{"id":15224,"date":"2024-10-25T15:16:53","date_gmt":"2024-10-25T15:16:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/philippine-reserve-targeted-by-online-smear-campaign\/"},"modified":"2024-10-25T15:16:53","modified_gmt":"2024-10-25T15:16:53","slug":"philippine-reserve-targeted-by-online-smear-campaign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/philippine-reserve-targeted-by-online-smear-campaign\/","title":{"rendered":"Philippine reserve targeted by online smear campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"


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A nature reserve in the Philippines, which has been lauded by top climate activists and film stars, has come under a concerted disinformation attack on social media as it fights to continue its work, a BBC investigation has found.<\/p>\n

A network of nearly 100 fake Facebook accounts and pages were found to be spreading misleading claims about the Masungi Georeserve and its keepers. Most were taken down after the BBC asked Meta, Facebook\u2019s parent company, about these accounts.<\/p>\n

Despite gaining international recognition for its reforestation efforts in the fight against climate change, the reserve is under pressure from illegal loggers, land grabbers, and quarrying companies.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the reserve said it was being \u201cganged up on\u201d by local politicians, businesses and some officials in government. The environment department, which has proposed ending a reforesting contract with the reserve, denied the claim.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Masungi Georeserve is known for its limestone formations, estimated to be around 60 million years old<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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It is not clear who controlled the network, but evidence seen by the BBC suggests that a public relations consultant who states on his social media profile that he has expertise in \u201creputation management\u201d was linked to pages involved in the campaign.<\/p>\n

Located east of Manila, the Masungi reserve is a popular eco-tourism destination, known for its lush rainforest and gravity-defying limestone formations. Supporters include climate activist Greta Thunberg and Hollywood superstar Leonardo DiCaprio.<\/p>\n

The reserve has been trying to fend off illegal business activities for years, but this particular smear campaign is understood to have started in recent months.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen misleading information, trying to manufacture dissent against work that we do as environment defenders,\u201d says Billie Dumaliang from the Masungi Georeserve Foundation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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These online attacks have appeared against a backdrop of physical violence against people involved in protecting the environment in the Philippines.<\/p>\n

Two forest rangers who work for the Masungi Georeserve were shot and wounded in 2021. And campaigning group Global Witness<\/a> says the Philippines ranks as the most dangerous place in Asia for environmental defenders, with 298 people killed since 2012.<\/p>\n

\u201dOnline propaganda can be quite important in creating a fear factor for the people who work in Masungi,\u201d says Regine Cabato, a Filipino journalist with experience covering disinformation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Rangers working for the Masungi Georeserve have, in the past, been attacked and shot at<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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By investigating this propaganda, BBC Verify identified a pattern of fake accounts and pages seemingly working together as part of the smear campaign.<\/p>\n

Suspicious features included profile pictures showing K-pop stars, cats and models, rather than real people. Many of these accounts were created within hours of each other, and had very few friends.<\/p>\n

But it was the content that they posted which made them stand out the most: in the last few months, they repeatedly posted content critical of the Masungi Georeserve Foundation.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuddenly the owners are making a lot of money,\u201d posted one user, questioning the Masungi Georeserve\u2019s entire operation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis protected area is owned by the people. Don\u2019t be arrogant!\u201d wrote another, along with an image telling the reserve to \u201cstop masquerading as a protector of nature\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is something we\u2019ve seen play out during elections against certain political targets, and sometimes it\u2019s something we\u2019ve also seen deployed against private individuals,\u201d says Ms Cabato.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a lot of power and a lot of money that goes into turning the wheels of this machine.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The campaign appears to have begun this year, around the time the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) proposed scrapping the 2017 contract that handed the Masungi Georeserve Foundation control over the vast majority of the land it holds – some 2,700 hectares – for reforestation purposes.<\/p>\n

The move was criticised by a number of international celebrities, including Filipino actress and singer Nadine Lustre, Greta Thunberg and Leonardo DiCaprio – who, in an Instagram post, called on the Philippine president to \u201cprotect Masungi\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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