Advocacy rises for jailed Myanmar photojournalist Sai Zaw

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published 1 hour ago |  JP Asia Desk

Myanmar photojournalist Sai Zaw Thaike was sentenced to 20 years in prison for cyclone coverage, drawing international advocacy urging his release amid broader press freedom abuses.

Summary

YANGON — The internationally recognised photojournalist Sai Zaw Thaike remains incarcerated in Myanmar under a 20-year prison sentence imposed by a military tribunal in Yangon’s Insein Prison for reporting on the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha.

The sentence, widely condemned by press freedom and human rights organisations, reflects the deepening crackdown on independent media in Myanmar since the military seized power in 2021.

Press freedom under siege 

Advocacy group Amnesty International and exiled Myanmar journalists highlighted Sai Zaw’s imprisonment as part of the organisation’s 2025 Write for Rights campaign, urging the junta to release him immediately and unconditionally.

Sai Zaw was detained in May 2023 while reporting in Rakhine State after Cyclone Mocha struck, and later convicted on charges that included sedition, according to multiple human rights sources.

Harsh sentence and conditions 

The military court handed down the 20-year term with hard labour after a one-day trial in September 2023, a sentence activists say is disproportionately harsh and aimed at intimidating independent journalists.

Conditions inside Insein Prison have reportedly been brutal, with Sai Zaw subjected to beatings and periods of solitary confinement, according to recent reporting by the Committee to Protect Journalists and Amnesty materials.

Global advocacy and local context 

More than 200 journalists have been imprisoned in Myanmar since the military takeover, with media outlets banned and many reporters forced into exile, underscoring a broader assault on freedom of expression.

Amnesty’s campaign materials and commentary from colleagues emphasise the personal toll on Sai Zaw and his family, as well as the symbolic significance of his case for press freedom defenders worldwide.

KEY POINTS:

• Photojournalist Sai Zaw Thaike is serving a 20-year sentence in Myanmar’s Insein Prison for reporting on Cyclone Mocha
• Amnesty International has spotlighted his case in its 2025 Write for Rights campaign
• Myanmar’s military government continues to imprison journalists and ban independent media
• Reports allege Sai Zaw has endured beatings and solitary confinement
• Global advocacy efforts call for his immediate, unconditional release

ATTRIBUTION: Reporting compiled from verified human rights and press freedom sources, including Amnesty International and the Committee to Protect Journalists.

PHOTO: Sai Zaw Thaike (Facebook)