The blind leading the blind: Censorship keeps the people of Burma in the dark, as the generals remain blithely unaware of the demands of the Information Age.

Is journalism in Burma dead? If not, it must be in a coma. In 1987, the publication of a poem which closed with the words, “...gone down is the circumference of the sun,” caught the attention of Burma’s hawk-eyed censors. The sun, or “ne win” in Burmese, sounds much like the name of the then-Chairman of the Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP), Ne Win. The sentence, according to the censors, implied that “Ne Win had passed away,” and they ordered the line deleted.

The magazine which carried the poem, however, had already been printed, and so the publishers were ordered to blot out the line with silver ink.

The poem had been translated from English to Burmese by Maung Thaw Ka, a popular speaker and satirist who was later arrested and sentenced to 20 years in prison. He was tortured to death in Insein prison in 1991.

Another example of such anxious censorship can be seen in the handling of a short story written by Min Thit. The story concerns a father telling his son about Kyan Sit Thar, o­ne of the great kings of the Pagan dynasty who ruled over a peaceful and prosperous Burma. At the end of the tale, the son exclaims with emotion, “Papa, I want to meet Kyan Sit Thar.” The two-page story was banned. At the time, Burma had just been designated a Least Developed Country (LDC) and was quickly descending into economic ruin. It seemed the authorities feared that, if the story was published, it would rekindle interest in the golden era of King Kyan Sit Thar.

Such paranoia has become a feature of the Burmese leadership since Ne Win took power in 1962. Even under British colonial rule and during the era of Prime Minister U Nu, Burma enjoyed a flourishing free press. More than 30 newspapers, including English and Chinese language titles, were in circulation. But when Ne Win overthrew the government, all private magazines and newspapers were shut down, and many editors, journalists and critics were rounded up and thrown into jail. The 1962 coup not o­nly ended parliamentary democracy, but also signalled the end of freedom of expression and an independent press. Freedom of the press ended when Gen Ne Win staged his coup in1962. All newspapers were taken over and o­nly government-owned newspapers, Lok-tha-pyi-thu-nei-zin, and the English language Working People’s Daily were allowed to publish and report. The BSPP decreed that freedom of expression was o­nly permitted “within the accepted limits of the Burmese Way to Socialism.”

Hence, most Burmese who grew up under Ne Win’s socialist regime do not know what freedom of press and expression is.

Later, the Press Scrutiny Board (PSB) whom artists referred to as the “Kempeitai office,” because their offices were the same o­nes used by Japanese Kempeitai officers during the Japanese occupation in the 1940s, ruled that all books must be submitted to its censors before going to print. The PSB even limited the numbers of books to be published. From 1962 to 1988, many writers, cartoonists, poets, and singers were imprisoned for writings, words and stories which were deemed harmful to the government and country. Moreover, they were accused of being either pro-Communist or pro-rightist. Their work was double- checked and sometimes sent to the military intelligence services, with which the PSB worked closely. o­ne other result of this tight control was the popularity of light stories and poems, love-triangle stories, as well as futurism and symbolism.

After 1985, the BSPP allowed more private magazines to be published, while maintaining tough restrictions over what could be said. By 1988, more than 20 magazines and six newspaper were being published.

Three government-controlled magazines and all newspapers were controlled by BSPP. The newspapers each reported virtually the same stories about BSPP activities, and any criticism of the government was forbidden.

However, during the summer of 1988, when Burma’s streets were filled with peaceful demonstrators, almost 100 private newspapers, journals, newsletters and bulletins were in circulation. Even the government-controlled newspapers were accurately reporting events. For a brief period, the Burmese people were re-acquainted with freedom of the press. But this would last o­nly until the military staged a bloody coup in September.

“I was surprised, but happy that journalism in my country had flourished again,” said Aung Win, who was publishing a successful weekly journal during that democracy summer. “We never had a chance to try out our journalistic skills, although we also learned how to practice self-censorship,” he added.

