Opinions & Features

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Activists Fuel Global Movement to Fight Violence Against Women

Opinions & Features
By Aarti Narsee, civic space researcher at CIVICUS This year marks 30 years of fighting to live free of gender-based violence through the 16 Days of Activism campaign, which commences every November 25 on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Take Action: 16 campaigns tackling women’s rights and gender inequality

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Across the world, brave and resolute women rights defenders are taking action on everything from advocating for equality, access, and justice, to standing up to corruption, environmental violations, and even persecution of fellow activists.
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Our right to protest will determine the freedoms of future generations

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Secretary-General Update: October 2021 In 2020, the Human Rights Committee published its interpretation of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly in its General Comment No.

In their own words: How youth-led initiatives practice constituent accountability

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Youth leaders from India and South Africa share how they have been practicing accountability to the individuals, communities and groups that their work serves and supports (otherwise known as their constituents).
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How women are suffering for human rights in Poland

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By Aarti Narsee, civic space research at CIVICUS & Camille Butin Advocacy Advisor at International Planned Parenthood Federation European Network (IPPF) In its latest politically motivated ruling, Poland's Constitutional Tribunal last week ruled that the Polish Constitution was not subject to EU law.
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Uganda: Over 50 civil society groups and human rights watchdogs illegally suspended

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Dunia Mekonnen Tegegn, Human Rights Lawyer and Gender Equality Advocate Dunia Mekonnen Tegegn is a human rights lawyer and Penn Kemble Fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy.
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From “We the Peoples” to “Our Common Agenda”, the UN is a Work in Progress

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By Mandeep Tiwana, Chief Programmes Officer Although, people around the world generally hold positive opinions about the UN, its ability to respond to global crises remains constrained by state-centric bureaucratic impulses and the assertion of narrow interests by powerful countries.
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The twin tests facing the UN in Afghanistan and Myanmar

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By Mandeep Tiwana, Chief Programmes Officer at CIVICUS Following the negotiated departure of international security forces and overthrow of the internationally backed government in Afghanistan, the Taliban ominously claimed freedom and sovereignty.
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Grassroots action & the right to protest: here’s a look at our annual priorities

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Secretary-General Update: August 2021 In June this year, we presented the CIVICUS Board with our annual plan for 2021/22.
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9/11’s legacy: How anti-terrorism laws have become anti-human rights laws

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By Kgalalelo Gaebee, Communications Officer at CIVICUS & David Kode, Advocacy and Campaigns Lead for CIVICUS As the global community commemorates the two decades since the abhorrent attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, it should also be time to reflect on the impact of what followed on human rights and rule of law in Africa.
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It’s time to change the future of funding for youth action

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By Vanessa Stevens, Elisa Novoa, Freya Seath, and Sonya Friel This year’s International Youth Day provided an opportunity to recognize how young people have endured the pandemic and to celebrate their actions for community recovery and resilience.

Standing up Against Gender-based Violence

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Hello! I am Mohaiminul Raqib and I am a citizen of Bangladesh.
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Scenario planning for agile strategic alignment

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By Tamryn Lee Fourie, Jerusha Govender and Khotso Tsotsotso For CIVICUS, and civil society as a whole, the COVID-19 pandemic drastically shifted the way we work, and the world we work in.
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The relationship between civic space restrictions and soaring inequality needs our urgent attention

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Message from Lysa John, CIVICUS Secretary-General In May this year, we published the 10th edition of the annual State of Civil Society report.

We need help from the international community

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Wai Hnin Pwint Thon, Switzerland Wai Hnin Pwint Thon is a Senior Advocacy Officer at Burma Campaign UK based in Geneva, Switzerland.

The coup in Myanmar spurred me to action

Opinions & Features
 Supyae Yadanar, Dublin, Ireland  Supyae Yadanar was born and raised in Yangon and is currently studying medicine at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland.

The coup is a catastrophe for our motherland

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Thant Tun, Manchester, United Kingdom  Thant Tun has been involved in the struggle for democracy in Myanmar since birth.
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Pandemic and protests show the essential value of civil society

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By Andrew Firmin, Editor-in-Chief at CIVICUS Economic inequality soared while the super-wealthy cashed in.

Teenagers my age are dropping out of school to protest

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 Bawi Hnem Sung, Texas, United States of America 17 year old high school student Bawi Hnem Sung is also from the Chin community in Lewisville, Texas, and is part of the Lewisville High School Chin Club.
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There are no words left to describe the brutality of the Burmese military

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Myra Dahgaypaw, Washington D.
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10 world-changing protests you should know about

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By Andrew Firmin, Editor-in-Chief at CIVICUS Protest works.
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3 Reasons Why Relationships are Vital to Expanding Youth Networks

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The Youth Action Team (YAT) and Youth Action Lab at CIVICUS has now had several rounds of calls for candidates to champion youth engagement and civic space.

21st century activism is complex, persistent and all-pervasive. Governments and businesses will have to reinvent themselves

Opinions & Features
Message from Lysa John, CIVICUS Secretary-General The nature of civic space has changed significantly since the start of the pandemic.
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Fighting for democracy from afar: Myanmar activists in the diaspora

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In Myanmar, thousands of pro-democracy supporters have taken to the streets since February to demand an end to the military coup.
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Tracking 10 years of protests: here’s what we’ve learned

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By Andrew Firmin, Editor-in-Chief of CIVICUS Protests have been rebuffed, brutally, by states.

