Country
Myanmar
Government actions against journalists in Myanmar
RSF 2026 rank: 166th of 180. World Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders (RSF); rank 1 is the freest.
The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.
Myanmar is in South-eastern Asia, Asia. The record holds 4 incidents in which the government of Myanmar, or an official, court or legislature there, limited journalists' ability to report.
Tactics used
- Detention and violence: 3 incidents · ladder
- Licensing and closure of outlets: 1 incident · ladder
- Prior restraint: 1 incident · ladder
- Secrets and espionage laws: 1 incident · ladder
- Shutdowns and blocking: 1 incident · ladder
Heads of government at the time
Incidents by year
2021
| Date | Incident | Tactic | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 March 2021 | Myanmar junta revokes five outlets' licenses and raids newsrooms after coup | Licensing and closure of outlets | Silence | Min Aung Hlaing | Sustained |
| February 2021 | Myanmar: military cuts mobile internet after seizing power | Shutdowns and blocking | Silence | Min Aung Hlaing | Ongoing (3 May 2021) |
2018
| Date | Incident | Tactic | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 September 2018 | Myanmar sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years under the Official Secrets Act for reporting on a massacre | Secrets and espionage laws | Eliminate | Aung San Suu Kyi | Reversed (7 May 2019) |
1988
| Date | Incident | Tactic | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 September 1988 | Burma's new military government tightens pre-publication press controls after seizing power | Prior restraint | Silence | Saw Maung | Ongoing (1 January 1989) |
Ladders: where each tactic has led · Timeline for Myanmar · Asia