On addressing transnational repression of human rights defenders

MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION

on addressing transnational repression of human rights defenders

(2025/2048(INI))

– having regard to the UN declaration on human rights defenders (HRDs) and to the UN Human Rights Council Resolution of 4 April 2025 entitled ‘Human rights defenders and new and emerging technologies: protecting human rights defenders, including women human rights defenders, in the digital age’,

– having regard to the Treaty on European Union, in particular Articles 3 and 21 thereof,

– having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,

– having regard to the EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders, adopted in June 2004, and to its resolution of 16 March 2023 on the EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders,

– having regard to Rule 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

– having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (A100000/2025),

A. whereas transnational repression (TNR) is a well-documented phenomenon, taking place in a global context of deteriorating human rights, shrinking civic space and a growing prevalence of authoritarian regimes;

B. whereas human rights defenders (HRDs) are crucial EU allies in defending and promoting human rights, democracy and the rule of law; whereas the implementation of the EU Guidelines on HRDs and its commitments remains uneven;

C. whereas HRDs worldwide are at risk of TNR, with growing numbers of cases registered in recent years;

D. whereas there is no universally adopted definition of TNR and official data is limited; whereas TNR commonly refers to attacks and threats by states that aim to defend and advance their interests by reaching across national borders to coerce, control or silence dissidents, political opponents, journalists, activists, HRDs and diaspora members through a broad range of methods;

E. whereas despite growing awareness, EU foreign and domestic policy responses to TNR remain limited;

F. whereas social media and other digital platforms may provide an enabling environment for TNR;

I. Transnational repression against HRDs: growing trends and threats

1. Condemns TNR as a serious threat to international human rights law and the rights to freedom, expression, association and protection from arbitrary detention and violence, and as a challenge to the sovereignty of host countries, through foreign interference tactics;

2. Highlights that state-sponsored TNR is taking increasingly insidious forms, including physical harm and torture, surveillance, legal pressure, digital threats, enforced disappearances and abductions, often for forced repatriation, extradition requests, threats against family members and unlawful killings;

3. Condemns authoritarian regimes worldwide for increasingly resorting to digital TNR and AI-powered technologies, spyware, hacking and doxing to harass, surveil and intimidate HRDs, especially women, who are disproportionately targeted by sexualised abuse and threats;

4. Condemns perpetrators for exerting legal and diplomatic pressure, including through politically motivated Interpol red notices, to request the arrest and extradition of exiled HRDs, misuse of the ‘terrorist’ labelling, criminal prosecutions in absentia, and other measures of an administrative nature, such as the revocation of citizenship, travel bans, and the denial of identity documents and consular or banking services;

5. Expresses serious concerns about the role of host countries and non-state actors, such as the private spyware industry, criminal organisations and proxies, in facilitating TNR;

6. Worries about shrinking civic space and the silencing of exiles, whose voices are instrumental in documenting abuse in authoritarian states; recalls that free, democratic societies, particularly in the EU’s immediate neighbourhood, are in its interest;

7. Highlights the lasting psychological toll of TNR on victims’ mental health and general well-being;

II. Mainstreaming TNR in EU policies

8. Calls on the Commission, the Member States and the European External Action Service (EEAS) to systematically address TNR in the context of human rights dialogues with non-EU countries and in other forums for bilateral and multilateral cooperation, such as the UN Human Rights Council;

9. Calls on the Commission and the EEAS to revise the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy and the EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders to include the growing threat of TNR against HRDs, as well as provisions for the protection, and safety of HRDs and financial support for them;

10. Calls for the EU and its Member States to implement the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum in a way that protects HRDs seeking refuge from non-EU countries with authoritarian regimes;

11. Call on the Member States to make best use of their national policies and flexibility to formulate a more coherent, coordinated and predictable visa policy for HRDs targeted by TNR;

III. Enhancing coordinated monitoring and data collection

12. Calls on the EEAS and the Member States to coordinate efforts and set up information, data, tracking and reporting mechanisms to improve the documentation of cases of TNR on their territories and to establish focal points for HRDs in EU delegations;

13. Calls on the Commission to establish a centralised mechanism to register, monitor and assess incidents of TNR against HRDs in the EU, which will help to identify gaps in EU policy and formulate adequate strategic responses;

14. Calls on the Member States to codify TNR in national legislation, with the aim of helping government institutions to identify and prevent TNR;

15. Calls on the Member States and Europol to provide training on TNR awareness to relevant government agencies, external service providers and their staff, especially cybersecurity, law enforcement and immigration officers and staff tasked with handling visa applications and reviewing extradition requests and other forms of legal cooperation with non-EU countries;

IV. Addressing the risks posed by digital technologies as enablers of TNR

16. Calls for the EU and its Member States to tackle digital forms of TNR;

17. Asks the Member States to apply strict oversight of spyware and surveillance markets and operations, and to repeal the export of licences for spyware whenever appropriate;

18. Calls on the Commission to enforce the Digital Services Act and ensure that social media platforms comply with human rights obligations and address TNR;

V. Ensuring accountability and applying sanctions

19. Calls for the EU to hold states and regimes committing TNR accountable for human rights violations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights;

