Burma's Press Council under prescriptions ready to set off

Myanmar or Burma's Information and Culture Minister Kyaw Hsan met the personnel of the preparation committee for formation of Myanmar Writers Association, Myanmar Printers and Publishers Association, the preparation committee for formation of Myanmar Journalists Association, and the preparation committee for formation of Myanmar Publishers and Books Sellers Association on 13 May and the personnel of Myanmar Journalists Union and Myanmar Journalists Network on 14 May at the meeting-hall of Myanma Radio and Television on Pyay Road in Yangon, the Ne Light of Myanmar newspaper reported today.

The discussants in the respective meetings were Tin Hlaing and Khin Maung Tun from the preparation committee for formation of Myanmar Writers Association, Ko Ko and Khin Maung Lay from the preparation committee for formation of Myanmar Journalists Association, Aye Aye Win from the Myanmar Journalists Union and  Zaw Htaik from the Myanmar Journalist Network mutatis mutandis.

How Censorship Works

How Censorship Works: Even though Burma has transitioned from military to civilian government, released journalists among hundreds of political prisoners, and promised more reforms, its vast censorship structure remains in place. All privately run news publications in Burma are forced to publish weekly or rather than daily due to stifling prepublication censorship requirements. The government’s Press Scrutiny and Registration Division censors news that could reflect poorly on the military or the government it backs, and imposes a complete blackout on reporting of the armed conflict with ethnic Kachin rebels in the remote north. The government dominates radio and television with a steady stream of propaganda. Laws bar the ownership of a computer without a license and ban the dissemination or posting of unauthorized materials over the Internet. Prison sentences have been used to punish reporters working for exile-run media groups. Regulations imposed in 2011 banned the use of flash drives and voice-over-Internet-protocol communication in Internet cafés. Local reporters with international agencies are subject to constant police surveillance; others only publish in accordance with pseudonyms to prevent possible reprisals. Foreign reporters are regularly denied journalist visas unless the government aims to showcase a state-sponsored event. Those discovered reporting on tourism visas are expelled.