The U.S. human rights organization Freedom House released its report “Collaboration and Resistance: Tracking Transnational Repression” on April 16. It shows that among newly recorded cases of direct physical transnational repression in 2025, those involving Beijing authorities once again ranked first globally. Meanwhile, the Shen Yun performance in Toronto that was forced to be canceled in early April due to a bomb threat has become a striking real-world example of the report’s concept of “transnational repression.”
Jiang Lin, a former reporter for China’s PLA Daily, analyzed in depth the authoritarian logic behind the incident and the vulnerabilities of democratic societies in an interview.
‘Unrestricted warfare’ under authoritarian shadow: the Shen Yun bomb threat case
According to Freedom House’s latest data, since it began compiling its database in 2014, alleged transnational repression operations originating from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) have reached a total of 1,375 cases. Their scale and systematic nature far exceed those of countries such as Russia and Iran. Beijing’s repression network is said to span all five continents, with an estimated number of victims reaching into the millions, forming what some describe as a kind of “global authoritarian censorship.”
The recent incident in Toronto is presented as a “real-world operation” within this vast network. On the afternoon of March 29, 2026, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto received a threatening email before a Shen Yun performance, claiming that if the show continued, bombs would be detonated both in the theater and at Canada’s Parliament Hill. The theater contacted police, who, after arriving, stated that the threat was “unsubstantiated.” Nevertheless, the performance was canceled. The venue later reported receiving escalated threats and decided to cancel the remaining five shows.
Over the past two years, more than 150 bomb threats have been reported at theaters hosting Shen Yun performances worldwide; all were ultimately confirmed to be hoaxes. The Toronto incident marks the first case globally in which a performance was actually canceled.
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“This is a typical ‘unrestricted warfare’ tactic,” Jiang Lin analyzed. “It precisely exploits Western democratic societies’ high regard for human life.” Jiang believes that for Western institutions unfamiliar with the methods of authoritarian regimes, this kind of intimidation can be effective. That, he argues, is exactly the goal of the perpetrators: to use low-cost electronic threats to cause significant financial losses to organizers while spreading fear within overseas Chinese communities.
Targeted repression and the psychological tactic of ‘collective punishment of relatives’
Freedom House’s report pays particular attention to Beijing’s targeted actions against specific groups. In addition to traditionally affected groups such as Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Falun Gong practitioners, there has been a marked increase in pressure directed at Hong Kong exiles, Inner Mongolian dissidents, and young members of the so-called “White Paper generation” who left the country amid tightening domestic political conditions.
In the interview, Jiang Lin emphasized that this form of repression is increasingly extending into the psychological domain. Authorities are said to be making greater use of “collective punishment of family members,” a method viewed as low-cost yet highly effective. Domestic security agencies allegedly harass, detain, or even sentence the relatives in China of overseas dissidents, in order to coerce the targets into remaining silent, acting as informants, or returning to China.
“This kind of ‘transnational hostage diplomacy’ is effective because everyone needs to live,” Jiang Lin remarked. “When the livelihoods of family members back home are cut off, overseas dissidents are left in immense psychological pain and forced self-censorship.” The threat against Shen Yun’s performance in Toronto was not only aimed at the artists themselves, but also at sending a message—through intimidation of theaters and even Parliament Hill—to make Western society feel the power of this “long-arm” influence.
Digital authoritarianism and networks of authoritarian cooperation
The report provides a detailed analysis of how Beijing uses technological advantages to carry out digital repression. WeChat has become a central tool for monitoring Chinese communities worldwide, and, combined with advanced spyware, Chinese security agencies are able to track overseas protest activities in real time.
Even more concerning, authoritarian governments are forming networks of mutual support. In 74 percent of transnational repression cases, both the initiating country and the host country are classified as “not free.” Through frameworks such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Beijing promotes a model of “non-traditional security cooperation,” which in essence provides a legal veneer for cross-border arrests and illegal extraditions.
In addition, the report warns that the CCP also abuses Interpol’s “Red Notice” system by disguising political motives as criminal charges.
Response strategies: from legal frameworks to community protection
Facing Beijing’s pressure, Freedom House research director Yana Gorokhovskaia warned: “Transnational repression is no longer an occasional phenomenon, but a routine part of authoritarian foreign policy. If countermeasures are not taken, personal safety and freedom of expression will be erased under this long-arm reach.”
Jiang Lin offered targeted recommendations, arguing that democratic countries should act on both legal and community levels. She emphasized the need to establish a “cognitive defense line,” ensuring that theaters, police, and lawmakers understand these tactics as a pattern used by Beijing rather than isolated security incidents. At the same time, Canada should formally engage China through diplomatic channels and raise the issue as a political matter involving violations of national sovereignty.
The report concludes by presenting several urgent recommendations to governments and international organizations, calling for collective action to break the chain of China’s transnational repression. The main recommendations include:
Legal designation: Countries should explicitly define transnational repression as an independent federal crime and increase criminal accountability for perpetrators.
Sanctions mechanisms: Implement targeted sanctions against Chinese security agencies directly involved in planning and carrying out transnational repression (such as personnel from the Ministry of Public Security and Ministry of State Security), as well as overseas agents assisting these operations.
Community protection: Establish dedicated hotlines and asylum or protection programs to ensure that overseas Chinese communities under threat can receive timely legal and psychological support when facing harassment or intimidation.
Export controls: Strictly review and restrict the export of dual-use surveillance technologies to countries with a record of transnational repression.
Defending the global democratic line
In the concluding part of the interview, Jiang Lin stated that Beijing’s fear of Shen Yun stems precisely from its success, broad influence, and its promotion of traditional values that are fundamentally incompatible with authoritarian ideology.
The bomb threats received by Shen Yun’s Toronto performances, she argued, are not merely public safety risks, but rather a form of “psychological warfare” aimed at destroying overseas spaces for free speech and cultural expression. As emphasized in the Freedom House report, countering transnational repression is not only about protecting exile communities, but also about safeguarding a rules-based international order.
Freedom House stresses that when any government can freely conduct cross-border arrests, harassment, or silencing of individuals, the principles of global democracy and rule of law are at risk of collapse. Only through collective action, it argues, can this shadow be dismantled.
By Meng Hao
