Issue No 37

June-July 2008

 

Welcome to Civil Society Watch Monthly Bulletin, an e-newsletter of updates and analyses concerning civil society's rights to freedom of association, assembly and expression around the world. The Bulletin is compiled by the staff at Civil Society Watch, a programme of CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation. Please feel free to forward the Bulletin to friends and colleagues. We welcome your comments and contributions!

 

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

 

CIVICUS World Assembly
People, Power, Participation! Reflections

 

CIVICUS ALERTS

UGANDA: Legal framework for NGOs restricts civil society

UZBEKISTAN & TURKMENISTAN: UN periodic review submissions

ZIMBABWE: Appeal for African solidarity

UK: CIVICUS expresses concern about extension of pre-trial detention

 

PERSPECTIVES

Civil Society in Cuba: Existing despite the odds

 

DIGITAL SECURITY FOR ACTIVISTS

Keep your private communication private

 

GOOD NEWS

UGANDA: Restrictive assembly law ruled unconstitutional

URUGUAY: Government moves to decriminalise defamation

 

COUNTRY UPDATES

BANGLADESH: New anti-terror law violates human rights

BOSNIA: Group closes after campaign of intimidation

CHINA: Internet blocked for journalists reporting on Olympics

COLOMBIA: Human rights organisations threatened

INDIA: Attempted murder of rights activist

JORDAN: Restrictive draft NGO law pending

MEXICO: Environmental protesters attacked

PAKISTAN: NGOs receive death threats

PALESTINE: Organisations accused of terrorism, closed

SWAZILAND: March prohibited

SWEDEN: Parliament votes to monitor international calls, emails

TURKEY: Court bans gay rights organisation

UKRAINE: Prison sues organisation for defamation

UZBEKISTAN: NGO numbers wane

USA: Government policies on NGOs unfair and arbitrary, says report

 

RESOURCES AND PUBLICATIONS

OMCT: 2007 annual report released

 

CIVICUS World Assembly

 

People, Power, Participation! Reflections

The CIVICUS World Assembly was held from 18 to 21 June 2008 in Glasgow, Scotland under the theme of People, Power, and Participation. The Civil Society Watch programme hosted a workshop on threats to civil society, a Eurasian networking session, as well as the World Assembly's first public human rights rally.

 

Workshop - Civil Society under Threat: Enhancing Security and Support

Civil Society Watch presented a dynamic workshop at the World Assembly, discussing security strategies for civil society activists, including legal, digital and personal security. Participants spoke about the threats they face, and how they stay safe.

Read the workshop report: http://www.civicus.org/csw/csw-reports-a-publications/4/412-wa2008workshopreportcsw

 

Eurasian Networking Session

Civil Society Watch hosted an informal networking session with civil society activists hailing from Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyz Republic, Azerbaijan, Turkey and the Ukraine. Participants agreed to continue to communicate and exchange information about their experiences and the challenges they face. If you would like to participate in this network, please contact tanzilya (dot) salimdjanova (at) civicus (dot) org

 

CIVICUS ALERTS

 

UGANDA: Legal framework for NGOs restricts civil society

31 July 2008 - In an analysis of the legal framework governing the registration and operation of NGOs, CIVICUS concludes that it presents serious hurdles to NGO activities and ultimately serves to restricts civil society.

Read the full statement, visit: http://www.civicus.org/csw/csw-reports-a-publications/4/408-ugandaanalysis310708

 

UZBEKISTAN & TURKMENISTAN: UN periodic review submissions

21 July - CIVICUS made submissions to the UN Human Rights Council's Universal Periodic Review process on freedoms of assembly and association in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

Read the full submissions, visit: http://www.civicus.org/csw/csw-reports-a-publications/4/411-uprturkmenistan210708 and http://www.civicus.org/csw/csw-reports-a-publications/4/410-upruzbekistan210708

 

ZIMBABWE: Appeal for African solidarity

12 July - CIVICUS, Amnesty International and the Global Call for Action Against Poverty (GCAP) have called on citizens of Africa to unite to express their solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe who are suffering persistent violations of their rights.

