FREEDOM ON THE NET 2016 MYANMAR month sentence for violating Article 66(d) of the Telecommunication Law and was released in April 2016.50 • In November 2015, poet Maung Saung Kha was detained under Article 505 of the penal code, which criminalizes insult, and Article 66(d) of the Telecommunication Law for posting a poem on Facebook that implied a tattoo of the president on his penis disappointed his wife.51 He was given six month prison sentence and released in May 2016 because he had already served the time.52 • In December 2015, a court jailed NLD party member Chaw Sandi Tun for six months under Article 66(d) of the Telecommunication Law for a Facebook post perceived as mocking the army chief and a new military uniform. Her post compared the light green officer’s uniform with that of a longyi, or traditional Myanmar skirt, worn by Aung San Suu Kyi. She was arrested in October 2015 and released on March 30, 2016, after serving her sentence.53 • In February 2016, sailor Hla Phone was detained under Article 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law over a series of posts “defaming the army chief, the military and the president by posting photoshopped pictures and text,” made by the well-known Facebook account Kyat Pha Gyi. He denied operating the account, which remained active after his arrest and denied any connection with Hla Phone.54 Another charge under Article 505 of the penal code was added later,55 and he was officially indicted in August, after more than six months in detention.56 • In March 2016, Facebook user Than Tun, a local USDP official, was sentenced to six months in prison with labor after NLD supporters charged him under Article 66(d) of the Telecommunication Law for sharing an image of Aung San Suu Kyi altered to make her appear naked, along with sexually explicit language.57 Moreover, at least one arrest took place after the new government came to power. On May 4, 2016, police arrested Nay Myo Wai, a prominent anti-Muslim activist, after an NLD supporter filed suit against him under Article 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law. News reports said he was charged based on a Facebook post claiming that army chief Min Aung Hliang had not seized power because Esther Hitusan, “Prominent Political Prisoner Freed in Myanmar, Many Remain,” The Associated Press, April 1, 2016, http:// www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2016-04-01/prominent-political-prisoner-freed-in-myanmar-many-remain and Lun Min Mang, “Kachin activist convicted in Facebook defamation case,” Myanmar Times, January 25, 2016, http://www.mmtimes.com/ index.php/national-news/19805-kachin-activist-released-after-imprisonment-for-facebook-post.html . 50 Eleven Media, Facebook, http://bit.ly/2eGUvCu; Su Myat Mon, “Kachin Aid Worker Jailed for Defamatory Facebook Post Walks Free,” Irrawaddy, April 1, 2016, http://www.irrawaddy.com/burma/kachin-aid-worker-jailed-for-defamatory-facebookpost-walks-free.html and PEN International, “Myanmar: Poet on trial for defamation,” May 30, 2016, http://www.peninternational.org/newsitems/myanmar-poet-on-trial-for-defamation/ . 51 ABC News “Myanmar’s ‘penis poet’ Maung Saungkha freed after six months in jail for defamation,” May 24, 2016, http:// www.abc.net.au/news/2016-05-24/myanmars-penis-poet-freed-after-six-months-in-jail/7442908 . 52 Su Myat Mon, “Chaw Sandi Tun, Famed Facebook Antagonizer, Released From Prison,” Irrawaddy, March 30, 2016, http:// www.irrawaddy.com/burma/chaw-sandi-tun-famed-facebook-antagonizer-released-from-prison.html . 53 Irrawaddy, “Arrest over Facebook Post a Case of Mistaken Identity, Defendant Says,” February 16, 2016, http://www. irrawaddy.com/burma/arrest-over-facebook-post-a-case-of-mistaken-identity-defendant-says.html . 54 55 “Accused “Kyat Pha Gyi” account owner face another charge,” Eleven Media, October 3, 2016, http://www.elevenmyanmar. com/local/accused-kyat-pha-gyi-account-owner-face-another-charge . Reuters, “Man Indicted for Insulting Military Chief, Former President on Facebook,” via Irrawaddy, August 23, 2016, http:// www.irrawaddy.com/burma/man-indicted-for-insulting-military-chief-former-president-on-facebook.html . 56 7 Day Daily, March 28, 2016, http://www.7daydaily.com/story/61497; Salai Thant Zin, “USDP Official Sued over Fake Suu Kyi Nude Shared on Facebook,” Irrawaddy, October 19, 2015, http://www.irrawaddy.com/election/news/usdp-official-sued-overfake-suu-kyi-nude-shared-on-facebook. 57 www.freedomonthenet.org