September
27, 2017
“Situations are
no longer in good favour. When I am not online, call me. My number is 09450219800.”
To my great
anxiety, I found a short note written by Ko Aung, Maungtaw correspondent, on
the social website page, exclusively used by DVB reporters at the moment I got
up from bed early in the morning.
Reporters always
urgently inform their trustworthy colleague or reporter or their respective
news agency of a hint of imminent danger or risk of losing life. This is the
kind of disciplines for news men to essentially abide by as well as the vital
ritual for their safety. That is repeatedly taught at the training for the
safety course for news men.
A news man is
always aware and careful about the use of words because the place he is
covering the news is the one where religious and racial conflicts are
dreadfully taking place and being watched by international communities.
Just at the time
when local reporters are trying their best to present true news and information
to the whole world, our news men from Myanmar came to notice that there are
groundless tidings which do not comply with the media ethics spreading in the
world. In almost all gatherings of news men, there used to be a frequently
expressed question. It was none other than the statement, “How will we collect
true
news on Rakhine State? and how will we do to spread the true news on Rakhine
State Affairs?”
However true
news are being released by the government-run news media, international
community basically tend to believe that governmental news and information are
mostly full of propagandas and most are over-inundated with news which defends
the government. In other word, global community would have regarded that
government news agencies mean the ones which lack in freedom and accuracy.
Local news men are eager to cover true news and to spread them across the world
by themselves. Yet, there are restrictions and some difficulties for local news
men to cover news and information on the ground. They often demanded for the
right to go and collect news at the places the events took places. But, they
were not fully permitted to act according to their aspirations. So, whenever
they find foreign news media’s false news, they feel annoyed with them. They
are thinking ways and means to get true news and information, determining to
make the acquired news known to the world.
Meanwhile, the
news that the two Myanmar media men, Ko Zayar Min, the photographer and
reporter, and another one named Ko Khun Latt had been detained in Bangladesh,
alleging of espionage was found to have been posted. It actually happened on 7
September, but it was known only on 15 September, Friday. Knowing the event at
the belated time made us worry a lot as to whether they were tortured or they
would be depressed under harsh investigation. These days, myriads of
news—exodus of Muslims fleeing to Bangladesh, amounting to several hundred
thousand, and thousands of Myanmar Buddhist nationals coming to take shelter at
Sittway and those who were slaughtered on the way are being posted online.
We noticed many
trying to make images of the nation and State Counsellor drop in the
International diplomatic front. To our great dismay and depression we are
hearing and seeing people create religious and racial conflicts and criticize
and defame the national figure with a view to trying to influence over all.
On 16 September,
we were relieved to some extent to have seen the news release by Ministry of
Information that the case of the arrest of two reporters would be solved
through the diplomatic channel. Myanmar Press Council, Pen Myanmar, Myanmar
Journalist Network and other news associations promptly made an appeal to
Myanmar Government to make efforts for the release of Myanmar reporters as soon
as possible. We were simultaneously elated to find the unity of news men. But,
any interference cannot be made over rule of law between countries. It is a
regulation for every nation to abide by, so we realized that effort to release
two reporters will not be easy as expected. The Ministry of
Foreign Affairs had released the news that it had instructed Myanmar Embassy in
Bangladesh, Dhaka to perform the necessary procedures concerning the detained
Myanmar reporters, on 18 September. We felt a great sense of elation as we saw
Myanmar government make a prompt and sharp response.
News that Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi would make the national address on 19 September to the world
were coming on website pages, while international societies were fighting
against Myanmar government and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, with unreliable and
fabricated news. What will she speak out? Racial and religious extremists and
power-cravers were found to have tried to scare people, as if waiting for the
frightened audience to disperse holding rolls of mats in their arms, with a
view to occupying the empty places.
I was greatly
pleased more than expected, to have a chance to listen to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
speech. Her invitation to the global community to come and see actual
situations on the ground in Myanmar was erasing falsity with truth. It managed
to bring about support of the whole populace and international diplomatic
circle again. On 22 September, U Kyaw Tin, Minister of State for Foreign
Affairs asserted that international pressure on human rights concerning
conflicts in northern Rakhine State would be solved through negotiation rather
than confrontation. On 23 September, we heard our reporters in the news room
saying enthusiastically about the news that the two Myanmar news men detained
in Bangladesh were granted bail.
People from
Myanmar Media World increasingly hoped for good results regarding the case
Myanmar reporters are facing now. They expect for respective authorities to
understand the instance of reporters visiting on travel visa, when they find it
difficult to go on reporter visa, prioritizing for the acquisition of the news
and presentation of it to the public as soon as possible.
Simultaneously
we will have more opportunities to present real images of our country, provided
that we will understand their instance in return, when foreign correspondents
come to Myanmar on travel visa as they have difficult time for covering news on
Journalist and Media visa. In case they reported news which did not comply with
media ethics, we must try our best to remove severe objections in co-operation
with international media circle. If so, we can protect increasing mutual
misunderstanding and doubts due to lack of opportunities to know each other,
based on disconnection. If we can try hard to increase mutual understanding,
based on two Myanmar reporters under detention in Bangladesh, it sure will help
to implement the anti-terrorism in both countries as well as in global
countries.
Translated by
Khin Maung Oo (Tada-U)
By Thargyi Maung
Zeya
Ref;
The Global New Light of Myanmar
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