Philippine lawmakers are pushing regulatory and security authorities to suppress online platforms disseminating pro-Beijing disinformation concerning the West Philippine Sea.
Former Surigao del Norte 2nd District Representative Robert Ace Barbers called on the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to enforce the same strict restrictions on Chinese propaganda outlets as those imposed on adult websites.
“The NTC should block these China misinformation pages the same way that the government cracks down on porn sites,” Barbers said.
He added that subscribing to or amplifying such platforms undermines the nation:
“To follow or subscribe to these pages should be deemed unpatriotic,” Barbers said.
Acknowledging that NTC directives instructing internet service providers (ISPs) to restrict web domains face legal boundaries, Barbers advocated for a strategy of public counter-education alongside takedown requests.
“They should take it down, or better yet, before taking it down, an explainer from our end will discuss frame by frame the misinformation they’re spreading, just like what the Chinese girl in the video is doing,” he said.
“So that even if it is seen by the Filipino youth, they will be able to discern the fake news from the real one,” Barbers added.
The remarks follow a circulating online video alleging that a Philippine vessel illegally entered “Huangyan Island”—Beijing’s name for Bajo de Masinloc, an area inside the Philippine Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)—and deliberately provoked a Chinese Coast Guard water cannon response to produce media footage during an international summit.
Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Representative Leila de Lima denounced the propaganda content for misrepresenting Manila’s legal sovereignty claims.
“We condemn this kind of content that clearly peddles fake news and disinformation about what is really happening in the [WPS]. Such content echoes China’s propaganda and misleads the public by justifying its hostilities and incursions into Philippine territory,” she said.
De Lima urged the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and digital platforms to intercept coordinated disinformation.
“Our government should also strengthen its collaboration with digital platforms to ensure that false and misleading content has no place in our digital space,” De Lima said.
“Kung hindi tumitigil ang China sa panggigipit at pag-angkin sa hindi nila pagmamay-ari, at tuloy-tuloy ang pagpapakalat ng ganyang mga kasinungalingan, dapat lang na maging seryoso at mas agresibo pa ang gobyerno sa pagpapaunawa sa ating mamamayan, lalo na sa kabataan, sa halaga ng pagtatanggol sa ating teritoryo,” she added.
Bicol Saro Party-list Representative Terry Ridon similarly called on defense and national security agencies to take a direct role in reporting and removing host sites.
“The DND and the NSC should flag all social media pages and content which propagate fake news, misinformation and disinformation relating to the nation’s lawful and legitimate rights over the [WPS],” Ridon said.
“They should make representations before social media platforms for the removal of these pages and content on the basis of fake news, misinformation and disinformation,” he added.