Key Reading: EU Study on Transnational Repression and Threats to Civic Space
12.06.2025
A comprehensive new study commissioned by the European Parliament highlights the alarming rise of transnational repression (TNR)—the cross‑border targeting of journalists, activists, and human rights defenders (HRDs) by authoritarian regimes.
According to the report, 43 governments have engaged in physical threats against activists and journalists in exile between 2014 and 2024, with hundreds of cases documented across Europe, including within EU Member States.
What Is Transnational Repression?
Transnational repression refers to the tactics used by states to coerce, silence, or control individuals living abroad, through methods that include:
- assassinations and attempted killings,
- physical assaults,
- unlawful detention, deportation, and rendition,
- misuse of Interpol Red Notices,
- digital surveillance, hacking, and spyware,
- threats and retaliation against family members (coercion‑by‑proxy),
- online harassment, smear campaigns, and disinformation.
The study stresses that HRDs—especially those fleeing persecution—remain unsafe even in democratic host countries.
Scale of the Threat
Freedom House data shows 655 cases of transnational repression against political activists (531 incidents) and journalists (124 incidents) between 2014–2024. Within the EU alone, 92 incidents were recorded.
Top Perpetrator States
The study identifies several governments with systematic cross‑border repression campaigns, including:
- Iran – leading in assassination attempts and credible threats, especially after the 2022 “Women, Life, Freedom” protests.
- China – operating the world’s most sophisticated global repression system, targeting Uyghur, Tibetan, Hong Kong, and mainland dissidents.
- Russia – responsible for poisonings, killings, digital attacks, and surveillance of exiled critics, especially since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
- Türkiye – extensive post‑2016 campaign against perceived opponents, using extradition, Interpol abuse, and diaspora intimidation.
- Tajikistan – the highest number of cases targeting political activists via extraditions, kidnappings, and Red Notices.
- Egypt – systematic harassment, digital attacks, passport denial, and family reprisals against exiled activists and journalists.
The report also highlights the role of non‑state enablers—including criminal networks, loyalist diaspora groups, and private surveillance companies—who help governments bypass law enforcement in democratic countries.
Digital Repression: A Growing Frontier
Digital TNR is becoming a primary tool, combining:
- hacking and phishing,
- invasive spyware like Pegasus and Predator,
- AI‑enhanced surveillance,
- deepfake technologies targeting women activists,
- mass reporting to silence voices online,
- disinformation and smear operations.
The study warns that AI capabilities will dramatically expand authoritarian actors‘ ability to surveil, intimidate, and manipulate exiled communities.
Impact on Human Rights Defenders
The harms are profound and wide‑ranging:
- chronic stress, trauma, and mental health deterioration,
- fear for personal and family safety,
- restrictions on mobility, travel, and legal status,
- isolation and erosion of trust within diaspora communities,
- forced self‑censorship or complete withdrawal from activism,
- unique gender‑based attacks targeting women.
These impacts collectively shrink civic space and undermine democratic participation—both in host countries and globally.
Gaps in EU Response
Despite existing tools, the study finds that the EU lacks a unified, human‑rights‑centred approach:
- ProtectDefenders.eu offers temporary relocation but does not fully address threats inside the EU.
- No EU‑wide mechanism exists for documenting TNR incidents.
- Visa and residency rules often leave HRDs in precarious situations.
- Law enforcement in Member States frequently lacks training on TNR patterns.
Key Recommendations for the EU
The report calls for urgent reforms, including:
- updating the EU Guidelines on HRDs to explicitly include TNR,
- expanding ProtectDefenders.eu to support HRDs inside the EU,
- creating an EU‑wide incident‑reporting and monitoring mechanism,
- tightening export controls on spyware and enforcing the Digital Services Act,
- strengthening Europol’s mandate to include TNR threat assessments,
- imposing sanctions on individuals and entities responsible for cross‑border repression,
- establishing flexible visa and residency pathways for at‑risk HRDs.
You can read the full study through this link: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2025/754475/EXPO_STU(2025)754475_EN.pdf
