New Zealander Philip Blackwood and two Myanmar nationals were sentenced to two and a half years in prison each over a poster promoting a drinks event which depicted Buddha wearing headphones, the BBC reported.
Mr Blackwood, who worked as a manager at the VGastro bar in Myanmar's largest city, Yangon, faced up to four years in jail for violating the Religion Act. Tun Thurein, the bar owner, and manager Htut Ko Ko Lwin, were also facing the same charge, according to The New Zealand Herald.
Amnesty International New Zealand told BuzzFeed News that the sentences should be overturned immediately:
"The conviction and prison sentence handed down today against two managers and the owner of a bar in Myanmar for displaying an image of the Buddha wearing headphones should be overturned immediately and is a chilling indication of the growing climate of religious intolerance in the country."
Tensions between the majority Buddhist population and the country's Muslim minority have been rising recently.
Myanmar emerged from the grip of 49 years of military rule in 2011, but outbreaks of violence between the two groups have rocked the country in recent years, causing concern among the international community.