WASHINGTON -- Internet freedom in the Asia-Pacific region deteriorated over the past year, with five countries recording net gains and seven countries experiencing declines, according to a new report released today by Freedom House. Freedom House analyzed online rights in 17 countries in the region.
The report, Freedom on the Net 2024: The Struggle for Trust Online, found that a number of governments in the region imposed new legal and technical restrictions on online speech and actively enforced existing ones. Several governments also subjected independent online media outlets to retaliation for their reporting, and progovernment commentators manipulated online discussions ahead of important elections. In addition, internet users in many countries -- especially journalists, activists, and human rights defenders -- continued to face arbitrary arrests, harassment, and violence for their online activities.
Despite this overall deterioration, there were some improvements. Taiwan, which has the highest score in the region, recorded no politicized arrests for online speech during the coverage period, and the online information landscape in Japan, a country with an already robust internet freedom environment, appeared to be less distorted than in previous years.
Other findings on the Asia-Pacific region include:
Beyond the Asia-Pacific region, Freedom on the Net 2024 found that global internet freedom declined for the 14th consecutive year. Governments in at least 25 of the 72 countries under analysis cut off internet access, restricted access to social media platforms, or blocked websites hosting political, social, and religious speech during electoral periods, often with the intention of shaping the results. Governments also turned to arrests, violence, and other forms of repression to silence online speech outside of electoral periods. In at least 56 countries, internet users were arrested due to their political, social, or religious expression. People were physically attacked or killed in retaliation for their online activities in a record high of at least 43 countries. Some of the most serious abuses took place in the context of armed conflicts. Internet shutdowns amid such fighting plunged civilians into information vacuums, prevented journalists from reporting on the violence, and hampered the delivery of lifesaving aid.