Phillip Blackwood, a man of both British and New Zealand citizenship, was jailed last month after posting an advertisement for his bar online. Blackwood, who was born in Britain and raised in New Zealand, had been living in Burma (Myanmar) and managed the V Gastro Bar, along with 2 Burmese associates Tun Thurein and Htut Ko Ko Lwin. Their online advertisement for their bar featured a psychadelic backdrop and an image of Buddha wearing headphones. The 3 men were thrown in jail on accounts of insulting Buddhism and disobeying a public order. The sentence they currently face is 2 and a half years- 2 years for the insulting image of Buddha, and another 6 months for the disobeying of public order.
Blackwood has essentially been abandoned by the British government, who has not responded to Blackwood's family's pleas for help. The sentences for the 3 men are ridiculous, and reek of the same free speech and religious intolerance issues brought to light after the Charlie Hebdo attacks in France. Burma is a country that is predominately Buddhist, and is known for severe levels of censorship. Granted the punishment for Blackwood is slightly better than if he had portrayed Muhammed, the Burmese government is still a bit out of line for jailing a foreign national for the mere placing of headphones atop the Buddha's head.
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/kiwi-jailed-in-burma-abandoned-his-country-birth-6277738
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