• Burmese
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
28 °c
Yangon
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
No Result
View All Result
The Irrawaddy
No Result
View All Result
Home News Burma

Media Groups Condemn Police Treatment of Journalists in Letpadan Crackdown

Kyaw Hsu Mon by Kyaw Hsu Mon
March 11, 2015
in Uncategorized
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0 0
A A
Media Groups Condemn Police Treatment of Journalists in Letpadan Crackdown

Reporters run to a safe place during violence in Letpadan on Tuesday. (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters)   

3.2k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

RANGOON — Media freedom organizations in Burma have condemned the actions of riot police during Tuesday’s crackdown on student protests at Letpadan, Pegu Division, which also led to the beating and detention of journalists covering the events.

The interim Press Council said the arrests and beatings had violated Burmese laws, including the Media Law. “We seriously condemn the police force’s action,” the council said, adding that any detained journalists should immediately be released.

On Tuesday afternoon, a standoff between more than 100 student protestors and several hundred riot police escalated into a violent confrontation after students demanded passage to march to Rangoon in order to highlight their calls for an overhaul of the Education Law.

RelatedPosts

Nowhere Are the Threats Facing Journalism More Real Than in Myanmar

Nowhere Are the Threats Facing Journalism More Real Than in Myanmar

May 3, 2025
748
From Resistance to Survival: Myanmar’s Free Press Battles US Aid Cuts

From Resistance to Survival: Myanmar’s Free Press Battles US Aid Cuts

April 28, 2025
1.2k
We Need Your Support—Your $5 Helps Keep The Irrawaddy’s Mission Alive

We Need Your Support—Your $5 Helps Keep The Irrawaddy’s Mission Alive

March 27, 2025
604

Police armed with batons descended on the students, monks and other bystanders and severely beat dozens of them, while making 127 arrests.

Reporters and photographers were caught in the melee and several were beaten and detained. An Irrawaddy reporter overheard officers shout that media were also to be detained, while two Irrawaddy photographers were hit with batons.

Several other reporters were beaten and Phyo Aung Myint, a journalist with local weekly journal Reporter, was arrested and remained in detention on Wednesday morning.

The Ministry of Information defended the police actions in a statement posted on Facebook on Tuesday evening. “Myanmar police forces blocked and controlled [the crowd] in accordance with the law,” it said. “Protest groups moved and destroyed barriers, started to penetrate the blockade set up by police forces and threw stones at police members. Police had to clear the crowd in accordance with the law.”

The statement made no mention of the beatings inflicted upon journalists.

The Myanmar Journalists Network said in a statement that police had targeted the media during the events in violation of the Media Law’s Article 7, which states that reporters covering demonstrations shall be exempt from arrest and “be entitled to ask for their safety and protective measures from security-related organizations.”

“We heard one reporter has been arrested since yesterday, we’ve asked for his release and we condemn this crackdown,” Myint Kyaw, secretary of Myanmar Journalist Network, told The Irrawaddy. He said the interim Press Council should raise Tuesday’s violence during its next meeting with government officials, adding that the media organizations might plan a public response.

The Myanmar Journalists Union also criticized authorities’ handling of the crackdown and treatment of reporters, while calling for the release of all student protestors, monks and journalists in detention.

The Burmese office of Pen International, an organization that promotes literature and freedom of expression, said in a statement, “We solemnly urge the government to stick to peaceful ways while tackling problems that happen among citizens.

“We urge the Press Council and other press associations to take action on the issue,” it said.

Your Thoughts …
Tags: MediaMore
Kyaw Hsu Mon

Kyaw Hsu Mon

The Irrawaddy

Similar Picks:

Elon Musk Calls for Closure of Radio Free Europe, Voice of America
World

Elon Musk Calls for Closure of Radio Free Europe, Voice of America

by Naung Naung
February 10, 2025
7.1k

The billionaire’s call to shut down the US-funded media organizations, which reach hundreds of millions of people globally, follows his...

