Unit 6: 6.1. Regressing Journalistic Rights and Freedoms as an Impact of Weakened Media Organizations Media council Disregarding on the Journalistic Rights and the Purposes of News Media Law A few days after the coup d’état, members of the Media Council, organized according to the News Media Law, voluntarily resigned as the SAC suppressed the media industry and media rights. At the council’s meeting on 17th February, 17 councilors relinquished simultaneously, and the remaining ones who could not attend the meeting joined in later. However, the acting chairperson and treasurer remained in the council. After those simultaneous and collective relinquishments, SAC confirmed a dismissal statement related to those 23 councilors on 4th March. Due to the resignation of the councilors elected in the second term of the Myanmar News and Media Council, a majority of selective members replaced by the SAC held an election for the vacant seats on 30th April. The substituted council failed to be acknowledged by most media organizations representing the journalists and independent media professionals who value press freedom. The post-coup Media Council had issued a series of statements condemning and repressing the freedoms and rights of journalists and media professionals. Up to December, the Media Council, breathed by the SCC, had issued six statements that echoed SAC’s standpoint of repressing the press freedom. The media council ignored the provisions and purposes of News Media Law and journalistic rights and condemned the license revoked news media. On 25th June, their statement, No. 5/2021, mentioned as follow: “The State has banned some media outlets inciting to escalate conflicts across the society and revoked their licenses because of violating the News Media Law and Code of Conducts. Hence, the Myanmar News Media Council will not be held responsible for resolving any disputes over the violations of existing laws, News Media Law, or breaching journalist code of conduct in communicating and reporting with those banned media outlets.” Similarly, an earlier statement, No. 4/2021, issued on 21st June, stated: “(the council) strongly condemned the reporting and publications of some licensed-revoked local media outlets, international media, and embassies related to the Kinma village fire incident that happened on 15th June, since those descriptions were merely false information contrary to the realities.” Repeated Dark Age of News Media 28