Underneath the Autocrats South East Asia Media Freedom Report 2018
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UNDERNEATH THE AUTOCRATS SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT 2018 A REPORT INTO IMPUNITY, JOURNALIST SAFETY AND WORKING CONDITIONS 2 3 IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT IFJ-SEAJU SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA SPECIAL THANKS TO: EDITOR: Paul Ruffini FREEDOM REPORT Ratna Ariyanti Ye Min Oo December 2018 Jose Belo Chiranuch Premchaiporn DESIGNED BY: LX9 Design Oki Raimundos Mark Davis This document has been produced by the International Jason Sanjeev Inday Espina-Varona Federation of Journalists (IFJ) on behalf of the South East Asia Um Sarin IMAGES: With special thanks Nonoy Espina Journalist Unions (SEAJU) Latt Latt Soe to Agence France-Presse for the Alexandra Hearne Aliansi Jurnalis Independen (AJI) Sumeth Somankae use of images throughout the Cambodia Association for Protection of Journalists (CAPJ) Luke Hunt Eih Eih Tin report. Additional photographs are Myanmar Journalists Association (MJA) Chorrng Longheng Jane Worthington contributed by IFJ affiliates and also National Union of Journalist of the Philippines (NUJP) Farah Marshita Thanida Tansubhapoi accessed under a Creative Commons National Union of Journalists, Peninsular Malaysia (NUJM) Alycia McCarthy Phil Thornton Attribution Non-Commercial Licence National Union of Journalists, Thailand (NUJT) U Kyaw Swar Min Steve Tickner and are acknowledged as such Timor Leste Press Union (TLPU) Myo Myo through this report. 2 3 CONTENTS IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT 2018 IMPUNITY, JOURNALIST SAFETY AND WORKING CONDITIONS IN SOUTH EAST ASIA 4 FOREWORD IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT 6 OVERVIEW IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT COUNTRY CHAPTERS 10 CAMBODIA 18 INDONESIA 24 MALAYSIA 30 MYANMAR 38 PHILIPPINES 48 THAILAND 54 TIMOR LESTE 62 IFJ-SEAJU EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 66 LIST OF MEDIA RIGHTS VIOLATIONS by Journalist Safety Indicators (JSIs), November 1, 2017 to October 31, 2018 APPENDIX 70 This document has been produced with support The author will be responsible for the choice COVER PHOTO: Reuters’ journalist Wa Lone outside from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and presentation of the facts contained in the court in Myanmar. Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). The views paper and for the opinions expressed therein, detained on December 12, 2017, when they were set up and contents expressed herein are those of the which will not be necessarily those of UNESCO by police collecting information for a Rohingya story. In IFJ and can in no way be taken to reflect the and do not commit the Organisation, the 2018 they were jailed for 14 years under the draconian official opinion of UNESCO. designations employed and the presentation Official Secrets Act for supposedly violating the of material throughout this book will not imply draconian Official Secrets Act, a verdict widely believed the expression of any opinion whatsoever to be punishment for their reporting on a massacre of on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal Rohingya. Credit: Steven Tickner status of any country, territory, city or area, or its authorities or concerning the delimitation of ABOVE: Activists burn an effigy during a protest CC-BY-SA license its frontiers and boundaries. against Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte near the . Open Access is not applicable to non-IFJ Malacanang Palace in Manila on September 21, 2017. copyright photos in this publication. Credit: NOEL CELIS / AFP 4 5 FOREWORD o say that it’s not an easy Hopes for Myanmar’s democratic KEY THREATS TO JOURNALISM time for media workers re-awakening have now been all but 1 Poor wages and working conditions in South East Asia is an dashed by ethnic cleansing and wide- understatement by any scale human rights abuses driven 2 Censorship measure. by a military apparatus hell bent 3 Targeted attack for my journalism TBut where exactly do you begin on misinformation and throwing to create a baseline for media journalists in jail. And Indonesia, the IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT SAFETY AND SECURITY IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT freedom in a region that has leading voice of democratisation in CONCERNS: endured such a long, complex and the region since 1999, is confronting 1 Legal issues prevailing climate of control? the challenges and fallout of rising 2 Cyber attack In this firstIFJ Media Freedom populism and Islamic extremism from 3 Threats Report for South East Asia, we are the political leadership down. acutely aware of those countries Already confronting challenges of that are yet to deliver truly physical safety and insecure wages and 50% FELT INSECURE BECAUSE OF THEIR JOB independent media for their working conditions, this first IFJ-SEAJU people and remain firmly under examination into impunity, journalist lock and key in terms of freedom safety and working