Journalists can no longer cover Myanmar's nascent Parliament from inside the media chamber because pictures of snoozing lawmakers were published online.
Reporters in the capital, Naypyitaw, were told they would have to watch proceedings on TV from the corridor. The pictures of sleeping MPs was the main reason cited by Kyaw Soe, director general of the Union Parliament, which handles administrative duties.
Other embarrassing pictures have circulated showing lawmakers using iPad devices while in session. Another appeared to show an army representative leaning over to press a voting button for a missing lawmaker.
Journalists were negotiating with officials today to restore their access.
In a minor victory, they were told they could occupy a row of far-away seats. But that would be sufficient only for text reporters, not visual journalists.
