In recent days, the Burmese military junta has imposed harsh sentences, including the death penalty, on five citizens accused of leaking information, demonstrating once again that it doesn't tolerate the free flow of information.

For leaking information about military ties between Burma and North Korea, a special court held in Rangoon’s notorious Insein Prison sentenced ex-Maj Win Naing Kyaw and his associate, Thura Kyaw, to death.

Young Internet users in Rangoon. Despite the popularity of Internet cafes in urban areas, access to information in Burma remains strictly controlled. (Photo: AP)

A few days before these sentences were handed down, two very different figures received severe sentences for sharing sensitive information with the outside world.

On Dec. 31, video journalist Hla Hla Win and her assistant Myint Naing were sentenced to 26 years in prison for attempting to smuggle video footage about the country to the Norway-based Democratic Voice of Burma.

According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP), a Burmese human rights group based in Thailand, more than 40 people are currently in jail for their work in media.

Bo Kyi, joint-secretary of the AAPP, said the number of media workers in prison has dramatically increased since the junta’s crackdown on monk-led demonstrations in September 2007.

During the mass demonstrations, authorities were surprised by the technologically sophisticated flow of information that allowed the international media to publish and broadcast evidence of human rights violations by security forces.

“However, the case of Maj Win Naing Kyaw and his associates is quite unusual. It is the first time since the current regime seized power 21 years ago that government officials with important positions have been sentenced to death for  leaking information,” said Bo Kyi.

Anyone who goes to one of Burma’s prisons will notice a sign at the entrance which says: “You must follow the State Secrets Act.” Although the sign doesn't provide any further explanation of what constitutes a violation of this notorious law, Win Naing Kyaw’s case serves as a powerful demonstration of just how jealously the state guards its secrets in Burma.

Actually, however, Win Naing Kyaw and Thura Kyaw were sentenced to death under Section 3 of the 1950 State Emergency Act, which has been used many times over the past six decades to silence political dissidents.

Since the current regime seized power in 1988, however, it has not executed any prisoners sentenced to death, saying that as a provisional government, it would leave it to a future government to carry out executions.

“Anyone can be charged under the State Emergency Act, Section 3, if they disturb state security forces such as armed forces personnel,” said veteran lawyer Thein Nyunt, of the opposition National League for Democracy's legal committee.

“Burma’s State Emergency Act can be quite widely applied, allowing the state to charge anyone accused of discussing confidential matters relating to the state,” he said.

Following the 1988 uprising, well-known dissidents, including monk leader Kaviya and student leader Kyaw Min Yu were charged under Section 3 of the State Emergency Act. Kaviya was sentenced to death by a military court, while Kyaw Min Yu was sentenced to life imprisonment.

“The State Emergency Act are quite old as they were started in 1950. They don't fit with today,” said Thein Nyunt. “Using it could make many judicial problems in the country.”

Another infamous act used by the junta to punish dissidents is the Electronics Act. In recent years, from the trials of members of the prominent 88 Generation Students group to that of Win Naing Kyaw, dozens of dissidents have been charged under this law, receiving long prison sentences.

The act prohibits sending information, including photo and videos, which the authorities think can be used to damage the state’s image.

“Since the crackdown in September 2007, Internet users or anyone holding a camera or audio recorder is regarded as a potential enemy of the state in Burma,” said the AAPP's Bo Kyi.