media and conflict in myanmar: opportunities for media to advance peace Regulation In addition to the broad consensus on the need for professional training for journalists and managers in Myanmar, there is similar motivation to revise the fairly restrictive media laws left on the books from the previous regime. Such legislation includes the 1962 Printers and Publishers Act and the 2004 Electronic Transaction Act. The former law reinforces the registration of all media outlets as well as prepress censorship practices. The latter includes vaguely worded statements prohibiting journalists from “distributing any information relating to secrets of the security of the state.”23 Both laws have been heavily criticized by media in Myanmar as tools to imprison journalists and restrict freedom of speech. In the broadcast arena, still largely under state control, the MoI has taken a leading role in drafting new pieces of legislation, including a new broadcast law, a public service media law, and bills governing the film industry and libraries. Separately, and much more controversially, a presidential order in 2012 created the interim Press Council, an industry body formed with a yearlong mandate to draft the new press law. All three existing media a­ssociations—the Myanmar Journalists Association, Myanmar Journalists Union, and Myanmar Journalists Network—are represented on the Press Council. However, the Press Council began inauspiciously. Problems were related to oversight of the body—the government initially wanted the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division to manage the council—and the composition of the membership—ultimately only ten of the thirty members were approved as government appointments. These issues were finally resolved in September 2012, and the drafting process began. Yet even as the Press Council was consulting with local and international partners on the content of the press law, the MoI was preparing its own competing bill, ironically called the Printers and Publishers Regulation Bill. The Press Council quickly condemned the MoI’s draft, noting that it ignored recommendations made by the Press Council and included restrictions in the form of licensing and registration for all print media (essentially amounting to post-press censorship). The MoI interviewee, however, indicated that the ministry was limiting its oversight to printing and publishing and leaving the professional aspects of the law to the industry leaders. In early July 2013, the lower house of parliament passed the MoI’s version of the bill, leading to calls by the Press Council to disband. More recently, both bills were under consideration by parliament, and the MoI draft was approved by both houses. Meanwhile, the upper house signed off on the Press Council’s version, paving the way for a final legislative showdown over the status of the press law. How the law balances the interests of the MoI and the media industry remains to be seen. Additionally, interviewees noted the importance of a Freedom of Information (FOI) Law. One observed, “Access to data will lead to good governance.” Others question both the current ­capacity of national and local officials to implement an FOI law and the perceived threat such legislation would have on the power base of certain politicians. Ethnic Voices As noted, the challenges for producing balanced and accurate news in non-Bamar ethnic areas are formidable. Although some Yangon-based newspapers have stringers in several ­ethnic states, reliable coverage is still limited, particularly in conflict-affected areas. In these areas, the military tends to control information about actions conducted against NSAGs, and the NSAGs can pressure their local media to support their own cause. The interviewee from the Kachin News Group (KNG) stated that the media outlet does attempt to be independent USIP.ORG  21