EU Report Urges a Much Tougher Stance on Transnational Repression
That Draft Report on Addressing Transnational Repression of Human Rights Defenders is now being considered by the EU Parliament, which must decide how to overhaul a system that is failing to protect EU citizens from countries as far afield as Iran and China.
Ridel spoke with The Diplomat's Luke Hunt about the links between transnational repression, international crime syndicates, and autocratic governments in Asia, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East, and what the EU needs to do to fight the scourge.
She says the EU has fallen behind nations like Australia and Canada in tackling transnational repression. It even lacks its own data base and relies on Freedom House to document repression that has included killings, abductions, torture, and the jailing of opposition politicians, rights activists, and journalists.
In February, Freedom House released a report that found a quarter of the world's governments were using tactics of transnational repression. China topped the list of 'physical and direct incidents' with 22 percent of recorded cases between 2014 and 2024.
Among the major problems are Interpol, which Ridel says is not fit for the purpose, given that red notices issued by authoritarian regimes are then used by Interpol agents to detain and return political dissidents to their countries of origin, and too often to a tragic fate.
Ridel became a Member of the EU Parliament for France's Socialist Party in 2024. She has been spokesperson for the party since March 2023 and sits on the EU parliament's subcommittee for human rights.
Prior to this, she was a French civil servant and a member of the Jean-Jaures Foundation in Paris. In 2020, she co-founded a think tank, the Rousseau Institute.
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Kyodo News
17 hours ago
- Kyodo News
Kyodo News Digest: Aug. 9, 2025
TOKYO - The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News. ---------- White House confirms Japan, like EU, exempt from tariff stacking WASHINGTON - A White House official on Friday confirmed that imports from Japan, like those from the European Union, will be exempt from tariff stacking, meaning the United States will not add a new 15 percent rate set for the Asian country on top of preexisting duties. The confirmation came a day after Japan's top tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa said U.S. President Donald Trump's team had acknowledged that his executive order on so-called reciprocal duties signed last week was inaccurate and did not properly reflect a trade deal Tokyo and Washington struck on July 22. ---------- Nagasaki marks 80th A-bomb anniv. amid fraying of nuclear taboo NAGASAKI - Nagasaki on Saturday marked the 80th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of the city in World War II, as concerns grow over the risks of a nuclear war that many survivors have long campaigned to prevent. During the event to commemorate the attack on the southwestern Japan city that followed the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Mayor Shiro Suzuki is expected to call for immediate cease-fires in conflicts around the world, while honoring the efforts of atomic bomb survivors who have worked tirelessly to promote peace. ---------- Xi tells Putin China "glad" to see Russia-U.S. contact BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping told Russian President Vladimir Putin in their phone talks Friday that China is "glad" Moscow and Washington are maintaining contact and seeking a political settlement of the war in Ukraine, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. Their call came as Russia and the United States have agreed in principle that Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump will meet in the coming days to discuss ways to end the conflict. ---------- Japan PM rebuffs resignation calls, LDP to weigh early leader race TOKYO - Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reiterated Friday his intention to stay on as Japan's leader, defying calls to step down as the Liberal Democratic Party held a meeting of a key decision-making panel over a recent election loss. After the joint plenary meeting of LDP lawmakers in both houses of parliament, executives of the ruling party said its election committee will consider holding a presidential election -- not due until 2027 -- ahead of schedule, in a rare development for the party that has held power for most of the postwar era. ---------- South Korean president eyes Japan visit in late Aug. to meet PM Ishiba TOKYO - The Japanese and South Korean governments are arranging for South Korean President Lee Jae Myung to visit Japan late this month for talks with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, diplomatic sources said Friday. Ishiba and Lee, who would be making his first visit to Japan since taking office in early June, are expected to agree to maintain close communication to help stabilize bilateral ties often strained by wartime history and territorial disputes, according to the sources. ---------- Japan firms' net profit falls 10.2% in April-June, 1st drop in 3 yrs TOKYO - Major Japanese companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange