A new Foreign Policy Centre publication No shelter: the harassment of activists abroad by intelligence services from the former Soviet Union examines the experiences of activists and other people who have had to leave their former Soviet country of origin due to the risk of persecution at home, but who are unable to escape the pressures of their country's security services. It looks at both the legal and illegal means used by the security services to put pressure on exiles from Interpol Red Notices and formal extradition procedures, to surveillance, harassment, physical attacks, kidnapping and assassination. Though the publication looks at the issue across the post-Soviet region there will be a particular focus on the activities of the security services from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, and on both Turkey and Russia as places where exiles are most at risk. No Shelter examines regional security service cooperation and collusion in putting pressure on activists, alongside the influence of Western activities that have helped exacerbate the situation.

The publication contains contributions from: Nadejda Ataeva, Association for Human Rights in Central Asia; Civil Rights Defenders; Dr Mark Galeotti, Institute of International Relations-Prague; Arzu Geybulla; Giorgi Gogia, Human Rights Watch; Dr John Heathershaw, Eve Bishop and Rosa Brown, University of Exeter; Adam Hug (Ed.), Foreign Policy Centre; Dr Edward Lemon, Columbia University.

• No Shelter publication

Date: Tuesday November 22nd 2016

Time: 6.00pm-7.30pm

Venue: Thatcher Room, Portcullis House, Houses of Parliament, Westminster, London

Speakers:

• Chris Bryant MP
• Dr John Heathershaw, Associate Professor in International Relations, University of Exeter
• Adam Hug, Policy Director, Foreign Policy Centre
• Further speakers tbc

Chair: Rt Hon. Fiona Mactaggart MP, Member of the Intelligence and Security Committee

This seminar will examine the experiences of a wide range of civil society activists, opposition politicians, religious leaders and others who have had to leave their former Soviet country of origin due to the risk of persecution at home, but who are unable to escape the pressures of their country's security services, even in exile. It will discuss the experiences of activists being monitored, followed, harassed, attacked, kidnapped or killed across the former Soviet Union and beyond.

The seminar will analyse CIS security service cooperation, when the intelligence service of the country where an activist is seeking shelter either formally collaborates with or turns a blind eye to the activities of the intelligence services of the activist's home country in tracking, harassing, attacking or kidnapping them. There will be a particular focus on the activities of the security services of Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, against whom there are strong allegations of involvement in a number of murders, attacks, kidnappings and threats against activists and opponents outside their borders. It will also look at the countries where activists in exile seem to be most at risk of harassment, noting in particular the situations in Russia and Turkey.

The No Shelter seminar will also explore issues around the monitoring of activists' emails, phone calls and other forms of communication by intelligence services and the practical challenges human rights defenders and others face in keeping their information secure from prying eyes.

The seminar may also look at the role played by Western companies in exporting technology and consultancy services that help develop the surveillance systems of authoritarian regimes, or that can be used for torture and ill-treatment. It may also explore the extent to which Western intelligence cooperates with intelligence agencies from the former Soviet Union involved in such practices.

Please RSVP to events@fpc.org.uk providing your name and any affiliation.

• No shelter: the harassment of activists abroad

Date: Friday 25th November 2016

Time: 3.30pm-7.00pm (followed by drinks; registration from 3pm)

Venue: Lecture Theatre (G.02), Maurice Keyworth Building, Leeds University Business School, Moorland Road, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS6 1AN

Speakers include:

• Richard Corbett MEP
• Linda McAvan MEP
• Dr Victoria Honeyman, Lecturer, University of Leeds
• Dr Jim Buller, Senior Lecturer, University of York
• Dr Matthew Wood, Lecturer, University of Sheffield
• Dr Mette Wiggen, Lecturer, University of Leeds
• Professor Iyiola Solanke, Professor of EU Law and Social Justice, University of Leeds School of Law
• Adam Hug, Policy Director, Foreign Policy Centre
• Further speakers to be announced shortly

In the wake of the British vote to leave the EU, this conference will examine concerns across Europe around the democratic legitimacy of EU institutions and the European project as a whole. It will look at how the debate about EU democratic legitimacy across member states fit within the context of a crisis of trust in institutions at both national and international levels in the wake of the 2008 economic crisis.

The conference will explore the mechanisms through which EU institutions have sought to gain democratic legitimacy, comparing and contrasting with other national and international organisations. The conference will look to explore the potential democratic basis for a future UK-EU relationship post-Brexit, examining the emerging UK Government and EU thinking. The conference will explore the findings of the recent FPC publication Europe and the people: Examining the EU's democratic legitimacy that assessed the major challenges the EU faces and set out ideas for potential democratic and organisational reform.

This conference series is supported by the European Commission Representation in the UK Call for Proposals for civil society organisations 2015-16, though the event is independently organised by the FPC and will contain a wide range of views on the matters under discussion.

Please RSVP to events@fpc.org.uk providing your name and any affiliation.

• Download flyer for Europe and the People: Leeds

Date: Tuesday 6th December 2016

Time: 6pm-7.30pm

Venue: Wilson Room, Portcullis House, Houses of Parliament, London, SW1A 2LW

Speakers:

• Fabian Hamilton MP, Shadow Foreign Affairs and Defence Minister
• Tahirih Danesh, Chief Editor, Iran Human Rights Review
• Roya Kashefi-Ladjevardi, Head of Human Rights - Association des Chercheurs Iraniens
• Further speakers tbc

Chair: Rt Hon Ann Clwyd MP, Chair, All Party Parliamentary Group on Human Rights

This event will take place as Iran looks ahead to a Presidential election in May 2017, where even the challenging human rights situation under the Rouhani Presidency is at risk of deteriorating further under growing pressure from hardliners. It will explore the current culture of human rights in Iran and attempts by sections of the regime to position personal freedoms as threats to Iran's security. The seminar will focus on the themes of the three latest editions of the FPC's Iran Human Rights Review: the human rights impact of the economy as sanctions are slowly lifted; issues of women and human rights; and the upcoming edition on due process (due to launch in early 2017).

Please RSVP to events@fpc.org.uk providing your name and any affiliation.

• Iran Human Rights Review: event

In this latest issue, the Iran Human Rights Review focuses on women and their on-going struggle to access human rights. The review contains contributions from human rights lawyers, activists and defenders, from both inside and outside of Iran. The Iran Human Rights Review: Women and Human Rights, focuses on the need to recognise both the current plight of women in Iran and their role in securing a culture of human rights in Iran despite the legal, cultural and social challenges they face.

The Iran Human Rights Review: Women and Human Rights is edited by Tahirih Danesh and Dr Sanam Vakil. It contains contributions by: Nahid Husseini, Elahe Amani, Leili Nekounazar, Elaheh Imanian, Shadi Salehian, Maryam Hosseinkhahand, Arzoo Osanloo and two pieces by authors based inside Iran who maintain anonymity for their security. Dr Wendi Momen MBE kindly provided the foreword to this collection.

• Click here to read IHRR: Women and Human Rights in English
• Click here to read IHRR: Women and Human Rights in Farsi