Meeting of four pillars arranged by Myanmar Press Council (MPC) was held at Pullman Hotel at the corner of Sule Pagoda Road and Merchant Street, Pabedan Township, Yangon yesterday morning.
The meeting was attended by Yangon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein, Yangon Region Hluttaw Speaker U Tin Maung Tun, Region Chief Judge, region ministers, Region Hluttaw Deputy Speaker, Hluttaw representatives, MPC Chairman and officials, departmental officials and news media personnel.
In his opening remark, MPC Chairman U Ohn Kyaing (Hanthawady U Ohn Kyaing) said democracy countries of the world today had accepted the free media as an important fourth pillar in a democracy system.
The fourth pillar – media-performs the duties of straightening the three main pillars of legislative, administrative and judiciary on behalf of the people.
News media perform in a timely manner the duties of providing news and information that the people should and ought to know and inform the Hluttaw representatives and government members on news and information that benefit the people.
In providing news and information that people ought to know, news media personnel sometime came into conflict with or cause friction with the three pillars that were responsible in governing the country. The meeting held today will found the best solutions toward reducing and removing the occurrence of such conflicts and frictions.
The state and the government had prescribed exact and firm duties, responsibilities, rules, regulations and ethics for news media personnel and reporters to report and write news and information correctly and exactly. Furthermore MPC was formed according the law to control and manage this.
As there were some inconveniences for news media personnel in acquiring news and information, problems arises when news media personnel publishes wrong, inaccurate and incomplete news and information. MPC need to coordinated and resolve such matters. It was for the three primary pillars and the fourth pillar to meet and resolve difficulties and challenges faced in the essence of democracy that this meeting was held said the MPC Chairman.
Next, Yangon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein said the news media sector plays an important role toward a country’s reform and transition, development, existence and sovereignty. That was why the fourth pillar of news media was added to the three main pillars. Administrative, judiciary and legislative sectors need news media in connecting and communicating with the people said the Chief Minister.
Afterwards, MPC Vice Chairman 1 Dr. Myo Thant Tin explained about news media sector and MPC secretary U Kyaw Swa Min explained about how the meeting of the four pillars came about and the aim of it. Yangon Region Chief Minister took commemorative group photo with attendees and then continued the meeting.
In the afternoon session of the meeting, discussion was held among Yangon Region government members, officials from administrative, legislative and judiciary sector and news media personnel. The meeting was chaired by MPC joint secretary 1 U Myint Kyaw and MPC member U Zeya Hlaing.
At the meeting, difficulties faced by reporters in acquiring news, acquiring news in the Hluttaw, establishing contact persons in government departments, arrangement media meetings, issuing news about health matters in a timely manner were discussed and MPC Vice Chairman 2 U Kyaw Naing (Htat Myet) delivered a concluding speech.
MPC had held meetings of four pillars three times in Nay Pyi Taw and nine times in nine states and regions and this is the thirteenth time such meeting was being held it is learnt.—Min Thit (MNA) (Translated by Zaw Min)
