New Burma law oversees video showin

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Subject: New Burma law oversees video showings (fwd)

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 31 Jul 1996 6:40:10 PDT
Newsgroups: clari.world.asia.southeast, clari.news.issues.censorship
Subject: New Burma law oversees video showings


	RANGOON, July 31 (UPI) -- Foreign diplomatic missions and United
Nations agencies based in the Burmese capital will need government
permits if they want to hold public exhibitions of imported videotapes,
according to a new law promulgated Wednesday by Burma's military
government.
	Diplomats are to submit imported videotapes to the video censor board
for scrutiny.
	The board will decide whether the videotapes may be shown in their
entirety, after objectionable parts have been expunged, or only to a
restricted audience within the premises of the diplomatic mission or U.
N. agency.
	The new Television and Video Law also requires private operators of
video businesses to obtain licenses from video business supervisory
committees to be formed in Burma's 14 states and divisions.
	The law forbids exhibition of any videotape, whether locally produced
or imported, which has not been passed and certified by the video censor
board.
	Anyone found violating this provision of the law is liable to be
punished with up to three years' imprisonment and/or a fine of up to
kyats 100,000 ($16,700).
	The videotape concerned will also be confiscated.
	The same punishment is prescribed for the distribution, hiring or
exhibition for commercial purposes of copied television programs of the
government; and for copying, distributing, hiring or exhibiting for
commercial purposes a videotape passed by the censor board and held
under license by another video business operator without the permission
of that operator.
	Officials said the aims of the new law were to raise the standard of
the video business and to prohibit decadent videotapes inimical to
Burmese culture and traditions.
	The law will affect thousands of video businesses throughout the
country that exhibit uncensored imported videotapes along with locally
produced ones.
	The law also forbids private TV transmitters not authorized by the
government, a ban punishable by five years' imprisonment for those who
disregard the prohibition.
	sin-m