Members of the honour guard at the Martyrs’ Day ceremony.

TRIBUTES were paid to the national hero, General Aung San and other fallen leaders, who were assassinated in 1947, at a memorial ceremony held at the Martyrs Mausoleum near the Shwe Dagon Pagoda on July 19.

The Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, Senior General Than Shwe, was represented by the Culture Minister, Major-General Kyi Aung at the early morning ceremony.

Major-General Kyi Aung and other government representatives at the ceremony, the Chief Justice, U Aung Toe, the Attorney General, U Aye Maung, and the Auditor General, Major-General Lun Maung, laid wreaths at the annual ceremony.

After the wreaths were laid, the State Flag was lowered to half mast as military buglers played the Last Post.

Two minutes of silence was observed in memory of the fallen leaders.

The official ceremony, which lasted for about 20 minutes, was followed by the laying of wreaths by friends and relatives of General Aung San, six cabinet ministers, and a government secretary and body guard, who were gunned down during a cabinet meeting at the Government Secretariat on Theinbyu Road in downtown Yangon.

A family friend, U Nan Nwe, laid a wreath on behalf of the General’s eldest son, U Aung San Oo, who lives in the United States.

Wreaths were also laid by diplomats as well as members of social organisations and the general public.

When General Aung San was assassinated, he was serving as deputy chairman of an executive council overseeing Myanmar’s transition to independence from Britain. Independence came in early 1948.

A political rival of General Aung San, Galon U Saw, was executed after being found guilty of having planned the assassination.