United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan, delivered her final report on freedom of expression and elections in the digital age before the 59th session of United Nations Human Rights Council.
In her report, Khan emphasized freedom of expression has a vital role in ensuring free and fair elections.
However, she expressed grave concern that rising authoritarian trends, polarized politics in backsliding democracies, social media platforms awash with hate speech and disinformation and a media sector too weak to debunk the lies have endangered both freedom of expression and the right to vote.
Khan’s key findings and recommendations
Khan’s report warned that manipulation of information has become a tool for modern authoritarianism. She noted that vilifying minorities and marginalized groups, smearing women politicians, discrediting independent journalists and human rights defenders, targeting electoral officials and observers were the worrying trends in many recent elections.
She affirmed that such violence evident on campaign trails and social media platforms is prohibited under international law.
Khan also singled out major digital platforms for failing to uphold human rights responsibilities.
Despite economic precarity and the rise of generative AI playing a major part among largest media platforms, Khan noted that political and ideological considerations have also figured prominently.
This further backed Khan’s concern especially on journalists covering elections who have been violently attacked and discredited as liars, traitors, and foreign agents. She also described that the collapse of local news ecosystems and increasing media ownership concentration are central to the erosion of democracy.
“The concentration of media ownership in some countries has led to heavily partisan coverage of elections that undercuts public trust, credible journalism and encourages divisive political debate. As readers and audiences shift to digital platforms, business and financial problems of the media outlets make them more vulnerable to closure or capture, reducing media diversity and pluralism,” Khan added.
With these grave concerns, Khan outlined key recommendations to address these challenges.
For states, she warned that undermining free expression in the name of fighting disinformation is shortsighted and counterproductive. Any restriction to counter manipulation of information must strictly abide the principles of legality, necessity, proportionality, and legitimate purpose under international human rights law.
Khan also emphasized that the backsliding of social media platforms on their commitment to human rights and electoral integrity should sound alarm bells for states and the international community.
“Smart, social regulation is needed, not to control content but to enforce companies’ compliance with human rights obligations, including due diligence,” Khan added.
Companies, for their part, must ensure that their policies and programs are globally consistent, fair, and aligned with their international obligations under the UN Guiding Principles.
“Democracy needs a healthy legacy media alongside a trustworthy online environment to ensure a diverse and vibrant electoral information system,” Khan stressed while urging immediate action to address the decline of media freedom, independence, diversity, and pluralism.
Finally, Khan called for multifaceted and multi-stakeholder strategies grounded in human rights and the combination of legal and non-legal measures to effectively combat disinformation and other forms of information manipulation.
Red-tagging and judicial delays in PH
While the UN expert commended the vibrancy of the country’s media and civil society, she warned that the practice of red-tagging, judicial delays and unresolved killings is alarming. She added that despite the Supreme Court’s landmark decision about red-tagging, such practice remains a serious concern which contributed to state of impunity, disinformation, and systemic attacks against journalists and activists under the Marcos Jr. administration.
Khan, who visited the Philippines in January last year and was the only international visitor so far to personally interact with detained Tacloban-based journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio, reiterated her recommendations on the abolition of National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ECLAC) and the release of Cumpio.
Just two days ago, a delegation of international press freedom watchdogs was denied to visit Cumpio. Upon tireless negotiation with jail authorities, they were allowed to speak with her for a few minutes.
“The government should now act on that decision and eliminate the [red-tagging] practice totally to turn the page decisively on the past. I am concerned also by the slow pace of judicial procedures, prolonged pre-tiring detention, the refusal to grant bail when there is no risk of flight, and extremely slow disposal of cases makes a travesty of justice equating the with the guilty,” said Khan in her report.
Khan also noted on the situation of media freedom marred by internet disruption, blocked websites, disinformation, and the attack to independent media and fact-checkers under the guise of fighting disinformation have remained persistent and must stop.
In the Philippines, the closure of media giant ABS-CBN alongside the blocking of alternative media websites such as Bulatlat and Pinoy Weekly remain as one of the forms of state-sponsored censorships in recent years.
The UN expert raised alarm that as equally important beyond censorship and media blocking is the culture of impunity surrounding media killings in the country.
“I also found ongoing impunity regarding the killings of journalists and that must end. While some progress has been made in a few cases, there is great need for bolder efforts to ensure accountability,” said Khan.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines has already recorded 177 total number of press freedom violation cases under the Marcos Jr. administration as of May 1 this year.
Khan’s findings echo long-held concerns that many press freedom advocates and truth-tellers have amplified, condemning particularly on the chilling effect of state-sponsored attacks toward critical media outlets targeted for harassment, cyberattacks, censorship, red-tagging among other threats.
During the presentation, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) also supported Khan’s findings and recommendations.
“The commission strongly condemns the continuous acts of red-tagging, beautification, labeling, and guilt association, perpetrated against journalists, educators, and other human rights defenders. Such acts, especially those committed and encouraged by state actors,” said CHR chairperson Richard Palpal-latoc.
The CHR further encouraged the Marcos Jr. administration to heed Khan’s call to make significant to legal policy and institutional changes to end the widespread practice of red tagging and draw on UN’s capabilities and technical assistance to strengthen human rights and accountability mechanisms in the country.
Meanwhile, NUJP also commended Khan’s comprehensive final report that resonate the campaigns on media freedom and democracy of the Union.
“The forms of attacks under the Marcos administration are the same as during the Duterte administration. Positive pronouncements by Marcos Jr. on the protection of journalists and media freedom have not been matched by substantial actions,” NUJP wrote in its statement.
The union further demanded the 20th Congress to heed Khan’s policy recommendations, including the decriminalization of libel, enactment of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and review of Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).
“The NUJP calls on our members and the media community to continue campaigning for respect for media freedom, free expression and against all measures that restrict the people’s access to accurate, relevant and timely information,” NUJP concluded.
