Former Myanmar actress Tint Tint Htun subject to death hoax in July 2020, friends say

The claim was published here on Facebook on July 29, 2020. The post has been shared 264 times. 

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A screenshot taken on August 4, 2020 of the misleading Facebook post by Myanmar Cele Star

The Burmese-language post’s caption translates to English as: “#Breaking_News/ It’s reported that our beloved singer and actress, Tint Tint Htun passed away today at 9 am this morning at the age of 56 at the Kyaung Pann nuns monastery in Bu-talin township. Full detail will be reported soon.”

The claim was also published here and here on Facebook. It was also shared on this news website in July 2020. 

The claim, however, is false. 

“I am sure that she is now healthy. I don’t want to say other personal things because this is her privacy,” U Hla Taw, a Buddhist monk who said he was in close contact with the former actress, told AFP by phone on July 30, 2020. 

U Hla Taw did not provide details of Tint Tint Htun's precise whereabouts but said “she is still alive, healthy and takes meditation as usual.”

Yone Lay, a well-known rapper in Myanmar, also refuted the claim in the misleading posts, stating on his verified Facebook account that “our beloved Ma Tint is still alive and nothing happened to her.”

Another popular pop singer, Moe Moe, added on his verified Facebook account that “the news about Tint Tint Htun’s death is not true.”

“Her younger brother confirmed it. She is still meditating at the nunnery where she lives,” Moe Moe wrote in the post. 

Other Myanmar local media outlets including Mizzima, Duwun and 7 Day TV also reported here, here and here that Tint Tint Htun was in good health.