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army also reportedly ramped up a campaign to favor the regime20. Apart from using social media to manipulate information, several governments—particularly Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam—also directly ordered the platforms to abide by their restrictions. In Vietnam, the government has consistently tried to control social media by putting pressure on Facebook by disrupting access to the platform. In 2023, a report disclosed that Facebook kept an internal list of Communist Party of Vietnam officials that should not be criticized on the platform, which also further tightened its content moderation in favor of the government and the Communist Party21. Facebook’s parent company, Meta, is also reported to have guidelines shaped by Vietnamese authorities on how the platform should operate22. In Thailand, the previous government led by General Prayuth Chan-o-Cha was notorious for requesting the platforms to remove content related to the royal family, which is a sensitive issue in the country. Such 20 21 22 23 24 25 requests became less visible in 2023, although a popular Facebook page, Royalist Marketplace, reported experiencing brief access interruptions lasting several hours in 2023. Previously in 2020, Prayuth’s government requested Facebook to block the page which is a hub for critical discussions of the royal institution23. Singapore also uses the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) that can order social media platforms to geo-block content that the government considers as “falsehoods”. Among those that were directed to “correct” published information in 2023 is the independent local news outlet, The Online Citizen Asia (TOCA). The news outlet was further labeled in 2023 as a Declared Online Location (DOL) under POFMA because it ‘had carried three or more different false statements of fact.24” The DOL label will remain on all of TOCA’s publication channels including its website and social media platforms for two years25. Neou, Vannarin. “Ruling Party’s Cyber Army Are Intensifying Their Offensive Activities to Neutralize Criticism.” Radio Free Asia, 7 Mar. 2023, www.rfa.org/khmer/news/human-rights/cyber-attack-groups-are-intensifying-their-offensive-activities-to-neutralize-criticism-03072023081306.html. Tan, Rebecca. “Facebook Helped Bring Free Speech to Vietnam. Now It’s Helping Stifle It.” The Washington Post, 19 June 2023, www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/06/19/facebook-meta-vietnam-governmentcensorship. Ibid. “Royalist Marketplace: Pavin Said ‘It Will Resurface’ After Users Not Being Able to Access for Several Hours.” BBC News Thai, 10 Jan. 2023, www.bbc.com/thai/thailand-64228378. Martens, Hannah. “The Online Citizen Asia’s Website, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn Made Declared Online Locations Due to Multiple Online Falsehoods.” Mothership.SG, 21 July 2021, mothership.sg/2023/07/theonline-citizen-asia-multiple-online-falsehoods. Ibid. 14

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Annual Report: Digital Rights in Southeast Asia 2023-2024

Report

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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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2023-Annual-Report-FINAL-1.pdf
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Myanmar Internet Project

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Annual Report: Digital Rights in Southeast Asia 2023-2024

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