Source: New York Times
After allegedly flying a drone near Myanmar's Parliament in Naypyidaw, Myanmar's capital,
a French tourist, Michel Deslaux could possibly face up to three years in prison under strict laws
on unmanned aerial vehicles. Under flight restrictions, the law restricts the importing of drones
and they cannot be flown near airports and over gatherings of people near/on private property
without permission. These tough restrictions on drones have increased complaints that visitors
who want footage of these areas can easily break and find themselves violating the law. There
are signs in the area that state drones are banned such as in Burmese, but in this case there
was only a small sign on the gate of the Parliament in Burmese language, with only the word
"drone" in English. Critics suggests rules should be advertised and more notices should be put
up for visitors who may be unaware of the rules. This arrest suggests advocation of media
freedom, such as Myanmar's government using criminal investigations as coverage in order
to cover critical news.
a French tourist, Michel Deslaux could possibly face up to three years in prison under strict laws
on unmanned aerial vehicles. Under flight restrictions, the law restricts the importing of drones
and they cannot be flown near airports and over gatherings of people near/on private property
without permission. These tough restrictions on drones have increased complaints that visitors
who want footage of these areas can easily break and find themselves violating the law. There
are signs in the area that state drones are banned such as in Burmese, but in this case there
was only a small sign on the gate of the Parliament in Burmese language, with only the word
"drone" in English. Critics suggests rules should be advertised and more notices should be put
up for visitors who may be unaware of the rules. This arrest suggests advocation of media
freedom, such as Myanmar's government using criminal investigations as coverage in order
to cover critical news.
Discussion Questions
1.Do you think it is unfair for tourists to be held to such strict laws if they are unaware of them?
2.What do you think can be done to spread awareness about the restrictions and rules that apply
to Myanmar to those who don’t live in Myanmar?
3.Do you believe the Myanmar government can/should be partly blamed for because of
such little awareness of the rules?
1.Do you think it is unfair for tourists to be held to such strict laws if they are unaware of them?
2.What do you think can be done to spread awareness about the restrictions and rules that apply
to Myanmar to those who don’t live in Myanmar?
3.Do you believe the Myanmar government can/should be partly blamed for because of
such little awareness of the rules?
I believe that it is fair to hold tourist accountable for the laws they break no matter how severe. To say that a tourist can break the law because they didnt know about it is thte same as letting a robber break in and not go to prison because they "didnt know the law". The line between what the tourist knows and doesnt is too thin to allow them to be considered outside the law.
ReplyDeleteItamar Levi
6th period
In my opinion I believe that it's fair that the tourists face the consequences of breaking the law in another country because they are responsible for violating the law and it overall is disrespectful to the other country even if you can't read the signs.
ReplyDeleteI do think it is unfair to face years in prison for accidentally breaking the rules. If there wasn't a clear sign stating what exactly could not be done at the sight, there shouldn't be such serious consequences. The government should know that tourists don't always speak the language they speak, so they should make it more clear for tourists and other visitors.
ReplyDeleteIn my personal opinion, I feel that it is fair that tourists should face consequences of breaking laws in other countries, since it is their fault if they do break the laws. I also feel that in all countries, all laws should be respected. Those that are unaware about the laws in whatever country they might be in should be responsible for whatever law that they break, thus proceeding on to consequences for breaking them.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I believe that the tourist shouldn't be held with three years of a punishment. Yes, I also see that the tourist also read up on the laws before doing so but still, the people visiting shouldn't be aimed at too much for just trying to enjoy the view.
ReplyDelete1. Although I do think tourists should be aware about the laws about the country they are visiting, they shouldn't be punished as muhc as people who actually live there.
ReplyDeleteFrom my perspective I think that when tourists visit another country they need to be aware of what they are doing, and respect the laws. Before the tourist flew the drone I think he should've made sure the area he was in was okay with it and that it won't interfere with the flight laws, but 3 years of punishment is a little much unless there was damage involved.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is unfair for tourists to be severely punished in a country where they are unaware of the laws they have. Although, tourists should be somewhat aware of the drone laws in other countries since drone laws are different all over the world and can be dangerous or an invasion of privacy.
ReplyDelete3) I think should be partly to blamed for because of
ReplyDeletesuch little awareness of the rules. I feel like they should expect visitors all around the world so they should have a few more language.
I think that the lack of advertisements could definitely lead to some confusion about what tourists can and cannot do. They should spread word about these no drone zones and possibly have a special universal sign for them so that people of all languages could see and understand what they mean.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it is unfair that tourists face the consequences of things they didn’t know that was against the law unless they were aware of what they’re doing. To spread awareness on rules and restrictions those who visit Myanmar should look up the rules and laws before heading there and if not they should be cautious before doing something that causes consequences. I believe that Myanmar should give off a warning if their rules weren’t clear or shown properly and I think they shouldn’t be blamed but be more lenient to those who break the rules. -Rayn santos
ReplyDeleteI think it is unfair that tourists face the consequences of things they didn´t know about certain laws and what certain things were illegal to do. They should provide that information to tourists more efficently so these type of problems don happen
ReplyDeleteI think it is unfair to the tourist to give them 3 years of punishment for something he was not aware was illegal and was not informed decently that what they were doing was illegal.
ReplyDeleteSome punishment is called for, but the same punishment that residents who do know the law and are properly informed of it is wrong.
i think that it i unfair if they didn't know about the laws. people should be held accountable but they shouldn't be held to such a harsh extent
ReplyDeletei dont think its fair that they give the guy big punishments over using a drone on private property but he does deserve something because you do need to follow the rules and if you dont you get in trouble
ReplyDeleteI think that the less they re aware then of course they will do something breaking these strict walls. If so they shouldnt receive such a harsh punishment. They need to show how things are instead of pointing fingers before some innocent tourists gets charged for something they didn’t know they did.
ReplyDeleteI believe that tourists should not be held to as strict laws. They are not aware of them but should still use common knowledge to adhere to them. If a tourist was unaware of the laws then they should only be fined the minimum amount instead of being arrested.
ReplyDelete