Transnational Repression the Most Common Foreign Interference Threat in NZ, Spy Agency Warns
Udumbara
Transnational repression is now the most common form of foreign interference in New Zealand, according to the country’s domestic spy agency.
The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) issued the warning in its latest Threat Assessment, while also saying there may be a high probability of a terrorist “lone wolf” attack.
The agency said it was “almost certain” of undetected espionage activity that is “harming New Zealand’s national interests.”
There is also evidence of foreign states attempting to exploit people inside both public and private sector organisations “in a deceptive, corruptive, or coercive manner,” to gain influence and further their interests.
It then singles out Beijing as having “demonstrated both a willingness and capability to undertake intelligence activity that targets New Zealand’s national interests.”
The most common form of interference detected is “transnational repression,” which NZSIS says is practiced in NZ by several states which “falsely believe they have the authority to extend their influence to their diaspora communities. They expect their diaspora should remain politically loyal even when they reside in another country.”
Targets are usually members of certain religions—for instance, the Falun Gong community—some ethnicities, including Tibetans and Uyghurs, and pro-democracy movements.
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Tactics used against them range from surveillance through harassment to physical violence and forced repatriation.
“Some states ... have accused New Zealand-based groups or individuals of being extremists or even terrorists when they are not,” the report says. “The NZSIS is extremely cautious about this deliberate labelling tactic, as it is used to stigmatise particular groups and to justify repressive activity against them.”
Radicalisation Happening at the ‘Extreme Edges’ of the Internet
Of more concern online is what is happening at the “the extreme edges” of the Internet, as NZSIS calls them.“Well outside of what would be considered normal social and political discourse, there is a notable degree of misplaced agitation and blame for perceived societal ills,” it says.
And the intelligence agency lays the blame sorely on tech giants like Meta and X.
“Much of this rhetoric exists solely online, and its spread is aided by algorithms that push controversial content because it generates the most engagement,” the report says.
“Some offshore violent extremist groups are continuing to use online spaces for recruitment and radicalisation, and are being deliberate in their targeting of young people, including in New Zealand.
Others self-radicalise online, and the “polarised nature of online spaces” almost certainly increases the risks of this happening to vulnerable New Zealanders.
Notably the relatively recent global resurgence of the Islamic State propaganda and attacks “resonates within small pockets of New Zealand’s violent extremist environment.
“Exposure to extreme rhetoric has become commonplace in some people’s online experience, and they may become desensitised to what they see. Enough violent extremist content is readily available that for some people, radicalisation is far too easy,” the service says.
The threat level, however, remains unchanged from what it was in 2022: that there is a “realistic possibility” of a violent extremist attack, most likely using a knife or a vehicle.
This is based on the fact that there are violent extremists in New Zealand with “the credible intent and capability to undertake an act of ideologically motivated violence.”
Further, the use of AI to facilitate violent extremism and state-sponsored interference activities is increasing, and AI is making harmful propaganda appear more authentic, allowing it to be spread at scale and speed.
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