Myanmar Frees Two Jailed Journalists in Mass Amnesty, but Fears for Press Freedom Persist

December 05, 2025 – Myanmar – 

Myanmar’s military authorities have released two prominent journalists as part of a broad political amnesty, a rare moment of relief amid an environment that remains one of the world’s most repressive for independent media. The pardons, announced just weeks before the country’s planned general election, have sparked cautious optimism among press-freedom advocates — tempered by warnings that the move does little to alter the junta’s longstanding hostility toward critical reporting.

According to local media, veteran columnist Sithu Aung Myint and former BBC Media Action producer Htet Htet Khine were among several reporters freed from detention facilities across the country on December 5. Both had been arrested in 2021 under the sweeping Section 505-A of the Penal Code, a law widely used since the coup to jail journalists, activists, and critics for alleged “incitement.” Another reporter, Ko Nyein Chan Wai, was also freed under the same decree.

Their releases came as the junta announced the pardon of hundreds of detainees, claiming the gesture was intended to allow eligible voters to take part in the upcoming election cycle. Rights groups, however, describe the decision as politically calculated rather than a meaningful step toward restoring freedoms dismantled since the 2021 coup.

Sithu Aung Myint, known for his sharp political commentary, had originally faced a combined sentence of more than a decade. Khine, meanwhile, had received a six-year term over accusations of working with a group the junta declared unlawful — charges that press-freedom organizations say were baseless and intended to silence her reporting. All three journalists endured harsh prison conditions, including prolonged isolation and severe restrictions on communication.

While the amnesty has been welcomed by journalists’ associations and human-rights defenders, groups including the Committee to Protect Journalists warn that dozens of reporters remain behind bars, many of them serving lengthy sentences under the same incitement and anti-state statutes. Recent weeks have also seen fresh legal pressure on independent outlets, with new election-related laws threatening heavy penalties for coverage deemed critical of the military.

Analysts caution that the timing of the releases suggests a tactical move aimed at easing international scrutiny ahead of the election, rather than a genuine softening of the junta’s stance. For many in Myanmar’s embattled media community, the message remains unchanged: today’s amnesty does not guarantee tomorrow’s freedom to report.

Reference – 

https://eng.mizzima.com/2025/12/05/28832

https://www.journalismpakistan.com/myanmar-frees-two-jailed-journalists-in-mass-amnesty