After 50 yrs, daily papers return to Myanmar

Yangon (AFP): Privately owned daily newspapers hit Myanmar's streets for the first time in decades on Monday under new freedoms that represent a revolution for a media shackled under military rule. Four Burmese-language titles � The Voice, The Golden Fresh Land, The Union and The Standard Time � made the transition from weekly as new rules came into effect that swept away state media's long monopoly on daily printing. "We prepared for about six months to become a daily newspaper. We wanted to be part of this historical milestone," Aung Soe, an editor of The Voice, told AFP. News stands in Yangon reported an early morning rush by readers eager to witness the latest sweeping change in the country also known as Burma. "The Voice daily sold out soon after it arrived even though I ordered double the amount than other newspapers. People are keen to read private daily newspapers for the first time," said newspaper seller Phyu Phyu. Myanmar's public has become accustomed to an increasingly boisterous media since the country's quasi-civilian government relaxed its grip on the press after coming to power in 2011. The country's military rulers seized control of private daily papers in 1964, according to veteran journalist Thiha Saw of Open News weekly.