header_image

July 2011
Issue: 62



Welcome to Civil Society Watch 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!
To subscribe or unsubscribe please
click here
or email cswcommunity@civicus.org


Bahrain: Speaking Softly - Report by Human Rights First
Click here to download

Global Trends in NGO Law: NGO Laws in Sub-Saharan Africa
Click here to download 

International Journal of Civil Society Law Newsletter June/July 2011
Click here to download

Final Activity Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa
Click here to download



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 Project of CIVICUS seeks to mobilise quick, principled and effective responses to events that threaten civil society fundamental freedoms of expression, association and assembly.


This month the CIVICUS Eurasia project helped create an open letter to Uzbek President Islam Karimov on the treatment of two journalists currently on a hunger strike protesting corruption in the country.  Additionally, we sent Yuri Dzhibladze of the Dzhibladze Centre and Eurasia Idea Network Coordinator Olga Zakharova to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Belgrade to lobby on Belarus-related issues.  Currently, Eurasia Coordinator Will Lasky is based in Russia working with the Youth Human Rights Movement on a number of interesting joint engagements, including working to create an illustrated rendition of the Andijan events which took place in 2005 and resulted in a refugee crisis.  Additionally, along with Uzbek activists, the Eurasia project has assembled a list of 18 Uzbek political prisoners currently in need of medical and legal support.  Hopefully the list can be of use in future fundraising, awareness and lobbying campaigns.

 

NIGERIA: Freedom of Information Bill enacted
Read more



















Highlights

CIVICUS joins leading civil society groups to launch Embattled NGO Assistance Fund
Read more




CIVICUS condemns suppression of human rights activists in Venezuela
Read more

CIVICUS partner Yuri Dhzibladze from the Centre for Development of Democracy and Human Rights writes about the grave situation in Belarus
Read more

Analysis piece by CIVICUS Eurasia Project Coordinator, Will Lasky, on why the international community should not forget Uzbekistan
Read more

Speech by CIVICUS Research and Policy Director, Netsanet Belay, at the launch of the Embattled NGO Assistance Fund
Read more
 





BAHRAIN: Military court sentences pro-activists to life imprisonment
Read more

EGYPT: Minister warns that foreign funding for civil society violates national sovereignty
Read more

FRANCE: Concerns mount over government plans to censor the internet
Read more

INDIA: Authorities urged to release environmental activists
Read more

IRAN: Member of ‘Mourning Mothers’ group detained for human rights activism
Read more

ISRAEL: Restrictive bill penalising boycott passed by Parliament
Read more

JAPAN: Thousands participate in anti-nuclear protests
Read more

MALAYSIA: Release of detainees demanding free and fair electoral process urged
Read more

Restriction orders placed on fifteen civil society activists
Read more

SAUDI ARABIA: Women activists prepare to defy driving ban
Read more

YEMEN: Murderous attack on prominent human rights defender
Read more

ZIMBABWE: Police disrupt private meeting of Women of Zimbabwe Arise members
Read more

Civil Society Watch (CSW) Online

As part of our continual efforts to improve CSW Online for civil society users, we have implemented a number of technical developments in its first six months, including:
  • Installing a SSL certificate to encrypt transactions between users and the website;
  • Incorporating 'Add this' social sharing module for sharing websites’ public content across 150 social websites;
  • Improving the “recaptcha” filter to assist in fighting spambots; and
  • Implementing software to assist in monitoring website traffic.
Recently posted reports include: the UN Human Rights Council passed a historic resolution on LGBTI rights; a police detective was sentenced to 10 days in jail for using Mugabe's personal toilet in Zimbabwe; and delineations between the state, market and society are crumbling in Curacao of the Netherlands Antilles.
 
At a glance in June, CSW Online registered 27 new users and was visited by 1,417 unique visitors and 3,723 page views. The online system also saw strong spikes of new visitors from Netherlands Antilles, India, Netherlands, United States, United Kingdom and China.






Arthur Larok, Director of Programmes at the Uganda National NGO Forum (UNNGO), the newest addition to CIVICUS’ Affinity Group of National Associations (AGNA) family, discusses whether there is a new beginning with the NGO Law Reform Process in Uganda.
Read more

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.

CONTACT US

EDITORS
Mandeep Tiwana
Adam Nord

COPY EDITING
Margaret Fish
P.O. Box 933
Southdale, 2135
South Africa
1425 K Street NW
Suite 350
Washington DC 20005


DESIGN AND LAYOUT
Jessica Hume
Oluwakorede Asuni

 


Tel: +27 11 833 5959
Fax:+27 11 833 7997

Tel: +202 331-8518
Fax: +202 331-8774