In October 2018, public research by the Citizen Lab, a research laboratory at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto, documented how a Saudi dissident living in Montreal, Canada, was likely targeted with spyware operated by the Saudi authorities. The target, Omar Abdulaziz, was a close friend of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Both individuals were the object of the increasingly ‘long-arm’ of repressive regimes. These were not isolated incidents, but part of a broader pattern of state repression. This article considers the digital dynamics of the phenomenon of transnational repression in more detail. Specifically, it looks at how states that host targeted dissidents and activists (‘host states’) are responding (or not) to the use of digital technologies to silence transnational political and social debate and dissent. It argues that host states which are parties to international human rights instruments such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights must act in conformity with their positive obligations under international human rights law and suggests a baseline of ‘good practices’ that should be considered by host states in addressing digital transnational repression.
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May 13, 2022