Shin Thant

Shin Thant
Native name ရှင်းသန့်
Born Aung Than
(1990-05-19) 19 May 1990
Mandalay, Myanmar
Nationality Burmese
Alma mater Co-operative University, Thanlyin
Occupation LGBT rights activist, Human rights defender, Politician
Known for leading LGBT rights activist

Shin Thant (Burmese: ရှင်းသန့်; born Aung Than on 19 May 1990) is a Burmese LGBT rights activist, politician and human rights defender for LGBT peoples. She is one of the leading LGBT activists in Myanmar.[1][2]

Early life and education

Shin Thant was born on 19 May 1990 in Mandalay, Myanmar to a traditional Buddhist family. Her birth name is Aung Than (male name). She was first identified as transgender when she was age 17. She graduated from Co-operative University, Thanlyin.

Activism and movements

In 2012, she was arrested under Section 35c of the Police Act. Soon after, Shin Thant meet with Aung Myo Min, a LGBT rights activist. From then on, she to speak out about violence in the LGBT community and to fight for her human rights.[3] And she start working with local LGBT organisations to fight for LGBT rights across Myanmar. She became the leading LGBT activist in the country.[4]

In 2013, when a group of transgender women were arrested in Mandalay and allegedly forced to strip before being taken into custody, Shin Thant fought alongside Colors Rainbow, the LGBT rights organization to seek justice.[1]

In January 2017, she helped transgender model Myo Ko Ko San who was wrongly accused of being the administrator of the controversial Cele Cele Small Facebook page which reports celebrity gossip and rumours.[1]

In March 2017, Shin Thant also participated in a youth conference with State Counsellor of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi for addition to her LGBT-focused activism.

She believes that in order to achieve equality, the government should take responsibility for ensuring that LGBT people are represented in every sector. Her dream of becoming the Myanmar’s first LGBT member of parliament.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Nandar Aung (1 June 2017). "Abused, arrested but not giving up: transgender activist fights for equality". The Myanmar Times.
  2. ↑ "Prejudice and progress: a snapshot of LGBT rights in Myanmar". The Myanmar Times. 1 June 2017.
  3. ↑ Foundation, Thomson Reuters (16 September 2016). "'LGBT people are passed over for employment opportunities' - Myanmar Now". www.myanmar-now.org.
  4. ↑ "Hard for LGBT people to be accepted in Myanmar". Diakonia. 14 January 2018.
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