Principled Caution: How AI Is Used in Public-interest Media in Asia
Download Full Report This report analyses the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) within independent and public-interest media across eight countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Pakistan and Uzbekistan. It examines how media organisations engage with AI technologies, mapping current use cases, opportunities and structural constraints. The findings reveal that while AI adoption is currently taking place within public-interest media, it is defined by an approach of “principled caution” where adoption is careful, selective and highly varied. While adoption remains cautious to protect journalistic credibility from risks such as hallucinations and biases, newsrooms are increasingly embracing AI as a powerful toolset to alleviate severe capacity and resource constraints. Currently, organisations primarily utilise AI for assistive, routine tasks such as translation, transcription, summarisation, early-stage content ideation and the final language editing stage rather than for broader organisational transformation. Furthermore, the research highlights deep capacity deficits in the governance framework, institutional training, and strategic leadership. These gaps often prevent individual AI literacy from translating into consistent, organisation-wide policy formulation and enforcement. This challenge is further exacerbated by the funding instability and resource constraints that characterise the region’s independent media, restricting the long-term investment necessary for ethical and responsible AI adoption. Addressing these challenges requires coordinated stakeholder action to invest in long-term AI capacity, institutional support and governance frameworks, and secure technological infrastructure.
Religious Fundamentalism in the Philippines: Women and GSM Advocates Under Catholic Pressure
Coming Soon In the Philippines, the enduring influence of Catholic fundamentalism and conservative religious networks has constrained civic space and intensified backlash against women and gender and sexual minority (GSM) advocates. This influence is embedded throughout institutions, local patronage and public morality, allowing anti-rights actors to present equality claims as threats to family, faith and social order rather than as democratic needs. A key target of this backlash has been defenders of reproductive rights, gender equality and broader gender justice. Their advocacy is frequently framed as immoral, anti-family or contrary to traditional Catholic values. Religious Fundamentalism in the Philippines: Women and GSM Advocates Under Catholic Pressure shows the coordinated nature of this repression, with Catholic fundamentalist narratives fueling state legal repression, verbal and online hate, physical violence, and red-tagging across WGSM advocacy groups. It also traces how the dominance of Catholic fundamentalism has forced women’s and GSM rights advocates to adopt fragmented action strategies, including digital security measures, support networks and reliance on international intervention. To date, however, these efforts remain reactive, unevenly resourced, and insufficient relative to the scale and persistence of the fundamentalist mobility. The report recommends that the Filipino government, international aid organisations, international non-governmental organisations, civil society actors and WGSM rights organisations confront the ideological fundamentalist roots of repression. They must adopt an intersectional approach while addressing the structural links between religious fundamentalism, gender hierarchies, political conservatism and religious doctrinal amplification to counteract these threats.
Religious Fundamentalism in Indonesia: Political Capture and Repression of Gender Rights
Coming Soon The fall of Indonesia’s New Order regime in 1998 and the resulting democratic transition created new opportunities for political participation and civic engagement. At the same time, it facilitated the re-emergence of political Islam as a powerful force within public life. Over time, and especially since the early 2010s, Islamic organisations, movements and religiously oriented political actors have increasingly shaped electoral politics, public policy and state institutions, contributing to the normalisation of Islamic fundamentalist narratives that oppose gender equality and the rights of women, gender and sexual minorities (WGSM). As a result, WGSM rights advocates have become increasingly vulnerable to religiously framed forms of backlash. Religious Fundamentalism in Indonesia: Political Capture and Repression of Gender Rights examines how Islamic fundamentalism influences civic space and constrains WGSM rights advocacy in contemporary Indonesia. The report finds that WGSM defenders face coordinated forms of backlash, including discriminatory laws and regulations, online harassment and physical intimidation. Politicians, religious organisations and fundamentalist actors frequently frame feminism, gender equality and LGBTQI+ rights as threats to religious values, public morality and national identity, creating an environment that legitimises exclusion and hostility towards WGSM communities. The report also examines how WGSM organisations have responded through security measures, support networks within civil society and international partnerships. However, these efforts remain limited. Internal divisions within civil society – particularly the taboo on LGBTQI+ issues – and resource constraints further undermine protection efforts. The report recommends that the Indonesian government, international aid organisations, international non-governmental organisations, civil society actors and WGSM rights organisations strengthen protection mechanisms for rights defenders while addressing the structural drivers of religiously motivated repression. Doing so requires confronting the growing political influence of Islamic fundamentalism and ensuring that gender equality, pluralism and minority rights remain integral to Indonesia’s democratic future.
