Geneva [Switzerland] March 4 (ANI): The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) organised a side event during the 61st session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva to highlight transnational repression, the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) reported.
Speakers included Sarah from STP Germany, Zumrita Akrin of the Uyghur Congress, Lebin Ding representing the Felang Goan Chinese community, and Thinley Chukki, Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama at the Office of Tibet in Geneva. Delegates from 12 Member States’ permanent missions and civil society actors attended, with more than 40 participants present.
In opening remarks, Thinley Chukki thanked STP and stressed the importance of amplifying the experiences of those subjected to cross-border repression while seeking solutions. She highlighted shortcomings in international human rights systems that impede accountability and leave protections for human rights defenders inadequate.
Describing the Tibetan experience, Chukki said transnational repression appears in multiple, interconnected forms. Relatives of Tibetans in exile are routinely targeted within Tibet to intimidate those abroad. The CTA report alleges Chinese authorities coerce Tibetans inside Tibet to provide information about family members overseas, facilitating monitoring and harassment of Tibetans living in democracies. Exiled institutions, notably the Central Tibetan Administration, face sustained efforts to discredit them, including cyberattacks, smear campaigns against elected leaders, and pressure on family members. Religious institutions and the legacy of the Dalai Lama have been targeted through coordinated defamation, manipulation, and online harassment. Chukki also pointed to digital repression—social media surveillance, online intimidation, and cyber monitoring—used to silence advocacy at home and abroad, according to the CTA.
On accountability, Chukki urged governments to formally recognise transnational repression as an infringement of sovereignty and human rights. She praised Switzerland’s official research recognising such practices and encouraged similar initiatives elsewhere. Governments should raise awareness within judicial and law enforcement bodies to ensure victim complaints are taken seriously and establish accessible reporting mechanisms; Germany’s developing framework was noted as a constructive example.
Chukki called on UN mechanisms to address retaliation faced by activists and human rights defenders within UN processes, noting Tibetan and Uyghur representatives often encounter heightened screening and security during UN engagements—a further form of transnational repression. She concluded by calling for global recognition, comprehensive safeguards, and coordinated international action to protect human rights defenders and allow them to operate safely and without fear, the CTA report said. (ANI)
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