MYANMAR WOMEN JOURNALISTS THRIVE IN EXPANDING YANGON MEDIA SECTOR
December 15th 2007 21:21
The Myanmar Times reports that as the Myanmar media industry expands, so too have the number of women working as reporters and editors at newspapers and journals in Yangon.
Many female journalists now work for local publications, but 40 years ago traveling the country in pursuit of news was seen as work unfit for a woman.
Despite the perceived unsuitability of the profession for women back then, Daw Kywe Kywe started working as a journalist and editor for the Lan Sin Party magazine in 1970 and stayed there for the next 25 years.
“When I was 38 I decided to become a journalist because I liked writing articles and novels and I wanted to educate people with my pen,” said the pioneering writer, now 75 years old.
Daw Kywe Kywe told the Myanmar Times that as the married mother of three children she faced many social obstacles that ultimately led to her divorce.
“My family and relatives severely criticised me because as a journalist I often had to travel with male photographers to cover stories. I eventually had to divorce my husband because of this,” she said.
She said she “passed many years with tears” and often questioned the wisdom of pursuing journalism as a career.
“Although I felt pain in my heart, I worked with the confidence that I was a good reporter. And when I had to travel with a photographer for a week to write a story we knew that as Buddhists we could uphold our moral standards.”
Daw Kywe Kywe, now retired said she welcomed the opening of Myanmar’s first degree program in journalism next year. The three-year program will be offered at Botahtaung College as a collaborative effort between the ministries of Information and Education.
- From MediaBlab
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