(TibetanReview.net, Feb13’25) –A Swiss government report has concluded Feb 12 that China has been subjecting Tibetans and Uyghurs living in the country to “transnational repression”, including by recruiting fellow-ethnic members to spy on them, reported swissinfo.ch Feb 12 and japantimes.co.jp Feb 13.
Besides inciting Tibetans and Uyghurs to spy on their fellow members in Switzerland, “there are also indications that politically active people are systematically observed, photographed and filmed,” a Swiss government statement on the report was quoted as saying.
Besides, “there are also indications of cyberattacks and surveillance of communications, potentially also targeting Swiss citizens who are politically active in support of the Tibetan and Uyghur communities.”
The report was cited as saying a “major objective” for Beijing was to dissuade Tibetans and Uyghurs in Switzerland from engaging in political activities, using cyberattacks in particular.
Chinese intelligence services were stated to have monitored demonstrations organized by the Tibetan diaspora. “Their agents operate under diplomatic cover, or pass themselves off as journalists, tourists or students.”
“The fact that people feel under constant surveillance and are subject to various forms of harassment maintains a climate of fear and restricts the exercise of their fundamental rights,” the swissinfo.ch report has noted.
The report, based on the results of a University of Basel study commissioned by the Federal Office of Justice and the State Secretariat for Migration, was in response to a parliamentary postulate.
The report is cited as saying that while the consequences of the transnational repression were not as easily identifiable as those of terrorism, for example, “they pose a considerable threat to Switzerland’s sovereignty in the long term.”
And it sees the phenomenon of transnational repression as being “set to increase” under the combined effects of advancing digital technology and increasingly close cooperation between authoritarian states.
The government has recommended examining a series of additional measures concerning prevention, coordination and awareness-raising. It also wants to raise awareness among all federal, cantonal and communal services about those likely to be involved in transnational repression, said the swissinfo.ch report.