Myanmar media faces severe restrictions and funding challenges on World Press Freedom Day

The Independent Press Council Myanmar (IPCM) stated on May 3 – World Press Freedom Day – that a total of 40 media workers, including seven women, are being held in prison nationwide. Another seven journalists have been killed since the 2021 military coup. 

“Media workers are deliberately targeted, arrested, and sentenced harshly. This is unacceptable. Journalists must not be treated as criminals,” Toe Zaw Latt, the IPCM Secretary, told DVB.

Established in December 2023 by Myanmar journalists and media experts, the Thailand-based IPCM marked World Press Freedom Day by highlighting that at least 200 journalists have been arrested since 2021.