Fake News Laws in East and Southeast Asia
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Please send all requests for permission to: Asia Centre 128/183 Phayathai Plaza Building (17th Floor), Phayathai Road, Thung-Phayathai, Rachatewi, Bangkok 10400 Thailand [email protected] Council Of Asian Liberal and Democrats (CALD) Unit 410, 4th Floor, La Fuerza Plaza 2, 2241, Chino Roces Avenue, Makati, 1200 Metro Manila, Philippines [email protected] FAKE NEWS LAWS IN EAST AND SOUTHEAST ASIA Foreword 2 Preface 3 Executive Summary 4 INTRODUCTION 6 DISINFORMATION 14 EXISTING LEGISLATIONS 22 FAKE NEWS LEGISLATION 26 COVID-19 TEMPORARY LEGISLATION 30 IMPACT ON FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION 34 RECOMMENDATIONS 49 CONCLUSION 54 Bibliography 56 Abstract 59 About 60 FOREWORD Whoever said “a lie travels halfway The Disinformation Baseline Study around the world while the truth is produced by the Council of Asian putting on its shoes” is right. Liberals and Democrats and Asia Centre is a useful toolkit for ad- Through the power of social vocates, legislators, political party media, fake news, misinformation, leaders, academics, civil society and lies spread faster and more activists, journalists and others to easily than a virus, and are just as ensure that freedom of expression dangerous. is not compromised in the name of combating disinformation. False information going viral have made individuals, institutions, and The study offes a wealth of rele- governments increasingly worried vant information from thorough as it impacts on everything from research of published articles, privacy to personal safety to share authenticated social media posts, prices to elections to social unrest. legislations, and interviews. Defending Freedom of Expression: Happening amid constrained Fake News Laws in East and mobility during the pandemic, the Southeast Asia comes at an oppor- depth of fact-finding and analyzing tune moment when a huge number from January to January 2021 is of the world population have awe-inspiring giving the readers become reliant on the Internet in glimpses of the disinformation the era of the new normal. hovering in CALD member-coun- tries and efforts to combat it As the COVID-19 pandemic rages through legislation and policy on, the massive demand for digital initiatives. connectivity has put the internet’s structural integrity and capacity East Asia’s Hong Kong, Japan, to test. The world has seen how South Korea and Taiwan and crucial its role is — not just in Southeast Asia’s Cambodia, sustaining aspects of day-to-day Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, life, but enabling communities to the Philippines, Singapore, and thrive throughout the health crisis. Thailand were covered. As a universally accessible, decen- Aware that advocates are not tralized, and open architecture, the just fighting an epidemic, but an internet can be a force for good in infodemic, the study dedicated the same way that it can be used sections on COVID-19 Temporary to choke freedom of speech and Legislations in the countries chill dissent. covered, discussing clauses in the legislation and regulations to If we understand how disinforma- govern the spread of information, tion brews, then perhaps we can especially false by nature or by help curb its transmission. character. 2 Worth mentioning is the review the country’s application of observation that, “The COVID-19 laws on a regular basis. health pandemic has allowed governments to issue emergency The study also urges member- decrees and pass specific tem- countries to commit to interna- porary laws and measures that tional obligations to realize the aim to mitigate the spread of the Sustainable Development Goals virus….These state of emergency 16.10 to ensure public access to decrees, health advisories and information and protect funda- movement control regulations mental freedoms. have however, subsequently, also impacted freedoms of expression It recommends seeking the advice and opinion exercised by citizens on drafting legislation or policy and residents especially through to address disinformation from social media platforms, which intraregional bodies such as implicates technology companies European Commission, European as the platform owner.” Court of Justice, and Organization for Security and Co-operation in “Authoritarian governments Europe, or international organiza- especially have found benefit tions such as UNESCO. from their increased power and decreased oversight, and have in In the era of disinformation, response attempted to further “Defending Freedom of Expression: censor their dissidents by the Fake News Laws in East and following measures,” the study Southeast Asia” is a worthy added. read. When people are properly informed, fake news doesn’t stand Constructive in its approach, a chance. the study is not wanting in recommending to CALD mem- Fake news is lying, and lying is ber-countries “a toolbox of policy wrong. If we are to survive as ideas that can be raised during the societies, then we must remember legislative process, its implemen- this simple truth. tation and review by legislators, political party leaders and other stakeholders.” These include encouraging member-countries to diligently report to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and extend the invitations to respective United Nations Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, Special Rapporteurs on freedom of Philippine Senator expression, racial discrimination, and CALD Chairperson and human rights defenders to 3 PREFACE Since 2019, Asia Centre and CALD have In October 2020, CALD convened a collaborated on activities and projects panel at Asia Centre’s 5th Internation- that safeguard freedom of expression. al Conference on Hate Speech in Asia: In July 2019, CALD participated in Asia Challenges and Solutions. CALD pan- Centre’s 4th International Conference elists acknowledged that, while hate on Fake News and Elections in Asia. The fueled fake news is dangerous as it CALD-led panel focused on how polit- divides communities and precipitates ical parties and political leaders re- communal violence. They further not- spond to the spread of disinformation ed that hate speech is also a symptom in the digital age. The panel advised of unaddressed societal problems such that legislation, fact-checking, digi- as inequality, and the lack of represen- tal and media literacy and the role of tation and bipartisanship in national technology companies when address- politics. The panelists cautioned that ing fake news need to also protect free- proposed “harmony” legislation by dom of expression. some countries to combat hate speech risk infringing freedom of expression. In October 2019, CALD invited Asia Cen- tre to present its research findings on Throughout 2020, Asia and the rest fake news legislations in Southeast of the world had to grapple with the Asia at its 40th Executive Committee coronavirus pandemic. In its wake the Meeting in Taipei, Taiwan. The Centre’s region saw an extended use of emer- findings showed that fake news laws gency decrees and COVID-19 temporary are infringing upon freedom of expres- laws that also affected freedom of ex- sion which are contrary to international pression. Hence in late 2020 Asia Centre human rights standards. Existing leg- and CALD, with the support of Friedrich islation and emerging fake news laws Naumann Foundation, came togeth- placed governments as the arbiters of er to comprehensively review existing truth allowing them to decide what was laws, emerging fake news laws, emer- true or false leading to the increased gency decrees and the COVID-19 tem- criminalisation of government critics. porary laws to assess their collective effect on freedom of expression in the Recognising the use of legalisation region. The idea was to develop a poli- by governments to curb freedom of cy toolkit that can be used to advocate expression in Asia, in December 2019, for freedom of expression. Asia Centre and CALD signed an MOU to establish cooperation to examine key Defending Freedom of Expression: Fake issues affecting democracy and human News Laws in East and Southeast Asia rights in the region. holds recommendations that CALD leg- islators and political party leaders as Even throughout the COVID-19 pan- well as other stakeholders can use to demic, both organisations continued advocate for better laws and policies their cooperation. On 11 September that ensure freedom of expression. 2020, Asia Centre, CALD and the Frie- Asia Centre