Two journalists from Development Media Group (DMG) charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code have been summoned by the Sittwe Township Court to face the charges being brought against them.
“Previously, the two reporters were charged under 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law and they were released on bail,” said DMG Editor-in-Chief U Aung Marm Oo. “Secondly, they were charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code and a lawsuit was filed in court.”
U Aung Marm Oo said the summons is thought to have been issued some time ago, but was only learned of on Monday.
“Neither our office nor the two received the summons,” he said. “We knew yesterday morning that the two reporters were summoned by the township court. The court could not summon the two directly, so they were summoned through the police station.”
Major Phone Myint Kyaw filed a lawsuit against DMG Deputy Editor-in-Charge Nay Win San and female reporter Hnin Nwe for a January 10 report about military personnel allegedly stealing hundreds of baskets of paddy from Marlar village, Kyauktaw Township.
The military man opened a case against the pair under Section 66(d) of Telecommunications Law at No. 2 Police Station in Sittwe.
Additional charges under 505(a) were subsequently brought, as revealed by the court summons this week.
U Aung Marm Oo said Section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law and Section 505(a) of the Penal Code should not be used to prosecute members of the media.
“Media professionals must be prosecuted through the Myanmar Press Council (MPC). The media has a Media Law. Violations of the code of conduct should be punished via the Media Law. Journalists should be prosecuted under the Media Law,” U Aung Marm Oo said.
He added that the multi-charge, multi-defendant lawsuit against DMG media personnel threatens the public’s right to information, individual journalists and the press at large.
In December, DMG’s Maungdaw-based reporter Aung Kyaw Min, also known as Kyaw Myo Aung, was charged under Section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law for reporting about a bridge on a public road that was out of service.
Moreover, Aung Marm Oo was himself charged by Special Branch Police on May 1, 2019, under Section 17(2) of the Unlawful Associations Act. He has remained in hiding for more than two years.
Section 505(a) of the Penal Code criminalises those who make, publish or circulate “any statement, rumour or report with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, any officer, soldier, sailor or airman, in the Army, Navy or Air Force to mutiny or otherwise disregard or fail in his duty as such.” It carries with it a maximum sentence of two years in prison.
Six media organisations released a statement on January 25 urging the military to lodge a complaint with the MPC before seeking remedy through the court system, in reference to the lawsuit brought against the DMG journalists just days earlier.
DMG echoed that sentiment in a letter sent to the MPC on January 25, seeking arbitration in the case and arguing that criminal charges were not appropriate prior to MPC involvement, as stipulated under the 2014 News Media Law. DMG has asked that the lawsuit brought by Major Phone Myint Kyaw be withdrawn.
