Freedom of opinion and expression: - the situation in Burma/Myanmar - reports, analyses, recommendations
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Websites/Multiple Documents
| Title: | | IFEX Burma page |
| Description/subject: | | Articles on freedom of expression in Burma/Myanmar. Archive from 1996 |
| Language: | | English, Français, French, Español, Spanish, Arabic, عربي |
| Source/publisher: | | The global network for free expression |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 19 November 2012 |
|
Individual Documents
| Title: | | Reporters emerge from shadows as Myanmar loosens grip on press |
| Date of publication: | | 21 November 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | (CNN) -- "It was "censorship day," the 20th of the month, the day Nyein Nyein Naing, executive director of Myanmar's Seven Days News Journal, takes her stories to a government office for pre-publication scrutiny.
Normally, a report on refugees fleeing from the conflict-ravaged Kachin state would not be accepted. Its distribution would most likely result in jail time for the author and suspension of the journal.
But August 20 was a new day for Myanmar, the day the government rescinded repressive media censorship laws that had hindered and intimidated the country's journalists for decades. Still, Naing had her concerns..." |
| Author/creator: | | Michelle Cohan, |
| Source/publisher: | | CNN |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 21 November 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Burma: Prioritize broad consultations to institutionalize media freedom |
| Date of publication: | | 08 November 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | "SEAPA initiated two ‘town hall meetings’ in Myanmar—one in Yangon on 23-24 September and one in Mandalay on 26 September—with the aim providing support for the media community to empower themselves in lobbying for a free media legal environment in Burma. These activities were organized within the context of the considerable expansion of press freedom in the country, including the end of pre-publication censorship, and the announcement of the drafting of a new press/media law.
The following document summarises the recommendations and inputs from the two Town Hall Meetings organized in Yangon and Mandalay and attended by 90 working journalists, discussing issues related to media law, self-regulation of the media and professional capacities of journalists. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA) |
| Format/size: | | pdf (110K), html |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.seapabkk.org/seapa-news/100702-burma-broad-consultations-must-underpinpin-institutionali... |
| Date of entry/update: | | 19 November 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Update on information controls in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | 23 October 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | Posted in Arrests and legal action, Asia, Burma, Internet tools filtering, Political filtering...
"After years spent as one of the world’s most strictly controlled information environments, the government of Burma (Myanmar) has recently begun to open up access to previously censored online content. Independent and foreign news sites, oppositional political content, and sites with content relating to human rights and political reform -- all previously blocked -- have recently become accessible. These developments have occurred as part of a broader process of political and economic liberalization currently underway in this historically strict authoritarian state.
This brief outlines the changes in information controls that have occurred during the past year and reports the results of recent OpenNet Initiative tests for Internet filtering in the country. While significant censorship of a number of types of online content persists in the country, the past year has seen a notable decrease in both the breadth and depth of filtered content..." |
| Author/creator: | | Irene Poetranto |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | OpenNet Initiative |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 19 November 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Myanmar: The Decree on the Right to Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession 2012 - Legal Analysis (English and Burmese) |
| Date of publication: | | 20 September 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | Executive Summary and Recommendations: In July 2012, "ARTICLE 19 analysed the Decree on the Right to Peaceful Assembly and
Peaceful Procession of Myanmar, adopted by the Government of the Republic of the Union of
Myanmar on 5 July 2012.
The provisions of the Decree were examined for their compliance with international standards
on human rights. Myanmar has neither signed nor ratified the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights or other principal human rights treaties. Nevertheless, ARTICLE 19
suggests that guarantees to the right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, as
provided by Article 364 of the Constitution of Myanmar, allow a wide scope for interpretation
and that international standards regarding these rights should provide guidance to such an
interpretation.
In the analysis, ARTICLE 19 appreciates the Decree’s recognition of the state duty to protect
assembly participants. However, the requirement for permission to hold an assembly, the
grounds for denying permission, the lack of a court appeal and the absence of guarantees for
media access to assemblies are problematic and must be urgently revised. ARTICLE 19 also
calls on the Government of Myanmar – in consultation with civil society - to review other
legislative measures in light of international standards and to make them compliant with
these standards.
Recommendations
ARTICLE 19 calls on the Government of Myanmar:
• To sign and ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
• To invite the UN special rapporteur on freedom of peaceful assembly and association
and the special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression to visit Myanmar;
• To ensure that the right to peaceful assembly and the right to freedom of expression
are safeguarded in line with international standards;
• To revise the Decree on the Right to Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession in
accordance with international standards on freedom of expression and freedom of
assembly, as recommended by ARTICLE 19;
• To initiate public discussion about the current legal framework on peaceful assemblies
and engage in consultation with civil society representatives on how to improve the
relevant legislation.
ARTICLE 19 calls on civil society in Myanmar:
• To engage in public debates and consultation with the government on how to improve
the domestic legislation on peaceful assembly;
• To form coalitions between civil society organisations and launch public education
campaigns on the right to peaceful assembly and the right to freedom of expression;
• To draft legislative proposals and advocate for specific changes in domestic legislation
aiming at the improvement of the protection of the right to peaceful assembly and the
right to freedom of expression;
• To seek partnerships with international organisations in a specific mandate on the
right to freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly." |
| Language: | | English, Burmese/ ျမန္မာဘာသာ |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (346K-English; 6.54MB-Burmese)) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.article19.org/data/files/medialibrary/3440/12-09-19-LA-Myanmar-BU.pdf
http://www.article19.org/resources.php/resource/3440/en/myanmar:-law-on-assembly-and-procession-inc... |
| Date of entry/update: | | 24 September 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Analysis of the Guarantees of Freedom of Expression in the 2008 Constitution of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar August 2012 |
| Date of publication: | | August 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | "When it was first introduced in 2008, the new Constitution of the Republic of the Union
of Myanmar was deemed to be a great improvement over the previous constitution. An
important part of this was the more robust guarantees it included for human rights. And
an important part of the latter was its relatively strong guarantees for freedom of
expression.
At the same time, the guarantees for freedom of expression in the 2008 Constitution do
not fully meet international standards in this area. This Analysis outlines the key
attributes of international standards, and indicate how the guarantees of freedom of
expression in the 2008 Constitution fail to meet these standards..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD); International Media Support (IMS) |
| Format/size: | | pdf (456K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 September 2012 |
|
| Title: | | BURMA: Crisis in Arakan State and New Threats to Freedom of News and Information |
| Date of publication: | | June 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | "On 28 May 2012, Ma Thida Htwe, a 27-year-old Burmese woman, was raped and killed by a group
of men in the town of Kyaukphyu in the western state of Arakan.
A few days after the murder, photographs of the victim were circulated on Facebook. In early June,
shots of three men named and identified as the perpetrators of the gang rape were also published.
Subsequently, these photos were widely shared on the social network before being published by a
Burmese media organization.
News about the crime circulated on the Web before being published and broadcast by the media.
The speed with which it spread illustrates the growth in Internet freedom in Burma.
From the start, however, details of the religious and ethnic backgrounds of the victim and the
perpetrators have influenced the way this tragic incident has been viewed, with the media
highlighting the fact that the victim was a Buddhist Rakhine and the alleged perpetrators were
Rohingya Muslims. This has had the effect of heightening ethnic tension, turning the Internet into a
virtual battleground.
In this tense atmosphere, a bus carrying 10 passengers identified as Rohingyas was stopped by an
angry crowd in the town of Taungup on 3 June. The occupants were killed and two days later photos
of their bodies were circulated in the public media. Some even branded them as "Kalar", a
pejorative term for Rohingyas and Bengalis living in the west of Burma..." |
| Language: | | English, Français, French, |
| Source/publisher: | | Reporters Without Borders |
| Format/size: | | pdf (769K); html, 29K (Français) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://fr.rsf.org/birmanie-la-crise-dans-l-etat-d-arakan-et-28-06-2012,42907.html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 July 2012 |
|
| Title: | | La crise dans l’Etat d’Arakan et les nouvelles menaces sur la liberté d’information |
| Date of publication: | | June 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | "Le 28 mai 2012, Ma Thida Htwe, une jeune birmane de 27 ans, a été violée puis tuée par plusieurs individus dans la ville de Kyaukphyu, dans l’Etat d’Arakan (ouest du pays).
Quelques jours après le meurtre, des photos de la victime circulaient sur Facebook. Dans les premiers jours du mois de juin, des clichés de trois individus, nommés et désignés comme étant les auteurs du viol en réunion ont également été publiées. Ces photos ont par la suite été massivement partagées sur le réseau social, avant d’être reprises par un média birman.
L’information autour de ce crime de droit commun a dans un premier temps circulé sur la toile avant d’être diffusée par les médias. La rapidité de circulation de l’information montre l’accroissement de la liberté sur Internet en Birmanie.
Toutefois dès le départ, les précisions apportées sur les origines ethniques et religieuses de la victime et des auteurs du crime ont apposé une grille de lecture biaisée sur ce fait divers dramatique, les médias mettant en avant le fait que la victime était Rakhine/bouddhiste et que les auteurs présumés du viol étaient quant à eux Rohingyas/musulmans. Ceci n’a fait qu’exacerbé les tensions ethniques, transformant Internet en un véritable "champs de bataille" virtuel.
C’est dans ce climat de tensions que, le 3 juin, un bus transportant dix passagers identifiés comme "Rohingyas" a été intercepté près de la ville de Taungup par une foule en colère. Ses occupants on été lynchés. Deux jours plus tard, les clichés des corps circulaient dans les médias publics. Sur certaines unes, on pouvait même lire "Kalar", terme péjoratif désignant les Rohingyas et les Bengalis vivant dans l’ouest du pays..." |
| Author/creator: | | Benjamin Ismaïl |
| Language: | | Français, French |
| Source/publisher: | | Reporters Sans Frontieres |
| Format/size: | | html (29K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 July 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Sorting out sanctions, censorship, sincerity in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | 18 May 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | "On Thursday, the United States rolled back prohibitions against American companies doing business in Burma. The announcement marked the latest diplomatic reward given to President Thein Sein's quasi-civilian government for initiating reforms in what has historically been a military-run country. In making the announcement, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the democratic changes initiated so far were "irreversible," but that is a characterization few of the country's journalists would share.
The government has flip-flopped on media regulations in the past few days, a troubling indicator that there might be no media policy at all in place. First, the official version: The government-owned newspaper and website published by the Ministry of Information, New Light of Myanmar, reported that Information Minister Kyaw Hsan met with several journalists and writers' groups earlier in the week, pledging to "cooperate fully" with all the associations as the ministry drafts a "print media law, gradually but systematically releasing the grip over press in order that journalists can practice in harmony with that law after its ratification." The government has also said it plans to get a new media law through parliament in the coming months. But that doesn't mean there will be no censorship. After the government forms a press council, publications will be allowed to go to press under what it calls a check-after-publish system, New Light of Myanmar reported. Under current conditions, all copy must be submitted to censors first, and then be printed and distributed..." |
| Author/creator: | | Bob Dietz |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 29 May 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Burma: Role of freedom of expression in democratisation processes |
| Date of publication: | | 29 March 2012 |
| Description/subject: | | 29 Mar 2012
Presentation to the Conference on Media Development in Myanmar, Organised by the Ministry of Information and UNESCO Rangoon, Myanmar, March 19-20, 2012.....CONCLUSION:
"...At the outset I emphasised that law is the essential business of government and noted the critical part to be played by the tripartite system of law making, law enacting and law protection. The legislators, executive and judiciary fulfil critical functions without which the rule of law fails and the fabric of sustainable society falls.
