“Courage is not being free from fear. It is about being scared and doing your job anyway.”
Myintzu Win, a veteran criminal defense lawyer, champions the rights of marginalized communities in Burma in spite of significant obstacles in the legal landscape. Her service extends to women, children, the indigent, persons with disabilities, and the LGBTQI+ community, where she tirelessly works to safeguard their fundamental rights and ensure fair trials. To date, Ms. Win has defended – often pro bono – over 500 clients. In her previous role as a nonprofit legal advisor, Ms. Win’s dedication transcended individual cases to strengthening judicial capacity and empowering legal professionals in Burma. Today her journey to pursue societal equity and legal fairness continues. Ms. Win spearheads a legal aid team, founded in 2017, to impart legal training to law students as pro bono lawyers and to promote public legal awareness of rule-of-law throughout Burma, all while collaborating with freelance lawyers in their efforts to help those in dire need of legal support.