Reporting from the Darkness: Journalism and Media in Myanmar 2023 Q4 and Annual Report exploring human rights violations committed by the military. It is a risk to life, anything can happen to them. They can be arrested anytime, anywhere inside the country, and this is a pervasive risk, not only for one journalist but also his or her network and co-workers. Looking ahead, what are the biggest challenges that you face as a journalist? There are two big challenges: financial or income, and security. Even for those who are in Mae Sot, Thailand, it is not safe. Spies from the junta are around. No matter inside [the country] or outside, it is not easy for livelihood as commodity prices are rising. Some are not making adequate income, while the media organisations are facing insufficiency in funding. Armed resistance has been spreading, especially in 2023. Looking to 2024 and another coup anniversary, how does the situation around the safety of journalists look to you? On the one hand, in SAC-controlled areas like big cities, there is no safety for media workers and journalists – for instance in the case of Ko Sai Zaw Theik who was arrested in Rakhine while travelling to cover Cyclone Mocha news. On the other hand, as the battle and war extend, this has created some liberated areas controlled by EAOs (ethnic armed organisations) or PDFs (people's defence forces), where journalists could have more access on the ground, and there can be opportunities for journalists. Another challenge in 2024 is the flow of journalists from inside to outside the country will lead to more difficulties to sustain media work in third countries, due to financial or professional reasons. What gives you hope about Myanmar journalism? We have had similar experiences before like the 8888 (students' uprising on 8 August 1988) and the 2007 Saffron Revolution (led by Buddhist monks), and journalists have been always targeted by the military by killing and torturing them. This time, journalists still play an important role. Given the situation, it is really challenging to sustain journalistic work. So we will have to work on recovering what we had before, balancing both the quality and quantity of [news in] the media industry. 17