အေ8ကာင်းအရာများကိ& ကန်သတ် ြခင်းများ ့ Limits on Content B1: အင်တာနက်ေပ4 F.ိ အေ8ကာင်းအရာကိ& ပိတ်ဆမ1 ိ& ့ (သိ)& ့ စစ်ထ&တမ ် 1ကိ& အစိ&းရမ. ြပ$လ&ပ်ပါသလား (သိ)& ့ အင်တာနက် ၁ မ.တ် ဝန်ေဆာင်မ1ေပးသ=များအား ထိသ & ြပ$လ& ိ& ့ ပ်ရန် ဖိအားေပးပါသလား။ (၀-၆ မ.တ)် B1: Does the state block or filter, or compel service providers to block or filter, internet content? (0–6 points) Score Change: The score declined from 3 to 1 due to open-ended blocking of social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, and Instagram, as well as a range of websites, including news outlets, financial services, and gaming hubs. The MoTC first began ordering telecommunications companies to block websites in March 2020, and blocking directives significantly increased following the coup. From February 2021 onward, the MoTC issued a series of orders requiring telecommunications companies to block access to URLs and internet protocol (IP) addresses under Section 77 of the Telecommunications Law, which allows authorities to issue blocking orders to license holders in “emergency situations.”97 Each of the directives are temporary but open-ended. No exact list of blocked sites has been published, and after Telenor publicly reported the directives it had received, it was forced to cease doing so under pressure from the authorities.98 The MoTC ordered all ISPs, mobile service providers, and international gateway managers to block access to Facebook on February 3, 2021. The block, which was initially set to last until February 7, was ostensibly meant to preserve stability and prevent fake news from “spreading misunderstanding.”99 WhatsApp was also blocked.100 Orders to block Twitter and Instagram followed on February 5.101 While WhatsApp and Instagram were included on a list of approved sites on May 25, Facebook and Twitter remained blocked at the end of the coverage period.102 Many more secretive blocks on websites have reportedly been ordered since the coup, affecting popular platforms such as Wikipedia as well as national media outlets (see B6).103 At least one telecommunications company has reportedly pushed 1 back against at least one MoTC order, with some success.104 On May 25, the military began listing approved sites, meaning any blocking on them could be removed. The initial batch of some 1,200 approved internet services included a large contingent of banking and financial sites, entertainment sites like YouTube and Netflix, news sites such as the New York Times and US-based Cable News Network (CNN), and gaming platforms.105 In March, May, and August 2020, the MoTC had issued a series of directives ordering internet providers to block more than 2,170 websites under Section 77 of the Telecommunications Law. Although the directives were not publicly released, well-known independent and local news outlets and websites based in conflictaffected areas, such as Rakhine State, soon became inaccessible. They included Narinjara News, Mandalay In-Depth News, Mekong News, and Voice of Myanmar, among others. Karen News, a local news agency in Karen State, was also found to be inaccessible. Several of the blocked outlets are owned by the Development Media Group, which previously had been targeted by authorities for its coverage of the rebel Arakan Army (see C3).106 According to Telenor Myanmar, 67 websites were flagged for blocking in March 2020 for alleged “fake news,” and 154 websites were accused of carrying adult or explicit content. The remaining 1,917 websites included in the MoTC’s directives of March 2020 were also on Interpol’s list of banned child sexual abuse websites; such content can be legitimately restricted under international human rights standards.107 Justice for Myanmar, a campaign group that has criticized the military, was blocked in August 2020.108 In May 2020, Telenor reported that the PTD had issued a directive ordering service providers to block an additional 22 websites that allegedly Free Expression Myanmar (FEM) and Freedom House - Freedom of the Net: Myanmar - အင်တာနက်ေပ*တွင် လွတ်လပ်မ/ - ြမန်မာ2ိ4င်ငံ - Page 10