gender
Meryem and her family left the Xinjiang region in China for Turkey in the early 1990s, before settling in North America. As a human rights defender, Meryem has experienced various digital threats in response to her activism. She is frequently attacked by what she believes to be Chinese state-backed trolls on X, Facebook, and in the comment section on public Zoom meetings.
Drawing on the lived experiences of 85 women human rights defenders originating from 24 countries of origin and residing in 23 host countries, we examine how gender and sexuality play a central role in digital transnational repression.
This report contains a summary of the scoping study’s results and it proceeds as follows: first, it outlines the Lab’s work on gender and digital security; second, it maps the landscape of research and advocacy in this field and discusses the interviews’ findings; and finally, it highlights some of the research gaps that are relevant to the Citizen Lab’s work.
For human rights activists, Internet technologies bring both risks and benefits. Smartphones are widely used to document the abuses that activists are fighting against, as well as to store photos, recordings, and documents. Social media and messaging apps are key organising and communications tools. But even as these technologies enhance activists’ work, they also enable online threats such as surveillance and harassment.
