RANGOON — For the last 13 years, The Irrawaddy Burmese Online, as the name suggests, was confined to online readers both inside and outside Burma. But with the launch of our weekly print journal in Burmese on Thursday, The Irrawaddy will reach out to a larger readership inside the country.
Published by The Irrawaddy Publishing Group (IPG) from Jan. 2, the Burmese weekly is a sister publication of The Irrawaddy monthly magazine, which has been published in English since 1993 and has since become a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma and the Southeast Asia region.
Originally, the Burmese-language Irrawaddy website was launched in 2001 as an online daily to target the growing number of Burmese readers worldwide and inform them about what was happening inside their country.
Since last year, The Irrawaddy magazine has been published and distributed inside the country, after two decades of publication in exile.
“It’s like a dream come true to be able to publish both our English magazine and Burmese weekly inside country,” said Aung Zaw, the editor-in-chief of both publications. “I feel we are reconnecting with our readers.”
“I would like to thank all our colleagues and readers for their tremendous support in helping us publish these distinguished publications,” he said. “We have a great team here and I think that during this year and the next, Burma will see tremendous change, so good news coverage is needed.”
“Our reporting will be balanced and fair in both hard news and features. In terms of content, our focus is not only political but also covers a wide range of issues, from entertainment to business news, to the question of transitional justice,” Aung Zaw said.
The Irrawaddy journal will appear every Thursday. During the launch on Jan. 2, the journal was sold out at news stands in Rangoon and Mandalay.