To set solid foundations for sustainable society, there are important laws, which should be drafted according to international standard and enacted accordingly. Critical are those that protect and uphold the rights to freedoms of expression, assembly and information and freedom of the press. They are a stable society’s backbone and shoulder blades.
Robust legal frameworks for freedoms of expression, information and the media are critical and irrevocable human rights in their own right. They are also powerful social goods in that they enable government to fulfil its tri-partite functions, to maintain its responsibilities to the law and to uphold the best practices of good governance. The transparency provided by freedom of information, the scrutiny provided by freedom of the press and the critique provided by freedom of expression create the environment in which high quality accountability government can flourish and deepen.
In other words if law is the skeletal framework on which stands and falls the strength and sustainability of a society, then the rights to freedoms of expression, information and the press is also a government’s personal trainer! A challenge, a goal, an encouragement and a motivator: without which no government can perform to the highest standard or achieve the best possible for those who give governments its raison d’etre: the people." |
| Author/creator: | | Agnes Callamard |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 01 April 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Burma in mid-2011: A Contradictory Landscape |
| Date of publication: | | 30 September 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | "...Earlier this month, the government unblocked several foreign news websites, including Reuters, the Guardian, CNN, and the Bangkok Post. Some of the newly accessible sites - Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, and the BBC - have Burmese language sections. The websites of exiled Burmese news organisations such as the Democratic Voice of Burma and Irrawaddy can now be accessed, as well as social networking and streaming sites Hotmail, Blogger, and Youtube.
This step toward liberalisation, however welcome, is inconsistent with the government’s overall monitoring policy. Not only do a large number of websites remain off-limits, but internet usage is still restricted to the country’s public internet cafés. Since November 2010, internet cafes in in Rangoon were required by the government to install closed-circuit cameras, screen-capture and keystroke-logging software so that online activities could be recorded and traced back to individuals. Flash drives have also been banned since May of this year..." |
| Author/creator: | | Anna Saunders |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | SEAPA Network |
| Format/size: | | html, pdf (74K) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.burmalibrary.org/docs12/SEAPA-2011-09.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 06 October 2011 |
|
| Title: | | OpenNet Initiative Burma (Myanmar) Country Profile 2011 |
| Date of publication: | | 02 August 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | Note: For the latest OpenNet Initiative testing results please see the 2012 Update on Information Controls in Burma. The following country profile reports 2011 findings, which do not reflect current events in the country. A previous version of this profile is available at Burma, 2010 and Burma, 2006-2007.
Burma’s ruling military junta is attempting to expand Internet access in the country while maintaining a restrictive system of control. Although less than only 1 percent of the population has access to the Internet, the government maintains a tight grip over online content, and—as demonstrated by the shutdown of Internet access during the 2007 “Saffron Revolution”—is willing to take drastic action to control the flow of information. Internet filtering in Burma is pervasive and extensively targets political and social content. Strict laws and regulations, along with surveillance, prohibit Internet users from freely accessing the Internet. Cyber attacks on the Web sites of opposition groups and media are frequent and typically occur on the anniversaries of significant political events, or during critical moments such as the 2010 election. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | OpenNet Initiative |
| Format/size: | | pdf (190K), html |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://access.opennet.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/accesscontested-burma.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 19 November 2012 |
|
| Title: | | Monitoring of Burmese media coverage in 2011. Report No. 4 (English) |
| Date of publication: | | 24 June 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | CONCLUSION:
"The results of monitoring in 2011 (which was conducted after the appointment of a new civilian
government with the aim to assess if there was any change in the state policy revealed the
opposite and confirmed the previous trends and patterns observed during the previous monitoring
periods. It is thus possible to conclude that the monitored state-controlled media in Burma do not
follow any journalistic standards, but serve only as a mouthpiece of the ruling powers. With more
than a half a year after the flawed 2010 parliamentary elections, condemned by the United
Nations and the whole international community, the main news programs of state-controlled TV
channels once again showed only the top state officials and completely ignored any other
stakeholders..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Memo98 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (155K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 01 July 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Monitoring of Burmese media coverage in 2011: Report No. 4၂၀၁၁ခု ျမန္မာ့မီဒီယာ သတင္းေဖာ္ျပပံုကိုေစာင့္ၾကည့္ေလ့လာခ်က္ (Burmese) |
| Date of publication: | | 24 June 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | CONCLUSION: "The results of monitoring in 2011 (which was conducted after the appointment of a new civilian government with the aim to assess if there was any change in the state policy revealed the opposite and confirmed the previous trends and patterns observed during the previous monitoring periods. It is thus possible to conclude that the monitored state-controlled media in Burma do not follow any journalistic standards, but serve only as a mouthpiece of the ruling powers. With more than a half a year after the flawed 2010 parliamentary elections, condemned by the United Nations and the whole international community, the main news programs of state-controlled TV channels once again showed only the top state officials and completely ignored any other stakeholders..." |
| Language: | | Burmese |
| Source/publisher: | | Memo98 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (126K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 02 July 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Surveillance of media and Internet stepped up under new civilian president |
| Date of publication: | | 17 May 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | "Press freedom and online freedom of information are still being flouted in Burma, three months after Thein Sein’s election as a civilian president. He promised to “respect the role of the media” but heavy jail sentences for journalists, suspension of newspapers and police raids on Internet cafés show that there has been no let-up in controls and intimidation. And now a string of new measures have just tightened control over Internet use...".....
Renforcement de la surveillance des médias et d’Internet sous l’ère Thein Sein ..."Trois mois après l’élection de Thein Sein à la tête de la Birmanie, la liberté de la presse et la liberté de l’information sur Internet sont toujours bafoués. Alors que le Président a déclaré qu’il respectait "le rôle des médias en tant que quatrième pouvoir", les condamnations de journalistes à de lourdes peines, les suspensions de journaux et les descentes de police dans les cybercafés illustrent l’inflexibilité du régime qui reste constant dans sa politique d’intimidation et de contrôle. Surtout, tout un train de mesures vient durcir le contrôle de la junte dans l’utilisation du Net..." |
| Language: | | Français, French, English |
| Source/publisher: | | Reporters Without Borders, Reporters Sans Frontieres |
| Format/size: | | pdf (399K); html, |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://fr.rsf.org/birmanie-renforcement-de-la-surveillance-17-05-2011,40295.html
http://www.burmalibrary.org/docs11/Surveillance_of_media_and_Internet.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 18 May 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Freedom on the Net 2011 - Burma |
| Date of publication: | | 18 April 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | Introduction: "While the Burmese military junta is interested in expanding and exploiting information and
communication technologies (ICTs) for business and propaganda purposes, it makes
aggressive attempts to regulate access to the internet and digital media, control content, and
punish citizens for any online activity that is seen as detrimental to regime security. The
government uses a wide range of means to restrict internet freedom, including legal and
regulatory barriers, infrastructural and technical constraints, and coercive measures such as
intimidation and lengthy prison sentences. Although the authorities lack the capacity to
pervasively enforce all restrictions, the impact of sporadic implementation and the ensuing
chilling effect is profound.
There has been gradual improvement in access to ICTs over the past three years, but
the junta has also aggressively targeted users who are involved in antigovernment activities
or have contact with foreign news media. Since its crackdown on a wave of September 2007
protests led by Buddhist monks, the military regime has more strictly enforced licensing
rules that require the owners of cybercafes, where most Burmese users obtain access, to
monitor users’ screens and cooperate with criminal investigations. Both online and offline
censorship and information controls were increased surrounding the November 7, 2010
national elections,
which secured a sweeping victory for the military-backed party and were
widely condemned as flawed.
The state-owned Myanmar Post and Telecommunications (MPT) company launched
the first official e-mail service in November 1997. The 2002 establishment of the first
private internet-service provider (ISP), Bagan Cybertech, helped to increase the number of
users in the country, though the company was later taken over by the junta. By 2010, there
were over 520 registered cybercafes in Burma, located mainly in a few major cities.
Censorship was further reinforced after the release of prodemocracy
leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest on November 13.
The
government’s first attempt to restrict internet freedom was the 1996 Myanmar Computer
Science Development Law, which made possession of an unregistered computer modem
and connection to unauthorized computer networks punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
Other laws and actions since then have furthered the government’s efforts to clamp down
on unsupervised internet use." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Freedom House |
| Format/size: | | pdf (264K - Burma section; 4.1MB - full report, OBLversion; 5.9MB - original) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.burmalibrary.org/docs11/FOTN2011-red.pdf
http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=664
http://www.freedomhouse.org/images/File/FotN/Burma2011.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 May 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Enemies of the Internet 2011 (Burma chapter) |
| Date of publication: | | 12 March 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burma took drastic measures in 2010 to reorganise the country’s Internet and to arm itself with the means, at the next sign
of a crisis, to cut off its population’s Web access without affecting official connections. Prior to the November 2010 elections
– the first in twenty years – censors resorted to massive crackdowns, intimidation and cyberattacks to reduce the risk of any
negative coverage. Tampering is now at its height..."...Widespread Net censorship
in Burma...Outstanding bloggers...Three netizens are still
languishing in prison...Reconfiguring the Burmese
Internet behind a smokescreen...Unreliable Internet connections
in the run up to the 7
November 2010: Slowdowns,
cyberattac ks and tampering...Da w Aung Sa n Suu Kyi:
Free and connected? |
| Language: | | English (French available) |
| Source/publisher: | | Reporters Without Borders (RSF) |
| Format/size: | | pdf (63K - Burma extract; 1.6MB - full report)) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://viewsdesk.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Internet-Enemies_2011.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 16 September 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Monitoring of the post-Election media coverage of Burmese political actors, 7–21 November 2010: Report No. 3 |
| Date of publication: | | 22 February 2011 |
| Description/subject: | | Conclusion: "The previous monitoring reports reflecting the period prior to the elections noted that the statecontrolled
media in Burma act as a mouthpiece of the ruling powers and do not follow any
professional journalistic standards. This report which covers the the period of two weeks after the
e-day showed that the general trends in the state media coverage identified in the previous reports
remain unchanged.
While the media coverage in state controlled outlets focused on election, its coverage was narrow
and lacked any analytical or critical views of the process. Clear bias in favor of state officials and
incumbents, compounded by a complete lack of any critical coverage of authorities and a lack of
coverage of opposition views characterized the coverage offered by the Burmese state media. The coverage which the release of NLD leader got in state media was extremely limited and
insignificant in comparison with the extent of presentation of the authorities.
