Myanmar: Reporter fined for event to mark media detention
Shwe Hmone one of many reporters detained or arrested following 2010 election that was supposed to end half-century of dictatorship
A Myanmar court fined a female journalist Friday for organizing a public prayer for detained media workers.
Although fined only 10,000 Kyats ($8), lawyers underlined that the case represents a chilling reminder of the clampdown on press freedoms that has occurred in the country since a quasi-civilian government took power in 2011 following a 2010 election that ended a half-century of dictatorship.
Shwe Hmone -- a member of the Myanmar Journalist Network and a senior reporter for local publication Thamaga journal – was one of 100 journalists and activists who joined the Nov. 2014 prayer at a sacred building in central Yangon to mark the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists.
Seven months on, she was charged under article 19 of the Unlawful Assembly Law for violating legislation requiring protesters to remain within areas police have permitted for demonstrations.
The 33-year-old told Anadolu Agency on Friday that when the group asked for permission to hold the event, they were offered a public park as a venue that was "not suitable for prayers".
"So, we informed them we are not using the place, but we will hold the event at Sule Pagoda because this is not a demonstration, just a prayer service,” she added.
Lawyer Kyee Myint from Myanmar Lawyers Network said Friday that journalists have had to be cautious in the country since 2013 because media harassment has increased.
Although pre-publication censorship was abolished in late 2012, he said that lawsuits against journalists and government warnings about content have continued.
Since 2013, at least 20 journalists have been arrested, five of whom were sentenced to jail for a decade for disclosing state secrets after publishing a story on the construction of an alleged chemical weapon factory in central Myanmar last year.
