Phnom Penh – Experts shared their views on preventing color revolutions in the era of artificial intelligence (AI) at the third Phnom Penh Forum held today (November 27) at the Royal Academy of Cambodia. The theme of the forum is “Color Revolutions and the Evolving Global Order: Challenges to Sovereignty and Democracy.”
Color revolutions refer to uprisings where people demand changes in government or regime, also known as people’s power movements. Kin Phea, director of the Royal Institute of International Relations in Cambodia (IRIC), said examples include the uprisings in Tunisia, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Egypt, and the recent uprising in Bangladesh, where Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Hasina ) fled to India after being ousted.
Asanga Abeyagoonasekera, executive director of the South Asia Forward Network (SAFN) in Washington, D.C., noted that various artificial intelligence tools were used during the 2022 uprising in Sri Lanka, which led to the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
He explained that social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram are used as cost-effective and non-violent mobilization tools, although they pose challenges for government regulation.
Abayagunasekera said that while Facebook’s policies prohibit the spread of fake news, the company often takes time to act on government requests.
“Artificial intelligence will play a complementary role in triggering and enhancing this type of nonviolent revolution,” he said.
IRIC Deputy Director General Chhort Bunthang warned that artificial intelligence technologies such as deepfakes pose serious risks to society and play an important role in accelerating the color revolution.
How to prevent color revolution in the AI era?
Chheng Kimlong, president of the Asian Vision Institute (AVI), suggested that the government work with artificial intelligence developers to create harmful content filters to prevent social unrest.
He warned that the vast amounts of data stored daily by AI tools pose a significant danger to future governance and stability.
“When AI processes large amounts of big data, it creates visual statistics or representations that often highlight only the negative aspects of a particular issue. For example, if the input is primarily negative about the Cambodian government, the AI tool might project a representation of the government. A purely negative image, leading to negative perceptions, may fuel anger against the government.
However, he emphasized that relying solely on artificial intelligence tools to filter out negative information will not prevent bad news or color revolutions. He suggested that creating a healthy space for people to express their opinions and exercise their freedom is crucial.
“You cannot restrict people’s freedom when they are ready to demand change. This does not apply to any particular country, but globally. Every country must ensure healthy spaces of freedom – economic, political, social and cultural – —Empowerment, innovation and creativity must be fostered to enable people to participate in and contribute to socio-economic development,” Jinlong said.
He added that when people feel content and safe in their daily lives, free from fear and undue restrictions, they are less likely to mobilize against the government.
Specific to Cambodia, Kimlong recommends using artificial intelligence to promote positive narratives by infusing favorable information about Cambodia into AI tools. This will ensure that when foreigners search for information about the country, they encounter more positive stories, which may help offset the media drivers often associated with color revolutions.
Sok Eysan, a senator and spokesman for the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), believes that artificial intelligence tools and social media may actually counter opposition groups spreading fake news. He noted that such disinformation campaigns have largely failed because most Cambodians are capable of discerning the truth.
“It is well known that opposition figures often slander the government. However, people use modern technology and media to verify these claims. If they find out that these claims are false, the opposition loses credibility. Therefore, we should not be overly worried about artificial intelligence Being used to spread fake news,” he said.
