Myanmar's press freedom remains in 'difficult situation'

"The military in Southeast Asian countries have realised that national security is an excellent excuse for silencing criticism and deterring investigative reporting," said the group which recently released the 2015 World Press Freedom Index.

Reporters without Borders or Reporters Sans Fronti?res (RSF) is a France-based international non-profit, non-governmental organisation that promotes freedom of information across the globe.

In this year's report, Myanmar is ranked 144, gaining one place from the previous year's ranking. Yet, the overall score of 42.08 out of a possible 100 (100 being the worst) indicated a “difficult situation” for media freedom.

In a note, RSF said: "Burma’s government, which consists mainly of former army officers who were in the previous military government, showed signs of a return to strict news control in 2014 after a year of significant democratic reforms in 2012. The trials of Unity Journal’s staff members and Bi Mon Te Nay, the death of journalist Ko Par Gyi in military detention and a campaign of harassment of the media by the “special intelligence department” have raised major concerns about the future of media freedom in Burma."

Myanmar is not alone in this regard, RSF also highlighted the Thai army's actions in May 2014. After seizing power, to "restore order" the army took control of the leading TV stations, closed around 20 news outlets, and blocked access to foreign TV stations. Thailand is ranked 134th from 130th the previous year, with the score of 40.07 which went up by 2.13 points from 2013.

Meanwhile, in Indonesia, 138th, the military has also used national security as a cover for a campaign to deter foreign reporters and thereby ensure that human rights violations in the eastern province of Papua go uncovered by the international media. The three-month jail sentences imposed on French journalists Thomas Dandois and Valentine Bourra, who were caught reporting in Papua without permission, was accompanied by a search for their sources that still continues.

The Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index ranks the performance of 180 countries according to a range of criteria that include media pluralism and independence, respect for the safety and freedom of journalists, and the legislative, institutional and infrastructural environment in which the media operate. The indicators showed that there was a drastic decline in freedom of information in 2014. Two-thirds of the 180 countries surveyed performed less well than in the previous year.

 

The annual global indicator, which measures the overall level of violations of freedom of information in 180 countries year by year, has risen to 3,719, an 8 per cent increase over the 2014 report and almost 10 percent compared with 2013. The decline affected all continents.

In this year’s survey, three Scandinavian countries top the list. Finland, which has been in first place for five years in succession, followed by Norway and Denmark. At the other end of the scale, Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea, in last place, were the worst performers. France is ranked 38th (up one place), the United States 49th (down three places), Japan 61st (down two places), Brazil 99 (up 12 places), Russia 152 (down four places), Iran 173rd (unchanged) and China 176th (down one place).

Among the countries in Asia which see a sharp plunge in the ranking is East Timor, 103rd, which fell by 26 places. The creation of a press council and the adoption of a code of ethics in October 2013 have been a disappointment. In 2014, the government proposed a tough new media law, which has led to widespread self-censorship, RSF said.