Religious Fundamentalism in Myanmar: Post-Coup Repression of Gender Rights
Download Full Report In Myanmar, the 2021 coup d’état led to the collapse of civic space and a rise in authoritarian control. At the same time – and less discussed – the authoritarian environment that followed saw the re-emergence of Buddhist fundamentalism, which uses military violence and a centralised Buddhist-Bamar national identity to suppress alternative voices. A key target of Buddhist fundamentalist groups has been defenders of women, gender and sexual minority (WGSM) rights, whose advocacy is framed as a threat to “traditional” morality. Religious Fundamentalism in Myanmar: Post-Coup Repression of Gender Rights shows the coordinated nature of the repression – including legal restrictions, online harassment and physical violence. It also traces how WGSM rights organisations have adopted fragmented survival strategies, including adopting security measures, building support networks, sourcing international aid, coordinating with the National Unity Government (NUG) and conducting long-term advocacy. However, to date, these efforts have been fragmented, reactive, scarce, unevenly accessible and insufficient compared with the scale and severity of the Buddhist fundamentalist backlash. The report recommends that the United Nations, the NUG, international aid organisations, international non-governmental organisations and WGSM rights organisations confront the ideological roots of repression. They must adopt an intersectional approach while addressing the structural links between Buddhist fundamentalism, gender hierarchies and authoritarian repression to counteract these threats.
Climate Disinformation in Asia: A Deliberate Strategy Against Indigenous Peoples
Download Full Report Asia is home to more than 260 million Indigenous Peoples (IPs). At the same time, they are increasingly targeted by climate disinformation narratives that distort the causes of climate change, promote misleading solutions and obscure responsibility for environmental harm. Drawing on seven country studies from Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Thailand, Climate Disinformation in Asia: A Deliberate Strategy Against Indigenous Peoples demonstrates that climate disinformation is intentional. It is used to reinforce existing power imbalances between Indigenous communities and dominant state and corporate actors. In doing so, such narratives legitimise business activities, government policies and so-called climate actions that encroach upon Indigenous lands and disregard Indigenous rights and interests. The report identifies major forms of climate disinformation across the region which are increasingly operated through selective reporting, omissions and the manipulation of truths. The report shows that climate disinformation marginalises Indigenous participation in decision-making, undermines traditional knowledge and livelihoods, weakens land rights and legitimises criminalisation and violence against Indigenous communities and their defenders. To address these challenges, the report proposes recommendations for governments, international organisations, civil society, the media, technology companies and Indigenous communities; while emphasising the role of constructive journalism in scrutinising power, amplifying Indigenous voices and fostering more informed and accountable climate governance.
Climate Disinformation in the Philippines: Legitimising Attacks on Indigenous Peoples
Download Full Report In the Philippines, climate disinformation is being used by state and corporate actors to legitimise attacks on Indigenous Peoples (IPs). By labelling those in opposition, such as IPs, as “terrorists”, some of the most vulnerable in these communities are subjected to extractive and ecologically destructive mining, the building of energy and infrastructure projects in ancestral lands among others. As a result, climate disinformation creates an information environment in which state violence towards IPs, in the form of militarisation in IP land, forced evictions, harassment such as “red-tagging” and extra-judicial killings, is justified. Altogether, these threats disproportionately endanger IPs’ rights, identities, security and survival. The report offers recommendations tailored for government institutions, international bodies, civil society, media organisations and technology companies to address climate disinformation in the Philippines. Tackling climate disinformation is key to ensuring the safety of Indigenous communities and to advancing meaningful and participative climate action in the Philippines.