conditions in of expression – in Brunei, Laos, South East Asia also clearly shows how Singapore and Vietnam. media workers are now confronting But, for the first time, the IFJ and ever-increasing controls and curbs in 35% HAD A COLLEAGUE OR WORKPLACE its dedicated and brave network of the online space. ATTACKED affiliates in Cambodia, Indonesia, As I write, brave former war Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, correspondent and CEO of Rappler, Thailand and Timor Leste that make Maria Ressa is fighting not only the up the Southeast Asia Journalist battle of her career, but a battle for Unions (SEAJU), present the start of the survival of truth in the political their story together. misinformation mire that is the While there are some bright Philippines today. Ressa had just been RATING ON GOVERNMENT EFFORTS TO PROTECT MEDIA WORKERS: spots from the past year, such as honoured with the prestigious Gwen the ousting of the long-running Ifill Press Freedom Award in New York 28% Najib Razak regime in Malaysia and was returning home when she ACCEPTABLE 22% and positive progress on media learned that the Philippine government NEUTRAL development in Timor Leste, there had upped the ante on its campaign 2% is little doubt that media freedom of attacks and filed five separate tax EXCELLENT in South East Asia is consistently evasion cases against her. She turned challenged by the overriding herself in and posted bail immediately. influence of a well-entrenched Ressa remains unperturbed. She has 10% 38% authoritarianism, sometimes gone to war with the “disinformation DIRE POOR resulting in a deferential press. czars”. Her work and pursuit of the This is an environment that works truth has led both Facebook and negatively, but effectively, to turn Twitter to take down the worst the screws on media workers and misinformation offenders. She, like obtaining information that was already their efforts to seek the truth and many others, is trailblazing a new in the public domain. They will now hold powerful forces to account. journalism and taking on fake news in serve 10 years in prison, the same From President Rodrigo Duterte’s pursuit of critical truths. amount as the soldiers who were later “war on drugs” in the Philippines, Across in Myanmar, Reuters found guilty of the murders they were through to the absolute annihilation journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe attempting to report on. of any semblance of opposition Oo, are in jail – set-up by the military But their incarceration and highly- in Cambodia by the Hun Sen as they tried to reveal the truth about publicised trial has put Myanmar’s so- regime, to the military junta that military killings in Rakhine state. Held called democracy under the spotlight keeps a vice-like grip on Thailand, without charge for seven months, and served to educate and reinforce journalists across the region are used they were eventually found guilty of the need for protections in the to being routinely targeted. violating the Official Secrets Act for fledgling media industry. 4 5 FOREWORD IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT Maria Ressa, CEO and executive editor of online portal Rappler, ‘There is little doubt that media freedom in gestures to journalists as she posts bail at a court in Manila on December South East Asia is consistently challenged 3, 2018. Ressa, whose news site has by the overriding influence of a well- battled Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, paid bail the same day on a entrenched authoritarianism, sometimes tax fraud charge she says is an effort to intimidate the publication. Credit: resulting in a deferential press.’ TED ALJIBE / AFP In both these cases, we see journalists protection of independent journalism politics and driving a wedge into supported in solidarity and unity. This and the fundamental right of media democracy. It documents the repression is critical. workers to be safe to do their jobs. and attempts to muzzle and silence the This report is an important step for Across the region in 2018, SEAJU media. And, importantly, it measures sub-regional advocacy for the SEAJU canvassed the views of nearly 1000 journalists’ attitudes to government network, which was born out of a journalists. Using UNESCO’s Journalist efforts on safety and impunity. shared vision for a strong regional Safety Indicators (JSIs) as a guiding Underneath the Autocrats is intended network of journalists in 2013. principle, this report brings to you the to be the first step to hold those in While recognising the differences pressures, both new and old, that are power to account. • between them, SEAJU has been united confronting media workers today. in a shared commitment to media It explores the illiberal politics and Jane Worthington freedom, the critical need for the corruption that are running popular Acting Director – IFJ Asia-Pacific 6 7 PLOTTING A PATH AWAY FROM IMPUNITY IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT IFJ SOUTH EAST ASIA MEDIA FREEDOM REPORT Prior to the General Elections hile Southeast Asia and persistent.