Read moreDetails
Illustration entitled ‘Rebellious Reporters’ by Harn Lay for The Irrawaddy.
Specials

Our Fight For Press Freedom

by The Irrawaddy
May 3, 2024
103.4k

To mark World Press Freedom Day, The Irrawaddy presents a compendium of its articles on press freedom and the repression...

Read moreDetails
Burma

Myanmar Junta Rages Against E. Timor President After Defection Call

by The Irrawaddy
December 14, 2023
5.2k

The regime’s newspapers were filled with tirades against José Ramos-Horta after he urged junta troops to defect, and its backers...

Read moreDetails
Junta Watch: Football Field Dreams Amid Battlefield Disasters; Regime Propaganda’s Parallel Reality; and More
Junta Watch

Junta Watch: Football Field Dreams Amid Battlefield Disasters; Regime Propaganda’s Parallel Reality; and More

by The Irrawaddy
January 20, 2024
4.5k

Also this week, China appeased after Taiwan election, forced recruitment as resistance threatens to decouple main cities, power plea for...

Read moreDetails
Reclaiming Autonomy: Challenging the Narrative of Fragmentation in Myanmar
Guest Column

Reclaiming Autonomy: Challenging the Narrative of Fragmentation in Myanmar

by Zung Ring
June 18, 2024
2.6k

The media’s increasing obsession with ‘national disintegration’ is playing into the junta’s hands and threatening progress toward peaceful federalism.

Read moreDetails
Junta Watch: Propaganda Boosted to Drown Out Military Defeats; Drone Phobia Grips Regime; and More
Junta Watch

Junta Watch: Propaganda Boosted to Drown Out Military Defeats; Drone Phobia Grips Regime; and More

by The Irrawaddy
November 25, 2023
2.3k

Also over the past seven days, Min Aung Hlaing failed to boost morale in battered army, while the junta tried...

Read moreDetails
Load More
Next Post
Letter From the Jungle: Hours in Hiding After Letpadan Crackdown

Letter From the Jungle: Hours in Hiding After Letpadan Crackdown

EU Says Police Training ‘Still Needed’ After Crackdowns Draw Criticism

EU Says Police Training ‘Still Needed’ After Crackdowns Draw Criticism

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

2 days ago
1.5k
China’s Bet on Myanmar Junta Risks Backfiring

China’s Bet on Myanmar Junta Risks Backfiring

1 day ago
1.4k

Most Read

  • Timeline: Key Events in the Life of Myanmar’s Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

    Updated Timeline: Key Events in the Life of Myanmar’s Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta Attacks to Reclaim KIA’s Jade and Rare Earth Strongholds

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • China’s Bet on Myanmar Junta Risks Backfiring

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Israel-Iran Conflict: Latest Developments

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter

Get The Irrawaddy’s latest news, analyses and opinion pieces on Myanmar in your inbox.

Subscribe here for daily updates.

Contents

  • News
  • Politics
  • War Against the Junta
  • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
  • Conflicts In Numbers
  • Junta Crony
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Asia
  • World
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Election 2020
  • Elections in History
  • Cartoons
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Commentary
  • Guest Column
  • Analysis
  • Letters
  • In Person
  • Interview
  • Profile
  • Dateline
  • Specials
  • Myanmar Diary
  • Women & Gender
  • Places in History
  • On This Day
  • From the Archive
  • Myanmar & COVID-19
  • Intelligence
  • Myanmar-China Watch
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Fashion & Design
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Photo Essay
  • Donation

About The Irrawaddy

Founded in 1993 by a group of Myanmar journalists living in exile in Thailand, The Irrawaddy is a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma/Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has been an independent news media group, unaffiliated with any political party, organization or government. We believe that media must be free and independent and we strive to preserve press freedom.

  • Copyright
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Team
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Burmese

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Business
    • Economy
    • Business Roundup
  • Books
  • Donation

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.