The exile media offered diverse picture of political actors and gave large attention to the NLD
leader after she was released from her house arrest; the NLD was a dominant political subject
presented in the exile media. In this regards the elections were overshadowed by the sudden
presence of the NLD leader in Burmese political life and the NLD, while actively boycotting
elections, dominated the post election coverage of exile media" |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Memo98 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (76K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 02 July 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Burmese media combating censorship |
| Date of publication: | | 22 December 2010 |
| Description/subject: | | "Despite many difficulties,
Burmese journalists inside
Burma and abroad have in
recent weeks covered two
events of great importance for the
country: the 7 November general elections
and Aung San Suu Kyi’s release
six days later. The military authorities
sent contradictory signals about their
intentions as regards media freedom.
The undemocratic elections were marked
by censorship, arrests of journalists
and other obstacles, but Burmese
newspapers were able to interview the
various candidates during the campaign.
The privately-owned media and
foreign correspondents were initially
allowed to talk about Suu Kyi’s release,
until more than 10 publications were
disciplined by the Press Scrutiny Board
and the surveillance of foreign reporters
was stepped up.
The military junta and the members of
the newly-elected parliament can now
choose either to pursue the repressive
policies or to initiate a process in which
more space is given to basic freedoms.
We urge the Burmese authorities to
seize the opportunity to respond to the
various calls from neighbouring countries
and ASEAN ’s secretary general for
more freedom of expression. The international
community must also press
the authorities to show more tolerance
and must support the media inside and
outside the country that are trying to
push back censorship.
With the help of its partner organization,
the Burma Media Association,
Reporters Without Borders followed
the work of the Burmese press and
foreign reporters during this historic
month of November. A Reporters Without
Borders representative went to
Burma before the elections to evaluate
the situation. Despite the censorship,
surveillance and obstruction, the Burmese
media managed to offer their
readers, listeners and viewers a variety
of reports and analyses that has been
without precedent since the 1990 elections.
Reporters Without Borders also
wanted to learn more about the impact
in Burma of the so-called exile media
such as Democratic Voice of Burma. A
poll and a survey recently carried out
in Burma confirm the popularity of the
radio and TV stations that broadcast in
Burmese from abroad. In the poll, 2,950
people in eight provinces were questioned
about how they get their news..." |
| Language: | | English, Francais, French |
| Source/publisher: | | Reporters Without Borders |
| Format/size: | | pdf (1.2MB); html |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://fr.rsf.org/birmanie-rapport-birmanie-elections-aung-san-suu-kyi-22-12-2010,39120.html
http://en.rsf.org/burma-burmese-media-combating-censorship-22-12-2010,39134.html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 30 December 2010 |
|
| Title: | | OpenNet Initiative Burma (Myanmar) Country Profile (2010) |
| Date of publication: | | 22 December 2010 |
| Description/subject: | | "Despite very low connectivity, Internet
users in Burma have managed to
communicate valuable information
to the outside world during explosive
political events. The Burmese military
government continues to enforce
stringent overall access restrictions,
the most extreme of which occurred
during the complete shutdown of the
Internet in Burma in September and
October 2007. On top of these barriers to access, the government also polices Internet
content through one of the most severe regimes of information control in the
world..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | OpenNet Initiative |
| Format/size: | | pdf (133K) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://opennet.net/research/profiles/burma |
| Date of entry/update: | | 16 September 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Monitoring of the media coverage prior to 7 November elections in Burma. Report No. 2 (1 September–25 October 2010) |
| Date of publication: | | 05 November 2010 |
| Description/subject: | | Conclusion:
"The three months of monitoring revealed that monitored state-controlled media in Burma do not
follow any professional journalistic standards, but only serve as a mouthpiece of the ruling
powers. Plain bias in favor of state officials and incumbents and no reflection of opposing or
critical views in state-controlled media was observed during the entire three-month monitoring
period. In the period preceding the elections, the main news programs of the state-controlled TV
channels were showing only the top state officials and completely ignored any other stakeholders.
They offered an exceptionally limited range of diversity of political actors, with any other
political subjects having virtually no access to the country’s most important sources of
information.
It is also of concern that these disturbing trends in the way the Burmese state-controlled media
cover political entities are not result of short-term anomalies, but genuine trends in the Burmese
media. These negative trends are to some extent meliorated by the exile media which do offer a
diverse range of views, with the main opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her party
National League for Democracy getting the most significant coverage. However, the potential
geographical coverage of the exile media, and thus their accessibility to Burmese population is
much lower than that of the state-controlled media in Burma.
Overall, election contestants were allowed only very restricted access to the media and were
prevented from fully enjoying their right of freedom of expression. The complete lack by the
media in Burma of any independent and objective reporting limited the voters’ access to a broad
range of information which would enable them to make an informed choice at the ballot box." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Memo98 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (104K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 02 July 2011 |
|
| Title: | | National Web portal - development or repression? |
| Date of publication: | | November 2010 |
| Description/subject: | | Conclusion: "It is expected that the Yatanarpon Myanmar National Web Portal will provide faster bandwidth and improved Web services to Burmese Internet users. However, according to the current setup, only users from the government ministries, especially those from the Ministry of Defence, will enjoy faster Internet connection and consequently better Web services.
The FTTH high-tech communication system is an impressive development compared with the previous system. It can also be assumed that the new system will cost more. However, given the low per capita income in Burma, only a tiny fraction of the public will be able to enjoy the FTTH system.
The segregated nature of the new ISP system would also allow the authorities to shut down the civilian ISP without affecting the two other ISPs that serve the government and the military. The authorities are likely to use that opportunity to stifle freedom of press and expression.
The new system also grants the military exclusive control over the Hantharwaddy National Gateway. The military is therefore now in a position to spy on all Burmese citizens – civilians, soldiers and government service personnel." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Reporters Without Borders, Burma Media Association |
| Format/size: | | pdf (643K - OBL version; 1.9MB, original) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://en.rsf.org/IMG/pdf/rap_birmanie-2.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 17 May 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Monitoring of the media coverage prior to 7 November elections in Burma. Report No. 1 (August 2010) |
| Date of publication: | | 15 October 2010 |
| Description/subject: | | Conclusion:
"Data from the first month of monitoring reveal that monitored state-controlled media in Burma
do not follow any journalistic standards, but only serve as a mouthpiece of the ruling powers.
With less than two months before elections, the main news programs of state-controlled TV
channels have only shown the three top state officials and completely ignored any other
stakeholders. This is an exceptionally limited range of diversity of political actors, with all other
political forces having virtually no access to the country’s most important sources of information.
It is also of concern that these disturbing trends in the way the Burmese state-controlled media
cover political entities are not result of short-term anomalies, but genuine trends in the Burmese
media. These negative trends are to some extent meliorated by the exile media which do offer a
diverse range of views, with the main opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her party
National League for Democracy, getting the most significant coverage.
However, the potential geographical coverage of the exile media is much less than that of the
state-controlled media in Burma. As such, it is highly questionable whether citizens will receive
ample information to be able to make a qualified choice at the ballot box." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Memo98 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (106K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 02 July 2011 |
|
| Title: | | Enemies of the Internet (2010) |
| Date of publication: | | 12 March 2010 |
| Description/subject: | | Burma section plus full report (see Alternate link)
http://en.rsf.org/spip.php?page=article&id_article=19603 |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Reporters Sans Frontieres - Reporters Without Borders |
| Format/size: | | pdf (62K - Burma section; 1.14MB - full report) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://en.rsf.org/IMG/pdf/Internet_enemies.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 April 2010 |
|
| Title: | | The Coming Cyber War |
| Date of publication: | | March 2010 |
| Description/subject: | | The Burmese generals are moving to take control of the information superhighway as they gear up for a cyber war with dissidents |
| Author/creator: | | Wai Moe, David Paquette |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 18, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www2.irrawaddy.org/print_article.php?art_id=17923 |
| Date of entry/update: | | 17 March 2010 |
|
| Title: | | Burma Human Rights Yearbook 2008 - Chapter 13: Freedom of Opinion, Expression and the Press |
| Date of publication: | | 23 November 2009 |
| Description/subject: | | "...
As in years past, freedom of expression in the arts was met with stringent censorship. The
regime imprisoned poet Saw Wai for publishing a Valentine’s Day poem with a hidden
message denouncing General Than Shwe. The editor of the magazine Cherry, Htay Aung,
was dismissed for publishing a poem about the ancient history of Depayin that could have
been construed as a reference to the 2003 Depayin Massacre, which targeted National
League for Democracy (NLD) leaders and supporters. The State Peace and Development
Council (SPDC) censorship board also banned popular American film, Rambo, which
denounced the violence of the regime.
The Internet, televised media, and printed press also continued to be strictly censored
throughout 2008. During Cyclone Nargis and in its aftermath, the regime prevented the
unaffected regions of the country from obtaining accurate information on the destruction and
humanitarian crisis. The SPDC not only restricted access to the cyclone hit regions, banning
the use of cameras or video recorders, but they also limited the print media to releasing
positive images of the regime handing out food and supplies and providing shelter. While
the regime has always censored access to the Internet, for the first time in 2008, authorities
arrested blogger Nay Phone Latt for his reporting on the September 2007 Saffron
Revolution. In November of 2008, he received a sentence of 20 and half years in prison.
All media continued to be subject to the publishing guidelines of the Press Scrutiny Board.
Publishers and artists must submit their work to the censorship board in advance of
dissemination and then wait for comments and exclusions. Once it has been reworked, the
final product must be approved a second time by the board, before it goes to the public.
Such a lengthy process has made self-censorship the more convenient option amongst
weekly news journals. It has also prevented the immediate release of relevant information,
as was the case with delayed coverage of the cyclone and referendum. Understandably, the
Burmese public have turned to the internet and international media sources for information
on what is happening inside Burma as an alternative to junta mouthpieces such as the
Myanmarhlaing, and the Mirror.
Politically, the regime forced the entire eligible voting population of Burma to participate in a
tightly controlled and engineered referendum to approve a draft constitution that was the
product of a 14-year long, undemocratic National Convention. None of the requirements for
free and fair voting, including freedom to vote in privacy; availability of information related to
the issues, freedom from intimidation or bribery, and independent monitoring, were ensured
by the regime during the referendum process. Instead, individuals met with forced advance
voting, threats, and a new Referendum Law for the Approval of the Draft Constitution of the
Republic of the Union of Myanmar (issued on 26 February 2008), which prevented any
speech against the referendum or dissemination of political information.3 The end of the
year saw the regime preparing for the next step in the seven-step roadmap to democracy,
national elections in 2010. Evidence to date suggests that the campaigns and election will
be conducted under similarly repressive conditions as those that marred the referendum on
the draft constitution, eventually leading to the SPDC's goal of a transition to a disciplined
democracy’..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Human Rights Docmentation Unit (HRDU) |
| Format/size: | | pdf (858K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 06 December 2009 |
|
| Title: | | Suppressed |
| Date of publication: | | February 2009 |
| Description/subject: | | "Intimidation, arrests and draconian prison sentences reached new heights in a media crackdown in Burma last year...
