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Myanmar military storms Mizzima’s office in a third raid on local media in two days 

The Myanmar military raided the office of news outlet Mizzima in the Star City compound in southeastern Yangon on Tuesday afternoon, the publication’s editor told Myanmar Now.

Editor-in-chief Soe Myint said no staff were arrested when the military’s security forces broke into his newsroom.

“We have not been using the office since the coup [on February 1]. There wasn’t even any sign post indicating our office was there,” Soe Myint said.

Military trucks are seen near the Mizzima office while security forces raided the premises on Tuesday (Supplied)

Mizzima was one of five local media outlets whose publication licenses were revoked by the military council on Monday night.

After the junta’s announcement, Mizzima said in a statement that it would continue publishing and broadcasting as independent media in order “to fight against the military coup and for the restoration of democracy and human rights” in the country.

Established in 1998 in Delhi, India, the formerly-exiled media organisation had returned to Myanmar in 2012. It publishes bilingual online publications in Burmese and English and a weekly English magazine. In 2017, Mizzima received a digital TV channel license for broadcasting.

Mizzima’s newsroom is pictured following a raid by security forces on Tuesday (Supplied)

Mizzima was the third media house to be raided by security forces in recent days. Myanmar Now’s office in downtown Yangon was searched on Monday afternoon and Kamayut Media was raided on Tuesday afternoon. Kamayut’s cofounder Han Thar Nyein and editor-in-chief Nathan Maung were also arrested.

After the coup, the military threatened news organizations not to refer to their takeover of the government as a “coup,” nor to describe the military as “the regime” or “the junta,” declaring such terms as violations of publishing laws.

Since the military coup, at least 35 journalists have been arrested by police and soldiers while doing their jobs. Only 19 have been released from detention.

Ten journalists, including Myanmar Now’s own reporter Kay Zon Nway, are facing charges under the Penal Code that carry a maximum sentence of up to three years in prison.

Kay Zon Nway was arrested while livestreaming a protest in Yangon late last month. She is being held at Insein prison and has been remanded to custody until March 12.


 

 

 

 

 

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