Ministry of Information (Burma)
| ပြန်ကြားရေးဝန်ကြီးဌာန | |
 |
|
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1947 |
| Jurisdiction |
 Myanmar
|
| Headquarters | Naypyidaw |
| Minister responsible | |
| Website | www |
The Ministry of Information (Burmese: ပြန်ကြားရေးဝန်ကြီးဌာန) in Burma informs the public about government policy plans and implementation and supports improvements to knowledge and education of the public.
As of 2011 the ministry consisted of:
In 2002 the ministry included these departments and also included Video Scrutinizing Committees. The Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV) owned the MRTV and MRTV3 channels. MRTV3 was broadcasting in English. The Department of Public Relations and Psychological Welfare under the Ministry of Defence, had its own television channel, Myawaddi, and the Yangon City Development Committee also broadcast programmes from Myodaw Radio Programme. As of 2007, the News and Publishing Enterprise published the Myanmar Alin and the Kyaymon in Burmese and the New Light of Myanmar in English. On 18 November 2011, the Ministry of Information began publishing a weekly journal called the Naypyitaw Times, to report on government policies.
The Ministry of Information has played an active role in ensuring that the media conform to the government's official line.
Speaking at the Myanma Motion Picture Awards in 2002, the Minister of Information said: "The duty of Myanma film artistes is to preserve national culture and character and Myanma styles, to contribute to the flourishing of patriotism and Union Spirit and to broaden the horizons of the people. At a time when mass communication systems are spreading fast, the title of a film and the names of characters are to be chosen carefully so that they cannot be open to misinterpretation. Words to be used in the film need to be in consonance with Myanmar tradition and society. Only then will they be accepted in Myanmar society. The objectives are: To preserve and safeguard national culture through film, to contribute toward the dynamism of patriotism among the people, to organise the people to participate in building of a peaceful, modern developed nation".
In 1963 the Burmese Translation Society was absorbed into the Moinistry's Printing and Publishing Enterprise, and renamed Sarpay Beikman (Palace of Literature). This organisation gives out the annual Sarpay Beikman Manuscript Awards for new manuscripts and National Literature Award for books published in the previous year. Speaking at an award presentation in December 2009, Secretary-1 General Tin Aung Myint Oo said: "... Developing countries are working for their own development by laying down and implementing policies appropriate to their respective societies. However, foreign media, turning a blind eye to their achievements, are always slandering, defaming and making fabricated accusations against them. Therefore, it is a historic duty for literati to rebut the unfounded accusations of foreign media, to help the entire people to see the internal and international developments in the right perspective and to be able to march steadily on the path of national interests and to organise them with literary power for preservation and development of national culture. It is also important for literati to prevent the infiltration of alien culture and extinction of national characteristics with national literary and cultural power. And it is also necessary for them to take an active part in building a strong and united Union in line with political, economic and social objectives. ..."
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Wikipedia