JOURNALISTS in Burma faced Orwellian-type scrutiny and were subjected to imprisonment and intimidation throughout 2008, while exiled Burmese media groups were also attacked—via their computers...." |
| Author/creator: | | Saw Yan Naing |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 17, No. 1 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 16 February 2009 |
|
| Title: | | Burmese Journalist Wins Major International Press Award |
| Date of publication: | | November 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | A Burmese journalist who works for The Associated Press has received the 2008 Journalism and Courage Award from the International Women’s Media Foundation...
"The journalist, Aye Aye Win, has worked as a reporter in Burma for nearly 20 years—a “risky business,” she said in a written acceptance speech. Only a free press could guarantee a free society, she said..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 16, No. 11 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 16 November 2008 |
|
| Title: | | Why Independent Media Matters in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | April 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | "BURMA'S rulers and democratic opposition forces have limited experience with a free and independent media. And this is definitely a concern when contemplating a future democratic Burma..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | Englsh |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 16, No. 4 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 April 2008 |
|
| Title: | | Burma: The Censored Land |
| Date of publication: | | March 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burma’s scribes use old ruses and new technology to stay true to their word and dodge the junta’s efforts to censor freedom of expression...
Burma’s censorship board, the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division, continues to face new challenges in its never-ending efforts to sanitize the country’s print media. Armed with magnifying glasses and mirrors, the censors are on a mission to root out hidden political messages in poems, novels, stories and advertisements.
Burma has a well-earned reputation as “an enemy of the press,” but Burmese writers say they are undaunted by the ruling regime’s efforts to muzzle free expression. Censors or no censors, they say, writers of real mettle will always find creative ways to give voice to their true feelings..." |
| Author/creator: | | Yeni |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 16, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 April 2008 |
|
| Title: | | Hard News - A day in the life of a Rangoon journalist |
| Date of publication: | | March 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | "...When monks took to the streets in September, our editor—who also owned the publication—allowed us to go and cover the events, but we were never able to write about them. I noticed that many Burmese reporters established contacts with international and exile media groups.
There was no satellite TV receiver in our office, either.
When we originally asked the editor to install one, so that we could watch coverage of the demonstrations, he surprisingly agreed. But when the shooting began he changed his mind and banned us from going into the streets or having any contact with the demonstrating monks.
“You really don’t want to see the news, that’s why I won’t install a receiver,” he said.
“The uprising will be over in two or three days, anyway,” he said. He was right—the uprising was short-lived. The satellite dish never was installed.
In our newsroom, only the management desk and the copy-typists worked with computers. We reporters and editors had to write our stories by hand. They were then edited and passed on to the typists. The printouts were given back to us to be checked for spelling.
Frequent power cuts interrupted the work routine. We had our own generator, but it sat outside our office and when it was running the heat and noise were unbearable..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aye Chan Myate |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 16, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 April 2008 |
|
| Title: | | Mission: To Tell the Truth |
| Date of publication: | | March 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burma’s exiled media took center stage during the September uprising. Now they must not rest on their laurels...
If the Burmese people are ready for change, then we must ask whether the exiled Burmese media is ready for change. The answer, I believe, should be a resounding “Yes!”
Burma enjoyed perhaps the liveliest free press in Southeast Asia in the 1950s and 60s. Burma’s first constitution in 1947 guaranteed citizens the right to express their opinions and convictions.
Unfortunately, the freedoms of expression and media were short-lived in Burma.
The first assault on journalism came soon after the military coup in 1962. Press freedom gradually disintegrated thereafter, truncated by Gen Ne Win’s socialist regime.
Newspapers were nationalized and many foreign news agencies were asked to pack their bags. Journalists and editors found themselves in prison.
During the 1980s, all forms of public expression and publications had to pass through Burma’s notorious censorhip board, now known as the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division, even though Burma’s second constitution, drawn up in 1974, guaranteed freedom of expression..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 16, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 April 2008 |
|
| Title: | | The Cyber Dissident |
| Date of publication: | | March 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burma’s generals may have underestimated the power of the Internet during the 2007 uprising, but they are now playing catch-up...
The Burmese military government has found a new enemy—the growing number of “cyber dissidents” who are gaining popularity both inside and outside the country. The bad news is that the junta usually finds a way of defeating each new enemy..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 16, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 April 2008 |
|
| Title: | | Attacks on the Press 2007: Burma |
| Date of publication: | | 05 February 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | Burmese journalists came under heavy assault in August and September when covering pro-democracy street protests and the military government’s retaliatory crackdown, marking significant deterioration in what was already one of the world’s most repressive media environments. The government banned coverage of the uprising and sought to isolate the nation by impeding Internet and phone service. Local and citizen journalists, however, proved innovative and persistent in circumventing the government’s electronic blockade. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Committee to Protect Journalists |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 11 December 2010 |
|
| Title: | | Burma VJ - reporting from a closed country (video) |
| Date of publication: | | 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | 84 MINUTES RUNNING TIME. TRAILER PLUS 9 PARTS. FOR PARTS 1-9, CLICK ON ALTERNATE LINKS, BELOW, OR IN RIGHT HAND COLUMN OF YOUTUBE PAGE..."Armed with small handycams undercover Video Journalists in Burma keep up the flow of news from their closed country despite risking torture and life in jail. Their material is smuggled out of Burma and broadcast back via satellite.
Joshua, age 27, becomes tactical leader of a group of reporters, as Buddhist monks in September 2007 lead a massive uprising. Foreign TV crews are banned from the country, so its left to Joshua and his crew to keep the revolution alive on TV screens all over. As government intelligence understands the power of the camera, the VJs become their prime target." |
| Author/creator: | | ANDERS OËœSTERGAARD, Khin Maung Win et al |
| Language: | | Burmese, English |
| Source/publisher: | | Magic Hour Films |
| Format/size: | | Adobe Flash Player (84 minutes playing time) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6DfCLqLVUg&feature=related (pt I)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pc4tnvuFoPc&feature=related (pt II)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-i9V2Qpzqw&feature=related (pt III)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsnoYEthIb8&feature=related (pt IV)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOnhJ-yY824&feature=related (pt V)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtWrYfl2pb0&feature=related (pt VI)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0s94tsVAZuY&feature=related (pt VII)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wLaOqrAdpM&feature=related (pt VIII)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vaXSwWF6aM&feature=related (pt IX - final)
http://burmavjmovie.com/ |
| Date of entry/update: | | 25 December 2009 |
|
| Title: | | "Pulling the Plug - A Technical Review of the Internet Shutdown in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | 23 October 2007 |
| Description/subject: | | Executive Summary:
"This bulletin examines the role of information technology, citizen journalists, and bloggers in Burma and presents a technical analysis of the abrupt shutdown of Internet connectivity by the Burmese government on September 29, 2007, following its violent crackdown on protesters there. Completely cutting international Internet links is rare. Nepal, which severed all international Internet connections when the King declared martial law in February 2005, is the only other state to take such drastic action. Although extreme, the measures taken by the Burmese government to limit citizens' use of the Internet during this crisis are consistent with previous OpenNet Initiative (ONI) findings in Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, and Tajikistan, where authorities controlled access to communication technologies as a way to limit social mobilization around key political events. What makes the Burmese junta stand out, however, is its apparent goal of also preventing information from reaching a wider international audience.
The shutdown of Internet connectivity was precipitated by its use by citizens to send photographs, updates and videos that documented the violent suppression of protests in Burma, information that contributed to widespread international condemnation of the Burmese military rulers' gross violations of human rights.
We examine the impact of communication technology in shaping these key political events in Burma, the limitations of these tools, and the prospects for the next round of information wars". |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "OpenNet Initiative Bulletin" |
| Format/size: | | pdf (623K) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://opennet.net/sites/opennet.net/files/ONI_Bulletin_Burma_2007.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 26 October 2007 |
|
| Title: | | OpenNet Initiative Burma (Myanmar) Country Profile 2007 |
| Date of publication: | | 10 May 2007 |
| Description/subject: | | Myanmar’s authoritarian military junta is slowly expanding access to the Internet while maintaining one of the world’s most restrictive systems of control. Despite the fact that less than 1 percent of Myanmar access the Internet, the government has targeted online independent media and dissent with the same commitment it has demonstrated to stifling traditional media and voices for reform. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Opennet Initiative |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://opennet.net/research/profiles/burma |
| Date of entry/update: | | 01 December 2009 |
|
| Title: | | Laughing All the Way to Prison |
| Date of publication: | | June 2006 |
| Description/subject: | | Censors fail to gag popular Burmese comedian...
"Zarganar, the former dental surgery student who became one of Burma’s best-loved comedians and a mordant satirist, has had his teeth pulled by the censors. “No more public performances,” they told him last month, prompting threats by his colleagues—including well-known actors and directors—to cease production work in a display of sympathy.
The ban extends to all news about Zarganar in the Burmese press. The Orwellian regime has effectively made him a “non-person.”
Zarganar’s gag slipped, however, when The Irrawaddy contacted him by telephone at his Rangoon home. The irrepressible comedian chuckled as he talked about the regime’s latest attempt to silence him.
It was an interview in April with the BBC’s Burmese service that sparked the latest ban, Zarganar said. He had criticized official regulations that he said robbed Burma’s water festival of much of its traditions..." |
| Author/creator: | | Ko Thet |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 14, No. 6 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 29 December 2006 |
|
| Title: | | Blacked Out |
| Date of publication: | | April 2006 |
| Description/subject: | | Reading between the lines of Burmaâ's censored press...
"Power shortages and blackouts are nothing new in Burma. Nor are news blackouts...
In early February, authorities detected bird flu in Sagaing and Mandalay divisions but the news didn't appear in state-run newspapers or privately-run journals until the middle of March. The government's mouthpiece, The New Light of Myanmar, waited until March 16 to report the outbreak.
Why do the authorities wait so long to inform the public of such an important development that directly affects them? The reason for this particularly cynical form of censorship has to be the official fear of causing a panic. Yet fears of a serious health hazard aren't the only reason for Burmese to stay glued to the broadcasts of shortwave radio stations beamed from overseas. The plain fact is that most Burmese have no clue what is happening in their own country.
Ironically, the latest clampdown occurs as optimism surfaces in Rangoon media circles about what some editors and journalists see as a relaxation of censorship regulations..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 14, No. 4 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 28 December 2006 |
|
| Title: | | Kyaw Hsan: Friend or Enemy of the Press? |
| Date of publication: | | April 2006 |
| Description/subject: | | Burmese Information Minister Brig-Gen Kyaw Hsan may appear outwardly to be a friend of the local press. But he also carries a big stick...
