Myanmar’s government eases control of the media

After 50 years of military rule and harsh state censorship, Myanmar’s government is slowly easing its control of the country’s media. A new report from International Media Support (IMS) looks at the situation of media in times of change

As part of a series of reforms, the Myanmarese government has abandoned its pre-publication censorship on a number of magazines and newspapers, and issues concerning freedom of the press and freedom of speech are now being discussed in parliament. News and information from the opposition, led by Aung San Suu Kyi is now also covered in state-owned media. Websites which were previously blocked such as YouTube, Facebook and Google as well as Radio stations like BBC and Voice of America, can now be accessed from within the country .

Click here to read the full report.

A big step forward towards democracy

“Although people are skeptical about the government’s sincerity, the latest initiatives concerning media freedom should be regarded as a big step forward towards democracy, says Lars Bestle, Head of IMS’ Asia programme and one of the authors of the report.

“The newfound media freedoms are central to the democratisation process we are seeing. The media needs to expose the actions of the government and make the Myanmarese citizens aware of their rights. In a country with one of the longest running civil wars in the world, the media can help to ensure peace, and stability while at the same time giving a voice to the people.”

Young journalists in need of skills training

The report shows that the country’s young journalists with an average age of 25, are facing considerable challenges. After more than 50 years of government content censorship, the responsibility of monitoring content noew lies with the editors rather than the censors. This poses a challenge as many of the young, untrained journalists have little or no formal journalistic experience, and many have little knowledge of professional ethics or how to conduct objective journalism.

“It is important to not only to support freedom of the press through media law reforms, but also to strengthen the media sector and train journalists”, says Lars Bestle.

In the coming months, IMS will be working closely with media actors in Myanmar to look at how best to support the building of a sustainable media sector which can support the country’s emerging democracy.

For more information on the report, please contact Helle Wahlberg on hwa@mediasupport.org or +45 88327005.