On March 8, Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya and Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Strategy, Policy, and Plans Robert Silvers co-hosted a roundtable discussion with members of U.S. and other diaspora communities who have been targeted by transnational repression efforts by foreign governments and other foreign actors. Participants shared their often harrowing experiences and described the far-reaching, negative consequences of transnational repression on their lives and those of their family members. They also provided insights into how authoritarian regimes in particular seek to intimidate into silence perceived dissidents, activists, journalists, or vulnerable groups located abroad, and exact reprisals against them.
Under Secretary Zeya and Under Secretary Silvers reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to stand with and support the human rights defenders, journalists, activists, and others targeted by transnational repression, and to continue to promote accountability for perpetrators of transnational repression. They underscored the Biden-Harris Administration’s resolve to push back against governments that threaten and attack individuals, both at home and abroad, who are peacefully exercising their universal human rights.