It is up to you and I to be the pillar for those struggling in Myanmar right now

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 Par Tha Hniang, Texas, United States of America Par Tha Hniang is a youth member of the Bethel Baptist Church of Texas in Lewisville.
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#BLM beyond the US: Anti-racist struggles in Latin America

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By Inés Pousadela, Senior Research Specialist at CIVICUS In the year that has passed since the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement has circled the globe.
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People Power: Why mobilisations matter even in a pandemic

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By Mandeep Tiwana, Chief Programmes Officer at CIVICUS Major political transformations in modern history have been catalysed through largely peaceful protests.
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Fightbacks led by the young offer hope for democracy in Africa

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By Andrew Firmin, Editor-in-Chief of CIVICUS Elections should offer opportunities for citizens to make demands of their political leaders, debate alternatives and express dissent.
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Why are African countries undermining the rights bodies they created?

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By David Kode, Advocacy & Campaigns Lead at CIVICUS The 68th Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) has just concluded.
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Labour activists and unions stepped up to defend workers during the pandemic

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  By Josef Benedict, CIVICUS Monitor Across the globe every year, workers and trade unions gather together on 1 May which is Labour Day to commemorate the hard-fought struggle for labour rights and to make demands of their governments’ where they are failing to protect workers.
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Press freedom vital in the fight against the pandemic

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Freelance journalist Hopewell Chin'ono.
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What Oscar-nominated film ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ tells us about protest rights

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Source: Open Democracy By Susan Wilding, Head of CIVICUS' Geneva office The Trial of the Chicago 7’ is up for six Oscars at the Academy Awards, to be announced on 25 April.
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Chad elections: President Déby seeks a sixth term in a region for old men

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President Idriss Déby of Chad has been in power since 1990.
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Five human rights trends in South Africa

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Photo by Sharon Seretlo/Gallo Images via Getty Images By Mawethu Nkosana, LGBTQI+ Advocacy and Campaigns Lead at CIVICUS & Safia Khan, Innovation and Communications Officer at CIVICUS From the rise in student activism to the rise in levels of xenophobia in South Africa, Mawethu and Safia list five human rights trends since COVID-19 took over.
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We are tired, so we must take turns to rest: Women's advocacy during crisis

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Source: Wikicommons By Masana Ndinga-Kanga, the Crisis Response Fund Lead and Advocacy Officer for the Middle East/North Africa region at CIVICUS In recognising how moments of crisis heighten already existing inequalities, it is worth reflecting on how women activists have been able to conduct advocacy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Intimidation, censorship and defamation in the virtual sphere

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In Syria, hundreds of thousands of people have died since 2011.
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CIVICUS calls on social media platforms, govt to address 'hostile virtual environment for women'

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Aarti Narsee, Civic Space Reseacher at CIVICUS spoke to JacarandaFM about the challenges faced by women human rights defenders, activists, feminists and journalists when online.
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Harassment goes virtual: Women activists and journalists speak out

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  Women journalists, feminists, activists, and human rights defenders around the world are facing virtual harassment.

Building a diverse global team of activist for social transformation: Welcoming the CIVICUS Youth Action Team 2021-22

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We at CIVICUS Youth are very thankful to the Youth Action Team (YAT) 2019-2020, a group of accomplished and inspiring young leaders from all over the world who work together for a year and a half to instill a more youth-friendly vision within CIVICUS and act as an inspiration for other organisations across the world to have youth at the center and make decisions that do not leave behind the power of 1.
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Is the USA fit to rejoin the UN Human Rights Council?

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By Emily Standfield, CIVICUS Member and data volunteer A month into Joe Biden’s presidency, the U.
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The advocate championing citizen action and organizing to enable change

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Champions of Change is an initiative started by the Pathfinders to highlight advocates who have made an impact in their communities and have helped to create peaceful, just and inclusive societies (SDG16+).

Strengthening young activists by tagging-in local mentors and standing back

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By CIVICUS youth On the celebration of the International Youth month in August 2020, CIVICUS Youth launched a new mentorship format for the ten participants of the Youth Action Lab.
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Angola decriminalises homosexuality

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Angola has officially decriminalised same-sex relationships and prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Deepening Roots: How our partners are doing nine months on

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Photo: Projet Jeune Leader By Jack Cornforth, Resilient Roots Coordinator, CIVICUS Towards the end of 2020, we spoke to many of our national partners from the initial phase of the Resilient Roots initiative to find out how they are doing nine months after our financial and technical support for their pilot accountability projects ended (see them on our interactive map).
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Saudi activist, Loujain Al-Hathloul spends 1000+ days in prison: Masana Ndinga-Kanga

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Prominent Saudi female activist, Loujain al-Hathloul, who campaigned for women's right to drive, was sentenced to more than five years in prison in December 2020, after having already spent two years in detention.
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Abortion Law | Mass protests across Poland

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Protests against new abortion laws have erupted across Poland.
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Europeans’ right to protest under threat

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By Aarti Narsee, Civic Space Researcher for Europe and Central Asia at CIVICUS The year 2020 tested democracy and civic freedoms in many ways.

Shaping post-pandemic politics

Opinions & Features
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted politics and power for years to come, pushing the boundaries of political systems, impacting or delaying election outcomes and fuelling popular movements.
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Another Republic Day, another mass protest and another year of repression?

Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana, Chief Programmes Officer at CIVICUS It’s an anathema that in the 21st century when humanity claims to have made great progress in cultural and technological spheres that we should still have prisoners of conscience.

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