Press Scrutiny and Registration Division

{{Short description|Government agency of Myanmar}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2023}}

{{Contains special characters|Burmese}}

The Press Scrutiny and Registration Division ({{langx|my|စာပေစိစစ်နှင့်မှတ်ပုံတင်ဌာန}}, formerly the Press Scrutiny Board or PSB) is a division under the Ministry of Information, responsible for censorship of media in Myanmar. Its current director is Major Tint Swe.{{Cite web | url=http://www.ifex.org/burma/2010/03/31/coverage_rights_granted/ |title = Foreign journalists to cover Armed Forces Day|date = 2010-03-31}} PSRD censors all forms of media, ranging from publications such as newspapers and magazines and other published content like books. New publishers are required to register publications with the PSRD.{{cite web |url=http://www.myanmar.gov.mm/myanmartimes/no277/MyanmarTimes14-277/n007.htm |title=Myanmar Times & Business Reviews |accessdate=2010-08-19 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080418050337/http://www.myanmar.gov.mm/myanmartimes/no277/MyanmarTimes14-277/n007.htm |archivedate=2008-04-18 }} The PSRD's time-consuming and arbitrary process has forced nearly all privately held news publications in Burma to publish on a weekly or monthly basis.{{Cite web | url=http://www.cpj.org/2010/02/attacks-on-the-press-2009-burma.php |title = Attacks on the Press 2009: Burma|date = 16 February 2010}} All of the daily newspapers in Burma are government-owned.

Its origins date to August 1962, with the promulgation of the Printers' and Publishers' Registration Act, which established the Press Scrutiny Board, by the Revolutionary Council.http://english.mizzimamedia.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=37:media-in-burma&Itemid=28{{Dead link|date=May 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} In April 2005, the Press Scrutiny Board was renamed the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division.

In 2009, a medical malpractice incident that resulted in the death of a young girl, which was widely reported in local Burmese media prompted a crackdown in censorship by the PSRD.{{cite web|url=http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=17444 |accessdate=August 19, 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100812001412/http://irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=17444 |archivedate=August 12, 2010 |title=Junta Tightens Media Censorship }} Publications that report unapproved material, or "subversive" material can face publication bans.{{cite web|url=http://www.mmtimes.com/no439/n015.htm |accessdate=August 19, 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326032918/http://www.mmtimes.com/no439/n015.htm |archivedate=March 26, 2012 |title=Myanmar Times & Business Reviews }} "Sandwich reporting," in which messages are included in stories or written works, that aren't caught by the censorship board, have become part of the working vocabulary of Burmese journalists.{{cite web|url=http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=19210 |accessdate=August 19, 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100816232357/http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=19210 |archivedate=August 16, 2010 |title='Sandwich Reporting' Keeps the Censors Guessing }}

The 20 July 2010 directive issued by the Press Scrutiny and Registration Board, called for "correct and complete quoting of the [2008] constitution, electoral laws and its rules". It also warns domestic journals that stern action could include loss of publishing licenses for breach of the directive.{{cite web |url=http://www.seapabkk.org/newdesign/alertsdetail.php?No=1315 |accessdate=August 19, 2010 |title=The Wayback Machine has not archived that URL. |archive-date=4 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140904115911/http://www.seapabkk.org/newdesign/alertsdetail.php?No=1315 |url-status=dead }}