Transnational authoritarianism

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Transnational authoritarianism represents any effort to prevent acts of political dissent against an authoritarian state by targeting one or more existing or potential members of its emigrant or diaspora communities. [1] [2]

Contents

Freedom House and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) details the extensive use of a number of actors; principally countries governed by authoritarian states are known to engage in transnational repression of dissident and diaspora communities abroad. The most prolific actors involved in this activity, according to their most recent report, are the governments of China, [3] Turkey, Russia, Egypt, and Tajikistan. Other nations noted with concern include Iran, Rwanda, and Saudi Arabia. [4] [5]

A range of states engage in these actions, including assassinations and/or forced disappearances of Chinese and Hong Kong citizens abroad. It has been noted that the use of transnational authoritarianism by a number of countries is rising across the world. [6]

Political scientists have identified that autocracies face specific challenges and opportunities in the international sphere that affect authoritarian practices. Specifically, the rise of transnationalism and practices that transcend national borders has led autocracies to develop strategies aiming to manage their citizens' migration. [7] According to political scientist Gerasimos Tsourapas, global autocracies engage in complex strategies of transnational repression, legitimation, and co-optation as well as cooperation with non-state actors. [8]

Typology of transnational authoritarianism

Sociologist Dana M. Moss has argued for a typology of transnational authoritarianism, [9] as described below:

Lethal retributionThe actual or attempted assassinations of dissidents abroad by regime agents or proxies.
ThreatsVerbal or written warnings directed to members of the diaspora, including the summoning of individuals by regime officials to their embassies for this purpose.
SurveillanceThe gathering and sending of information about co-nationals to the state security apparatus by informant networks composed of regime agents, loyalists, and coerced individuals.
ExileThe direct and indirect banishment of dissidents from the home country, including when the threat of physical confinement and harm prevents activists from returning.
Withdrawing scholarshipsThe rescinding of students’ state benefits for refusing to participate in regime-mandated actions or organizations abroad.
Proxy punishmentThe harassment, physical confinement, and/or bodily harm of relatives in the home-country as a means of information-gathering and retribution against dissidents abroad.

Responses

United States

In December 2021, the Transnational Repression Accountability and Prevention (TRAP) Act became law as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022. [10] The law aims to combat abuse of Interpol notices. [11] [12]

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. Tsourapas, Gerasimos (2019). "A Tightening Grip Abroad: Authoritarian Regimes Target Their Emigrant and Diaspora Communities". Migration Policy Institute .{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. Baser, Bahar; Ozturk, Ahmet Erdi (2020-07-02). "Positive and Negative Diaspora Governance in Context: From Public Diplomacy to Transnational Authoritarianism". Middle East Critique . 29 (3): 319–334. doi:10.1080/19436149.2020.1770449. ISSN   1943-6149. S2CID   219747605.
  3. De Guzman, Chad (2023-04-18). "U.S. Charges Chinese Operatives With 'Transnational Repression': What to Know". Time . Retrieved 2023-06-26.
  4. "Defending Democracy in Exile". Freedom House . Retrieved 2022-08-19.
  5. "Transnational Repression". Federal Bureau of Investigation . Retrieved 2023-06-26.
  6. "Out of Sight, Not Out of Reach". Freedom House . Retrieved 2021-02-24.
  7. Brand, Laurie A. (2006-02-27). Citizens Abroad: Emigration and the State in the Middle East and North Africa (1 ed.). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/cbo9780511491498. ISBN   978-0-521-85805-2. OCLC   967481251.
  8. Tsourapas, Gerasimos (2021). "Global Autocracies: Strategies of Transnational Repression, Legitimation, and Co-Optation in World Politics". International Studies Review . 23 (3): 616–644. doi: 10.1093/isr/viaa061 .
  9. Moss, Dana M. (2016-09-19). "Transnational Repression, Diaspora Mobilization, and the Case of The Arab Spring". Social Problems . 63 (4): 480–498. doi: 10.1093/socpro/spw019 . ISSN   0037-7791.
  10. "New Law Protects Those Who Call Out Corruption". Transparency International . December 27, 2021. Retrieved 2023-06-26.
  11. "Helsinki Commission Welcomes Passage of Trap Provision in 2022 National Defense Authorization Act". Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe . 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2023-06-26.
  12. "Transnational Repression Accountability and Prevention ​(TRAP) Act Reports". U.S. Department of State . June 2, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.{{cite web}}: zero width space character in |title= at position 56 (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)