The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) identified Myanmar as one of the world’s worst jailers of journalists in a report published after the coverage period.265 The organization listed at least 32 journalists in jail as of July 1, noting that the actual number was likely higher given that its sources feared repercussions for identifying detained colleagues. Though all but one of those listed had been placed behind bars during the coverage period, Democratic Voice of Burma reporter Min Nyo was the only journalist to receive a conviction by the end of that period. Min Nyo was sentenced to three years in prison in May 2021 under Section 505A of the penal code; he had been in pretrial detention since he was arrested while covering protests in March. Other journalists detained under Section 505A include Nathan Maung and Han Thar Nyein, cofounders of the online news website Kamayut Media. They were detained during a March 2021 raid on the outlet’s office, after which Maung reported being interrogated about the publication. The two also reported being tortured in detention (see C7); though Maung, a US journalist, was freed on June 15, Han Thar Nyein remained in prison as of the end of the month.266 Four others on the CPJ list were handed two- or three-year prison sentences after the coverage period, in June 2021. Some cases are clearly intended to silence the media’s investigative journalism. In January 2021, the military filed a lawsuit against an editor and a journalist from the Rakhine-based Development Media Group under Article 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law after their outlet published a story about military corruption on its website and Facebook page.267 The group’s editor in chief was already in hiding after being prosecuted under the Unlawful Associations Act for previous coverage. Other cases in recent years have been aimed at punishing criticism that has gone viral online. In February 2020, Kay Khine Tun, Paing Phyo Min, and Su Yadanar Myint of the poetry troupe Peacock Generation were sentenced to six months in prison under Article 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law for sharing images of and live-streaming their performances satirizing the military on social media.268 In December 2019, four other members of the group had also been sentenced to six months in prison under Article 66(d).269 In June 2020, 25 members of Peacock Generation were called to a different court to face similar charges under Article 66(d).270 In addition to journalists and prominent social media figures, everyday users have had charges brought against them under various laws. High school student Maung Tin Chan was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment in December 2020 for incitement under Article 33(b) of the Electronic Transactions Law, having published critical Facebook posts related to the conflict in Rakhine State.271 In September of that year, the military brought a case against Thinzar Than Min for alleged defamation under Article 66(d) and alleged disinformation under Article 68(a) for a Facebook post in which she reported being pressured to support the military-backed USDP in the November general elections. She was convicted and sentenced to nine months in prison under Article 505(a) of the penal code in December 2020.272 From 2019 to 2020, there were more than 45 criminal cases under the Telecommunications Law and 21 cases under the Law Protecting the Privacy and Security of Citizens. Many plaintiffs in the cases were affiliated with the state, including public officials, NLD party officials, and military officers, while many of the accused were unaffiliated users, activists, and journalists.273 In May 2019, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were pardoned after being imprisoned for more than 500 days and convicted in September 2018 for reporting on the massacre of 10 Rohingya men and boys.274 The journalists had been sentenced to seven years in prison for violating the Official Secrets Act.275 They were originally detained in December 2017. In June and July 2018, the journalists’ defense lawyers informed the court that they had been tortured while in custody (see C7). Free Expression Myanmar (FEM) and Freedom House - Freedom of the Net: Myanmar - အင်တာနက်ေပ*တွင် လွတ်လပ်မ/ - ြမန်မာ2ိ4င်ငံ - Page 21