This report is the result of the collective work of young Filipino human rights defenders.
In 2024, Amnesty International launched RightUp, its first child and youth-led research project, to center youth expertise otherwise sidelined by conventional hierarchies in human rights work and research. Piloted in the Philippines, nine Filipino young human rights defenders (YHRDs) investigated and documented a human rights issue that puts them at risk on a daily basis: online harassment. Amnesty International provided resources, guidance, and technical support to the young researchers for the report’s publication. It focuses particularly on an often-overlooked consequence of online harassment: the chilling effect. People may not only be threatened after exercising their human rights; the chilling effect can stop individuals from daring to exercise them at all.
We ask: How does any chilling effect of online harassment manifest among YHRDs? How is it shaped by YHRDs’ intersecting identities? How do YHRDs cope and adapt their advocacy? We find that the chilling effect of online harassment severely impairs YHRDs’ human rights work and enjoyment. Through interviews, an online questionnaire, and desk research, we engaged with and listened to fellow YHRDs aged 18-24 who were direct targets of online harassment. We witnessed how they took the lead in framing their experiences, building networks of solidarity, and reclaiming their spaces in advocacy.