Opinions & Features

The UN Cybercrime Convention: A New Repressive Tool in Disguise?

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela,  Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

Tunisia: A Hollow Victory in a Non-competitive Election

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin Tunisia’s 6 October presidential election did what it was designed to do: prolong autocratic incumbent Kais Saied’s stay in power.

The Future of Civic Freedoms: Lessons from My Time at CIVICUS

Opinions & Features
By Lysa John, outgoing Secretary General of CIVICUS.

Georgia’s Dangerous Anti-LGBTQI+ Law

Opinions & Features
Georgia’s ruling party has put LGBTQI+ people firmly in the firing line ahead of next month’s election.

A UN 2.0 Needs Robust People’s Civil Society Participation

Opinions & Features
By Jesselina Rana, UN advisor at CIVICUS and Mandeep Tiwana, chief of evidence and engagement at CIVICUS plus representative to the UN in New York A cascade of crises endangers our world.
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New Zealand: Māori Rights in the Firing Line

Opinions & Features
A New Zealand bill that would roll back Indigenous rights is unlikely to pass – but it’s emblematic of a growing climate of hostility from governing politicians.

Climate Activists Target Culture Greenwashing

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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Rwanda: Authoritarian Leader Secures Another Term

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report No one can pretend to be surprised.
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Venezuela Struggles to Hold on to Hope

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

LOCAL LEADERSHIP LABS’ REFLECTIONS & INSIGHTS: THE SOUNDING BOARD

Opinions & Features
By Taís Siqueira (Local Leadership Labs Coordinator) and Joanna Makhlouf (Local Leadership Labs Assistant) The Sounding Board (SB) played a crucial role in the inception of Local Leadership Labs (LLL) by advising on partner selection, identifying priority countries within the two regions, and sense-making the initial LLL framework.
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Cambodia’s Young Environmental Activists Pay a Heavy Price

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report It’s risky to try to protect the environment in authoritarian Cambodia.
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Eswatini: Jailing of Politicians the Latest Act of Repression

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report Two politicians have just been sentenced to long prison terms in Eswatini.

Kenya’s Protests: More than a Question of Tax

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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The UK’s Chance for Change

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report The political tide has turned in the UK – and civil society will be hoping for an end to government hostility.
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HLPF 2024: Protecting Civic Space Critical for SDGs Success

Opinions & Features
By Jesselina Rana, CIVICUS UN Advisor at UN Hub in New York City.

UAE Complicit in Sudan Slaughter

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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Namibia: LGBTQI+ Rights Victory amid Regression

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela,  CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report In June, the Namibian High Court struck down two sections of the country’s Sexual Offences Act that criminalised consensual sexual relations between men, finding them unconstitutional.
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Myanmar: International Action Urgently Needed

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin,  CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report Myanmar’s army, at war with pro-democracy forces and ethnic militias, must know it’s nowhere near victory.
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Secretary General, Lysa John, transitions from CIVICUS

Opinions & Features
A message from Lysa John, Secretary General of CIVICUS Dear CIVICUS members and allies, At the end of 2024, I will complete six years with CIVICUS.
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Thailand’s LGBTQI+ Rights Breakthrough

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report At the height of 2024 Pride season, decades of civil society campaigning came to fruition in Thailand.
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New Caledonia: Time to Talk about Decolonisation

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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Haiti: Transitional Administration Faces Stern Test

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report There’s been recent change in violence-torn Haiti – but whether much-needed progress results remains to be seen.
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Venezuela’s Opportunity for Democracy

Opinions & Features
 By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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India’s Election: Cracks Start to Show in Authoritarian Rule

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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Panama’s Elections: Has Impunity Prevailed?