"Burmese Minister of Information Brig-Gen Kyaw Hsan seems to have a very busy schedule these days. But helping to channel real information to the Burmese masses doesn't seem to be his main concern. If anything, it is to coax Burma's tame media to wean readers and viewers away from news and onto entertainment, sport and soap operas..." |
| Author/creator: | | Yeni |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 14, No. 4 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 28 December 2006 |
|
| Title: | | Online Censorship in Burma: A Foreign Affair |
| Date of publication: | | November 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | Overseas IT firms offer Burma’s government added protection against online activism...
"Of the 1,100 prisoners of conscience currently languishing in jails throughout Burma, not one is a cyber-dissident. No organization contacted by The Irrawaddy has any record of Burma’s military government detaining or sentencing a single Burmese citizen because of their activities on the worldwide web.
Given Burma’s recent efforts to get its hands on the most advanced security and spying software available, however, that statistic may be about to change.
Companies and IT specialists from the US, Canada, Britain, Thailand and Singapore are now offering their wares to the Burmese government as it strives to further secure the net, meaning those that have been bypassing the country’s filtering system thus far may be in for a nasty surprise..." |
| Author/creator: | | Clive Parker |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 13, No. 11 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 01 May 2006 |
|
| Title: | | Internet Filtering in Burma in 2005: A Country Study |
| Date of publication: | | 12 October 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burma, also known as Myanmar, implements one of the world’s most restrictive regimes
of Internet control. These on-line restrictions buttress off-line regulation of speech
implemented by the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), a group of military officials
who maintain authoritarian rule over the state. Burma’s system combines broad, vague laws of
long standing with harsh penalties. Internet access is costly and the state uses software-based
filtering techniques to limit significantly the materials Burma’s citizens can access on-line. Most
dial-up Internet accounts provide access only to the limited Myanmar Internet, not to the global
network that most people around the world can access. The state maintains the capability to
conduct surveillance of communication methods such as e-mail, and to block users from viewing
Web sites of political opposition groups, organizations working for democratic change in Burma,
and pornographic material. As compared to states elsewhere around the world, Burma’s
censorship regime is among the most extensive.
The OpenNet Initiative (ONI) tested its global list of Web sites and a high-impact list of
sites with material known to be sensitive to the Burmese state. On the global list, we found
nearly 11% of pages tested blocked, with a high level of filtering of e-mail service provider sites
(85%) and pornographic sites (65%). The state also blocked significant numbers of gambling
(24%), group Web sites (18%), and free Web space sites (18%). On our high impact list of sites
with content known to be sensitive to the Burmese state, we found 84% of sites blocked,
including nearly all political opposition and pro-democracy pages tested. These findings align
with Burma’s well-documented efforts to monitor e-mail communication by its citizens and to
control political dissent and opposition movements.
Burma’s commitment to regulating Internet content through technical methods is
demonstrated by its purchase and ongoing implementation of filtering software from the U.S.
company Fortinet. Our research suggests that Burma continues to seek to refine its censorship
regime. Burma’s system of Internet control shows no signs of lessening, and may worsen as it
moves to a more sophisticated software product and as the state moves to tighten on-line
restrictions." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | OpenNet Initiative |
| Format/size: | | pdf (416K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 13 October 2005 |
|
| Title: | | Sign of the Times |
| Date of publication: | | October 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | Latest Myanmar Times setback highlights increased junta interference...
"One year ago the Myanmar Times might have been forgiven for feeling optimistic. The paper was about to relocate to bigger premises in downtown Rangoon to accommodate a swelling team of reporters, while a printing press was making its way from New Zealand that would allow Editor-in-Chief Ross Dunkley and his team to publish in-house for the first time.
That was, however, before Monday, October 18, 2004—the day former prime minister and head of Military Intelligence Gen Khin Nyunt was arrested for corruption.
Dunkley’s comment to Asiaweek shortly after he launched his English-language weekly in 2001 that “in some ways we are a litmus test to an opening up process” has this year proven to be prophetic.
The sentencing of Deputy CEO Sonny Swe and his father Brig-Gen Thein Swe—formerly of MI and the Myanmar Times’ chief censor until Khin Nyunt’s ouster—to 14 and 152 years in prison respectively for corruption and bypassing the official censorship process—was merely the first setback.
Whereas the newspaper could occasionally print articles and even pictures of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2002 when the political situation was less tense, in the past 12 months the Myanmar Times has been “asked” to run stories provided by the Ministry of Information almost every week..." |
| Author/creator: | | Clive Parker |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 13, No. 10 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 30 April 2006 |
|
| Title: | | Keeping the Censors Sweet |
| Date of publication: | | 17 August 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | Bribery is a part of everyday life for Burma’s press... "From the outside, the three-story building at number six is as nondescript as the other houses and businesses on Wingabar Road just outside downtown Rangoon. Inside, however, the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division headquarters stands out from the majority of the capital’s Spartan offices and government departments because of its abundant furniture and electrical appliances.
“The PSRD office is lavishly decorated, even the toilet,” said one regular visitor, a journalist who requested anonymity.
A closer look at the DVD players, televisions, stereos and furniture that fill the building reveals small identification tags, each with the name of a leading Burma publication. The labels allow Burma’s censorship board to keep track of the journals that have paid up in full—each appliance and piece of furniture is a mandatory bribe..." |
| Author/creator: | | Clive Parker |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 13, No. 8 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 08 September 2010 |
|
| Title: | | Burma Human Rights Yearbook 2004: Freedom of Opinion, Expression, and the Press |
| Date of publication: | | August 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | SPDC Laws Restricting Freedom of Opinion, Expression, and the Press:- The Official Secrets Act 1923; The Burma Wireless Telegraphy Act 1933; Section 122, Penal Code of Burma; The Law Protecting the Peaceful and Systematic Transfer of State Responsibility and the Successful Performance of the Functions of the National Convention against Disturbances and Oppositions; Emergency Provisions Act 1950; The Printers and Publishers Registration Law 1962; State Protection Law 1975 (also known as the "Law to Safeguard the State from the Dangers of Destructive Elements"); The Television and Video Law; The Motion Picture Law; The Computer Science Development Law...
The National Convention: Increased Control Over Expression... State of Freedom of the Press in 2004:- Khin Nyunt’s arrest and freedom of the press; Hiding the impact of the tsunami; Delay in reporting on Arakan cyclone; Arrested for reporting on Myitkyina flood; Journalists forced to report on Min Ko Naing’s release; Media informants fear reprisal; Sports editor’s death sentence commuted...
The State of Publications in 2004... Journalists Freed in 2004... Continuing Detention of Journalists:- U Win Tin; Sein Hla Oo; Aung Htun and Tha Ban; Aung Pwint and Thaung Tun; Khin Maung Win; Monywa Aung-Shin...
Academic Freedom; Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Expression:- Students imprisoned for leaflets; Arrested for peaceful political demonstration; NLD members arrested for distributing pamphlets; Continued detention of monks and nuns; Teashop fined for playing BBC; SPDC infiltration of websites...
Freedom of Expression in the Arts:- Artists forced to perform in support of the SPD; Censorship of Film and Television and Restrictions on Actors; Censorship of Music and Musicians; Censorship of Painting, Photography, Sculpture, other Visual Arts, and Performance Art...
Control of Computer Technology and Communications:-Telecommunications in Burma; The Internet and Electronic Mail in Burma. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Human Rights Documentation Unit, NCGUB |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 01 May 2006 |
|
| Title: | | Light Fading at Myanmar Times |
| Date of publication: | | March 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | Rangoon-based journal loses special privileges...
"With the help of Burma’s spooks, Australian Ross Dunkley launched the colorful Myanmar Times in 2000. Full of optimism and enthusiasm, he claimed that he saw a greater openness in the country and set out to push the envelope.
ROSS DUNKLEY: Feeling the heat
Dunkley claimed that his weekly newspaper was exercising responsible journalism in order to create a more favorable environment for all the media in Burma. A nice idea, but local reporters and editors didn’t agree. They saw Dunkley as merely the junta’s apologist, saying he was committed to promoting the cause of Gen Khin Nyunt and military intelligence rather than any grand notions of press freedom.
The paper had its own censorship board com"prising Brig-Gen Thein Swe and other ministers who were close allies of Khin Nyunt. Without having to pass through the usual bureaucratic channels, the special censorship board would give the paper quick approval. This set The Myanmar Times head and shoulders above other Rangoon publications, granting it special dispensation to cover sensitive domestic issues such as the status of Aung San Suu Kyi and the visits of UN special investigators to the country. Such privileges were never offered to the local press.
But Dunkley’s mission is now in doubt. After a change of guard at the top, The Myanmar Times can no longer obtain “special privilege” status from the authorities. With the demise of military intelligence and Gen Khin Nyunt, Dunkley’s future is looking somewhat dim. Several media observers have even predicted that The Myanmar Times will be shut down. Well, that’s not happened yet, but the paper is in trouble..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 13, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 28 August 2005 |
|
| Title: | | The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre - Censors signal bleak prospects for free press |
| Date of publication: | | March 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | "The popular Burmese lifestyle magazine Han Thit is missing from the newsstands this month. Nor will it appear in April.
The magazine was suspended by the authorities for two months. The reason? It carried a restaurant’s advertisement of a St. Valentine’s Day celebration.
No Valentine cards or red roses then for the regime bureaucrats responsible for such daft decisions. Journalists, editors and publishers are braced for even more inexplicable actions against the media as a new censorship policy takes shape following last October’s purge.
Burma’s police chief Brig-Gen Khin Yi being mobbed by reporters
Media issues surfaced at the National Convention in March, although the discussions yielded no hope for possible relaxation of restrictions on press freedom.
According to a report by the official mouthpiece The New Light of Myanmar, it was agreed at the National Convention session that “NGO- and privately-owned media” would emerge “sooner or later.” So far so good, but then came the crunch: “Permission will be granted to the media that keep their dignity. Therefore, action will have to be taken against those who breach the rules. And consequently, it is necessary to enact laws in connection with the media.”..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 13, No.3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 29 August 2005 |
|
| Title: | | OBSTACLES TO INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES
IN BURMA |
| Date of publication: | | 11 December 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | "The major problems that exist in Burma today can be traced to the formation of the Union of Burma when a diverse group of indigenous peoples agreed to work together in peace before they were freed from colonial rule. But just months after leaders of the majority Burman and the Shan, Chin, Kachin and Karenni nationalities signed the Panglong Agreement on February 12, 1947, General Aung San (father of Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi) was assassinated and their hopes of establishing a Federal Union were dashed. When Burma gained independence from Britain in 1948, the government of U Nu, who had succeeded General Aung San, was installed. Almost immediately, the rights of the minority ethnic nationalities were rejected and civil war broke out. As a result of the denial of basic freedoms for the ethnic nationalities and the right to self-determination previously agreed upon, this civil war has dragged on for half a century and Burma has become one of the Least Developed Countries (LDC) in the world. To this day the Burman military government blames the ethnic nationalities for the country’s failure to develop on a par with other countries of Southeast Asia..." |
| Author/creator: | | Cham Toik |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | World Summit on the Information Society,
Geneva, December 8-11, 2003 |
| Format/size: | | html (33K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 11 December 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Burma Human Rights Yearbook 2002-03: Freedom of Opinion, Expression, and the Press |
| Date of publication: | | October 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | "Freedoms of opinion, expression, and the press have been virtually non-existent in Burma since the military coup of 1988. The Press Scrutiny Board (PSB), a division of the powerful Ministry of Information, scrutinizes every publication for anything perceived as anti-government.’ Similar censorship boards retain tight control over art, music, film, performance, and all other forms of artistic expression. All authors, publishers, journalists and poets must submit a personal biography to the board of literary censorship. The board then investigates to find out if these individuals have any association to opposition political parties or connections to other people or groups deemed threatening by the regime. Anyone suspected or proved to have undesirable’ connections is placed on a blacklist and their work is not allowed to be published.
