Transnational repression in an age of global authoritarianism: experiences of Uyghur diaspora activists in Sweden

Research on global authoritarianism and transnational repression has expanded rapidly and deepened our understanding of how non-democratic regimes seek to control or silence parts of their non-resident populations. While we have a good understanding of the underlying operating logics and authoritarian regimes’ strategies and tactics, we know less about the ways in which the intended targets experience these practices. To help fill this gap, this article explores the lived experiences of exiled Uyghur activists in Sweden, and how they perceive, react and adapt to Chinese efforts to silence their voices thousands of miles from home. Through semi-structured interviews with diaspora activists, we find that transnational repressive practices like surveillance, harassment and repression by proxy are widespread. At the same time, we find the deterrent effect of the practices to be somewhat limited in the Swedish context. Thus, we identify the host country context as a key issue for further research.