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As a whole[1], the region has moved backward on media freedom in 2012 with more restrictive laws being enacted by governments, while in many countries journalists and civil society continues to be threatened by violence

The year 2012 was a landmark year for human rights in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), after its leaders unveiled its first ever human rights instrument, the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (AHRD) on 12 November 2012.

The AHRD was widely hailed as a significant step towards better protection of human rights in a region notorious for its human rights record.

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Burma’s parliament officially dissolved the country’s infamous Press Scrutiny and Registration Division (PSRD) on 24 January 2013. The body under the Ministry of Information has overseen content regulation of the country’s news journals under the military regime and into the new nominally civilian government.

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The situation of media freedom in Cambodia declined in 2012, as evidenced by the number of deadly attacks and harassment of media personnel, many of whom are reporting on corruption and land issues. The increasing number of attacks takes places alongside increasing restrictions from government.

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The decade since the fall of Soeharto’s military regime in 1999 was followed by a series of efforts to reduce the political role of the Indonesian military, which included the separation of the Indonesian National Police (Kepolisian Nasional Republik Indonesia/Polri) from the Indonesian National Army (Tentara Nasional Indonesia/TNI) command chain. However, in the last two years, the situation has begun to reverse, giving the TNI fresh powers, particularly in internal security. In May 2012, the Parliament approved the legalization of bills concerning the Handling of Social Conflict (Penanganan Konflik Sosial/PKS) allowing the TNI to participate in handling conflicts in Indonesia.

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Freedom of expression in Laos took a turn for the worse in 2012 as people’s efforts to broaden the space and self-empowerment to raise their critical voices against the negative impact of the country’s economic and investment drive were stifled.

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Barisan Nasional (BN) – the coalition, which has ruled Malaysia for 55 years since independence – is currently facing the most significant challenge to its political power and control on free expression in Malaysia's history. It therefore stands at a rather precarious juncture, confronting a widening wave of dissent alongside demands for more democratic reforms from an increasingly emboldened public and a more organised opposition, a far cry from the simple domination BN has been used to for so long.

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There were some bright spots in the problematic Philippine campaign for media freedom and free expression in 2012. Among these were the United Nations Human Rights Committee’s (UNHRC) declaration that criminal libel is “incompatible” with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR); the live media coverage of the impeachment trial of then Philippine Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona; the establishment of new multimedia companies; improvements in the coverage of natural disasters; and the early preparations for the coverage of the May 2013 senatorial, party-list and local elections. The implementation of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 (Republic Act 10175) was also stopped by the Supreme Court. But these were practically eclipsed by the continuing killing of journalists, the persistence of impunity, and the passage of restrictive laws including RA 10175.

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The stifling media climate in Singapore persists uneasily amidst the backdrop of opposition’s continued electoral gains as the population increasingly voices their discontent.

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Thailand generally experienced a politically peaceful and naturally calm year in 2012 after massive street protests paralyzed the capital’s central commercial district in 2010 and catastrophic floods devastated a large portion of the country and Bangkok in 2011.

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