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Myanmar In response, the military said that anyone using unlicensed satellite devices and other internet services would be prosecuted under the Article 67 of the Telecommunication Law. The military’s announcement is a warning to the public to avoid using internet services that are not authorized by law203, 204. Before the coup, the telecommunication services in Myanmar were provided by the Myanmar Post and Telecommunication (MPT), Ooredoo, Telenor, and Mytel. MPT, a state-owned enterprise under the Ministry of Transport and Communications, was a monopoly before the Thein Sein government opened the sector to other players in 2012. Qatari-owned Ooredoo and Norwegian-owned Telenor entered the market in 2014. Meanwhile, Mytel is a joint venture between the Myanmar military and Viettel, a state-owned company under Vietnam’s Ministry of National Defense. Mytel was granted a license to operate in 2017. Following the coup, the military ordered telecommunications services to comply 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 with censorship and surveillance orders. Telenor then exited Myanmar within months, and sold the company to the M1 Group, a Lebanese firm that has close ties to the military205. Ooreedo also left the country in 2022, and was sold to Nine Communications, a Singapore-based firm that also has links to the military206. After this, the military’s links to all the telecommunication service providers facilitate the implementation of junta orders on control and surveillance. After staging the coup, the junta ordered telecommunication service providers to impose censorship on online services and websites, including Facebook, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Twitter207. Apart from social media, Wikipedia was also blocked, as well as the websites of VPNs including Proton and TunnelBear208. According to a report by the Internet Society using measurements from the Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI), Wikipedia remained blocked in 2023, while social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are also blocked in various degrees209. Ibid. “Myanmar Junta to Prosecute Satellite Internet Users.” The Irrawaddy, 24 Nov. 2023, www.irrawaddy.com/ news/burma/myanmar-junta-to-prosecute-satellite-internet-users.html. Klesty, Victoria. “Telenor Quits Myanmar With $105 Mln Sale to Lebanon’s M1 Group.” Reuters, 8 July 2021, www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/telenor-sells-myanmar-operations-m1-group-105mln-2021-07-08. Zan, Hein Htoo. “Military Crony Linked to New Ownership of Ooredoo’s Myanmar Unit.” The Irrawaddy, 12 Sep. 2022, www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/military-crony-linked-to-new-ownership-of-ooredoos-myanmar-unit.html. Xynou, Maria, et al. “Myanmar: Data on Internet Blocks and Internet Outages Following Military Coup.” OONI, 9 Mar. 2021, ooni.org/post/2021-myanmar-internet-blocks-and-outages. Ibid. York, Dan. “3 Years on, Myanmar’s Internet Service Blocking Results in $232 Million Loss.” Internet Society Pulse, 6 Feb. 2024, pulse.internetsociety.org/blog/3-years-on-myanmars-internet-service-blocking-resultsin-232-million-loss. 61

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Annual Report: Digital Rights in Southeast Asia 2023-2024

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Language

English

Topic

Digital Rights
Digital Surveillance
Information Operation
Internet Connectivity / Accessibility
Internet Restrictions

Author(s)

DigitalReach

Date Published: Aug 6, 2024

Abstract: It is undeniable that information technology has significantly impacted human rights and democracy these days. Different governments around Southeast Asia continually attempt to control digital space through, for example, using repressive laws and regulations, forcing social media platforms to follow their orders, and using spyware and similar technology to surveil critics. In Southeast Asia, democracy and human rights have deteriorated because of these attempts, especially for countries under authoritarian regimes.

In order to better understand the situation, DigitalReach publishes annual reports to present and analyze the events and trends around the region. The 2023 annual report analyzes the digital rights situation in eight countries across Southeast Asia—namely Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam–from January 2023 to December 2023, with glimpses of key updates into 2024, given the timing of its release.

The report format has been changed completely from the previous years. In order to more systematically present the developments observed, the report is organized into three key areas: (1) Legal and Policy Developments, (2) Information Control and Manipulation, and (3) Threats Against Critics and Political Opposition.

From a regional perspective, legal and policy developments in countries that are known to restrict human rights are still mainly about using or coming up with new policies to further suppress human rights in the digital sphere. Countries considered to be more democratic also attempt to change or repeal their laws, but still without a clear sign of improvement toward digital rights.

In terms of information control and manipulation, social media platforms continue to be deployed for political ends, with different platforms serving a specific purpose for each country. The shift toward short video format, TikTok in particular, continued from 2022 to contribute toward information disorder, especially during election periods. The use of video shorts is important when targeting young voters, who played an important role in determining election results in Thailand and Indonesia this year like they did in the Philippines and Malaysia in 2022. State-sponsored cyber armies were also documented, while some governments preferred to assert more effective control of social media platforms. Other important methods related to the flow of information include suppression of media freedom and internet disruptions, which are particularly severe in Myanmar following the 2021 coup.

Judicial harassment is a key form of threat used against critics and political opposition in 2023. It is still common for people in Southeast Asia to be thrown in jail for what they say or do online. Others who do not subscribe to the government’s ideology face online harassment from state-sponsored cyber armies or government supporters. In terms of surveillance, 5 out of 8 countries included in this report have been found to have or are likely to have spyware technology.

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Myanmar Internet Project

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Annual Report: Digital Rights in Southeast Asia 2023-2024

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