The funeral of 28-year-old Myanmar LGBTQ+ activist Saw Han Nway Oo, also known as Naw Hel Nay Htoo, was held in Mae Sot, Tak Province of Thailand on Monday. 

“She participated in the [Myanmar] revolution by giving donations to resistance forces. She also wrote about politics and advocated for the LGBTQ+ community [on social media],” her friend told DVB on the condition of anonymity. 

Born Saw Daniel Lin Aung in Hinthada Township of Ayeyarwady Region, Saw Han Nway Oo moved to Mandalay Region to work for a civil society group after graduation, according to her friends. 

Following the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021, Saw Han Nway Oo joined the nationwide anti-coup protests. But once the military cracked down, she fled to an undisclosed location in northern Myanmar, where she received military training for two months before returning to Mandalay, according to media reports.

In September 2021, she was arrested on allegations of financially supporting the People’s Defence Force (PDF), which had been declared a “terrorist organization” by the regime, and charged with violating Section 505(a) of Myanmar’s penal code for “incitement” against the military due to her writing.

“I was hit with a wire. My long nails were plucked and twisted with pliers. If I asked for water because I was thirsty, they would pour hot water on my face,” she told the BBC in October 2021 about the torture she faced by regime authorities in prison.  

Saw Han Nway Oo was released under a regime amnesty in late-2021 and left for Thailand, where she continued her human rights activism in exile until she fell ill. She was receiving treatment for health problems at the Mae Tao Clinic in Mae Sot since December.  

The National Unity Government (NUG) Ministry of Women, Youth and Children Affairs, along with several other civil society groups from Myanmar, mourned her death and shared statements on social media celebrating her human rights work on behalf of marginalized communities.