UN accuses Russia of exporting “reign of fear” to other countries

“ Nthe last three years, I have described before this Council the reign of fear in Russia. Today, I realize how Russia exports this reign of fear,” said Mariana Katzarova, a specialist, before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

“ Transnational repression is not a series of isolated incidents, but the continuation, beyond the Russian borders, of the same state-supported structural repression system that I documented in Russia,” he added.

His report before the Council is based on some 400 documented cases. The rapporteur concluded that this transnational repression is a “systematic and institutionalized state strategy, inseparable from the consolidation of the authoritarian regime in its territory and the war of aggression against Ukraine”.

Russia did not react immediately to the report and did not attend the Human Rights Council meeting.

The persecution of political exiles “has been part of the practices of the Soviet and Russian State for over a century,” but Russia has become since the large-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 “one of the leading authors of transnational repression,” according to Katzarova.

“ This practice gained strength, diversified its methods and expanded geographically, turning to the clandestine, administrative and digital means, as well as the use of intermediaries, which makes it more difficult to determine authorship ", observed.

According to the expert – who works under the mandate of the Human Rights Council, but does not speak on behalf of the organisation – the transnational repression conducted by Russia involves, among other things, digital surveillance, threats and intimidation, administrative or judicial pressures and the use of intermediaries to target opponents abroad.

Since February 2022, between 650,000 and 900,000 people have left Russia, the country's largest wave of political emigration since the 20th century, said Katzarova.

“ The Russian authorities deny any involvement and sometimes promote or honor the alleged perpetrators” of the crimes, lamented the expert.

The UN rapporteur advocated the adoption of a binding international convention on transnational repression, with a view to preventing this practice, establishing responsibilities and better protecting the targeted people.