The junta in Myanmar is "ruthlessly targeting" staff at an independent media outlet with harsh sentences and arrest warrants, watchdogs say.
A court in Rakhine State in late June sentenced Htet Aung, a reporter with the Development Media Group, or DMG news agency, to five years of hard labor. A security guard for the media organization, Soe Win Aung, received the same sentence.
Both were charged under Myanmar's counterterrorism law, and the verdict was not immediately made public.
International watchdogs and the DMG have condemned the sentencing.
Calling it an "unjust conviction," media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, also known as RSF, said the "Myanmar regime is ruthlessly targeting every employee" at DMG, an outlet that "exposes military crimes."
DMG editor Nay Win San described the sentences as harsh and said the military did not provide concrete evidence.
"This sentence is just an act of the military council using its power to suppress the media. Htet Aung is doing his job as a reporter," Nay Win San said.
Authorities detain reporter, raid office
Authorities detained Htet Aung in October 2023 when the reporter was covering a cultural festival. A few hours later, they raided the DMG office, detained the security guard and seized cameras and laptops.
RSF reported that no evidence was presented in court linking the two to terrorist activity, and that family members were barred from attending the hearing.
The military council has since charged 18 other journalists and employees of DMG — including Nay Win San — under Section 52(a) of the Anti-Terrorism Act. Those charged are "in hiding and separated from their families," Nay Win San said.
"We believe that the attempt to arrest journalists en masse is done out of malice against the DMG news agency, which is exposing human rights violations by the military council," Nay Win San said.
The junta spokesperson has repeatedly told VOA such arrests are not targeting journalists for their work.
Council says media try to ensure information access
The Independent Press Council Myanmar, also known as IPCM, established by journalists outside the country earlier this year, said media are working to ensure freedom of expression and access to information for the public and not committing violence or terrorist attacks.
The IPCM reports that since the military seized power in a coup in 2021, more than 200 journalists have been detained.
Toe Zaw Latt, secretary of IPCM, told VOA the organization is working to protect journalists, and that they "prioritize safety and protection."
"We will continue to take action on this issue, especially the issue of press freedom and the issue of security issues, to protect journalists as much as possible," he said.
International watchdogs have condemned the junta's actions against the media. RSF called for the international community to "intensify pressure on Myanmar's military regime" to end its repressive actions.
Data from the Committee to Protect Journalists, or CPJ, show Myanmar as the second-worst jailer of journalists globally.
In a statement on the DMG sentencing, CPJ said the junta should "stop harassing and jailing journalists for merely doing their jobs by reporting the news."
This story originated in VOA Burmese.
