New Delhi (Mizzima) - Burma's censorship board has stopped issuing licenses to at least 11 weekly journals and 20 magazines which failed to renew their license, sources in the Rangoon literary community said.

An editor of a weekly journal, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the censorship board, which is under the Ministry of Information, has terminated the license of those journals and magazines that failed to renew it even after expiry.

"Some failed to renew their license because of financial problems. And some stopped publishing over a year of two. Again some stopped after the first publication," the editor said.

"For instance the 'Trand' journal stopped publishing about two years ago. The termination of the license does not have anything to do with having problems with the authorities," he said.

But Khin Myo Win, deputy director at the censorship board, refused to comment on the termination of the licenses for the journals and magazines.

According to the regulation, publications which have a temporary license are required to renew after six months while those holding permanent license are required to renew it after a year.

But the charges for renewing the license differ between those holding temporary and permanent licenses. While temporary license holders need to pay a fee of 100,000 Kyat (USD 100 approximately) for renewal, permanent license holders need to pay only 50,000 kyat to the Ministry of Information.

According to sources, at least 175 weekly journals and more than 200 magazines are officially registered under the Ministry of Information.