Read the full statement, visit: http://www.civicus.org/www.civicus.org/new/media/CIVICUS-Zimbabwe-Statement.pdf

 

UK: CIVICUS expresses concern about extension of pre-trial detention

9 June - In a letter to Prime Minister Gordon Brown, CIVICUS expressed concern about the extension of pre-trial detention from 28 to 42 days. The move sets a negative trend in other jurisdictions which may choose to follow the UK’s example in diluting such procedural safeguards.

Read the full statement, visit: http://www.civicus.org/csw_files/UKpre-chargedetentionletter060608.pdf

 

PERSPECTIVES

Civil Society in Cuba: Existing despite the odds

Despite numerous restrictions, lack of official recognition and occasional prison time, civil society in Cuba continues to exist, and even grow. Rene Gomez Manzano, the head of the Assembly for the Promotion of Civil Society in Cuba tells us about the challenges he and other activists face.

To read the article, visit http://www.civicus.org/csw_files/ANALYSIS_CUBA_No37.htm 

 

DIGITAL SECURITY FOR ACTIVISTS

Keep your private communication private

Wojtek Bogusz, Front Line & Dimitri Vitaliev, digital security consultant

Email and instant messaging are convenient, fast and used by many of us. However, most are not truly private, making them unsuitable for sensitive discussions - unless you take steps to make them more secure. This is the fifth article in the CSW Monthly Bulletin series highlighting practical ways you can enhance your digital security and privacy.

For more information, visit http://www.civicus.org/csw_files/DIGITAL_SECURITY_No37.htm 

 

GOOD NEWS

 

UGANDA: Restrictive assembly law ruled unconstitutional

28 May - Uganda’s Constitutional Court has ruled that a legal provision requiring police permission to hold public meetings or protests of more than 25 people is unconstitutional, reports BBC NEWS. The government is appealing the ruling to the Supreme Court.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7423574.stm

 

URUGUAY: Government moves to decriminalise defamation

9 July - The government has introduced a bill which would eliminate the crime of insult, whether written or spoken, and expressly states that no one shall be punished for expressing his or her discrepancies with a public official. Also, the crimes of insulting the national symbols and attacks against the honour of foreign heads of state shall be eliminated, reports The World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters.

http://www.campaigns.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/95173/

 

CSW COUNTRY UPDATES

 

BANGLADESH: New anti-terror law violates human rights

30 June - Bangladesh's new counterterrorism ordinance violates fundamental freedoms and basic fair trial rights and should be repealed or amended to meet international standards, said Human Rights Watch.

http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/06/30/bangla19227.htm

 

BOSNIA: Group closes after campaign of intimidation

15 July - Transparency International Bosnia and Herzegovina has suspended its operations on 10 July, citing security concerns for its staff. The decision follows a campaign of intimidation by the Republika Srpska authorities, who accuse the organisation of racketeering and extortion, reports Human Rights Watch.

http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/TUJA-7GM36A?OpenDocument

 

CHINA: Internet blocked for journalists reporting on Olympics

30 July - The International Olympic Committee has admitted that China will not provide open Internet access at the Main Press Center in Beijing despite earlier assurances to the contrary, reports the Committee to Protect Journalists.

http://www.cpj.org/news/2008/asia/china30jul08na.html

 

COLOMBIA: Human rights organisations threatened

27 June - On 18 June, death threats were made against a number of non-governmental organisations, all members of the Espacio de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de Derechos Humanos (ETTDH – Human Rights Workers' Coalition), which were allegedly sent by the paramilitary group, the “Águilas Negras (Black Eagles)”, reports Front Line.

http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/1486

 

INDIA: Attempted murder of rights activist

30 July - There was an attempted murder of advocate Parvez Imroz, co-convener of the International People's Tribunal on Human Rights and Justice in Indian administered Kashmir, and the co-founder and president of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society, reports Front Line. Other members of the organisations have previously received threats.

http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/1488/action

 

JORDAN: Restrictive draft NGO law pending

July - A draft NGO law, currently  awaiting the King's approval, represents a drastic step backwards for the development of independent civil society organisations, reports Human Rights Watch. The law would give the government power to obtain an NGO’s future work plans, require governmental approval for donations to an NGO, and allow the government to shut down an NGO for minor infractions.