Climate Disinformation in Indonesia: Prioritising Development Over Indigenous Peoples’ Vulnerability
Download Full Report In Indonesia, climate disinformation is being used by state and corporate actors to justify the prioritisation of “national development” interests over Indigenous Peoples’ (IPs) vulnerabilities. This developmentalist approach relies on the deliberate undermining of Indigenous practices as “obsolete” in favour of state-led “modern” development narratives, in particular through National Strategic Projects. As a result, climate disinformation leads to IPs’ marginalisation from environmental decision-making, the undermining of their traditional knowledge systems, as well as forced displacements and criminalisation of IPs. Collectively, these factors endanger IPs’ rights, identities, livelihoods and resilience. This report advances key recommendations directed at government institutions, international bodies, civil society, media organisations and technology companies to address climate disinformation in Indonesia. Tackling climate disinformation is key to ensuring the vulnerabilities of Indigenous are not exploited instead they are included as partners for advancing informed and inclusive climate action in Indonesia
Climate Disinformation in Malaysia: Appropriating Indigenous Peoples’ Entitlements
Download Full Report In Malaysia, climate disinformation aids the appropriation of Indigenous Peoples’ (IPs) entitlements. Although IPs are legally classified as “Bumiputera”, this category centres Malay-Muslim dominance by conflating the broad national category of Malay-Muslim as “Indigenous” with the international human rights concept of “Indigenous Peoples” reserved for non-dominant groups. This reinforces and intensifies the appropriation of IPs’s entitlements – who make up 11% of the population and largely reside in climate-vulnerable forested areas. Climate disinformation reinforces this identity hierarchy by falsely legitimising state control over IP territories and portraying extractive development as environmentally or socially beneficial. Amplified by the rapid expansion of digital media since the early 2000s, such disinformation manifests in greenwashing, narratives of false climate solutions, the denial of deforestation and the appeal to “wellbeing” in order to justify continued carbon-intensive business practices. Such impacts include their exclusion from decision-making processes, forced evictions from ancestral lands, large-scale deterritorialisation and the criminalisation of those calling for accountability. Together, these dynamics result in the cyclical impoverishment and cultural erosion of IPs. The report advances targeted recommendations for government institutions, international bodies, civil society, the media and technology companies. Ultimately, addressing climate disinformation is essential for ensuring the entitlements of Indigenous communities and safeguarding inclusive, rights-based and effective climate action in Malaysia.
Climate Disinformation in India: Subverting Indigenous Peoples’ Rights
Download Full Report In India, both online and offline climate disinformation stands to dispossess the protected rights of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) who constitute 8.6% (104 million) of the population. False narratives in the media and social media legitimise the subversion of laws like the Forest Rights Act (FRA) intended to protect IPs, their lands and their livelihoods; and, instead, justify extractive projects in the name of national development. From one-sided positive presentation of environmental statistics and false climate solutions to strategic denialism and greenwashing, these narratives directly contribute to the criminalisation of IPs as “encroachers”, their forced eviction from ancestral lands, and the systemic repression of environmental defenders. The report offers concrete policy recommendations for the government, international bodies, civil society, indigenous communities, media sector and technology companies, urging them to integrate disinformation monitoring and factual reporting into rights oversight, legally centre Indigenous knowledge in climate policy, and enforce existing legal safeguards. Countering climate disinformation is fundamental to securing effective climate solutions and protecting the rights of IPs in India.
Climate Disinformation in Thailand: Negating Indigenous Peoples’ Identity
Download Full Report In Thailand, the rapid digitalisation of media and widespread use of social media since the early 2000s have accelerated the spread of climate disinformation. This has reinforced the systemic negation of Indigenous Peoples’ (IPs) identity. Climate disinformation disproportionately affects IPs, who make up nearly 14% of the population and inhabit forested areas most vulnerable to climate change and deforestation. From one-sided reporting and greenwashing to false climate solutions and scapegoating IPs as drivers of deforestation, these narratives contribute to their exclusion from decision-making, criminalisation, forced evictions and intimidation and violence. It sets out targeted recommendations, urging the government, international bodies, civil society, media sector and technology companies to integrate climate disinformation into human rights monitoring, expand Indigenous-led counter-narratives and ensure meaningful IP participation in climate governance. Tackling climate disinformation is essential to safeguarding IP identity and ensuring inclusive, rights-based and effective climate action in Thailand.