A delivery man unwittingly transporting leaflets on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights could have been arrested in Myanmar not long ago. But this year, for the first time since the end of military rule in 2011, flyers advertising a travelling human rights film festival were freely distributed throughout markets and in the streets of towns across the country.
BOX-OFFICE FRENZY: People clamour for 650 free tickets at the Shwe Hinthar Cinema in Bago. Cinema manager Shwe Hla Tun says the three-day festival was the first of its kind in the town. PHOTOS: COURTESY OF HRHDIFF
Than Sein, a 63-year-old housewife, picked up a flyer for the film festival in her local village market, just outside of Bago.
The leaflet promised the chance to see a film documenting the life story of a political prisoner, and another about illegal Myanmar migrants to Thailand, who live in and survive scavenging rubbish dumps in Mae Sot to avoid being captured by police.
Intrigued, Than Sein resolved to make the journey to Shwe Hinthar Cinema in Bago, where the festival would be held. ''My neighbours knocked on the door hard for me this morning,'' she says. ''I started walking at 8am and arrived here around 10.30am.''
Not long after she arrived, all 650 free tickets for the first show were snapped up by waiting hordes. That day, all three shows at the cinema were full _ to the amazement of cinema manager Shwe Hla Tun.
''We didn't expect such big crowds, though we did publicise the festival in Bago and the surrounding villages,'' the manager says, adding that disappointed members of the public have been complaining about a shortage of tickets. ''This is the first and only film festival the town has seen, and the cinema is the most crowded it has ever been.''
Shwe Hla Tun says cinema audience numbers have decreased sharply over the past five years. The manager of the Bago cinema _ 80km outside of Yangon _ puts the decline down to the fact that Chinese-made DVD players have become readily available for less than US$30 (939 baht), while three pirate DVDs can be bought on the streets for as little as $1. Not only that, but paid-for TV packages from providers including Sky Net and MRTV-4 are increasingly affordable.
''We hardly ever draw 300 people across a whole day of screenings,'' the manager says. ''We had to stop our 3.30pm shows because we had no audience. But today the 3.30pm show was full.
''Even with free tickets, people won't spend their time coming to the cinema unless they're interested in the films. It is obvious that people are interested in human rights.''
MASS APPEAL: The festival attracted an audience from all sectors of the local community in Bago.
On the first day of the festival in Bago, people packed free screenings of five award-winning films including a documentary exploring child labour in a tea shop, and an animation telling the story of a corrupt chess game.
Than Sein says: ''I liked the film about rubbish collectors in Mae Sot and the animation, The Chess.''
The first instalment of Myanmar's Human Rights Human Dignity International Film Festival was held in June in Yangon. The opening film, Survival in Prison, about a political prisoner's resistance to human rights abuses, was successfully screened in public at the city's Nay Pyi Taw Cinema.
During the three-day festival, a total of 54 films were shown _ 28 from Myanmar and 26 from overseas _ in two mini-cinemas at the Junction Cineplex in Junction Square shopping centre.
The festival began its tour of the country in August. Within two months, it had visited seven locations, including the capital Nay Pyi Taw. It still has seven more stops, including Shan, Kayah, Kachin, Rakhine and Chin states. Festival organisers expect to have reached at least 15,000 people by the end of the tour.
Providing a platform for discussions about human rights in public is at the heart of the festival. After screenings, audiences have the chance to question film-makers.
The documentary Survival in Prison is one film that has sparked lively debate among audiences keen to talk about human rights abuses perpetrated by the former military government. The film itself is a testimony of human rights violations endured by political prisoners.
San Zaw Htwe, the main focus of the documentary, spent 12 years in prison. But he says his story is personal, insisting he does not speak for the many other political prisoners who suffered more than him or died in custody.
An elderly lady in Hpa-an, the capital of Kayin state, burst into tears after the screening of the film, admitting that she never grasped how political prisoners had suffered until watching the documentary.
''I could imagine how painful it would have been for your parents while you were in prison. I would have felt the same if you were my son,'' she told San Zaw Htwe, wiping away tears.
The prisoner's plight resonated with audience members of all ages _ including a number of university students who said they were overwhelmed with respect for San Zaw Htwe and the courage he displayed during his time in captivity.
Film-maker Yee Nan Theik says the documentary is not intended to rouse emotions or make a political statement about human rights abuses perpetrated by the old regime. Rather it is a simple story about how a political prisoner used small acts of resistance in his struggle for survival behind bars _ making art from recycled items, drawing sketches of the prison and writing poems.
As well as stories about Myanmar, the festival showcases international films exploring women's and children's rights.
The Game Must Go On, a film about Greek schoolchildren who demand a playground from their local mayor, was a favourite among young viewers from monastic schools and orphanages who were invited to the festival.
In terms of its human rights record, Myanmar is improving. According to a global report by Human Rights Watch, ''noteworthy'' strides towards political reform are taking place, but the country remains troubled by civil liberties abuses.
The report points to two new laws related to land use that fail to protect the rights of farmers and activists to assemble peacefully _ many of whom are now facing charges for having organised demonstrations without permission.
It also raises concerns about continuing sectarian violence between Buddhists and Muslims, and the number of internally displaced people in the country, estimated to have stood last year at 550,000 _ in addition to about 140,000 refugees in camps in Thailand.
Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi used a speech at the 25th anniversary of her National League for Democracy party last month to warn that elections in 2015 cannot be conducted fairly unless the country's constitution is amended.
Sandar Min, an MP and former political prisoner, agrees that the country has a long way to go, but says initiatives such as the film festival are pushing the boundaries of what's possible.
''To have 2,000, 1,500 or 600 people in cities outside Yangon coming to see films about survival in a Myanmar prison is an extraordinary achievement,'' she says.
During the tour of the film festival so far, San Zaw Htwe says he has been struck by the fact that audiences seem more interested in venting their anger on rights abuses, rather than developing a better understanding of what exactly their human rights are. At many of the festival's stops, audience members have approached film-makers to ask them to document human rights abuses affecting their local area.
San Zaw Htwe met an activist when the festival descended on the town of Monywa, the site of the controversial Letpadaung copper mine project. Villagers say their concerns about the social and environmental impact of the mining project have been disregarded by the government and its Chinese-backed investor.
''This activist in Monywa told me that people whose rights are abused are angry, but he realised you can't solve the problem with anger. He said our film enlightened him about how to resist the actions of the authorities calmly,'' San Zaw Htwe explains. ''This film festival has the power to give people courage to protect their rights, and to speak up when they're suffering abuse.''
VOCAL SUPPORTER: MP Sandar Min attended the film festival when it arrived at the capital Nay Pyi Taw and joined the discussion after the show.
CURTAIN-RAISER: Left, children hold a human rights placard at the festival. Right, the audience in Hpa-An in Kayin state watch the animation film, ‘The Chess’.