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If there is one man who rightfully can be dubbed the father of Myanmar mountaineering, it is Sithu U Hla Aung.
The son of a British-born Indian Civil Service employee and his Myanmar wife, U Hla Aung, was educated at both St Paul’s Institution and Yangon University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Honors) degree in 1936.
An ardent nationalist, he participated in the historic 1936 students’ strike against the British Colonial government and also served with the Anti-Facist resistance movement against Japanese.
He subsequently joined the Burma Defense Army (BDA) and later joined the Patriotic Burmese Forces (PBF) at the end of the war as Social Affairs Officer. In January 1946, U Hla Aung attended the Officers Training School in Yangon, following which he enlisted in the Myanmar Army, where he worked his way up to the rank of Colonel, a post which he filled until his retirement in May, 1971.
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A visionary man of many talents, his long-standing commitment to public service encompassed roles as diverse as Director General of Surveys (195901975), Director General Petroleum and Mining Exploration Corporation (1962-1969) and, of course, his cherished position as Chairman of Myanmar’s Hiking and Mountaineering Association (MHMA).
A sports fanatic from birth, U Hla aung was a Myanmar weightlifting champion before the war. Together with the famous U Zaw Weik – who represented India in weightlifting at the Olympics – he formed the MHMA on January 5 1960 at the Aung San Sports Ground in Yangon. He was elected as it’s first President, serving continuously in that capacity until 1985.
Far from being a “paper president”, U Hla Aung personally led most of the expeditions undertaken by the MHMA during his tenure himself. He was admirably suited for this task, having been a graduate of the renowned Himalaya Mountaineering School in Nepal. For a time given personal mountainneringn insctruction by the famed Nepalese Mt. Everest conqueror Tenzing Norgay, he successfully completed the school’s final exercise 0 the ascent of Palung Mountain (19,126 feet) in the Sikkim Himalayas.
This experience proved invaluable during U Hla Aung’s many mountaineering expeditions in Myanmar. His more notable climbs included ascents of Mount Victoria in the Chin Hills (10, 500 feet), Mount Lun Garu Mardin (10, 322 feet), Mount Hpun Gam (11,500 feet), Mount Imaw Bum (12, 350 feet) in the Kachin State, and Mount Saramaeri (12,253 feet) in the Naga Hills).
U Hla Aung finally retired from his post as president of the MHMA in 1985, satisfied that he had helped train a new, younger generation of mountaineers committed to upholding the objectives and values of the Association. His mentorship and example is today credited with being chiefly responsible for the increase in the physical fitness and stamina of an entire generation of Myanmar youth. Not only this, he was able to imbue them with the spirit of determination, effort and will-to-succeed which marked his won period as the nation’s premier outdoorsman. U Hla Aung’s contribution to the development of the Union of Myanmar will long be treasured by all of the nation’s citizens.
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