Ba Swe

Ba Swe (Burmese: ဘဆွေ, ; 17 October 1915 – 6 December 1987) was the second Premier of Burma. He was a leading Burmese politician during the decade after the country gained its independence from Britain in 1948. He held the position of prime minister from 12 June 1956 to 28 February 1957. When Ba Swe became prime minister, Time magazine reported the news in an article titled: 'The Day of the Tiger' based on his nickname 'Big Tiger' (Kyah gyi Ba Swe) since his university days in the 1930s as a student leader.

His name was often paired with the name of another famous student leader as Ba Hein and Ba Swe, both Thakins or members of the nationalist Dobama Asiayone (We Burmans Association) and were arrested by the British colonial government during the year of countrywide protests, demonstrations and strikes in 1938 known as the "1300 Revolution" (Htaung thoun ya byei ayeidawbon named after the Burmese calendar year). Ba Hein became a founder member of the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) in 1939 and shortly afterwards Ba Swe and Ba Hein among others founded the People's Revolutionary Party (PRP), renamed the Burma Socialist Party after the war. Ba Swe was also known for his penchant for wearing dark glasses.