Mizzima awarded global JTI certificate for reliable news on Myanmar

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Mizzima Mizzima, one of Myanmar ’s most prominent news outlets and a press freedom advocate, obtained the Journalism Trust Initiative ( JTI ) certification from global audit firm Bureau Veritas , JTI says in a press statement 5 January.  Operating in clandestine mode within Myanmar and supported by an exiled team, Mizzima strives to fulfil its role as reliable source of news and information for the Myanmar public. “Your Journalism Trust Initiative certification affirms what audiences already know: that principled, transparent journalism matters. Congratulations on this achievement and on your continued contribution to informing citizens about Myanmar,” says Benjamin Sabbah , director of Journalism Trust Initiative “Myanmar’s ongoing conflict has created an intensely contested media landscape, where mis- and disinformation are increasingly deployed to reinforce state propaganda and the prevailing “official” narrative. Although Mizzima is already regarded as one of the most trusted ...
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Could Burma follow the South Africa democracy model?

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Wednesday, 22 August 2012 15:39 Myat Thu Pan

(Commentary) – Could the recent meeting between Burmese President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi lead to a smooth transition to genuine democracy?

Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and President Thein Sein in a file photo from a TV screenshot. Photo: MRTV

Given the current lopsided balance of power in the Parliament, it’s impossible to know how events will transpire between now and 2015, the date of the next national election. Even if Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy were to garner a big win, the military would still have a tight grip on power.

What are the odds that Thein Sein and Suu Kyi could collaborate and compromise to forge a path to a real democratic transition that could be a win-win situation for the people and the military?

A BBC program called the Burmese Road To Democracy suggested that Burma should pursue a transition model based on South Africa. Prof. Larry Diamond of Stanford University, a respected political scientist, also suggested South Africa as a useful model.

Although the military is still the most powerful force in the country, Burma also now has very powerful democratic leaders – and not just Suu Kyi. It also has a formidable collective leadership in the second-tier leaders of Min Ko Naing and his 88 student group leaders.

Most importantly, the 88-group has the backing of the nation as evidenced by the results of the recent by-election.

Wouldn’t it be surprising and productive if both the government and the stronger democratic factions could hammer out a consensus in the coming years and agree on a model to achieve a true democracy prior to the election?

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