RSF Keeps Aid Flowing to Myanmar Journalists
Reporters Without Borders continues emergency support and radio broadcasting for Myanmar journalists in exile and under junta pressure.
Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Media
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Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says its emergency assistance programme has supported more than 130 Myanmar journalists since 2021. The group is also closing its Chiang Mai equipment distribution centre in November 2026.
Why it matters
The junta has imposed a brutal crackdown on the media since the February 2021 coup, with journalists facing internet blackouts, digital surveillance and disinformation. RSF's support aims to keep independent reporting alive for those working in exile or in partially occupied areas.
RSF reports distributing 67 laptops, 50 smartphones, 25 solar batteries, 24 charging stations and 36 VPN subscriptions, and giving direct financial support to six local organisations. At least 40 Myanmar journalists remain in detention, and at least 220 have been arrested since the civil war began.
The players
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
An international non-governmental organisation that campaigns for press freedom and supports journalists facing persecution worldwide.
Sai Zaw Thaike
A Myanmar journalist sentenced by the junta to 20 years in prison in 2023, and the recipient of the 2026 RSF Press Freedom Prize in the Courage category.
Mizzima
An independent Myanmar news outlet that partnered with RSF on the shortwave programme 'Voice of Independent Myanmar'.
Radio Taiwan International
Taiwan's international broadcaster that partnered with RSF and Mizzima on the shortwave programme 'Voice of Independent Myanmar'.
The details
RSF's emergency assistance offers financial, legal or relocation help tailored to individual needs. Through its Myanmar Press Freedom Project, the group opened an equipment centre in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in October 2024, and in 2026 backed an FM station and the shortwave programme 'Voice of Independent Myanmar' with Mizzima and Radio Taiwan International.
Timeline
1 February 2021: Military coup; junta crackdown on media begins.
October 2024: RSF opens its Chiang Mai equipment distribution centre.
2023: Journalist Sai Zaw Thaike sentenced to 20 years in prison.
June 2026: RSF publishes a report on the weaponisation of national security.
November 2026: Chiang Mai centre scheduled to close.
Industry Dynamics
The support effort is a direct response to the junta's media crackdown that began with the 1 February 2021 coup, which has pushed Myanmar reporters into exile and forced them to rely on outside equipment and funding. The closure of the Chiang Mai centre in November 2026 marks a shift in how external press-freedom groups sustain exile journalism over time.
Myanmar journalists in exile and in partially occupied areas gain access to laptops, smartphones, solar power and VPN subscriptions needed to keep reporting. Audiences in those regions depend on the shortwave and FM broadcasts that RSF helped launch to reach independent news.
The takeaway
Independent reporting from Myanmar now depends heavily on external equipment, funding and broadcast partnerships, so the wind-down of the Chiang Mai centre is worth watching. Readers who follow press freedom can track how RSF and its partners maintain these programmes after 2026.
What happens next
The Chiang Mai equipment distribution centre is scheduled to close in November 2026.
Further reading
For more on the industry behind these efforts, see Media.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Bienvenue sur le site de Reporter sans frontières | RSF.
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