saw their combined net profit for the April-June period fall 10.2 percent from a year earlier, the first drop in three years, with the manufacturing sector especially hard hit due to higher U.S. tariffs, a tally by a securities firm showed Friday. Net profit in the manufacturing sector fell 22.7 percent, with transport machinery makers including automakers tumbling 42.1 percent, according to SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. which released the survey as the earnings report season for the quarter came into full swing. ---------- Japan, Peru leaders eye cooperation over critical minerals, defense TOKYO - Japan and Peru agreed at their summit on Friday to deepen their ties as partners sharing common values, as they seek to build stable supply chains for critical minerals and boost defense cooperation amid China's rise. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told visiting Peruvian President Dina Boluarte at his office that he wants to add impetus to Japanese investment in the South American nation, which has one of the world's largest Japanese diasporas, and spur tourism. ---------- Tennis: Osaka loses to rising star Mboko in Montreal final MONTREAL - Japan's Naomi Osaka fell short in her bid for her first WTA Tour title in four years, losing to 18-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko in Thursday's final at the National Bank Open in Montreal. The home favorite came from a set down to beat the former world No. 1 and four-time Grand Slam champion 2-6, 6-4, 6-1. Mboko converted eight of her nine break points while overcoming 13 double faults. Video: Parade on ASEAN special day at Osaka Expo
The Diplomat
20 hours ago
- The Diplomat
South Korea's Special Counsels Delve Into the Supernatural Side of Yoon's Presidency
The NATO summit in June 2022 was former President Yoon Suk-yeol's debut abroad; he had just taken the oath of office the previous month. Amid reports of Yoon's schmoozing and talk of aligning South Korea more firmly with the West, the then first lady, Kim Keon-hee, also made headlines with her outfit choice. She appeared at a banquet with Korean expats, wearing a French designer pendant worth about $44,000. At the time, someone at the presidential office advised against wearing it, to which Kim replied 'I know what I'm doing.' Clearly, she didn't know – or didn't care – about the legal requirement for elected officials to disclose ownership of pricey jewelry, which Kim had not done. As public opprobrium mounted, Kim said she borrowed the necklace from her acquaintance. The public eventually lost interest amid the subsequent vortex of other more momentous scandals. But the real story began when the Unification Church (UC), an affluent South Korean cult, heard of Kim's excuse that the necklace belonged to someone else. Prosecutors suspect the UC then offered Kim a British luxury diamond necklace also worth about $44,000 and two Chanel bags, saying the first lady wouldn't have to borrow jewelry anymore. In return, the UC hoped to gain support for its pet projects. Prosecutors stumbled upon this deal while investigating a shaman, a pseudo-Buddhist monk worshipping a Japanese sun goddess. The shaman, practicing under the alias Gunjin, was a failed businessman, scraping by with commissions received from people for praying to deities on their behalf. His fortune changed when he allegedly cured a government minister more than a decade ago and gained prominence among political hotshots. He had spun an extensive web of political connections and quid-pro-quo relations with himself as a broker. His spiritual wiles coupled with practical political benefits also ensnared Kim and Yoon. An exorcism convocation staged by the shaman in 2018 – which involved skinning a bull alive and slaughtering a dozen hogs – featured lanterns bearing the names of patrons and objects to benefit from the ritual. Some of the lanterns bore Kim and Yoon's names and their occupations. The shaman had advised Kim on her art business and managed Yoon's 2022 presidential campaign staff, even escorting and introducing Yoon to local bigwigs during barnstorming. Prosecutors now allege that the former head of the UC's international outreach division – the de facto second-in-command within the UC hierarchy – paid the shaman tens of thousands of dollars so that the UC could befriend Yoon. That's in addition to the allegations that the group gifted Kim the diamond necklace and designer bags. In return, the UC's requests included state aid for its development project around the Mekong River in Cambodia and Yoon's support for its plan to acquire a major South Korean broadcaster. The former UC second-in-command admitted to handing over the money and designer goods to the shaman and then securing approval for the UC's Mekong project from Yoon. From 2022 to 2024, the Yoon administration quadrupled South Korea's Official Development Assistance (ODA) cap for Cambodia. In the meantime, the UC reps met up with Cambodia's then-prime minister while Kim went on a humanitarian aid trip to Cambodia for some staged photo ops. Three special counsels set sail in July to explore the true extent of the Yoon administration's graft, especially those