One of Myanmar's '30 Comrades' independence heroes dies in exile in China

YANGON, Myanmar – One of two surviving members of Myanmar's legendary "Thirty Comrades" independence fighters has died in exile.

The Irrawaddy news website says 92-year-old Kyaw Zaw died Wednesday in Kunming in southern China. It quoted his daughter as saying his funeral would be arranged by the Communist Party.

The Thirty Comrades were led by Gen. Aung San, father of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. During World War II, they went to Japan for training to fight British colonizers in what was then known as Burma. Aung San later negotiated independence from Britain, but was assassinated before it occurred in 1948.

Kyaw Zaw served in the post-independence army but was purged for left-wing affiliations. He went underground in 1976 to join the banned Communist Party and fled to China in 1989.