Zurah Begum, also known as Aye Nyunt, was one of the first two female legislators of the Union of Burma, along with Khin Kyi. She was a politician from Arakan State of Maungdaw, Burma (now Rakhine State, Myanmar). She was elected to the Parliament of Burma during the 1951 Burmese general election, as the representative of Maungdaw-2 constituency.[1][2][3]

Zurah Begum MP
Member of the Union Parliament from Maungdaw-2
In office
1951–1956
Personal details
Born10 April 1919 (1919-04-10)
Akyab,Arakan
Died1990(1990-00-00) (aged 70–71)
Yangon,Myanmar
Political partyAnti-Fascist People's Freedom League
Alma materMedic,BT

Early life edit

Zurah Begum was born on 10 April 1919 at Rupah Quarter, Akyab,Arakan from Parliamentary member U Poe Khaine aka Nasir Uddin and Daw Ma Ma.

In childhood, she studied at St.Anne's Covent in Sittwe until she finished grade seven. In 1937, she passed the university entrance exam from Sittwe Government High School. From 1937 to 1939, she studied pre-medicine at a medical school. Since she was not interested in the medical field, she transferred to a teacher's college in 1938-1939.

Political career edit

She served in the Chamber of Deputies with fellow Rohingya, Abul Khair (who represented Maungdaw-1). In the 1956 Burmese general election, she lost her seat to Khair.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Arakan : News and Analysis of the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation, Arakan (Burma)" (PDF). Burmalibrary.org. September 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 12, 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  2. ^ Kyaw, Hla (October 23, 2015). Rohingya: Indigenous Ethnic Cleansing. Vargsberg Peace Forum.
  3. ^ "The 17 Rohingya, including a woman, in the Burmese parliament". Dhaka Tribune. 15 September 2017. Archived from the original on February 24, 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.