Women Human Rights Defenders in the Philippines Face Escalating Personal Attacks Online

November 29 is International Women Human Rights Defenders Day to honor women human rights defenders (WHRDs) for their courage and commitment to upholding human rights. It acknowledges the vital role WHRDs play in fighting for civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights, while also highlighting the specific risks they face, such as gender-based violence and harassment.

Women Human Rights Defenders in the Philippines Face Escalating Personal Attacks Online

In the Philippines, women human rights defenders (WHRDs) are playing a critical role in advancing gender equality, social justice, and the protection of vulnerable communities. However, their visibility and activism have made them prime targets for increasingly personal and gendered attacks online.

Digital platforms, once seen as powerful tools for advocacy, have also become hostile spaces, where WHRDs are subjected to online harassment, sexualized threats, disinformation, and state-linked surveillance tactics.

Gender-Based Attacks Designed to Silence

Across the country, WHRDs, whether they are journalists, indigenous leaders, student activists, or labor organizers, report a disturbing trend of online attacks that focus on their gender, rather than their advocacy.

These include:

• Sexual slurs and rape threats
• Doxxing (exposing personal information like addresses or phone numbers)
• False accusations, including “red-tagging”
• Circulation of manipulated photos or deepfakes
• Online misogyny disguised as political criticism

“Kapag babae ka at nagsasalita ka laban sa sistema, mas brutal ang atake,” says Jessa, a young women’s rights activist based in Metro Manila. “Hindi lang opinion mo ang binabastos, buong pagkatao mo, pati pamilya mo, ginagawang target.”

Red-Tagging in the Digital Age

One of the most alarming aspects of the Philippine context is red-tagging, the practice of accusing individuals or organizations of being affiliated with the Communist Party of the Philippines or the New People’s Army, often without evidence.

WHRDs are frequently red-tagged online by anonymous accounts, government-linked pages, or pro-administration influencers. These accusations can have dangerous consequences: surveillance, arrests, or even extrajudicial killings.

In 2023, the Commission on Human Rights reported that several WHRDs who were red-tagged online were later subjected to threats and physical intimidation.

Intersectionality Worsens Vulnerability

The situation is particularly dire for indigenous women, LGBTQ+ activists, and those in the rural provinces, where digital literacy may be lower and access to legal protection more limited.

For instance, Lumad women leaders in Mindanao have faced both gendered abuse and ethnic discrimination online. Many have also been red-tagged for defending ancestral land against mining or militarization.

Meanwhile, queer WHRDs advocating for SOGIE rights have experienced harassment that combines homophobic slurs with misogynist attacks, making them doubly vulnerable in digital spaces.

The Real-World Impact of Online Abuse

Online harassment in the Philippines does not stay online. Many WHRDs have reported being followed, harassed at home, or attacked at work after targeted campaigns online.

The 2024 report by Karapatan noted that digital harassment campaigns often precede surveillance or legal harassment, such as trumped-up charges or arrests.

Online abuse also exacts a psychological toll: many WHRDs suffer from anxiety, depression, and burnout. Some have been forced to step back from public life entirely for the safety of their families.

Platforms and Policies Are Falling Short

Despite being one of the most active social media markets in the world, the Philippines lacks robust digital protections for WHRDs. Social media companies are slow to respond to abuse reports in local languages or recognize context-specific threats like red-tagging.

Law enforcement, meanwhile, often dismisses online threats as “not serious” or “part of being public.” In some cases, the state itself has been accused of enabling or participating in digital harassment.

Without legal and institutional safeguards, WHRDs are forced to rely on informal support networks and NGOs for digital security, psychosocial care, and emergency legal aid.

What Needs to Be Done

To protect WHRDs in the Philippines, urgent action is needed on multiple fronts:

• Recognize online gender-based violence as a real and punishable offense, especially when linked to political harassment.
• Hold platforms accountable for failing to remove harmful content and ensure moderation policies are localized and effective.
• Ensure the Anti-Violence Against Women and Children (VAWC) law and the Safe Spaces Act are fully enforced in digital spaces.
• Train local law enforcement and prosecutors on how to handle digital violence, especially when it intersects with activism.
• Support WHRDs’ mental health through community-based, culturally sensitive psychosocial services.

Conclusion

In the Philippines, women human rights defenders are on the frontlines of vital struggles—from gender equality to indigenous rights, press freedom to labor justice. But these defenders are under attack—not just from institutions, but from coordinated online campaigns meant to discredit, silence, and destroy them.

As a nation that prides itself on democracy and people power, the Philippines must do better to protect those who protect others—on the streets and online.

Names have been changed to protect the identities of activists.