The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) strongly criticises the harassment of a Myanmar Now journalist in Yangon on Tuesday, March 14, 2017. The IFJ demand an immediate investigation into the incident.

On Tuesday evening, Myanmar Now chief correspondent, Ko Swe Win, was leaving dinner with the US Ambassador, Scot Marciel, when three assailants approached him. They said: “Hey you, are you Swe Win?” and then tried to punch him in the face. One of the assailants stopped the attack and Swe Win returned to his house. He called police and has since registered a case the assailants.

In 2016, Swe Win revealed the abuse of two maids at the Ava Tailoring Shop, which has since become a national story. From this, Swe Win had been provided security by the Ministry of Home Affairs, however his security guard was not present during the attack on Tuesday night, as Swe Win had not called him after dinner.

More recently, Swe Win and Myanmar Now have actively covered the assassination of National League for Democracy advisor U Ko Ni. His reporting has seen him receive numerous death threats on social media. A complaint was filed against Swe Win for his reporting under Article 66(d) of Myanmar’s Telecommunications Law.

The IFJ said: “Immediate steps need to be taken to guarantee the safety and security of Ko Swe Win. Attacks and intimidation of journalists create a sense of fear among the entire media community. The authorities need to ensure journalists and media workers are free to report on all issues with fear of attack or persecution.” 

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +61 2 9333 0946 

The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 140 countries