Wine Maw, editor of the Myanmar Herald news website, was arrested on March 24, 2021, while reporting on a protest against Myanmar’s military junta in Kyaukmyaung Township of Yangon, according to a report by Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) and a database maintained by the rights group Assistance Association of Political Prisoners.
Wine Maw is being held at Insein Prison on charges under Article 505(a) of the penal code, according to the same sources. The broad provision criminalizes “any attempt to cause fear, spread false news or agitate directly or indirectly a criminal offense against a government employee” or that “causes their hatred, disobedience, or disloyalty toward the military and the government.” Convictions under that provision allow for a maximum three-year prison sentence.
His arrest came in the wake of the military’s February 1, 2021, democracy-suspending coup and subsequent protests. The military junta cracked down on Myanmar’s independent media, detaining dozens of journalists, according to those sources and CPJ research.
The Ministry of Information did not reply to CPJ’s emailed request sent in late November 2021 for comment on his legal status and treatment in detention.