People’s access to information in Burma is officially limited to one main state run news agency that disseminates information to government controlled newspapers, radio, and television stations. Burma’s four daily newspapers are all published by the News and Periodicals Enterprise (NPE), a division of the Information Ministry. While currently there are approximately 50 private weekly and monthly magazines published in Rangoon, all are kept under close scrutiny by the regime. Burmese people are well aware that much of the news from official sources is propaganda, and to find out what is really happening in their own country and the rest of the world they must depend on sources of information outlawed by the regime..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Human Rights Documentation Unit, NCGUB |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 10 November 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Fighting Words |
| Date of publication: | | July 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | "Steeped in tradition and stifled by repression, Burma’s literary culture remains defiant despite its seeming silence...Journalists in Rangoon say a combination of factors have pushed the works of revolutionary writers like Bamaw Tin Aung and Bohmu Chit Kaung, which once shaped the political ideologies of Burma’s youth, to the back bins, while at the same time putting a stress on the country’s rich literary tradition.
Due to the perils of being associated with politics in Burma, many young people now eschew the sensitive topic for fear of retribution and imprisonment. This same fear has resulted in even fewer people pursuing writing careers, as the lives of writers are also heavily scrutinized. Writers, publishers and bookstore owners say they impose strict self-censorship on themselves in order to stay out of trouble...Despite the pressures facing writers in Burma today, nobody in Rangoon feels that the country’s rich literary tradition is facing extinction. The resiliency of the Burmese spirit can be seen as writers continue to put pen to paper even in the knowledge that they face potential imprisonment and a lifetime of harassment..." |
| Author/creator: | | Tony Broadmoor |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 11, No. 6 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 06 November 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Überwachung der Post in Myanmar |
| Date of publication: | | April 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | "...Der folgende Tex ist eine Zusammenstellung der wenigen Fetzen an Informationen, die ich zu diesem Thema
zusammtragen konnte. Ich schreibe dies als Philatelist und Posthistoriker,dennoch dürfte dies auf weiteres Inter-
esse stoßen...." |
| Author/creator: | | Pyinsa Yupa“ , Deutsch von Heiko Schäfer |
| Language: | | Deutsch, German |
| Source/publisher: | | Burma & Myanmar philately! |
| Format/size: | | pdf (289K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 05 December 2003 |
|
| Title: | | The Self-Conscious Censor: Censorship in Burma under the British, 1900_1939 |
| Date of publication: | | 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | It is often assumed that censorship was not used to any great
degree by British authorities in Burma. Yet, by looking at the
way the British colonial government reacted to a variety of
media including traditional Burmese drama, western
blockbuster movies, and Burmese political pamphlets agitating
against colonial rule, it is possible to see that censorship was
very much a part of the British administration. British
authorities censored pamphlets, books, dramas, and movies not
only to contain political thought contrary to colonialism, but
also to control the image of British officials as seen in the eyes
of the Burmese. |
| Author/creator: | | Emma Larkin |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "Journal of Burma Studies" Vol. 8, 2003 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (627K) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.niu.edu/burma/publications/jbs/vol8/Abstract2_ClymerOpt.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 01 January 2009 |
|
| Title: | | Pressing Forward: Media in Exile |
| Date of publication: | | November 2002 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burma�s emerging media groups in exile are trying to shed political affiliations and overcome financial limitations...
"All we want is to provide unbiased and accurate information about our country," says Cham Toik, editor of Kao Wao, an ethnic Mon news group based in Thailand.
While media groups inside Burma function in a culture of draconian censorship and operate in constant fear of imprisonment for crossing the authorities, emerging media groups in exile such as Kao Wao are generally free to publish whatever they wish without persecution. The obstacles facing these groups are of a different kind..." |
| Author/creator: | | Kyaw Zwa Moe and Naw Seng |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" vol 10, No. 9 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Burma Human Rights Yearbook 2001-2002: Freedom of Opinion, Expression, and the Press |
| Date of publication: | | September 2002 |
| Description/subject: | | "Freedoms of opinion, expression, and the press have been virtually non-existent in Burma since the military coup of 1988. The
Press Scrutiny Board (PSB), a division of the powerful Ministry of Information, scrutinizes every publication for anything
perceived as anti-government.’ Similar censorship boards retain tight control over art, music, film, performance, and all other
forms of artistic expression. All authors, publishers, journalists and poets must submit a personal biography to the board of
literary censorship. The board then investigates to find out if these individuals have any association to opposition political parties
or connections to other people or groups deemed threatening by the regime. Anyone suspected or proved to have
undesirable’ connections is placed on a blacklist and their work is not allowed to be published..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Human Rights Documentation Unit, NCGUB |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Moustache Mayhem |
| Date of publication: | | May 2002 |
| Description/subject: | | "Once imprisoned and now blacklisted by the government, the Moustache Brothers� comedy troupe continues to push the country�s political envelope.
Working in the gravel yard was never supposed to be a part of life for Burma�s notorious Moustache Brothers comedy troupe. But on January 7, 1996, two of its members�U Par Par Lay and Lu Zaw�were arrested in Mandalay, a day after delivering a series of politically sensitive jokes during an Independence Day performance at Aung San Suu Kyi�s house in Rangoon.
They were initially sentenced to seven years in prison, with the first stop being the distant Kyein Kran Ka Hard Labor Camp in northern Burma�s Kachin State. Cut off from their family back home, the two cousins began their five-and-a-half arduous years in Burma�s penal system before being released in July 2001..." |
| Author/creator: | | Tony Broadmoor |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 10, No. 4, May 2002 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Burma Under Pressure: How Burmese journalism survives in one of the world's most repressive regimes |
| Date of publication: | | 14 February 2002 |
| Description/subject: | | "RangoonThe most surprising thing
about the Burmese press is that it still
exists. Governed repressively since
1962 and currently under military
rule, Burma is by far the most
information-starved country in
Southeast Asia. And yet the press
refuses to die.
The ruling junta enforces obligatory
and capricious censorship at every
turn. A host of topics are off-limits,
from heavy rainstorms to local
politics, losing soccer matches to details of the World Trade Center attacks. But there is a strong
literary tradition in Burma, and many living journalists and writers remember past freedoms and
dream of better days to come..." |
| Author/creator: | | A. Lin Neumann |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Committee to Protect Journalists (Briefings: Press Freedom Reports from Around the World) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Burma’s Privileged Pressman |
| Date of publication: | | January 2002 |
| Description/subject: | | "While other publications labor under draconian press censorship, The Myanmar Times enjoys
freedoms few journalists in Burma can even begin to imagine.
Relations between Burmese journalists and Ross Dunkley, the editor-in-chief of the Rangoon-based Myanmar
Times, have yet to recover since the outspoken Australian issued a harsh criticism of Burmese reporting
standards in the middle of last year. Angered by his remarks, journalists contacted by The Irrawaddy
complain that Dunkley’s privileged position among pressmen in Burma has completely blinded him to the
realities faced by other working journalists..." |
| Author/creator: | | Kyaw Zwa Moe and Ko Thet |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 10, No. 1 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | The Web: A New Window on Burma? |
| Date of publication: | | December 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "More and more publishers in Burma are putting their magazines online for the world to see; but if
the junta has its way, they will remain little more than window dressing...
Since late last year, some Burmese monthly magazines and weekly journals have begun launching website
versions. This is creating a real stir in the Burmese publishing industry, and attracting a great deal of
attention from Burmese living abroad. But despite the immense hopes attached to this recent
development, so far most of these new websites have failed to live up to expectations..." |
| Author/creator: | | Ko Thet |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 9, No. 9 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Burma Human Rights Yearbook 2000: Freedom of Opinion, Expression and the Press |
| Date of publication: | | October 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "The freedoms of opinion, expression, and the press are little known in Burma, where any criticism, direct or indirect of the
government or government policy is taken as a direct attack against the "stability of the State." ... In the year 2000, Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontiers (RSF) again
issued a release condemning the junta for depriving the Burmese people of any objective news and violating the rights of
Burmese and foreign journalists to practice their profession freely. It said Burma is still the country which is keeping the most
journalists in prison...
There is only one main government-run news agency in Burma. The three newspapers, and the two radio and television stations
feed off the news agency, and together, act as mouthpieces for the junta. Foreign radio broadcasts such as BBC, VOA and
DVB are monitored by the MI and some portions of the news are scrambled. The arts also suffer from the heavy-handed and
pervasive censorship of the junta, as every image and sentence produced has to be passed by the governments censorship
board..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Human Rights Documentation Unit, NCGUB |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Alternate URLs: | | Yearbook main page: http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs/yearbooks/Main.htm |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Journalists Beware |
| Date of publication: | | September 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "Reporting from Burma can be hazardous to your reputation, as a growing roster of foreign
journalists is discovering.
Burma is not a journalist-friendly country.
For foreign journalists, writing about Burma is no easy task, as they are not welcome in this military-ruled
country. Many foreign journalists who have been to Burma felt nervous as they learned their activities
have been monitored by intelligence officers or informers—and in addition to that, some of them have
been harassed.
Even after leaving the country, journalists are not safe yet. In Bangkok, Burma’s intelligence officials and
their network are believed to follow the activities of journalists and, of course, check what they write in
their respective papers, magazines or electronic media. If their report is not satisfactory for the
intelligence officials, the journalists could be banned from entering Burma again for years..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol 9. No. 7 |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Journalists Beware (in Japanese) |
| Date of publication: | | September 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "Reporting from Burma can be hazardeous for your reputation, as a growing number of foreign journalists is discovering... Burma has a well-deserved reputation as
one of the most mediaphobic nations on earth. But do foreign journalists have anything to fear by dipping into these
unfriendly waters? While the greatest risks are borne by Burmese who dare to report the truth, unwitting foreign correspondents face a danger of their own: a loss of
credibility. Aung Zaw reports on the perils of "parachute journalism"..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Zaw |
| Language: | | Japanese |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 9, No. 7, August-September 2001 |
| Format/size: | | PDF and HTML |
| Date of entry/update: | | 30 November 2010 |
|
| Title: | | Mentor and Tormentor |
| Date of publication: | | September 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "Paw Thit could have taught Kyaw Win much about the meaning of art; instead Burma's best-loved
art critic is behind bars, a victim of the system the inscrutable Kyaw Win represents.