involving spiritual figures and religious outfits due to Yoon's and Kim's fondness for the occult. The saga linking the Unification Church, the then-first lady, the shaman Gunjin, and Cambodia is merely one of many instances where the Yoon administration and the then-ruling People Power Party (PPP) allowed non-secular influences to meddle in national affairs. The Kim Keon-hee special counsel has also found evidence that Kwon Sung-dong, former head of the PPP, pocketed cash from the UC to advance the cult's wishlist, including tipping off the group ahead of police investigations. (According to one witness statement, he once literally kowtowed to the UC leader in exchange for unknown gifts in two shopping bags.) Notably, it was Kwon who introduced Yoon to the PPP and groomed him to run for the presidency in 2022. Recently, Hong Joon-pyo, a former mayor of Daegu, the most conservative city in South Korea, revealed how Shincheonji, another cult, enrolled tens of thousands of its members as PPP members to help Yoon win the PPP national convention to run for the presidency back then. In August 2025, whistleblowing accounts surfaced that the cult leader had communicated with Kwon and Yoon at the time. The special counsel has also placed another mystic in its crosshairs. Myung Tae-kyun is a businessman running an election polling service, calling himself a clairvoyant mystic. He is accused of rigging polling results to beef up Yoon's candidacy in the PPP national convention in 2021 – allegedly at Kim's behest. Myung described Yoon as 'a blind warrior controlled by Kim sitting on his shoulders and exercising sorcery.' He fed Kim with spiritual and political advice and relied on Yoon and Kim to determine who gets the PPP election tickets. Myung excelled at rigging polls, eventually earning himself the nickname 'the kingmaker' for his ability to tip hotly contested elections in his patrons' favor. With the special counsel's probe into Myung, Pandora's box would open up for not only Yoon and Kim but also other PPP dignitaries who commissioned Myung and peddled political favors. Meanwhile, other issues of more national import depended on the teachings of an ascetic. The ascetic, lanky with a long grizzled beard and a sleek ponytail, spent 17 years ensconced in a mountain, during which he purports to have cracked the secret workings of the universe. He presented himself as 'Yoon's mentor,' who provided advice each time Yoon found himself in a predicament. Yoon admitted that he enjoyed watching the ascetic's online lectures and that he and his wife used to meet up with him. The ascetic also trailed Yoon on the latter's official schedule. Yoon's decisions to relocate the presidential office to Yongsan (a logistical nightmare), to skip attending Queen Elizabeth II's funeral (a diplomatic impropriety), and to drill the country's seabed for oil and gas (a budgetary disaster) all materialized following the ascetic's lectures – which matched Yoon's subsequent rationale. Clearly, the Yoon administration had shown abnormal susceptibility to those claiming otherworldly qualities and let them commandeer some crucial decision-making. But this wasn't limited to esoteric, fringe characters. Another special counsel has recently uncovered trails of how Protestant pastors interfered with the Marine Corps' investigation into the death of a marine back in July 2023. Lim Sung-geun, then commander of the Marine Corps' 1st Division, ordered a reckless rescue mission, during which Private Chae (posthumously promoted to Corporal Chae following his death on duty) drowned in a torrential rapid without having been provided with adequate swimming training and safety kits. The Marine Corps' investigation unit charged Lim with gross negligence and manslaughter for having rammed through a rescue operation that entailed an obvious risk of death without taking reasonable steps to mitigate the risk or prevent such deaths. However, Yoon called up the then-defense minister to cover for Lim. The defense ministry expunged Lim's name from the charge sheet. The Corporal Chae special counsel secured a web of call logs spanning Lim, pastors, Yoon's friends and aides, and Yoon himself. One of the pastors held particular sway over Yoon, having arranged a meeting between Yoon and former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence. Additionally, Yoon used to heed this megachurch pastor's advice on state affairs over dinner. The insurrection special counsel is looking into the role a far-right Protestant pastor played in justifying Yoon's attempt at a self-coup, inciting mobs, and rousing his congregants to storm and ransack a court in January, as well as his close ties to the PPP legislators. The pastor used to scream, 'Yoon is God-sent!' and his followers flocked to protect his presidency. It's chilling to face the extent to which the occult, various religious outfits, and spiritual figures allegedly fiddled with the government, and to realize that it was the former president and first lady who ushered such unauthorized elements to hidden positions of power. While there's no doubt these allegations deal with egregious wrongs, it's worthwhile to ask if Yoon and Kim were so out of the ordinary for believing in the