Newspaperman to the end, Chit Thein Oo dies at 78

Wednesday, 07 April 2010 20:44 Sai Zuan Sai

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) - Chit Thein Oo, a contributing editor for The Myanmar Times, died early on April 6 at the journal’s offices in Kyauktada township, Rangoon.
At the ripe age of 78, the journalist was still going in to work despite suffering from a chronic respiratory condition. The journal had given him a room attached to the office to save him the effort of returning home each night, a staff member said. He used to go home only on weekends. His penname was CTO and he wrote several books for English learners.

“He was on oxygen. This morning, he died in his sleep. An employee found his lifeless body,” a staff member at the Myanmar Times told Mizzima.

Chit Thein Oo was born in Monywa northwest of Mandalay on April 30, 1938 to Tin Oo and Daw Kyi. He passed middle school and in 1955 went on to Rangoon University, where he took a degree in Burmese language. He then taught Burmese and English languages at St. John’s English High School and at his alma mater.

He became editor of The Guardian (Rangoon) newspaper in 1960. After 1988, he took the post of deputy chief editor at The Working People’s Daily newspaper. He dedicated himself to translation work.

He wrote a book about “people who betray the country and act as stooges and their problems”, in Burmese and English, and it was acclaimed by the junta.

He retired in 1992 but continued to work as a private English tutor and translator until he joined the Times in 2000. There, he conducted journalism training and English-language training classes for reporters. In 2008, he taught translation classes arranged by Times.

He is survived by eight children.