No Burmese artist or art lover could ever fail to recognize the title of A Quest for Beauty, a celebrated book
of art criticism by a writer of rare gifts named Paw Thit. This excellent handbook of Burmese art history,
covering every imaginable "ism", has earned the admiration of countless aficionados of the fine arts in
Burma. Certainly, a passionate amateur painter like Maj-Gen Kyaw Win, deputy to Military Intelligence (MI)
chief Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt, could be counted among those who can truly appreciate Paw Thit�s sensitivity to
line and color, light and shade, perspective and depth of artistic vision. And if Paw Thit ever had a chance
to review Kyaw Win's work on display at the G. V. Gallery, in Rangoon's exclusive Golden Valley suburb, he
would no doubt offer words of encouragement to this dedicated dilettante. Cutting a dignified but kindly
figure, he might make a critical comparison to the work of U Lun Kywe, Burma's most famous impressionist
painter, while acknowledging that Kyaw Win had true talent and an eye for beauty. Sadly, however, this
encounter is unlikely to ever take place. For Paw Thit, Burma's most respected art critic, is none other than
U Win Tin, a veteran journalist who was once one of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's most valued advisors's role
that has cost him his freedom. For a dozen years now, U Win Tin, a.k.a. Paw Thit, has been a political
prisoner in Rangoon's infamous Insein Prison. Held in solitary confinement for more than a decade, but
unbent in his convictions, he continues to exert inestimable influence on Burma's artistic community..." |
| Author/creator: | | San San Tin |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol 9. No. 7 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | A Proposal to Khin Nyunt |
| Date of publication: | | April 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | It was completely pathetic to hear Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt's recent speech in which he claimed that "press freedom" is being granted to an "appropriate degree" in Burma, even though his government is a military regime. His statement revealed once again that the feared intelligence chief is completely deluded, either about the existing press situation in the country, or about the gullibility of Burma's reading public. |
| Author/creator: | | Editorial |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 9. No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | An Auspicious Moment |
| Date of publication: | | January 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | The author, the former editor of the recently banned Thintbawa magazine, pays homage to celebrated poet Tin Moe in this article first published shortly after the latter's release from prison in 1995. |
| Author/creator: | | Tin Maung Than. Part One |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 9. No. 1 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | The (Martial) Art of Writing |
| Date of publication: | | January 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burmese writers and publishers have become masters of journalistic kungfu, using subtle means to defend their work against the lethal attacks of military censors..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 9. No. 1 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Under a Dark Cloud: Censorship in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | January 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "Writers and publishers in Burma remain targets of one of the world's most draconian censorship systems.
Early one morning in December 1994, a group of Military Intelligence Services (MIS) officers and police
surrounded a house in the northern quarter of Mandalay, Burma’s second city. The house was a bookshop
called Ottaya Lwinpyin ("Northern Plain"), which belonged to Than Htay. Though they had no search
warrant, they broke down the door and searched the whole bookshop. After a comprehensive search,
they found a lot of pages that had been torn from books, magazines and periodicals. All the pages
contained the slogan of the military regime and an official denunciation of the democratic forces, which
must be printed on the first page of all materials published in Burma by order of the military.
After the search of his bookshop, Than Htay was arrested and sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment by
a summary court. Now Ko Than Htay is in Mandalay Prison, where he suffers torture and mistreatment like
all other political prisoners..." |
| Author/creator: | | Aung Din |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 9. No. 1 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Free Burma, Free Media |
| Date of publication: | | September 2000 |
| Description/subject: | | In 1998, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists released a report describing Burma and Indonesia as the two foremost "enemies of the press" in Asia. Since then, Indonesia's mass media has blossomed, thanks to the fall of the Suharto regime. This now leaves Burma with the dubious distinction of being the region's "press enemy number one." |
| Author/creator: | | Editorial |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 8. No. 9 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Misinformation Campaign |
| Date of publication: | | September 2000 |
| Description/subject: | | In an effort to discredit foreign-based Burmese-language radio stations and other media outlets critical of Burma's military junta, various agencies under the control of Military Intelligence Services MIS chief Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt are coordinating their efforts to disseminate fabricated news. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 8. No. 9 via Archive.org |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Angst vor dem Internet |
| Date of publication: | | 22 January 2000 |
| Description/subject: | | SPDC politics towards internet use.
Birma versucht, sich dem globalen Netz zu ffnen und es politisch an der Kandare zu halten. ber die SPDC-Politik gegenber dem Internet. |
| Author/creator: | | Florian Rtzer |
| Language: | | Deutsch, German |
| Source/publisher: | | Telepolis magazin der netzkultur |
| Alternate URLs: | | Florian Rtzer: Ein Cybercafe ohne Internetzugang vom 26.8.1999 http://www.heise.de/tp/deutsch/inhalt/te/5235/1.html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | The Impact of the Internet on Myanmar |
| Date of publication: | | 2000 |
| Description/subject: | | In the present paper, I explore how the Internet has affected the flow of information between in and outside Myanmar (Burma). I show that there is a strong difference between the way information was presented before and after the introduction of the World Wide Web...
I examine two political events in Myanmar connected to student uprisings, in the hope of documenting how the Internet - as an easily researched symbol of modern communications - may be affecting the political strategies of one of the last isolated states. |
| Author/creator: | | Viola Krebs |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | First Monday |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
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| Title: | | Literary "Gypsy" Leaves Burma |
| Date of publication: | | July 1999 |
| Description/subject: | | The Irrawaddy recently spoke to celebrated author Maung Tha Ya, who recently left Burma after more than a decade of fears that writing anything new would be "like giving the government a noose" to hang him. Noted for his itinerant lifestyle as well as his naturalistic literary style, he told us about his past and his plans for the future. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 7. No. 6 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
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| Title: | | Acts of Oppression: Censorship and the law in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | March 1999 |
| Description/subject: | | "Freedom of expression has been one of the prime casualties of prolonged military rule in Burma. Since the army first began
controlling the levers of state power in 1962, numerous publications have been censored or banned; hundreds of journalists,
writers, poets, playwrights and cartoonists, as well as pro-democracy activists have been arrested, detained or sentenced to long
prison terms, tortured, ill-treated or otherwise harassed, even killed, and tens of thousands of ordinary people have been punished
simply for peacefully expressing their views. The impact has been immense and crippling, reverberating through all aspects of life
in Burma and blighting the country?s social, cultural and, particularly, economic development. Years of strong-arm military
dictatorship and misrule, buttressed by one of the world?s severest censorship regimes and systematic abuse of human rights, have
driven thousands of Burma?s citizens to seek refuge abroad and marked out Burma as a pariah within the international community
of nation states..."
Contents: I) INTRODUCTION; II) POLITICAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL BACKGROUND; III) FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION: AN HISTORICAL OVERVIEW; IV) THE STATE OF THE RULE OF LAW; V) FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND ITS PROTECTION IN LAW: (a) The constitutional position; (b) Specific legislative measures: a detailed analysis: 1 The Printers and Publishers Registration Law 1962; 2 Emergency Provisions Act 1950; 3 State Protection Law 1975; 4 The Television and Video Law; 5 The Motion Picture Law; 6 The Computer Science Development Law; 7 The Official Secrets Act 1923; 8 Other Laws. VI) EXTRA-LEGAL DENIAL OF FREE SPEECH.
VII) CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. |
| Author/creator: | | Venkat Iyer |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 (ISBN 1 902598 04 0) |
| Format/size: | | html (102K) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.article19.org/pdfs/publications/burma-acts-of-oppression.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Attacks on the Press 1999: Burma |
| Date of publication: | | 1999 |
| Description/subject: | | "Report by the Committee to Protect Journalists" ......
Forcing their citizenry to live behind a wall of repressive ignorance, Burma's military leaders have shown no signs of liberalizing one of the world's harshest regimes. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Committee to Protect Journalists |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Between a Rock and a Hard Place |
| Date of publication: | | May 1998 |
| Description/subject: | | Dilemmas of foreign journalists in Burma..."In mid-July 1995, suddenly Rangoon airport was filled with journalists and cameramen all grabbing taxis to 54 University Avenue. They each hoped to be the first to interview Aung San Suu Kyi after her surprise release from house arrest. Expecting praise for setting her free, the Burmese military began giving most journalists, with a few notable exceptions, visas on demand.
However the regime soon tired of the bad press, and began increasing restrictions again. Journalist visas had to be applied for far in advance, stays were limited to a few days, and more and more journalists’ visa requests were denied with no explanation given..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 6. No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Inked Over, Blotted, Ripped Out.. |
| Date of publication: | | May 1998 |
| Description/subject: | | "The blind leading the blind: Censorship keeps the people of Burma in the dark, as the generals remain blithely unaware of the demands of the Information Age.
Is journalism in Burma dead? If not, it must be in a coma. In 1987, the publication of a poem which closed with the words, “...gone down is the circumference of the sun,” caught the attention of Burma’s hawk-eyed censors. The sun, or “ne win” in Burmese, sounds much like the name of the then-Chairman of the Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP), Ne Win. The sentence, according to the censors, implied that “Ne Win had passed away,” and they ordered the line deleted..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol.. 6, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Journalists, Writers and Poets in Burma's Gulag |
| Date of publication: | | May 1998 |
| Description/subject: | | List of Journalists and poets in prison in Burma compiled by the Committee to Protect Journalists, Burma; Information Group, The Nation, Radio Free Asia. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 6, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Provision of Explicit Guidelines for Literature and the Media - 1975 |
| Date of publication: | | May 1998 |
| Description/subject: | | "In an attempt to reduce the uncertainty about what would be rejected by the PSB, in July 1975, the Ministry of Home and Religious Affairs issued a new set of guidelines for authors and publishers. This “memorandum to all printers and publishers concerning the submission of manuscripts for scrutiny, issued by the Printer’s and Publisher’s Central Registration Board,” makes very clear the extent to which the government was now seeking to restrict freedom of expression in the country. The text reads as follows:..." |
| Author/creator: | | Anna J. Allott |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 6, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
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| Title: | | FATAL SILENCE? Freedom of Expression and the Right to Health in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | July 1996 |
| Description/subject: | | The Online Burma Library contains two versions of this 1996 report -- in html with added URLs of references not available online in 1996 and a Word version, without these additions, which keeps, so far as possible, the format of the hard copy.
