Almost half the world's Web users live in the region. Asia boasts some of the world's fastest broadband speeds, as well as the fastest rate of growth in mobile broadband. Its share of the global e-commerce market stands at one-third and growing.
So why are Asian governments working so hard to sabotage this glorious rise? In its Freedom on the Net 2013 report, Freedom House ranked 12 Asian nations as "not free" or "partly free." Only two — Japan and the Philippines — qualified as "free." Half of those nations slipped in the rankings from last year.
These are sorry numbers. Most of the world's attention naturally tends to focus on openly repressive regimes such as those in China and Vietnam. The Chinese deploy more online censors than soldiers, and draconian new laws governing microblogs have stifled its once-vibrant social media. Vietnam's Orwellian new Decree 72 bans any content that might "go against the state of the socialist republic of Vietnam."
Just as damaging, however, are measures taken by Asia's democratically elected governments to limit what their citizens can see, say and share online. These rules are often well- meaning — efforts to restrict hate speech, for instance, or to block pornographic material. Yet vague, badly written laws and murky or nonexistent oversight easily lend themselves to abuse. Asia's regulatory morass hobbles Internet businesses.
With growth forecasts dimming, these countries cannot afford to strangle one of the most potentially dynamic sectors of their economies. Models of clear, well-written legislation — such as the European Union's E-Commerce Directive — exist. The Internet is also a potential catalyst for countries hoping that innovation and entrepreneurialism will one day drive their economies. If Asia misses this opportunity, its own leaders will bear part of the blame.
