The Senate of the Philippines had announced the introduction of the ‘Anti-False Content Act’ on 1st July 2019. The proposed anti-fake news bill, as filed by the Senator President Vicente Sotto III, aims to prohibit “the publication and proliferation of false content on the Philippine internet, providing measures to counteract its effects and prescribing penalties therefor.” The Senator, in the explanatory note to the Bill, said that "In the Philippines, widespread are headlines that are mere click-baits; made up quotes attributed to prominent figures; and digitally altered photos. Philipinos have fallen prey to believing that most of them are credible news…. In this regard, this bill seeks to protect the public from the deleterious effects of false and deceiving content online." On 25th July 2019, the international group Human Rights Watch (HRW) opposing the proposed law cited that the Bill is “sweepingly broad and threatens to stifle discussion on websites worldwide” and “would excessively restrict online freedom of speech”, in a news release. Linda Lakhdir, Asia Legal Adviser at HRW, further said that: "The Philippines ‘false content’ bill, if passed, would make a government department the arbiter of permissible online material,” and that it poses "real risks for activists, journalists, academics, and ordinary people expressing their views on the internet.” She added that "A ‘fake news’ law would open the door for the government to wantonly clamp down on critical opinions or information not only in the Philippines, but around the globe. The bill should immediately be withdrawn and revised…
