Confronting TNR in France: A Practical Guide for Victims and a Report for Policymakers

State Capture Accountability Project and International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) are jointly publishing a new report addressing transnational repression in France and a Guide for victims of TNR in France.

The ‘Guide for TNR Victims in France’ provides a clear and practical explanation of how to file a criminal complaint and how to apply for asylum in France in the case of transnational repression. It is designed to help TNR targets seeking protection in France, as well as victims of TNR within French territory, navigate the processes for obtaining assistance.

The guide accompanies a new report assessing France’s capacity to address TNR within its existing legal and political frameworks. Drawing on in-depth analysis of French law and policy, the report highlights that France’s current approach falls short in addressing the complexity of the TNR challenge on its soil.

The report calls for urgent action to establish an effective framework that enables authorities to recognise and address TNR, while ensuring that the protection, safety, and rights of affected individuals are prioritised.

The authors set out key recommendations to French authorities to strengthen their response in light of the growing number of TNR cases on French territory:

• Enact a legal definition of TNR 
• Conduct a cross-government review of evidence of TNR on French territory and the adequacy of France’s policy, law and legislation to counter those threats. 
• Adopt a victim-focused approach to TNR policy
• Explicitly criminalise TNR and the full array of TNR-related conduct
• Law enforcement and state security should enact procedures and policies to enable them to quickly and adequately identify TNR cases
• Enact a policy and legal framework to ensure effective protection and tailored assistance to TNR victims or those at risk of being targeted;
• Create an intelligence-gathering mechanism
• Guarantee effective protection to TNR targets on French soil;
• Suspend extraditions to Russia and other TNR perpetrator countries.

These documents are part of the broader efforts by IPHR and State Capture Accountability Project to ensure that European countries are equipped to defend human rights in the face of rising transnational threats. It is prepared in the framework of IPHR’s project aimed at addressing the increasing persecution of critical voices by Russia abroad, and to support communities at risk through awareness-raising, tailored trainings, and emergency support. One of the central goals of the project is to enhance preparedness and response of governments and international institutions to Russian TNR through research, monitoring, and advocacy.

About the Organisations

International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) is an independent, Brussels-based NGO working with civil society partners in Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus, and Central Asia to promote human rights and accountability.

iphronline.org

IPHR@IPHRonline.org

State Capture Accountability Project (“SCAP”) is a non-profit organisation registered in the Netherlands. Our vision is of a global society where states exist to serve their people, and where economic and political elites are unable to bend laws and institutions to serve their own advantage. We convene and support civil society, investigators, journalists, data analysts, academics, policy experts, and legal professionals to conduct research and undertake policy advocacy to promote a deeper understanding of state capture and use legal avenues to counter it.

https://www.state-capture.org

contact@state-capture.org

For more information on transnational repression in European States: 

New Report sets out recommendations to the UK Government for addressing Transnational Repression

New Report Highlights Urgent Gaps in Italy’s Response to Russian Transnational Repression (TNR)

Position Paper: The Need for a Council of Europe Convention on Transnational Repression

Joint appeal for a Council of Europe Convention on Transnational Repression

Policy brief : Why the European Union Should Establish a Dedicated Sanctions Regime on Transnational Repression