Concerns rise over arrest of Myanmar media group chiefs

YANGON, Myanmar (AA) - Members of the press in Myanmar have expressed concern over the arrest of two officials from a local media group following the publication of an opinion piece accusing Yangon’s chief minister of corruption, local media reported Saturday.

Following the arrest Friday of Than Tun Aung and Wai Phyo -- the chief executive officer and chief editor of Eleven Media Group, respectively -- rights group Amnesty International released a statement calling for their immediate release.

Earlier this week, Yangon’s chief minister Phyo Min Thein filed an online defamation case under the Telecommunications Law over an article alleging that he accepted an expensive watch from a convicted drug lord as a bribe.

The chief minister has insisted that the watch he wears is a more affordable Rolex bought by his wife as a present, and not a Patek Philippe as described in the article titled Myanmar, One Year after the Nov 8 Polls.

On Saturday, the local Mizzima Media Group said it was deeply concerned by the legal action against the two men under section 66(D) of the law, which carries a jail sentence or a fine or both.

An editorial on its news website warned that the section “poses a severe restriction on freedom of expression”.

“It is drafted very broadly and in vague terms, whereas restrictions on freedom of expression, to be legitimate, should be written in clear and narrow terms,” it underlined.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Myanmar has described the legal action as “a pressure on and a warning to the media”.

In a statement released Friday, Amnesty International’s regional director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific said that the arrest “raises serious concerns about… commitment to freedom of expression” by the current civilian government led by State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi.

“While the new government has made some attempts to amend long-standing repressive laws that target activists and media workers, this case shows that those attempts do not go far enough,” Rafendi Djamin said.

“Using repressive laws to stifle peaceful criticism of government officials could cause other media workers in Myanmar to self censor. State officials are not above scrutiny, and journalists have an important role in holding them accountable.”

Than Htut Aung and Wai Phyo are scheduled to appear in court Nov. 25.

Section 66(D) of the law states: “Whoever commits any of the following acts shall, on conviction, be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to a fine or to both: (D) Extorting, coercing, restraining wrongfully, defaming, disturbing, causing undue influence or threatening to any person by using any Telecommunications Network.”

The law repealed the Electronic Transactions Law -- one of several repressive laws enacted by a former junta to repress opposition figures and activists -- in 2013.

However, several people -- mostly social media users -- have been prosecuted and jailed under the 2013 law for online defamation during the previous administration as well as the civilian government that won the Nov. 8, 2015 election.

A reporter at Democratic Voice of Burma also faced the same charge last month for reporting about a local administrative official in Bago region who locals accused of misusing government loans for farmers.