burmese blogger sentenced

It was a first for the Burmese blogosphere: on November 10, the military junta sentenced a blogger, Nay Phone Latt.

According to a report by Mizzima, the blogger, who was arrested earlier this year, was sentenced to more than 20 years. The bulk of this sentence was for violating the Electronics Act.

The 2007 Annual Worldwide Press Freedom Index of Reportiers sans frontieres (Reporters without Borders) ranked Burma 164th out of 168 countries for both 2006 and 2007.

Also notable in the 2007 index is the observation of "serious, repeated violations of the free flow of online news and information." RSF says that 64 people around the world have been sentenced for something they have posted on the Internet.

In Burma, though the number of blogs is still very limited -- perhaps only 200, by one Burmese national's estimate -- outside the country, there are more.

With the junta monitoring and restricting Internet usage in Burma, it is a wonder that bloggers like Nay Phone Latt are even able to maintain a blog. An Internet Law has been in place in the country from as early as 2000.

According to Burmese nationals, the government server bans even free email sites like Gmail, Yahoo, and Hotmail.

Click here for the full story on Nay Phone Latt.