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Myanmar Resource Page

On 1 February 2021, Myanmar’s military took control of the country in a coup. This page presents a consolidated source for all CLD’s resources on Myanmar since February 2021, as well as older resources. It will be updated regularly with new resources as they become available.

CLD has been working on Myanmar issues since 2012. Our work in Myanmar sought to support the democratisation process and involved a wide range of support on different freedom of expression and media law themes. Since the 2021 coup, the nature of our work has changed significantly. We continue to be engaged on freedom of expression issues in Myanmar through actions such as exposing how the legal changes introduced by the military regime undermine human rights and helping to promote longer-term democratic reform.

Announcement: Online Course on Freedom of Expression in Myanmar

This nine-week online course involves weekly lectures, discussions, background readings and an opportunity to interact with others who care about freedom of expression in Myanmar. The course is open to everyone who is interested. Those who attend six of the nine lectures will receive a certificate of completion, but anyone is invited to register and attend as they are able. For more details on the course, see the course outline. To register, click here.

A English and Burmese handout for the course are also available. The course is in English but key readings are available in Burmese and the live lectures will have Burmese interpretation.

Post-Coup Resources

Analyses of Military Orders and Changes to Existing Laws

    • 2022 Organisation Registration Law (NGO Law): English and Burmese
    • Amendments to the Printing and Publishing Enterprises Law: English and Burmese
    • Myanmar’s 2022 Police Force Law: English and Burmese. A English translation of the law is available here.
    • Proposed 2022 New Draft Cyber Security Law: English and Burmese.
    • 2021 Amendment to Myanmar’s Counter-Terrorism Law: English and Burmese.
    • Proposed 2021 Cyber Security Draft Law: English
      • Note: This draft proposal was withdrawn. The military proposed a new draft cyber security law in 2022.
    • Amendments to the Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code
    • Amendments to the Broadcasting Law: English and Burmese

Summaries: International Human Rights Standards

Other Documents

    • Baseline Study on Access to Information Post-Coup: English: English and Burmese.
    • Myanmar Press Council – Legitimacy Requires Independence: English and Burmese
    • Right to Information Guide for Myanmar: English and Burmese
    • Guide for Journalists on How to Document International Crimes: English and Burmese
    • Outline of Rules Affecting Freedom of Expression (mapping document on democratic framework for freedom of expression): English and Burmese
    • Integrating Ethnic Content into Public Service Broadcasting Report: English and Burmese
    • Note on Professional Regulation of the Media: English and Burmese.

Resources from before the 1 February coup

Resources on Myanmar

    • Human Rights Analysis of Biometric Digital ID Systems, December 2020: English and Burmese
    • Recent Legal Developments Impacting Freedom of Expression, November 2020: English and Burmese
    • Joint Submission to the Universal Periodic Review of Myanmar, July 2020: English
    • Note on the Draft Myanmar National Records and Archives Law, July 2019: English (this law was subsequently passed)
    • Reforming Myanmar’s News Media Law and Printing and Publishing Enterprises Law, January 2019: English
    • Digital Content Proposals (suggesting reforms to protect freedom of expression online), January 2018: English and Burmese
    • Regulating Digital Content, December 2017 (providing a summary of key problematic Myanmar laws restricting freedom of expression online): English and Burmese
    • Background Document: Guidance for the Myanmar Press Council, January 2017: English and Burmese
    • Note on the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Myanmar Broadcasting Law, March 2016: English
    • Charter of the Myanmar Right to Know Working Group, February 2016: English
    • Note on Freedom of Expression and Regulation of the Media, July 2012: English and Burmese (accompanied by a one-page summary in English and Burmese)

Briefing Note Series: Freedom of Expression
This series, released in 2014, offers an overview of key international human rights standards governing freedom of expression. The Notes are designed to be accessible to all audiences, including those with no background in law. They focus on international standards and do not specifically discuss relevant Myanmar laws or policies, but are all available in both English and Burmese.