A military court in Myanmar has sentenced two journalists to two years in prison for their reporting, a move that was decried by rights groups as the latest assault on press freedom since the country’s coup
DVB reporter Aung Kyaw convicted for 2 years
DVB reporter Aung Kyaw in Myeik was sentenced for 2 years imprisonment under Section 505 (a) of the Penal Code, on 2 June 2021 by a military court.
On March 1, Aung Kyaw (32), also known as Kaung Myat Hlaing, was violently arrested by the military at his home in Myeik, where his wife and young daughter were also present.
He streamed his arrest live on Facebook, which has been watched millions of times since. He was arrested for reporting about the demonstrations against the military junta in Myeik.
As his lawyer was under threat by the junta, he has decided not to hire another lawyer and defended himself in the court during the last 2 court hearings. He argued to charge him under the media law, which would have found him not guilty, as he was arrested for doing his work as a journalist, but the judge refused to accept his argumentation.
US journalist arrested in Myanmar 1 minute read
Bangkok, May 24 (EFE).- US journalist Danny Fenster, editor of the Frontier Myanmar news website, was arrested on Monday at the airport in Yangon, Myanmar’s main city, as he attempted to travel to Kuala Lumpur.
“We understand he has been transferred to Insein Prison in Yangon,” Frontier Myanmar posted to its Twitter account.
“We do not know why Danny was detained and have not been able to contact him since this morning. We are concerned for his well being and call for his immediate release,” the news outlet added.
The website, known for covering the bloody protests and civil disobedience that have gripped the country since a military coup on Feb. 1.
Khet Thi and
Sein Win, two poets who have been critical of the military junta and publicly supported the ongoing pro-democracy protests, as well as the sentencing and arbitrary detention of
Min Nyo, a journalist with the
Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB)[1]
media outlet, who had been reporting on the pro-democracy protests.
On March 3, 2021, journalist Min Nyo was arrested and severely beaten by police while he was covering a pro-democracy protest in Pyay, Bago Region. During his detention, Mr. Nyo has had access to a lawyer but not to his relatives. On May 12, 2021, a military court in Pyay Prison found Min Nyo guilty of attempting to hinder, disturb, damage the motivation, discipline, health and conduct of soldiers and civil servants and “cause their hatred, disobedience or disloyalty toward the military and the government”, under Article 505-a of the Penal Code and sentenced him to three years in prison. He is currently detained at Pyay Prison, where he is at risks of