The Independent Myanmar Journalists Association (IMJA) has reviewed and documented a series of online attacks targeting Ms. Ni Ni Win, a female journalist with Border News Agency (BNA). These attacks have included the unauthorized use of her name, photograph, and personal information on certain social media pages, along with false allegations, sexually suggestive content, and personal attacks.
IMJA considers the deliberate targeting of a female journalist through sexual allegations unrelated to her professional work, humiliating statements, and false information intended to damage her reputation to constitute a form of gender-based harassment. Such attacks can undermine a journalist’s personal safety, psychological well-being, and ability to carry out her journalistic work freely and independently.
Individuals and organizations may disagree with or criticize the reporting or editorial position of a media organization. However, such disagreements can never justify personally targeting a journalist, disseminating private information, engaging in gender-based abuse and harassment, or deliberately using false information to damage a journalist’s reputation.
IMJA strongly condemns any act—whether carried out by an armed organization, political organization, state authority, media organization, civil society group, or individual—that involves threatening journalists; disclosing and disseminating their private or security-related information online without consent in order to target them; subjecting them to gender-based harassment or abuse; or using sexual allegations against female journalists with the intention of damaging their reputation and undermining public trust in both the journalist and the media organization concerned.
IMJA urges all relevant organizations and actors to respect journalists’ rights to freely gather, report, and disseminate information, as well as their right to privacy and personal security, and to take effective measures to prevent and end such threats and attacks.
IMJA will continue to monitor and document targeted attacks against journalists and will continue its efforts to defend press freedom and protect the safety and security of journalists.
For further information, please contact:
Phone: +66 81 713 2516
Signal: +66 81 713 2516
Independent Myanmar Journalists Association (IMJA)