20. Calls for the EU to increase funding for ProtectDefenders.eu, broaden its mandate to include HRDs at risk of TNR within the EU, and increase funding for civil society organisations active in the protection of HRDs at risk;

21. Calls on the Commission to further collaborate with Interpol and the United Nations to put an end to the abusive, politically motivated use of red notices, blue notices, diffusions and extradition requests; calls for Europol’s mandate to include TNR and the assessment of related incidents and Interpol notices targeting HRDs;

22. Calls for the EU and its Member States to use all available tools to protect HRDs and reinforce national sovereignty and democratic values, including sanctions under the EU global human rights sanctions regimes, visa bans and the expulsion of diplomats;

23. Calls for the EU and the EEAS to intensify diplomatic relations, including through EU delegations, to prevent and deter transnational repression tactics by non-EU countries, and to highlight these incidents via public statements;

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24. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Parliament has called for this INI report among growing awareness and documentation around transnational repression (TNR). It provides a comprehensive analysis and recommendations to EU institutions and Member States to facilitate, expand and strengthen the protection of Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) subject to TNR by third countries, whose authorities and proxies have worked tirelessly to silence, intimidate or harass defenders in their host countries. Actions include physical harm, surveillance, legal pressure, digital threats, abductions, extradition and deportation requests, threats against family members, as well as unlawful killings.

TNR by authoritarian regimes works domestically by deterring dissent and denying safety to defenders and their families; as well as externally, by testing host countries and their capacity to respond and protect defenders, thus exposing the fragility of their legal systems. It violates fundamental human rights, undermines the rule of law and democracy, and threatens national sovereignty and security through foreign interference. As a result, civic space is shrinking across the world while HRDs reporting abuse and authoritarian practices are silenced and prevented from informing their communities.

Yet neither the international nor the European legal framework provides for a shared conceptual framework or definition, let alone a coordinated, intergovernmental EU-level response made of preventive and protective measures.

State perpetrators take advantage of legal gaps and the scarcity of official data. Using ever more insidious tactics, they rely on non-state actors or “proxies” to carry out repression beyond their borders and jurisdiction, such as private spyware and surveillance companies, organised crime networks or affiliated diaspora groups.

Digital platforms, communication technologies, social media paltforms and other emerging instruments such as artificial intelligence have exacerbated risks including gender-based digital repression, cyber-harassment, disinformation and bullying, constituting additional obstacles to upholding accountability.

According to Freedom House, who has compiled the largest available database on the topic, in 2024 over 20% of the world’s governments had engaged in transnational repression since 2014, with 1,034 direct, physical incidents across 100 target countries. This points to a pattern of “global authoritarianism”.Interestingly, ten regimes account for nearly 80% of abuses - China, Turkey, Tajikistan, Russia, Egypt, Cambodia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Iran and Belarus.

Host states must abide by their obligations under international human rights law, embed TNR in their national legislations, raise awareness, provide training to all relevant agencies and staff, and support victims seeking justice.

The EU has intensified its support to HRDs but needs stronger accountability mechanisms, improved inter-agency coordination and greater corporate responsibility. Europol’s mandate should be broadened so the agency is empowered to assess and carry out due diligence in regard to politically motivated Interpol red notices and their link to TNR. Other improvements include updating the EU Guidelines on HRDs to feature transnational repression, extending the mandate of ProtectDefenders.eu, establishing data collection and monitoring mechanisms, and streamlining visa policies and residence regimes.

As for digital TNR, it should be addressed through stringent regulations on enablers of TNR, such as spyware industries and social media, notably through preventing spyware export to authoritarian regimes for which TNR acts have been evidenced and the effective enforcement of the EU Digital Services Act.

On the external stage, the EU must make TNR an integral part of EU foreign policy action and, notably by raising the transnational repression issue within its Human Rights Dialogues with third countries and other international fora, enforcing the human rights conditionality on bilateral agreements and financial assistance, and impose targeted sanctions when necessary.

ANNEX: ENTITIES OR PERSONS FROM WHOM THE RAPPORTEUR HAS RECEIVED INPUT

Pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure, the rapporteur declares that she received input from the following entities or persons in the preparation of the draft report, prior to the adoption thereof in committee:

Entity and/or person

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

Freedom House

Amnesty International

Human Rights Watch

Front Line Defenders

Protection International

International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)

International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)

Araminta

International Campaign for Tibet

European Uyghur Institute

CNCD-11.11.11

The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS)

Egyptian Front for Human Rights

Egyptian Forum

Committee to Protect Journalists

EuroMed Rights

Saferworld

Baha’i International Community

Zawiya Talta online newspaper

Reporters sans frontières (RSF)

The list above is drawn up under the exclusive responsibility of the rapporteur.

Where natural persons are identified in the list by their name, by their function or by both, the rapporteur for opinion declares that he has submitted to the natural persons concerned the European Parliament’s Data Protection Notice No 484 (https://www.europarl.europa.eu/data-protect/index.do), which sets out the conditions applicable to the processing of their personal data and the rights linked to that processing.