Speaker defends media ban

Local reporters have cried foul over the order. They said the order was a result of their reports of improper actions of MPs.
 “The interpreters’ booths are not for the media. Even before the ‘ghost voting case’, there have been many incidents of representatives being photographed and recorded from those booths. It is possible that these may lead to more misunderstandings,” said Thura Shwe Mann.
Myanmar Post Global  in its April 10 published pictures of alleged ‘ghost voting’ by military representatives in Parliament. They showed two military representatives using the mechanised voting system to vote for absent colleagues on March 31. The representatives were apparently “warned”.
Thura Shwe Mann said there is criticism regarding the issue of how the media obtains news from Parliament.
“The criticism could lead to misunderstanding about MPs running for election, the armed forces and their parliamentary representatives as well as journalists that report from Parliament.”
“Media access to the interpreters’ booths that oversee the whole of Parliament is now prohibited and photography is banned. The media’s main responsibility in reporting on Parliament relates to what the Parliament discusses and decides,” he added, insisting that the decision was made for privacy and security reasons.
From late May, reporters must watch proceedings on TV from the corridor.
When announcing the order, Kyaw Soe, director general of the Union Parliament which handles administrative duties, also cited the pictures of sleeping MPs was the main reason.