July 24, 2007—An advertisement placed in Monday's English-language The Myanmar Times newspaper by a satirical art group had hidden messages, calling the country's military ruler Snr-Gen Than Shwe a "killer" and hailing “freedom.”
The bogus advertisement was placed in the semi-official newspaper by Denmark-based Surrend, which has experience slipping clandestine ads under the noses of repressive regimes, group member Pia Bertelsen said in a telephone interview from Denmark with The Associated Press in Bangkok, Thailand.
 |
| This innocent-looking advertisement carried by The Myanmar Times carried hidden messages—“Killer Than Shwe” and “Freedom” |
The ad, published in Burma's commercial capital Rangoon, looked like an innocent call for tourists visiting Burma from Scandinavia, with the drawing of a palm tree and sun, and text praising Burma's "beautiful country and friendly people."
It included a line from a fictitious “old Danish poem”—“Feel relaxed, enjoy everything, dance on minutes.” The first letters of the seven words spell out “freedom.”
At the bottom of the half-page ad was "The Board of Islandic Travel Agencies Ewhsnahtrellik and the Danish Industry BesoegDanmark," including the long Danish-looking word "Ewhsnahtrellik." When read backward it said, "killer Than Shwe."
Bertelsen said the ad was a way to show even autocratic leaders could be criticized.
"What we want to achieve with the ad is to show that there are cracks in even the worst regimes. That with art you can find these holes and fly under the censorship's radar and hit the despots," she said.
To place the ad, Surrend presented themselves as an advertising company.
The Myanmar Times was not immediately available for comment, but Bertelsen said the ad was designed in a way so it was hard for them to discover the hidden message.
"We don't think they will be blamed. And also, The Myanmar Times is an important propaganda tool for the Burma regime so they are a part of the regime we criticize," she said.
The Myanmar Times has weekly editions in both English and Burmese. It was founded in 2000 and is partly owned by the government, and like all media in Burma is censored by the Ministry of Information.
Surrend has placed similar ads with hidden messages before, including one in the government-controlled Tehran Times last December that spelled out "swine" below a photo of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The ad reads like a criticism of US President George W Bush, but the first letter of each sentence line up along the left of the ad and spells "swine" when read from top to bottom.
"Our purpose with our art is not to make revolutions, but to poke fun at the despots," Bertelsen said.
It included a line from a fictitious “old Danish poem”—“Feel relaxed, enjoy everything, dance on minutes.” The first letters of the seven words spell out “freedom.”
At the bottom of the half-page ad was "The Board of Islandic Travel Agencies Ewhsnahtrellik and the Danish Industry BesoegDanmark," including the long Danish-looking word "Ewhsnahtrellik." When read backward it said, "killer Than Shwe."
Bertelsen said the ad was a way to show even autocratic leaders could be criticized.
"What we want to achieve with the ad is to show that there are cracks in even the worst regimes. That with art you can find these holes and fly under the censorship's radar and hit the despots," she said.
To place the ad, Surrend presented themselves as an advertising company.
The Myanmar Times was not immediately available for comment, but Bertelsen said the ad was designed in a way so it was hard for them to discover the hidden message.
"We don't think they will be blamed. And also, The Myanmar Times is an important propaganda tool for the Burma regime so they are a part of the regime we criticize," she said.
The Myanmar Times has weekly editions in both English and Burmese. It was founded in 2000 and is partly owned by the government, and like all media in Burma is censored by the Ministry of Information.
Surrend has placed similar ads with hidden messages before, including one in the government-controlled Tehran Times last December that spelled out "swine" below a photo of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The ad reads like a criticism of US President George W Bush, but the first letter of each sentence line up along the left of the ad and spells "swine" when read from top to bottom.
"Our purpose with our art is not to make revolutions, but to poke fun at the despots," Bertelsen said.