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela Regional experts called it Panama’s most important election since the 1989 US invasion that deposed de facto president General Manuel Noriega.
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Solomon Islands: A Change More in Style than Substance

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin is CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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Introducing CIVICUS Impact Stories: Understanding our contribution towards expanded civic and democratic space

Opinions & Features
A message from Lysa John, Secretary-General of CIVICUS    Dear CIVICUS members and allies, In July 2022, CIVICUS started delivering on our revised strategic plan, focusing on one overachieving goal across the alliance: ‘to strengthen civil society and civic action for expanded civic and democratic space.
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EU’S ‘Foreign agent law’ is misguided

Opinions & Features
By Tara Petrovic, leads research on Europe and Central Asia for the CIVICUS Monitor.
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Civil Society Scores LGBTQI+ Rights Victory in Dominica

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela,  CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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South Africa’s post-apartheid democracy is sustained by protest

Opinions & Features
By Safia Khan and Tarryn Booysen  On April 27, South Africa marks the 30th anniversary of the end of apartheid, when we, South Africans, finally won the fight for all to be recognised as equal citizens.

The Climate Alarm Is Ringing – It’s Time to Stop Silencing It

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin The heat records keep tumbling – 2023 was the hottest year in recorded history.
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Senegal’s Democracy Passes Crucial Test

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report The fact that Senegal’s election took place on 24 March was in itself a triumph for civil society.
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Fixing the rules-based order: Start with the UN

Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana, Chief Officer - Evidence and Engagement at CIVICUS U.
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Gender Rights: Resistance Against Regression

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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The criminalisation of climate activists must stop now

Opinions & Features
Andrew Firmin is the co-author of the State of Civil Society report and Editor-in-Chief at CIVICUS, where he leads research into climate activism around the world.

Strengthening Civic Space in Zambia: A Decade of Challenges and Collaborative Efforts

Opinions & Features
CIVICUS, in collaboration with our esteemed partners at the GEARS Initiative, recently convened civil society actors in Zambia to delve into the intricacies of citizen-led advocacy aimed at expanding civic freedoms through legislative and policy reform.
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2024: A Big Year for Women and Democracy

Opinions & Features
By Lysa John, Secretary General of CIVICUS  The year 2024 is a bumper election year.
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International Women’s Day, 2024 Progress Hinges on Feminist Leadership

Opinions & Features
By Lysa John, Secretary General of CIVICUS Investing in inclusion requires more than electing and initiating women leaders.
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Greece: Another First for LGBTQI+ Rights

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report After almost two decades of civil society campaigning, Greece’s parliament has passed a law enabling same-sex couples to marry and adopt children.
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Russia: Moments of Dissent after Two Years of War

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine marked its second anniversary on 24 February.
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Pakistan’s Election Outcomes Leave Many Unhappy

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report Pakistan’s 8 February election has resulted in an uneasy compromise that few wanted or expected.
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Myanmar’s Military Catastrophe: Three Years and Counting

Opinions & Features
The military must have expected an easier ride.
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Serbia’s Suspicious Election

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin is CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

“Imagine if the Haitian revolutionaries had to write a proposal?”: Reflections from the Shift the Power Summit

Opinions & Features
By Taís Siqueira, Local Leadership lab Coordinator This quote represents what Shift the Power Summit was to me, a space to hear uncomfortable truths and to collectively reimagine solutions.
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Civil Society Trends for 2025: Nine Global Challenges, One Reason for Hope

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin and Inés Pousadela It’s been a tumultuous year, and a tough one for struggles for human rights.
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Guatemala’s Chance for a New Beginning

Opinions & Features
By Inés Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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Iran, Back to the Grim Normal

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

CIVICUS at Festival de Datos: Advancing action on inclusive, timely, and accountable data processes

Opinions & Features
Julieta Zurbrigg, Civic Space Research Advisor Faith Pienaar, Impact and Accountability Officer In the dynamic realm of data innovation, global challenges call for timely and impactful solutions.
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Bangladesh: Election with a Foregone Conclusion

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin,  CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
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Locally-led Development: Beyond Promises to Action

Opinions & Features
By Clara Bosco (CIVICUS), Anita Kattakuzhy (Movement for Community-Led Development (MCLD)) and Gunjan Veda (NEAR) Over the last couple of years, we have seen an unprecedented number of commitments by funders and philanthropists to support locally-led development, increase direct funding to local actors and promote a more enabling environment for civil society.

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