Cutting Off the Free Press
I keep coming across interesting reports. Further to news that the junta military have cut off Internet access, it seems that they are taking much more of a proactive response to technology and the press.
From The Age:
Meanwhile, Government pressure and unresthas forced several of Burma’s private newspapers to stop publishing, an industry leader said today.
“Some publications may have been forced to close down because they refused to carry the government’s propaganda,” he said on condition of anonymity.
Censors in Burma, also known as Myanmar, always exert tight controls over the media to limit their reporting, but pressure has become unusually high.
People found with mobile phones or cameras were beaten by soldiers yesterday, witnesses said, while a Japanese photojournalist died after being shot.
The newspapers were also struggling to operate because unrest in the streets over the last two days made it impossible for vendors to sell papers, the source added.
“Their people can’t get out there selling them because of the problems,” he said.
Four weekly newspapers printed by the Eleven Media group, two weeklies by Yangon Media, and three weeklies titled Kamudra, Voice and Market have all stopped publishing, he said.
Another newspaper group, Pyi Myanmar, was planing to completely shut down, he added.
The Myanmar Times newspaper indicated it would continue publishing.