Expressing the different view of the government, Gen. Khin Nyunt said “I have not forgotten that during the 1988 disturbances certain journalists, who disregarded their code of conduct and dignity, and who were influenced by leftist and rightist ideologies, instigated the rebellion. Some publications took advantage of the situation and concocted reports to please the neo-colonialists. This will ever remain in our history as a black mark which cannot be erased in any way.”

Now, with even more restrictions, the PSB has returned to its former prominence. The agency censors all books and magazines in accordance with past procedures. Many magazines have ceased being printed. Two newspapers, The New Light of Myanmar and The Mirror, are allowed. The original The New Light of Myanmar was o­ne of Burma’s leading newspapers in the 1930s. Today, The Mirror (Burmese) and The New Light of Myanmar (English) are completely controlled by SPDC. Their coverage of news is bland and limited almost exclusively to SPDC activities.

The military-controlled newspapers, magazines and military journals are now primarily used as tools of propaganda to attack the opposition democracy movement and newly formed political parties. They are used to discredit and smear leading politicians, including Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition and Western governments critical of the junta.

Not surprisingly, the people in Burma pay little attention to newspapers.

“I read advertisements - that’s it,” said a resident. Another said, “As far as I remember, since the 1970s I stopped reading newspapers, o­nly o­n some rare occasions. . . .Since we realised they feed us o­nly propaganda, not information, the SPDC papers have no credibility.”

What is missing from magazines published in Burma often tells you more about the country than what is left in.

In a brutal example in 1995, Thintbawa magazine had 58 of 160 pages torn out by censors at the PSB. Writers in Rangoon said it was some of the crudest censorship they had seen since 1988. The cover story, editorial, a special feature article and cartoons were tom out. Even the cover was blotted out with black ink.

The main reason for the censorship was Thintbawa’s coverage of the Rangoon University Diamond Jubilee and a comparison of the colonial and national education systems. Thintbawa is o­ne of the most popular magazines in Burma. It runs features that emphasize social and educational issues together with short stories and cartoons.

According to reliable sources, o­ne of the articles dealt with an uprising of Burmese university students against the colonial education system during British rule. Ironically, this article by Burmese author Aye Kyaw about the first student boycott under British rule was actually an old article and had won a prize. But current officials did not want the public to read it so they tore it out, said a Rangoon source.

All articles related to student politics, boycotts and criticism of the current education system are considered to be “rebellious literature,” said a writer in Rangoon. The activities of the opposition movement aren’t mentioned in the state organs. Further, all books, magazines, periodicals, songs and films had to be submitted to the Slorc’s censors prior to printing or distribution. At times, pages of foreign news magazines are ripped out or offending sections inked over.

Further, foreign newspapers and magazines are not permitted to sell without the junta’s approval.

Closing down magazines and newspapers and throwing writers in prison are not new occurrences in Burma.

The Britain-based anti-censorship group, Article 19, in a report released last year, stated that “Burma is o­ne of the most heavily censored states in the world.” It noted the contradiction between the greater economic freedom allowed since the military government took power and the suppression of free and open debate, and said that the disparity must end if Burma’s chronic political problems are ever to be resolved. “The quickening pace of economic development is requiring at least some adaptation of existing Slorc policies and attitudes. To date, however, these have been little more than cosmetic,” the group said.

For example, last year a PSB officer told writers, “The practice of inking out words does not speak well for a free market economy. Therefore, the style of censorship has to be changed. Instead of inking over the sentences, the whole article will be torn out.”

Under the SPDC, about 100 magazines and weekly journals in Burmese are publishing despite heavy censorship. Many writers and intellectuals have recently been trying to test the waters. Even though they don’t dare ask for freedom of expression, they are privately critical of restrictions and censorship laws.

While tough o­n political writing, the ruling junta encourages publishers and writers working for less threatening, business-related magazines and journals. But business periodicals are asked to avoid publishing articles critical of the junta’s economic mismanagement. So, even business magazines cannot escape from heavy-handed censorship laws. As the generals practice information blackout in the country, Burmese people say they have little idea of what’s going o­n in other provinces.

“We don’t even know the nature of the government. . . I have no idea who is running the country,” o­ne Mandalay-resident joked.

[This article was written by Sai Lu. Sources: The Nation, Bangkok Post]