Myanmar ranks poorly in censorship index

22 April 2015
Myanmar ranks poorly in censorship index
Handcuffed and facing their day in court - Myanmar Post chief editor U Than Htike Thu (L) and deputy chief reporter U San Moe Tun on the day of their court case, March 18, 2015. Photo: Pa Pa/Facebook

The Committee to Protect Journalists has just issued its annual ranking of the world’s most censored countries and Myanmar comes in ninth, just behind China and ahead of Cuba.
Although censorship was officially ended in 2012, when the government finally stopped asking media outlets to submit their work for scrutiny before publication, repression continues in Myanmar.
Eritrea, North Korea and Saudi Arabia take top place in the ranking, released on April 21.
Despite government denials, many restrictions remain in place which stifle a free press in Myanmar.
Under the Printers and Publishers Registration Law, enacted in 2014, news deemed insulting to religion is banned. Archaic colonial-era laws are still used to intimidate journalists reporting on the army. Ko Aung Kyaw Naing, a freelance journalist, was shot dead in military custody in October 2014. Reporters and editors from weekly news journal Unity were jailed after reporting on what they said was a military facility they alleged was making chemical weapons.