Three journalists from Myanmar’s Eleven Media Group have refused to apologize to the Yangon regional government for a report criticizing its business dealings and budget, and they stand behind the reporting that prompted criminal charges of incitement against them, RFA reported quoting the news outlet’s editor-in-chief on Tuesday.

Chief reporter Phyo Wai Win and managing editors Kyaw Zaw Lin and Nari Min were arrested and detained in October on charges of committing offenses against the state for publishing an article with a critical focus on Yangon government spending. The article charged that officials mismanaged public funds through business dealings by the region’s Chief Minister Phyo Min Thein.

Though the journalists welcomed a move by Yangon officials to drop the case in November, the journalists maintain that the report is factually correct and that they have no reason to apologize as the chief minister has requested, chief editor Kyaw Zaw Lin told RFA’s Myanmar Service.