Former visiting scholar Kyaw Zwa Moe (’06) writes in Irrawaddy about the recent death of Burma’s poet laureate, an acquaintence and fellow exile, who was living in California:

“Saya Tin Moe passed away,” read a text message on my phone this morning. The news made me tremble, and I knew that the day would bring grief to Burmese communities across the world and throughout Burma. The death of such a man moves beyond grief. Burma has lost one of its brightest sons, both literally and politically.

…To call Tin Moe a poet does not capture the full stature of the man or what he has accomplished for his people. His literary career began in his teenage years, and through the decades fueled Burma’s many freedom movements.

Read the full piece here (via BurmaNet News)