President Lai attends opening ceremony of GCTF Workshop on Building Resilient Democracies: Responding to Transnational Repression

On the morning of June 23, President Lai Ching-te attended the opening ceremony of the Global Cooperation and Training Framework (GCTF) Workshop on Building Resilient Democracies: Responding to Transnational Repression. In remarks, President Lai stated that transnational repression has become a challenge shared by all democratic countries. He pointed out that the government, in addressing the challenges posed by transnational repression, is comprehensively reviewing the legal framework and strengthening its approach across prevention, protection, and response. The president also noted that Taiwan will continue working alongside the European Union and other like-minded partners to build a secure, trustworthy information environment and establish more rapid early-warning systems, more effective accountability mechanisms, and a more comprehensive protective network to safeguard the nation and people. The president expressed hope of continuing to share experiences with other nations through the GCTF to jointly enhance democratic resilience, better safeguard human rights, and contribute more to global peace, prosperity, and development.

A translation of President Lai's remarks follows:

It is a great pleasure to be here today to attend this GCTF international workshop. First, on behalf of the government and all the people of Taiwan, I would like to extend my sincerest thanks and a warm welcome to our international participants.

I want to thank our GCTF partners, Canada, the United States, Japan, Australia, and the United Kingdom, for co-organizing this international workshop with Taiwan. Today we have with us scholars and experts from 29 countries. Thank you again to our distinguished guests for traveling so far to be here to exchange ideas and pool your experiences, as we work together to defend the values of freedom, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.

We live in an era full of change and challenges. The threats democracies face already go beyond traditional military dimensions and geographical boundaries.

Authoritarian actors are using emerging technologies and illicit financial flows to engage in systematic transnational repression, cross-border surveillance, cyberattacks, and information manipulation. They seek to divide societies, silence dissent, erode the sovereignty of democratic countries, and undermine social trust.

No country can afford to stand on the sidelines amid such hybrid challenges, and no country should have to face these challenges alone. When authoritarian actors seek to spread fear, democratic societies must build resilience. And when authoritarian forces try to create disunity, democratic partners must join hands and cooperate.

This is precisely the core value of the GCTF as an international multilateral cooperation framework. Since Taiwan and the US established the GCTF in 2015, we have continued to expand the scale of cooperation, welcoming Japan, Australia, Canada, and the UK to join as formal partners.

To date, the GCTF has held more than 100 international workshops with over 10,000 experts and government officials from 134 countries participating, the aim being to promote global partnerships and cooperation. Past themes include public health, cybersecurity, and semiconductor supply chains, and this workshop's focus, transnational repression, is a challenge shared by all countries.

aiwan once endured a dark era of authoritarian rule, so we deeply understand how precious freedom and human rights are. This is why we actively promote digital democracy and open government, while strengthening coordination between the government, civil society, and local communities to build whole-of-society defense resilience and enhance democratic resilience.

Facing the challenges posed by transnational repression, we have also established a mechanism across government agencies to comprehensively review our legal framework and strengthen our approach across prevention, protection, and response.

Currently, misinformation, disinformation, and cognitive warfare are tools frequently used to suppress dissent and sow division within society. By working together across different areas of government, applying technology, and establishing real-time fact-clarification pages on government websites, we aim to enhance the public's media literacy and vigilance, preventing them from falling into the traps of transnational repression and threats.

Protecting our people is a fundamental responsibility of the government. For citizens facing transnational harassment, intimidation, or repression while abroad, we mobilize our network of overseas missions to provide emergency assistance and necessary support. For citizens at home, we are committed to providing protection and are currently refining our legal framework to ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice.

At the same time, we will strengthen international exchanges and cooperation to counter authoritarian coercion. Just this month, the European Parliament passed a resolution on countering transnational repression. Taiwan supports the European Union's efforts to strengthen its response mechanisms, and we will continue working alongside the EU and other like-minded partners to build a secure, trustworthy information environment. Together, we will establish more rapid early-warning systems, more effective accountability mechanisms, and a more comprehensive protective network to safeguard our nation and people.

Democracy, peace, and prosperity are the bonds that connect Taiwan with the world. We will continue to share our experiences with other nations through the GCTF, working together to make democracy more resilient, better safeguard human rights, and contribute more to global peace, prosperity, and development.

In closing, I wish this workshop resounding success, and hope it proves to be a rewarding experience for all of you. Thank you.

Also in attendance at the event were Canadian Trade Office in Taipei Executive Director Marie-Louise Hannan, American Institute in Taiwan Public Diplomacy Section Chief Arend Zwartjes, Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Taipei Office Deputy Representative Takaba Yo, Australian Office in Taipei Deputy Representative Daniel Stuart, and British Office Taipei Acting Representative Wayne Ives.