Copper statues of the first ethnic Chin university graduates were unveiled by Chin State chief minister Salai Lian Luai this week.
The statues were placed in Falam to encourage a new generation of Chin youth to take interest in their own history and to continue their education, representatives from the Global Falam Youth Organization (GFYO) said.
The statues depict Pu Siah Luai, the first Chin graduate from Rangoon University in 1938, and Pi Hlawn Kip Thuai, the first Chin female graduate of Rangoon University 22 years later.
“Our message is that education is so important and our youth need to try their best. We want our new generation to try hard in their studies for their future,” Van Bawi Lian, secretary of GFYO, told Khonumthung News.
Pu Siah Luai was the grandson of Chin revolutionary hero Capt Com Bik.
He also received a B.Ed in 1941 and later served as the Chin State education director.
Born in 1916, he died in 1973.
Pi Hlawn Kip Thluai is the daughter of Zerhoung and Hual Ngol tribe leader Pu Than Sing Liang. She studied overseas and later served as an English teacher for 30 years in Falam, Hakha, Mindat, Sagaing, and in Pathein. She currently resides in the U.S.