8/22/22, 10:18 PM Myanmar: Freedom on the Net 2019 Country Report | Freedom House Hard-liners have spread derogatory and violent statements about the Rohingya on Facebook, Viber, and WhatsApp, among other social media platforms. Before being banned by Facebook, the ultranationalist Wirathu used the platform regularly to spread false information and narratives. 111 His posts and videos, shared by thousands of followers, have, according to critics, stoked real-world violence. 112 He has compared Muslims to mad dogs and shared images of corpses with text claiming they were Buddhists murdered by Muslims. 113 Other users have spread disinformation on social media that encourages violence. In 2017, thousands of Buddhist users were warned in Facebook messages of an imminent attack by Muslims, while Muslim users received similar messages saying Buddhists were about to attack. 114 Celebrities have also promoted virulent government messaging online. For example, a former Miss Myanmar, Shwe Eain Si, produced a graphic video in 2017 espousing the military’s misleading account of the violence in Rakhine State, which blamed Rohingya militants for the crisis. 115 Civil society activists are concerned that disinformation will increase in the run-up to the 2020 general elections. 116 Alongside propaganda, unintentional misinformation reflecting poor digital literacy or a lack of available and trustworthy information has spread. B6 0-3 pts Are there economic or regulatory constraints that negatively affect users’ ability to publish content online? 1/3 A number of laws contain provisions that can place regulatory constraints on users wishing to publish content online. While the provision has not been invoked to date, the 2014 Printing and Publishing Law created a licensing regime for publishing houses, news agencies, and websites, and outlets must register prior to producing content, including for publication online. 117 The law also contains a variety of vague and overly broad administrative and criminal sanctions for offenses, which include running a website without a license. Licenses can be revoked by the government at any time. The Telecommunications Law has no specific regulations relating to net neutrality, zero-rating data transmissions by apps or telecommunications providers, or open internet policy. 118 B7 0-4 pts Does the online information landscape lack diversity? 1/4 Government and military control over public discourse and the media has significantly restricted the diversity of viewpoints online (see B5). Despite Facebook’s removal of several official military accounts and pages (see B2), the military’s messaging on certain issues, including conflict and minority groups, have continued to monopolize the online narrative. These viewpoints are presented on state-controlled broadcast media, and then feed into the public narrative on Facebook. Such content is then spread through users with military backgrounds or other promilitary accounts. 119 The state’s censorship efforts have also affected the diversity of online content produced by independent sources. For example, in 2019 the military requested that the media refrain from saying “civil war” when referring to domestic conflict. 120 In 2017, the government ordered that all media use the term “terrorist” instead of “insurgent” or “militant” when referring to the Rohingya crisis. 121 Also in https://freedomhouse.org/country/myanmar/freedom-net/2019 10/20