Kyandaw Cemetery

Kyandaw Cemetery
Map
Details
Closed1996–1997
Location
Kamayut Township, Yangon
CountryMyanmar
Coordinates16°48′56″N 96°07′53″E / 16.815641°N 96.131456°E / 16.815641; 96.131456
Find a GraveKyandaw Cemetery

Kyandaw Cemetery (Burmese: ကြံတောသုသာန်), located in Kamayut Township, was Yangon's largest cemetery before it was demolished between 1996 and 1997 for redevelopment as the Yangon Drugs Elimination Museum.[1] The relocation of graves was ordered by the Burmese government in December 1996.[2] Descendants of the interred were given one month's notice to move the remains for reburial in Yangon's outskirts, at Yayway Cemetery and at Hteinbin Cemetery in Hlaingthaya Township.[3] Kyandaw Cemetery occupied a 50 acres (20 ha) expanse of land about .5 miles (0.80 km) away from Yangon University.[4] It was established during the colonial era.[4] Kyandaw Cemetery was the city's common burial ground for Burmese Buddhists, but also included Christian, Chinese, Hindu and Islamic cemeteries.[5] The Hindu section of the cemetery covered 1.6 hectares (4.0 acres).[6]

In 1991, the Yangon City Corporation (now the Yangon City Development Committee) ordered the relocation of graves at St. John's Cantonment Cemetery to Kyandaw.[6] The graves included those of British soldiers.[6] In 1994, the army moved the remains of the interred from Tamwe Cemetery to Kyandaw to build a supermarket.[7]

  1. ^ Seekins, Donald M. (Summer 2005). "The State and the City: 1988 and the Transformation of Rangoon". Pacific Affairs. 78 (2). University of British Columbia: 267. doi:10.5509/2005782257. JSTOR 40023916.
  2. ^ Min, Hla. "Union of Myanmar" (PDF). Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  3. ^ "RIP: Rest In Pieces". The Irrawaddy. January 1997. Archived from the original on 9 August 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  4. ^ a b Morley, Ian (2012). "City profile: Rangoon" (PDF). Cities. Elsevier. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  5. ^ "Burma: Solidarity". Time. 9 December 1946. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  6. ^ a b c "Government Takes Over Christian Cemetery in Yangon". UCA News. 27 August 1991. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  7. ^ "Kyandaw Cemetery to Move" (PDF). Burma Alert. March 1997. Retrieved 19 July 2015.