In a statement released today, Reporters Without Borders, condemned the prison sentence, of a reporter from the Eleven Media Group, Ma Khine.
Mah Kine was convicted, in a court in Laoikaw, for trespassing and using abusive language, shortly after the Elelven Media Paper ran a story headlined, “When bags of money replace judges in court”, which highlighted issues of endemic corruption in the Burmese judicial system.
Condemning the conviction Reporters Without Borders stated,
“We urge Laikaw’s judges to re-examine the facts of this case when it comes up for appeal and to reach a decision that respects the rights of journalists. A news organisation should not have to incur the risk of criminal proceedings, and in this case, the conviction of one of its reporters, because of its news coverage. Freedom for information is at stake.”