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2008/06/30/jordan19229.htm

 

MEXICO: Environmental protesters attacked

22 July - Environmental activists and members of a Frente Amplio Opositor, a coalition protesting against the activities of a mining company in the municipality of Cerro San Pedro, San Luis Potosi state, have been threatened and attacked, reports Global Response.

http://globalresponse.org/emailcampaigns.php?record=2300

 

PAKISTAN: NGOs receive death threats

July - A number of Taliban groups have issued warnings to national, local and international NGOs working in the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan to immediately suspend their activities or risk being killed, reports Blue Veins, Women Welfare & Relief Services.

 

PALESTINE: Organisations accused of terrorism, closed

15 July - The Israeli authorities closed down the Nafha Society for the Defense of Prisoners and Human Rights on 8 July, on the basis of a military order that alleged Nafha, together with six other organisations were being used to “finance terrorist organisations," reports OMCT.

http://www.omct.org/pdf.php?lang=eng&articleId=7923&type=print&PHPSESSID=75

 

SWAZILAND: March prohibited

9 July - The government of Swaziland prohibited a protest march organised by civic organisations against rising ritual killings on 5 July, reports the Media Institute of Southern Africa. The government reportedly said it fears the march would embarrass both the country internationally and the king who is currently abroad on a world tour.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200807100021.html

 

SWEDEN: Parliament votes to monitor international calls, emails

19 June - The Swedish Parliament has voted in favour of a controversial bill allowing all international emails and phone calls to be monitored in the name of national security, reports the International Federation of Journalists.

http://www.ifj.org/en/articles/efj-condemns-surveillance-law-in-sweden

 

TURKEY: Court bans gay rights organisation

6 June - A Turkish court has issued a ban on gay rights organisation LambdaIstanbul after a complaint by the governor’s office accused it of violating the constitutional protection of the family and an article banning bodies "with objectives that violate law and morality." LambdaIstanbul said it will appeal the ruling.

http://www.lambdaistanbul.org/php/main.php?menuID=26&altMenuID=47&icerikID=5525

 

UKRAINE: Prison sues organisation for defamation

25 July - The Strizhav Prison No 81 has filed a lawsuit against the Vinnitsia Human Rights Group, accusing the organisation of damaging the "honour, dignity, and professional reputation" of the prison and the prison staff by publishing statements alleging ill-treatment at the prison, reports Human Rights Watch.

http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/07/24/ukrain19458.htm

 

UZBEKISTAN: NGO numbers wane

Uzbekistan is seeing a steady decline in the number of non-government organisations, with a string of closures reported recently. Not only is the government hostile to any group with foreign links, it has blurred the lines with a semi-state umbrella body that manages the theoretically independent NGO sector, reports Institute for War and Peace Reporting.

 http://www.iwpr.net/?p=buz&s=b&o=345584&apc_state=henh 

 

USA: Government policies on NGOs unfair and arbitrary, says report

24 July - In the name of "global war on terror," the US government is waging war on non-governmental organisations by applying "shortsighted, undemocratic policies" that are "constraining the critical activities of the charitable and philanthropic sectors, stifling free speech, and ultimately impeding the fight against terrorism," says a new report by OMB Watch and Grantmakers Without Borders.

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=43289

 

RESOURCES AND PUBLICATIONS

OMCT: 2007 annual report released

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights (OMCT) Defenders has released its 2007 Annual Report, focusing on the fight for human rights and includes contributions from Hina Jilani, Desmond Tutu, Barbara Hendricks, José Ramos Horta, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel and Wei Jingsheng.

To read the report, visit http://www.omct.org/index.php?id=&lang=eng&articleId=7882

CONTACT US

We hope you enjoyed the Bulletin! If you would like to send an appeal or share information with us regarding issues affecting civil society in your region, please contact the Civil Society Watch (CSW) team at, cswatch@civicus.org

To subscribe or unsubscribe please visit www.civicus.org/csw/csw-newsletter or email cswcommunity@civicus.org

CIVICUS is an alliance of members and partners in over 100 countries, dedicated to strengthening civil society and citizen action around the world. Civil Society Watch is a programme of CIVICUS, which seeks to expose, address and prevent threats to civil society's rights to freedom of association, expression and assembly. For more information, visit www.civicus.org and www.civilsocietywatch.org

www.civilsocietywatch.org

DISCLAIMER:

The views expressed in this bulletin are a reflection of those contained in the original reports to which they are linked here, and are not necessarily those of CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation.