Manila – Officials of the House of Representatives have urged the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and other government agencies to crack down on social media pages allegedly operated by Chinese propaganda networks that spread misinformation and disinformation about the West Philippine Sea (WPS) dispute. House prosecution panel adviser and spokesperson Robert Ace Barbers, along with other lawmakers, called for immediate and aggressive action against these digital platforms, warning that the false narratives could mislead the Filipino public, especially the youth, on the country’s sovereign rights over its maritime territory. Barbers specifically cited a video circulating online that portrayed a Philippine vessel as having “intruded” into what it described as “Chinese territorial waters of Huangyan Island.” Huangyan Island is the Chinese name for Bajo de Masinloc, a geological feature that lies well within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The lawmakers said such content is part of a broader disinformation campaign that seeks to justify China’s aggressive actions in the region and undermine the Philippines’ lawful claims.
Barbers, in a statement, emphasized that the NTC should treat these misinformation pages with the same urgency as it does websites hosting pornographic content, which the government has previously blocked. “The NTC should block these China misinformation pages the same way that the government cracks down on porn sites,” he said. He added that following or subscribing to such pages should be considered an unpatriotic act, urging the public to be more discerning in their consumption of online content. The lawmaker acknowledged, however, that the NTC’s authority to order Internet service providers (ISPs) to block websites is not absolute and may be subject to legal challenges. Despite this limitation, he insisted that the government should take decisive action. “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,” Barbers said, referring to a pro-Beijing content creator featured in the controversial material. “So that even if it is seen by the Filipino youth, they will be able to discern the fake news from the real one,” he added.
The video in question allegedly depicted a Philippine vessel intentionally crossing the path of a Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) ship, supposedly to provoke a water cannon response, which a CNN news crew then captured. The video’s narration claimed that “Manila wanted to put on a tough performance and win support from its boss, but the performance fell flat.” The incident reportedly took place around the time of the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ meeting held in the Philippines, which was also attended by American officials. The lawmakers rejected this framing, saying it distorts the reality of China’s illegal incursions into the Philippines’ maritime domains. They stressed that the vessel was operating within the country’s EEZ and that any Philippine presence in these waters is an exercise of sovereignty and sovereign rights recognized under international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The issue of the West Philippine Sea has long been a flashpoint in Philippine-China relations, particularly after the 2016 Arbitral Tribunal ruling that invalidated China’s nine-dash line claims. The House officials said foreign-backed propaganda seeks to rewrite history and sow confusion among Filipinos who may not be fully aware of the country’s legal and historical rights.
House Senior Deputy Minority Leader and Mamamayang Liberal (ML) party-list Rep. Leila de Lima also condemned the spread of what she described as outright lies about Philippine sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea. “We condemn this kind of content that clearly peddle 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 called on the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT) and other concerned agencies to closely monitor such pages and “urgently implement the necessary measures to prevent the spread of fake news and disinformation.” She likewise urged the government to strengthen its collaboration with digital platforms such as Facebook, Google, and TikTok to ensure that false and misleading content has no place in the country’s digital space. “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. The lawmaker’s remarks highlight a growing concern among some legislators that social media platforms have become breeding grounds for foreign disinformation, particularly around sensitive national security issues.
House Committee on Public Accounts chairperson and Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon, for his part, pushed for a more proactive role from the Department of National Defense (DND) and the National Security Council (NSC). Ridon said these agencies should take the lead in flagging all social media pages and content that propagate lies about the country’s lawful rights over the West Philippine Sea. “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,” he said. He also urged government agencies to make formal representations before social media platforms for the removal of these pages and content on the basis of fake news, misinformation, and disinformation. Ridon’s call suggests that beyond the NTC’s regulatory powers, the country must utilize diplomatic and corporate channels to pressure tech companies into acting against malicious content. He stressed that national security agencies should not be passive observers but active defenders of the country’s territorial integrity in the information space. The lawmaker’s stance aligns with broader efforts in the House of Representatives to examine how foreign state actors use digital platforms to influence Philippine public opinion and undermine trust in the government’s handling of maritime disputes.
As tensions in the West Philippine Sea continue to simmer, lawmakers are increasingly focusing on the information war being waged alongside physical confrontations at sea. The call for the NTC to block China-linked propaganda pages, for Facebook and other platforms to remove misleading content, and for the DND and NSC to actively flag such posts reflects a growing recognition that national security now extends to cyberspace. While the government’s legal and regulatory options may be limited, the legislators insisted that a whole-of-nation approach is needed to counter disinformation and protect the public from manipulation. Barbers argued that if the government can act swiftly against illicit online content like pornography, it can and must do the same for content that threatens national sovereignty. The lawmakers’ unified stance sends a strong message that the Philippines will not tolerate the proliferation of false narratives designed to weaken its resolve and mislead its citizens. With the youth being the most active segment of the country’s online population, the urgency of launching educational campaigns that debunk these falsehoods, while simultaneously imposing regulatory measures, has never been more critical. The House officials also reiterated that the Philippines’ rights over the West Philippine Sea are not subject to negotiation or distortion by foreign propaganda, and that all government institutions must work together to ensure the truth prevails in the digital and physical defense of the nation’s territory.