supernatural. South Korean society is very much entwined with shamans and superstition. As of 2017, there were more than a million shamans and fortunetellers in the country. Considering the proportional relationship between the number of these figures and socio-economic turbulence, the number might even be larger today. Cultural content revolving around shamans, exorcism, fortunetelling, and physiognomy dominates the public psyche. People rely on these professionals to find their partners and determine the timing of marriages and moves. Geomancy exerts a disproportionate impact on people's choice of location for their home, enterprise, or agricultural cultivation. As former President Park Geun-hye and the Yoon administration illustrate, powerful, educated segments of the population are hardly immune. Rather, they owe their success to advice from their favorite shamans, which generates a positive feedback loop whereby they gradually entrust spiritual figures with more crucial matters. For instance, Yoon quit as chief prosecutor following a shaman's advice. He then became the president and apparently felt compelled to seek more advice from them. Religious figures carry enormous weight in influencing the outcomes of elections. Many voters believe in the potency of those supposedly chosen by some higher beings. The first port of call for many candidates are megachurches, because endorsements from pastors and spiritual leaders sway tens of thousands of votes. Yoon himself visited megachurches whenever his popularity took a drubbing, while Kwon reportedly enlisted the UC to enhance his party grip and buttress the Yoon administration. Everyone is entitled to their own belief systems and religious comfort. A liberal state actively works to ensure religious freedom and safe space for disparate religions to prosper in their own spheres. Yet, the Yoon administration's conduct has indicated the need to invert this type of state-religion relationship, adopted by most developed democracies, to something akin to France's practice of laïcité. Laïcité strives to ensure not only the separation of state and religion but also the protection of state and republican values from religious influences – rather than the protection of religion by the state. There's an easily blurred line between personal beliefs in geomancy, shamans, and sorcery, and officials' thought process. Time and again, South Korean decision-makers have allowed their spiritual convictions to encroach upon what should be the rational realm of policy deliberation and utilitarian analysis. Hopefully, the results of the special counsels' investigation provide lessons into what internal controls are necessary to prevent supernatural elements from seeping into the secular workings of the government.
The Mainichi
a day ago
- The Mainichi
What to know about Trump's newest and most sweeping tariffs
BANGKOK (AP) -- President Donald Trump on Thursday imposed once unthinkably high U.S. taxes on imports from dozens of countries, part of his campaign to turn one of the world's most open economies into a fortress bristling with barriers to trade. The taxes -- tariffs -- that took effect at midnight apply to products from 66 countries, the European Union, Taiwan and the Falkland Islands. Trump believes the tariffs will protect U.S. industry from foreign competition, encourage companies to build factories and hire workers in the United States and raise revenue to pay for the massive tax cuts he signed into law July 4. "Growth is going to be unprecedented," Trump said Wednesday. But mainstream economists and policy analysts warn that tariffs are paid by importers in the United States who will try to pass along the cost through higher prices to their customers, businesses and consumers alike; make the economy less efficient and innovative by shielding domestic companies from foreign competition; and threaten U.S. relationships with longstanding allies and trading partners. Indeed, the economic damage is already starting show. Here's what to know: Hefty tariffs have taken effect -- but many could have been higher The levies that took effect Thursday are a revised version of what Trump called " reciprocal tariffs " announced on April 2. Those earlier threats included import taxes of up to 50% on goods from countries that have a trade surplus with the United States, along with 10% "baseline'' taxes on almost everyone else. The move triggered sell-offs in financial markets, and Trump backtracked to give countries a chance to negotiate. Some of them did, caving in to Trump's demands to accept high tariffs to ward off even higher ones. The United Kingdom agreed to 10% tariffs and the European Union, South Korea and Japan accepted U.S. tariffs of 15%. Those are well above the low single-digit rates they paid last year, but down from the 30% Trump had ordered for the EU and the 25% he ordered for Japan in April. Thailand, Pakistan, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines cut deals with Trump, settling for rates of around 20%. Indonesia views its 19% tariff deal as a leg up against exporters in other countries that will have to pay slightly more, said Fithra Faisal Hastiadi, a spokesperson in the Indonesian president's office. "We