It is our great pleasure to invite you to the discussion "Exporting Repression: the spread of human rights violations in the former Soviet Union and how institutions respond", co-organised by the Foreign Policy Centre, Open Society European Policy Institute (OSEPI) and EED.

The panel discussion will examine the role the EU can play in responding to the development of repressive laws and practices across the former Soviet Union including: 'foreign agents' laws and other restrictions on NGO activities, laws restricting LGBTI rights, security sector cooperation, limits on freedom of assembly and crackdowns on media and internet freedom.

The panel discussion will examine not only the role played by regional institutions such as the CIS, Eurasian Economic Union and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in the promotion of such laws, but the ways in which repressive governments in the former Soviet Union work to influence how the European Union and international institutions such as the Council of Europe, OSCE, the UN, CIS, INTERPOL, EITI and international financial institutions respond to human rights abuses in the post-Soviet space.

The discussion will be based on the findings of two FPC reports in this Exporting Repression series: Institutionally blind? International organisations and human rights abuses in the former Soviet Union and the forthcoming publication Sharing worst practice: How countries and institutions in the former Soviet Union help create legal tools of repression. Free copies of these publications will be available at this event.

Speakers:

• Heidi Hautala MEP, Delegation to the EU-Armenia and EU-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committees and the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association Committee; Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance
• Fernando Andresen Guimarães, Acting Director for Europe East, EEAS
• Tinatin Tsertsvadze, International Advocacy Manager, International Partnership for Human Rights
• Kate Levine, Lawyer, European Human Rights Advocacy Centre (EHRAC) Adam Hug, Policy Director, Foreign Policy Centre
• Richard Howitt MEP (chair) , Socialist & Democrat Group Human Rights Spokesperson

To confirm your participation, please register online.