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Singapore 4. Threats Against Critics and Political Opposition It is well known that criticism towards the Singapore government, whether online or offline is not welcome, nor is civil society. Critics, including Kirsten Han, Thum Ping Tjin, and Terry Xu, have experienced harassment from the government for their activism and journalism. Han, Thum, and artist Sonny Liew co-founded in 2017 the New Naritif, an independent online magazine on Southeast Asian political affairs. Thum and New Naratif were accused of breaking the Parliamentary Elections Act by boosting the magazine’s Facebook posts from content related to the 2020 General Election 306. The case was widely regarded as politically motivated. As mentioned earlier, Xu is the editor-in-chief of TOCA. The DOL label on TOCA resulted in financial difficulties for the outlet since service providers and digital advertising intermediaries are prohibited to have their paid content appear in the outlet, as it can appear that they promote falsehoods, according to the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI)307. 306 307 308 When FICA was first introduced as a bill in 2021, Xu and Han led a petition, including running the website fica.sg, to request the government for more public consultations on the proposed law. To support the initiative, Progress Singapore Party MP, Leong Mun Wai, put up a petition for parliamentary debate on the bill. However, law and home affairs minister, K. Shanmugam, questioned the petition and the motives behind it. Shanmugam claimed that Han and Thum received money from the Open Society Foundations, an international philanthropic organization set up by billionaire George Soros. The minister personally attacked Han and Thum as a “chief” among people who have been trying to “put out misinformation about the bill”308, and accused both activists of meeting with Mahathir Mohammad in 2018 in an attempt to have a foreign figure intervene the country’s affairs. The situation indicates that it can be extremely challenging for domestic entities, especially non-profits, that receive funding from foreign donors to operate in Singapore. Particularly vulnerable are independent media and non-profit organizations whose work tackle the country’s politics. “Police Seize Thum Ping Tjin’s Mobile Devices, Probe New Naratif Over Alleged Paid Ads Published During GE2020.” Yahoo News, 18 Sept. 2020, sg.news.yahoo.com/police-investigating-new-naratif-for-allegedlypublishing-paid-ads-on-its-site-during-ge-2020-133229644.html. “The Online Citizen Asia’s Pages Made Declared Online Locations Due to Multiple Online Falsehoods.” Ministry of Communications and Information, 21 July 2023, www.mci.gov.sg/media-centre/press-releases/ toca-pages-made-declared-online-locations. Han, Kirsten. “A Response to Claims Made About Me During the FICA Debate.” We, the Citizens, 5 Oct. 2021, www.wethecitizens.net/a-response-to-claims-made-about-me-during-the-fica-debate. 83

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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

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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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Annual Report: Digital Rights in Southeast Asia 2023-2024

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