Yangon with the regime’s Tourism Minister Maung Maung Ohn and other political leaders on the guest list, according to Myanmar Now’s new reports on Tuesday. Minister Ohn met up with local tourism businessmen and workers to discuss how to boost the regional tourism industry, which was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Known as a famous business mogul in Myanmar, Aung Pyae Sone has expanded business across various fields including construction engineering, insurance, communications, medicine, etc. Being one of the largest leisure facilities on Chaung Tha Beach, Azura Beach Resort reminds visitors of a grand castle due to its outstanding size. The military leader’s son has benefited from his father’s authority and power to rent a real estate at a lower price than the market price and enjoy a prime interest rate. Four people, including a 13-year-old child, were killed and more than 40 were injured in the nation’s second largest city of Mandalay on Monday. A total of 261 were shot to death from Feb. 1 up to date based on Myanmar's non-profit organization Assistance Association for Political Prisoners data.


Eun-Taek Lee nabi@donga.com