On 20 July, Malaysia’s Dewan Negara (Senate) passed a cybercrime law that will expand transnational repression. Read through below to see what Malaysia’s borderless cybercrime machinery could unleash. Every expansion of police power arrives wearing the language of safety, and this one is no exception. Malaysia's Cybercrimes Act reaches anyone, anywhere, if the data touched a Malaysian system or if the person affected is Malaysian. Malaysia explicitly cited meeting its obligat

👇 Read through the photos to remember the disappeared and understand how enforced disappearance is weaponised to silence dissent, at home and across borders. #InternationalDayOfTheDisappeared 🚨 𝗘𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻. Authoritarian states use it as a weapon to silence activists and condemn their families to years, even decades, of uncertainty amounting to psychological torture. Borders offer no sanctuary. 🌏❌ Enforced

We warned the Thai Government. It chose to proceed anyway. 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝘆𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀! On 26 August 2026, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul signed the Prime Minister’s Office Regulation on Deportation B.E. 2569. It was published in the Royal Gazette on 27 August and entered into force today, 28 August 2026. The Regulation accelerates procedures for removi

Today, Thailand rolled out the red carpet for Min Aung Hlaing, architect of Myanmar’s 2021 coup and ICC-wanted war criminal, who seeks international legitimacy for his “presidency” following military-engineered sham elections in April. ⚠️ While millions in Myanmar are bombed, jailed, and driven from their homes under Min Aung Hlaing’s regime, Thailand rewards their oppressor with official honours and business forums. Even worse, Thai authorities are actively colluding in tran

🌏 On 26 May 2026, Manushya Foundation convened a closed-door regional expert meeting “Closing the Protection Gap for Human Rights Defenders in Southeast Asia: Regional Expert Meeting to Address Transnational Repression” in Bangkok, Thailand. We brought together 54 human rights defenders, survivor-advocates, frontline responders, UN actors, diplomats, and civil society allies with one urgent objective: 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝘀𝗶𝗮 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

IN PHOTO: Human rights defenders, first responders, UN agencies, diplomats, and survivor-advocates gather in a closed-door convening in Bangkok to build a unified regional response against transnational repression in Southeast Asia. NOTE: This meeting was held under Chatham House Rule to protect participants’ safety and allow honest dialogue. Names, quotes, and photos featured in this blog are shared with consent. All other insights are summarised collectively to protect part

On 29 June, we convened a panel of human rights defenders, lawyers, and digital rights experts to unpack how the UN Cybercrime Treaty is advancing transnational repression across the region – from Cambodia to Indonesia to stateless communities like the Rohingya. The surveillance industry behaves like any market under competition. Voluntary frameworks like the UN Guiding Principles carry zero consequences for companies, which is exactly why they get cited so often. The Cybercr

Governments across Southeast Asia are using cybersecurity as cover to surveil critics, police borders, and protect the interests of those in power. 🇺🇳 The UN Cybercrime Treaty expands state-to-state cooperation, lowers evidentiary standards, and defines ‘cybercrime’ so broadly that activists, journalists, and organisers fall within reach. Tech companies are part of the problem too, as they profit from our data and then hand it to the governments pursuing us. The people who

#StopTransnationalRepression ✊ On 20 June, Manushya Foundation joined Na Projects at Bangkok 1899 for Living, Waiting, and Hoping | Refugees Among Us: Stories, Challenges, and Hope in Thailand to honour World Refugee Day. We’re immensely grateful to hear directly from refugees, raise awareness on transnational repression, share food & stories, and connect with allies including Asylum Access Thailand, Sati Foundation, Parami University, and Hear & Found. 🤝 Thailand is home to

Thailand and Vietnam's leaders are turning diplomacy into a crackdown on activists. Today, 28 May, during To Lam’s official visit to Thailand, both leaders in a joint statement committed that neither country would allow its territory to be used for political activities against the other. They also pledged to strengthen extradition cooperation to suppress transnational dissent. In a region where authoritarian governments already hunt critics across borders, this is a dangerous

Bopha* is a woman environmental activist from Southeast Asia. She faced imprisonment for her activism and fled her country to survive. But the harassment only followed her in digital spaces. 👁️ As Bopha describes it, "Transnational Repression is a government tactic to shut down the voices of those who look for social justice.” 🚨 Repression continues online through digital threats or attacks: threatening messages, fake accounts, coordinated harassment, sexualised abuse, disi

For years, defenders and communities in Laos 🇱🇦 have faced intensifying repression, including transnational repression, for speaking truth to power. Now? They are officially recognised! In August 2025, Manushya Foundation and Power by Keyboard submitted a bold report to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, exposing systemic repression and rights violations in Laos. 🇺🇳 We didn’t just send a document. We went to Geneva ourselves. ✈️ Our Founder & Execut

🚨 #JusticeForJoseph 🚨 Yesterday, 25 June, Meta (Facebook) suspended the account of Lao activist Joseph Akaravong, just days after he...

⚠️ Clarifying the Context: Joseph Was With a Lao Woman Activist at the Time of the Knife Attack On 14 June 2025, the day of the attempted...

Transnational Repression Strikes Again? On Saturday, 14 June 2025, prominent Lao activist and political refugee Joseph Akaravong was the...