10 years of Myanmar Now

This month marks the 10th anniversary of Myanmar Now. We're looking back at the past decade, highlighting landmark moments in our history of bringing you the news, often despite immense risk to our journalists.

Founded in 2015

Founded in Yangon in 2015 during a period of relative openness for media, Myanmar Now quickly became known for bold investigative reporting, covering issues such as prison labour camps, ultranationalist monks, and sweetheart deals for businesses with ties to the military.

Myanmar Now publishes special report uncovering the military's prison labour camps

Myanmar Now’s investigation detailed widespread abuses and exploitation within Myanmar’s prison labor camps. It highlighted how thousands of convicts are forced into back-breaking manual labor under harsh conditions, facing daily beatings and bribery demands from prison authorities. The investigation revealed that this forced labor, often involving private companies, generated significant revenue for the prison system, despite violating international conventions against forced labor.

Editor in Chief Detained in Myanmar for 'Defaming' an Anti-Muslim Monk

Burmese Authorities detain Ko Swe Win, Editor-in-Chief for criticising Anti-Muslim Monk U Wirathu.

The arrest was in connection with a criminal defamation case filed against him by a follower of the ultranationalist Buddhist monk U Wirathu. The lawsuit accused Ko Swe Win of “defaming” the monk in a Facebook post. The post, which shared a Myanmar Now story, had quoted a senior monk who said that U Wirathu’s actions (specifically, his praise for the assassin of prominent lawyer Ko Ni) were a violation of a core Buddhist rule that warrants expulsion from monkhood.

Ko Swe Win was released on bail the next day, but the legal case against him continued for nearly two years. The charges were brought under Article 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law, a controversial piece of legislation that was frequently used to stifle free speech.

Myanmar Now publishes investigations into political, military and financial corruption

Myanmar Now continues to lead the way in publishing in-depth investigative journalism which holds the powerful to account.

Key investigations revealed a political party leader’s criminal past and lavish lifestyle, and following the coup, how the military junta leveraged private banks and public money to fund its war efforts, exposing persistent problems of self-serving elites and institutional exploitation.

Myanmar Now publishes reports of huge political storm just days before the military coup on February 1st, 2021

A few days before the coup, Myanmar Now published a report based on evidence from a reliable source that indicated the junta was planning a military coup.

The report speculated that the military may detain State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, President Win Myint, and other top government officials. Publishing this information was a decision that risked the security of the entire media outlet.

Myanmar Now covers nationwide anti-coup protests and the junta’s violent killing of unarmed protesters

Reporting from the ground in cities across the country, Myanmar Now journalists covered weeks of deadly violence, as security forces waged war against their own people. Soldiers and police use live ammunition and stun grenades, killing and injuring dozens. Among the dead are a 19-year-old woman shot in the head and a 37-year-old man with a chest wound. Medical workers are also targeted and brutally beaten by police. In early March, the total number of people killed since the coup rises to over 30, with 1,200 arrested.

Junta raids Myanmar Now’s office in downtown Yangon

Soldiers and police raided Myanmar Now’s office in Yangon, seizing computers, printers and parts of the newsroom’s data server.

The raid took place a little over a month after the military seized power on February 1. This was part of a coordinated and brutal campaign by the junta to suppress all forms of dissent and independent information.

In the following days, the junta revoked the licenses of five independent media outlets including Myanmar Now. This move made it illegal for these outlets to operate, report, or publish in any form.

Myanmar Now goes underground

The junta began a campaign of mass arrests, targeting journalists, photographers, and editors for covering the protests and the military’s abuses.

After the junta raided Myanmar Now’s office, reporters were forced to flee marking the time of Myanmar Now’s exile. But the raid and the revocation of its license did not stop Myanmar Now. The incident forced the entire organization to completely change its mode of operation, moving all its activities and staff into a precarious “underground” existence.

The raid was a clear message from the military: independent journalism would not be tolerated. However, it also cemented Myanmar Now’s commitment to remain an essential voice for the people of Myanmar, one that refused to be silenced.

Myanmar Now publishes exclusive footage and witness testimony of military crimes against civilians

Though the Myanmar military’s tactics of indiscriminate arson attacks on entire villages are relatively well known, the horrors perpetrated by its soldiers have rarely been caught on camera. With harrowing and exclusive footage, as well as testimony from witnesses and army defectors, the junta’s use of terror tactics to force the public into submission is revealed up close.

10 years of Myanmar Now

Myanmar Now continues its mission is to expose injustice in society. Meanwhile, the military continues to persecute journalists and our team member Sai Zaw Thaike remains behind bars for his reporting.

Despite the huge challenges of the past decade, our team’s reporting has won a number of regional and global awards. This has included the One World Media Award in 2021 and the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Award for Excellence in Human Rights Reporting in 2022, 2023, and 2024. In 2023 our team was also awarded the Free Media Pioneer Award for our “courageous commitment to independent investigative journalism.”

Over the years, our reach has also grown steadily, allowing us to produce more stories for more readers. We now provide regular news to an audience of over 7 million in Myanmar and across the world.

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