Prime Minister Gen Soe Win, reviled for his role in a bloody attack on Myanmar Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her followers in 2003, died on Friday after a long illness, relatives and state media said. He was 59 and was said to have been suffering from leukemia.

The fourth-ranking member of the military junta, Soe Win was largely considered a figurehead, and his death was unlikely to cause a change in the regime’s grip on power.

His death was reported as the junta continued its crackdown on democracy advocates that followed weeks of protests in the tightly controlled country.

He was nicknamed “the Butcher of Depayin” for his role in the 2003 attack on Suu Kyi and her followers in that northern town.

Soe Win became prime minister in 2004. He replaced Gen Khin Nyunt, who was ousted by his hard-line army colleagues.