were competing against Vietnam, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and China ... and they are all subject to higher reciprocal tariffs," Hastiadi said. "We believe we will stay competitive." Trump dictated terms to countries that didn't reach a deal For countries that didn't or couldn't reach a deal, Trump dictated terms himself, plastering tariffs ranging from 10% on the Falkland Islands to 41% on Syria. Countries in Africa and Asia are mostly facing lower rates than the ones Trump decreed in April. Tiny Lesotho in southern Africa, for instance, ended up with a 15% tariff instead of the 50% Trump originally announced. India also has no broad trade agreement with Trump. On Wednesday, Trump he signed an executive order placing an extra 25% tariff for its purchases of Russian oil, bringing combined U.S. tariffs to 50%. India has stood firm, saying it began importing oil from Russia because traditional supplies were diverted to Europe after the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict. Impoverished Laos and war-torn Myanmar face 40% rates. Trump whacked Brazil with a 50% import tax largely because he's unhappy with its treatment of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. South Africa said the steep 30% rate Trump has ordered on the exporter of precious gems and metals has put 30,000 jobs at risk and left the country scrambling to find new markets outside the United States. Even wealthy Switzerland is under the gun. Swiss officials were visiting Washington this week to try to stave off a whopping 39% tariff on U.S. imports of its chocolate, watches and other products. Overall, the average U.S. tariff rate has risen from around 2.5% before Trump returned to the White House to 18.6% -- the highest since 1933 -- the Budget Lab at Yale University reported Thursday. Canada and Mexico have their own arrangements as China talks continue Goods that comply with the 2020 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement that Trump negotiated during his first term are excluded from the tariffs. So, even though U.S. neighbor and ally Canada was hit by a 35% tariff after it defied Trump -- a staunch supporter of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu -- by saying it would recognize a Palestinian state, most of its exports to the U.S. remain duty free. Canada's central bank says 100% of energy exports and 95% of other exports are compliant with the agreement since regional rules mean Canadian and Mexico companies can claim preferential treatment. The slice of Mexican exports not covered by the USMCA is subject to a 25% tariff, down from an earlier rate of 30%, during a 90-day negotiating period that began last week. Meanwhile, Trump has yet to announce whether he will extend an Aug. 12 deadline for reaching a trade agreement with China that would forestall earlier threats of tariffs of up to 245%. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the president is deciding about another 90-day delay to allow time to work out details of an agreement setting tariffs on most products at 50%, including extra import duties related to illicit trade in fentanyl. Higher import taxes on small parcels from China have hurt smaller factories and layoffs have accelerated, leaving some 200 million workers reliant on "flexible work" -- the gig economy -- for their livelihoods, the government estimates. Still, China has shown that it has leverage to resist Trump's threats: It can withhold exports of rare earth minerals that companies need for everything from wind turbines to electric vehicle batteries. Considerable uncertainty remains Details of the deals reached in a frenzy of negotiations leading up to Trump's August deadline have not been published -- and are already subject to disagreement. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, for instance, told reporters that Japan is asking the U.S. government to immediately correct tariffs that are not consistent with their agreement. "The uncertainty about whether Trump was bluffing with his tariff threats and simply using those threats as a negotiating tool has been resolved," said Eswar Prasad, professor of trade policy and economics at Cornell University. "But the uncertainty about the tariffs themselves, including the rates and what countries and products will be covered, is still unresolved in any durable way and remains subject to Trump's whims. "Even the deals that have ostensibly been negotiated lack clarity about their details and are far from settled.'' Trump also is threatening new tariffs -- including levies of 200% or more on pharmaceuticals and 100% on computer chips. Trump's trade agenda also is under attack in court, adding to the uncertainty. A specialized trade court in New York ruled in May that Trump overstepped his authority in imposing April 2 tariffs and earlier ones on Canada, China and Mexico. An appeals court, which allowed the government to continue collecting tariffs while the case moves through the judicial system, now has the case, which is expected to eventually go to the Supreme Court. In a hearing last week, the judges sounded skeptical about the Trump administration's authority to declare a national emergency to justify the tariffs.
