The Journalists’ Forum Assam (JFA) has expressed serious concern over the ban on a local newspaper by the province government of Chin in western Burma (Myanmar) and urged the Union government in Naypyidaw to allow the regular publication of the Hakha Post Newspaper.
Burma News International (BNI), an umbrella body of various progressive Burmese media outlets, said in a recent statement that the authorities had decided to ban the regional biweekly Hakha Post, which was published from the capital of Chin province, which is adjacent to India’s Manipur and Mizoram States.
“BNI has learnt that since 29th September the Chin State government has temporarily forbidden publication of the Chin (Lai) language newspaper the Hakha Post Newspaper,” said the statement adding that the district authority called the editor of Hakha Post and informed him about the decision of Chin government (read State’s chief minister Hung Ngai).
The Hakha Post is one of over 20 local newspapers with limited circulations in the capital Hakha and the surrounding areas of the underdeveloped province of Burma. Sparsely settled, the mountainous province has a population of around half a million, most of them are Christian Chin ethnic nationals.
According to the Chin government the newspaper would not be allowed to publish until it obtains a legal publishing permit. BNI, while showing faith in the transition of Burma from a military dictatorship to a multiparty democracy, urged the highest authorities "to allow full access to journalists and give them freedoms and rights".
"There has been a lack of news reporting for many years, especially from ethnic regions. The government has a responsibility to ensure ethnic people receive news and information. Moreover the government must stop this sort of ban on free speech and ensure everyone has proper access to news", added the BNI statement.
Supporting the BNI initiative, the northeast India based media people’s forum JFA also appealed to the Burma President Thein Sein to look into the matter asking the Chin government to withdraw the ban on the newspaper immediately.
“Banning a regional newspaper will not serve any purpose to the Burmese authorities except spreading a negative impression about the regime and the nation as a whole,” said a JFA statement issued by its president Rupam Barua and secretary Nava Thakuria.
The JFA, which has been consistently supporting the progressive media activists of Burma, also appealed to the pro-democracy Burmese icon Aung San Suu Kyi to take personal initiative to resolve the matter.
The forum strongly argued that if the Southeast Asian nation has truly adopted democracy the people in power there must stop their unwelcome opposition to the media.
