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!
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CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is an international movement of civil society with members and partners in over a hundred countries. CIVICUS nurtures the foundation, growth and protection of citizen action throughout the world especially in areas where participatory democracy and citizens’ freedom of association are threatened. The Civil Society Watch Programme of CIVICUS seeks to mobilise quick, principled and effective responses to events that threaten civil society fundamental freedoms of expression, association and assembly.
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In January, the Network focused on advocacy concerning the case of Umida Akhmedova, photographer from Uzbekistan who was charged with “slander” and “libel” by the Uzbek government for her socio-ethnographic work. CIVICUS and Network participants sent a letter to the President urging the fair exercise of Freedom of Expression in the country.
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CIVICUS urges the Nicaraguan government to make civil society its partner in development click here to read more
CIVICUS UN Representative calls for support of Haitian debt cancellation Human Rights Council 13th Special Session. For full statement click here and for more information on CIVICUS' involvement with Africa for Haiti click here
Copenhagen: Did it do anything for Women?
source: AWID
click here to read more
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ANGOLA: Activists being harassed over attack on Togo football team click here to read more
ARMENIA: Civil society demands recall of controversial NGO bill from parliamentclick here to read more
CONGO (DRC): Civil society regrets its exclusion from the office of the Independent National Electoral Commissionclick here to read more
EGYPT: Civil society groups petition parliament for repeal of restrictive legislation.click here to read more
Rights activist detained for four days for exposing child marriages click here to read more
FIJI: Authorities urged to stop harassment of women human rights defenders click here to read more
IRAN: Iran executes two opposition supportersclick here to read more
ISRAEL: Courts declares arrest of peaceful protestors unlawfulclick here to read more
LIBYA: Kadhafi labels the concept of civil society as “a bourgeois culture and an imitation of the West” click here to read more
RUSSIA: Alternative France-Russia Year to address civil society’s omission from official event click here to read more
The offices of the respected environmental NGO, Baikal Environmental Wave, was raided by police in Irkutskclick here to read more
UGANDA: UN Special Rapporteur warns that anti-homosexuality bill threatens fight against HIV click here to read more
UZBEKISTAN: Open letter to the president on appalling conditions of arbitrarily detained human rights defenders click here to read more
Photographer and documentary filmmaker Umida Akhmedova has been charged with “slander” and “insult” for her socio-ethnographic work.
For more information click here, to sign a petition to stop the criminal law suit, click here
VENEZUELA: Cable networks ordered to stop broadcasting opposition TV station. click here to read more
VIETNAM: Democracy activist jailed for spreading propaganda against the state
click here to read more
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From 18-20 January 2010 CSW undertook a fact finding and solidarity mission to Nicaragua coordinated jointly with local partners the Coordinadora Civil (CC) and the Red Nicaraguense por la Democracia y el Desarrollo Local (RNDDL). The CIVICUS delegation comprised of Anabel Cruz, CIVICUS Board Chair, and Adam Nord, Civil Society Watch (CSW) Programme Officer, met with a number of civil society groups, including members of the women’s movement, who have had to face restrictions in recent times. The delegation heard stories of pressure being applied by the authorities on independent civil society groups. The delegation also observed that although government-civil society relations at the municipal level were often quite good, there were some outstanding issues in need of redress at the national level.
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Interview with Anabel Cruz, CIVICUS Board Chair
Following the fact-finding and solidarity mission to Nicaragua supported by the CIVICUS Crisis Response Fund, CSW asked Anabel Cruz to share her reflection on the space for civil society in Nicaragua.
click here to read more
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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.
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