"Censorship has long concealed a multitude of grave issues in Burma (Myanmar. After decades of governmental secrecy and isolation, Burma was dramatically thrust into world headlines during the short-lived democracy uprising in the summer of 1988. But, while international concern and pressure has since continued to mount over the country's long-standing political crisis, the health and humanitarÂian consequences of over 40 years of political malaise and ethnic conÂflict have largely been neglected. Indeed, in many parts of the country, they remain totally unaddressed.
There are many elements involved in addressing the health criÂsis which now besets Burma's peoples. A fundamental aspect, in ARTICLE 19's view, is for the rights to freedom of expression and information, together with the right to democratic participation, to be ensured. In a context of censorship and secrecy, individuals cannot make informed decisions on important matters affecting their health. Without freedom of academic research and the ability to disseminate research findings, there can be no informed public debate. Denial of research and information also makes effective health planning and provision less likely at the national level. Without local participation, founded on freedom of expression and access to information, the health needs of many sections of society are likely to remain unaddressed. Likewise, secrecy and censorship have a negative impact on the work of international humanitarian agencies..." |
| Author/creator: | | Martin Smith |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 |
| Format/size: | | html (1.1MB), Word (589K), pdf |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.article19.org/pdfs/publications/burma-fatal-silence-.pdf
http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs/FATAL-SILENCE.doc |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 July 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Censorship Prevails: Political Deadlock and Economic Transition in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | March 1995 |
| Description/subject: | | "Burma remains one of the most heavily censored states in the world. The main instrument of day-to-day censorship continues to
be the Printers and Publishers Registration Law of 1962. Introduced shortly after the military coup which brought Gen. Ne Win
and his newly-formed BSPP to power, the law has been repeatedly expanded in scope and severity over the years, including by
the present SLORC government.
Currently, all books, magazines, periodicals, songs and films must be submitted under this law to the Press Scrutiny Board (PSB)
prior to being printed or, in some cases, distributed. Books, for example, must be submitted to the PSB before printing and again
afterwards to check that no changes have been made, whereas magazines, which must be legally registered, are required to take
the more risky method of submitting copies for censorship only after they have been printed. Under the 1985 Video Law, all
videos must also be submitted to the Video Censorship Board (which comes under the Film Censorship Board) for
pre-publication scrutiny, reflecting the authorities' nervousness about the rapid proliferation of this form of expression..."
Contents: 1 Overview of Recent Events; 2 Continuing Mechanisms of Censorship; 3 New Developments in the State Media; 4 Alternative Expression and the Private Sector Media; 4.1 Business Publications; 4.2 Film and Video; 4.3 Literary Rallies; 5 The SLORC's Political Reform Process; 6 Academic Freedom and Education; 7 Constraints on Freedom of Association and Movement; 8 Ethnic Minority Languages and Literature; 9 Foreign Media and Non-Governmental Organizations; 10 Conclusion and Recommendations.
Appendix: Writers and Political Activists Imprisoned for the Peaceful Expression of Their Opinions. |
| Author/creator: | | Martin Smith |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 (ISBN 1 870798 77 5) |
| Format/size: | | html (121K) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.article19.org/pdfs/publications/burma-censorship-prevails.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Paradise Lost? |
| Date of publication: | | September 1994 |
| Description/subject: | | Environment and Freedom of Expression in Burma. In the past decade, there has been a growing international consensus over the fundamental relationship between the universal values of "human rights", "environmental rights" and "development rights". "The Myanmar Tourism Policy is based on preservation of cultural heritage, protection of natural environment, regional development and generation of foreign exchange earnings." |
| Author/creator: | | Martin Smith |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (174K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | INKED OVER, RIPPED OUT: Burmese Storytellers and the Censors |
| Date of publication: | | September 1993 |
| Description/subject: | | A PEN American Center
Freedom-to-Write Report, with a preface to the Internet edition,
July 2003...
Here are two versions of Anna Allott's 1993 book: an html version without pagination and a Word version which seeks to retain the original format and pagination. Both versions contain the preface to the Internet edition.
"The purpose of this publication on Burmese writing and Burmese censorship is to enable the work of certain Burmese authors, writing since the imposition of military rule in 1988, to be read by a much wider audience than is usually the case, and also to show, through their own words (in translation), how they are continuing to find ways to express their true feelings about what is happening in their country in spite of the very strict and repressive system of censorship that exists there.
Of necessity, in a country where no direct criticism of government policy or of individuals who hold positions of power is permitted, writing is frequently allusive or ironical, so much so that even Burmese readers not keyed into the clues may not appreciate the point of a piece, still less those Burmese who have been living abroad for some time, and still less the foreign reader. A writer in Burma has, therefore, a constant dilemma: he is never quite certain how far he dare go, for, if his criticisms or his protest or his satire is too obvious it will not be approved by the censors and will be forced to lie unpublished in his desk drawer. Worse still, it may even bring about his arrest. On the other hand, if the work is too veiled, or couched in too allegorical or symbolic language, the message he is trying to convey will not be understood. Hence, in this selection for the English reader, it is necessary to provide background information about the writers and the works that have been included in this selection, setting them in the context in which they were written. And this context can be understood only with reference to Burma's recent history, and the system of government control and censorship that has evolved during the last thirty years.
The stories and poems selected for translation have been brought to my attention by a number of lovers of Burmese writing. Some of them have been identified by the readers as carrying a political message, often hidden to the casual reader or to anyone unaware of the issues being addressed in them. Where these pieces have been published in Burma, one assumes the censors either failed to spot the subtext, or if they did not fail, believed that it was sufficiently buried for them to let the pieces through safely, without being accused of being incompetent.
Many of the writers featured here already have their works subjected to close scrutiny by the censors and are identified as being persons to watch. The publication of their works in English, together with my interpretations of their works, may result in their future writings being submitted to even greater scrutiny for hidden meanings. I can only apologize for further adding to their difficulties and stress that the allusions and hidden meanings that I have identified in these stories are drawn from my own interpretation, supported by discussions with other readers, and do not represent explanations by the writers themselves.
Inevitably, the stories represent a very small part of all works written since 1988. They are untypical, in that the majority of pieces published in Burma today do not have any overt or hidden political message, as most works with even a hint of such messages are refused publication. The consequent trivialization of Burmese imaginative literature has been immensely discouraging to all serious and independent-minded writers. Some feel that they can now only produce work that is intrinsically without worth. Others have abandoned original writing and confine themselves instead to translating works from Western literature..." |
| Author/creator: | | Anna J. Allott |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | PEN American Center |
| Format/size: | | html (572k), Word (341K) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs/INKED-OVER.doc |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 July 2003 |
|
| Title: | | "Our Heads are Bloody But Unbowed": Suppression of Educational Freedoms in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | 10 December 1992 |
| Description/subject: | | In June 1990 another important student leader, Min Zeya, chairman of the smaller All Burma Students Democratic Association, was reportedly sentenced to eight years in jail. With the colleges now shut, the SLORC sent university and regional college teachers away on boot camp "re-education" courses at Phaunggyi, organized by the Military Intelligence Service. A standardized system of education was also introduced under the 1966 Basic Education Law and the 1973 Union of Burma Education Law. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 (Censorship News No. 18) |
| Format/size: | | pdf (131K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | State of Fear: Censorship in Burma (Myanmar) |
| Date of publication: | | December 1991 |
| Description/subject: | | "...T h i s report documents the extent and mechanisms of censorship
in Burma and the many restrictions on political, cultural,
religious and academic freedoms, both under the former BSPP
government and its successor, the SLORC, which assumed
power in September 1988. Since then, writers and journalists
have continued to be detained, harassed and dismissed from
their posts. Publications have been banned and, using new
martial law restrictions, press censorship has been further tightened.
Foreign journalists have been banned and the SLORC has
launched frequent attacks on foreign news organizations and
journalists..." 3 The Background to Crisis:
3.1 Economic and Social Collapse;
3.2 Ethnic Strife and Civil War;
3.3 Narcotics and AIDS;
3.4 Ecology;
3.5 Refugees;
3.6 The Issue of Human Rights...
4 Development of the Press in Burma:
4.1 The Colonial Era;
4.2 The Parliamentary Era...
5 The Legacy of the Burma Socialist Programme
Party (BSPP):
5.1 The Ne Win Period;
5.2 The Media Under Ne Win;
5.3 The 1974 Constitution;
5.4 The Publishing Registration Law;
5.5 Alternative Expression;
5.6 Ethnic Minorities and Burmanization;
5.7 Religious Minorities;
5.8 Literacy...
6 The Press in the 1988 Democracy Summer:
7 The State Law and Order Restoration Council
(SLORC);
7.1 SLORC Claims of Legitimacy;
7.2 SLORC's Use of the Law;
7.3 SLORC Actions in the pre-Election Period;
7.4 Restrictions on Movement and Forced Relocations
of Civilians...
8 The 1990 General Election:
8.1 Arrests and Retrospective Laws in the
post-Election Period;
8.2 Continuing Use of Press Laws to Stifle Freedom of
Expression;
8.3 Ill-Treatment and Death in Custody of Poltical Prisoners...
9 Cultural and Political Expression Under the SLORC:
9.1 Newspapers;
9.2 SLORC's Cultural Revolution;
9.3 Music and Films;
9.4 Journals, Books and Magazines;
9.5 Education;
9.6 Restrictions on Public Servants and Political Parties;
9.7 Religious Freedom;
9.8 Ethnic Minorities;
9.9 The Insurgent Press...
10 The SLORC and the International Community:
10.1 The Foreign Press;
10.2 The International Response;
10.3 The Reply from the SLORC;
10.4 The Role of the United Nations...
11 Summary of the SLORC Period and Prospects
for the Future...
12 Conclusions and Recommendations...
Appendix 1: Journalists,Writers and Intellectuals
in Detention;
Appendix 2: Country Statistics...
Appendix 3: Extracts from "What has become of us?"
by Min Lu...
Appendix 4: SLORC Questionnaire to Public Servants,
1 April 1991...
Appendix 5: SLORC Questionnaire to Political Parties, 5 August 1991...
Appendix 6: Multilateral and Bilaterall Aid to Burma...
Appendix 7: Foreign Company Investments and Trade
in Burma...
Select Bibliography.
ISBN 1 870798 71 6 |
| Author/creator: | | Martin Smith |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Article 19 |
| Format/size: | | pdf (451K - without covers; 720K - with covers) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs3/State-of-Fear-ocr.pdf (with covers) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 11 June 2005 |
|
| Title: | | "BURMA (MYANMAR): WORSENING REPRESSION" |
| Date of publication: | | 11 March 1990 |
| Description/subject: | | Arrests of Opposition Party Leaders and Candidates... The Ruling Against Aung San Suu Kyi... Restrictions on Freedom of Speech and Assembly... Forced Relocations of Civilians... Restrictions on Freedom of the Press... The Border Conflict... Forced Porterage... Student Refugees in Thailand... U.S. Policy... RECENT PUBLICATIONS FROM ASIA WATCH |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Human Right Watch/ Asia |
| Format/size: | | pdf (89K) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 15 July 2012 |
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