Issue No 35

April 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

 

FRONT PAGE
ZIMBABWE: Frustration, anger...and hope

 

DIALOGUES

A changing landscape for civil society in Russia? CSW readers respond

 

ANALYSIS

Growth and censorship of the Internet in Azerbaijan

 

DIGITAL SECURITY FOR ACTIVISTS

Guarding against information loss

 

GOOD NEWS

EGYPT: Court rejects government decision, allows trade union to operate

UN: Human rights review of all countries begins

 

COUNTRY UPDATES

AFGHANISTAN: Attacks on NGOs rise

AZERBAIJAN: Laws on freedom of assembly and voluntary activity debated

BELARUS: Office of women's rights defenders raided

CHINA: Lawyers harassed and threatened

COLOMBIA: Paramilitary threatens social leaders

CUBA: Rally violently suppressed

IRAN: Nobel laureate threatened

KAZAKHSTAN: Draft laws threaten religious activity

KUWAIT: Law restricts freedom of assembly

PALESTINE: Lack of fuel halts NGO operations

PERU: Government smears human rights NGOs

RUSSIA: Law to allow for closure of media outlets

TURKEY: Amendments fail to protect freedom of expression

VENEZUELA: Rights body concerned over restrictions on dissent

 

RESOURCES AND PUBLICATIONS

NEW TACTICS: Ongoing community dialogues

 

FRONT PAGE

 

ZIMBABWE Frustration, anger...and hope

An interview with Xolani Zitha, Director of Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition

Almost a month after elections were held in Zimbabwe, the country remains in a state of flux and uncertainty. Amidst ongoing political violence, the ruling party ZANU PF is demanding a runoff election with the leading opposition party MDC. Anxious of more violence and vote-rigging, the MDC has so far refused to commit to a runoff. In this increasingly tense environment, civil society activists who worked to educate voters, as well as observed the elections are now finding themselves harassed, intimidated and even behind bars. Xolani Zitha, the director of Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition based in Harare, Zimbabwe tells Civil Society Watch about his hopes for a solution.

Read the full interview, visit: http://www.civicus.org/csw_files/FRONTPAGE_ZIMBABWE_No35.htm    

 

DIALOGUES

 

A changing landscape for civil society in Russia? CSW readers respond

In the previous issue of CSW Monthly Bulletin, we interviewed Maria Kanevskaya from the Russian Lawyers for Civil Society. Maria warned about the threats posed to Russian civil society by amendments to the NGO law. In response to Maria’s interview, we received two letters - the first from Andrey Nenashev of Lawyers for Civil Society, and the second from Sarah Lindemann-Komarova and Elena Malitskaya of the Siberian Civic Initiatives Support Center.

Read the full interview, visit: http://www.civicus.org/csw_files/DIALOGUES_RUSSIA_No35.htm

 

ANALYSIS

 

Growth and censorship of the Internet in Azerbaijan

Eldar Zeynalov, Director, Human Rights Center of Azerbaijan

The Human Rights Center of Azerbaijan, one of the first and most prominent independent human rights organisations in Azerbaijan, has just celebrated its fifteenth anniversary. In this article, the HRCA’s director Eldar Zeynalov writes about how the Internet has enhanced the work of his organisation. He also discusses the growing role of the Internet in human rights activities in the region, as well as the challenges activists face in responding to the pressures of censorship and the overall economic and political environment. Given the difficult environment in many post-Soviet countries, he explains why virtual communication is critically important for human rights work.

For more information, visit http://www.civicus.org/csw_files/ANALYSIS_AZERBAIJAN_No35.htm 

 

DIGITAL SECURITY FOR ACTIVISTS

 

Guarding against the loss of information

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

The information stored on your computer (sometimes years of work) can be lost in a myriad of different ways. Don’t wait until your computer crashes to think about backing up your information. You need a structured backup policy that reflects your current situation, including the types of information you have stored, and how to recover that information in an emergency. This is the third article in a CSW Monthly Bulletin series, highlighting practical ways you can increase your digital security and privacy.

For more information, visit http://www.civicus.org/csw_files/DIGITAL_SECURITY-No35.htm  

 

GOOD NEWS

 

EGYPT: Court rejects government decision, allows trade union to operate

2 April - Egypt's Administrative Court overturned the government's refusal to allow the Centre for Trade Union and Workers' Services (CTUWS) to operate. The Centre had been subjected to a series of administrative obstacles, culminating in its closure by security forces in 2007, reports the International Trade Union Confederation.

http://www.ituc-csi.org/spip.php?article1954

 

UN: Human rights review of all countries begins

7 April - The Universal Periodic Review, a new mechanism to examine the human rights record of every United Nations Member State, was launched at the Human Rights Council. Over two weeks, a first group of 16 countries – starting with Bahrain and Ecuador – had their records scrutinised, as part of the review, one of the reforms which differentiates the Council from the Commission on Human Rights, which it succeeded in 2006.

www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=26234&Cr=rights&Cr1=council 

 

CSW COUNTRY UPDATES

AFGHANISTAN: Attacks on NGOs rise

15 April - Attacks on non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and aid workers by anti-government forces, chiefly Taliban insurgents, have risen sharply in the first quarter of 2008, reports IRIN News.

http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=77770

 

AZERBAIJAN: Laws on freedom of assembly and voluntary activity debated

25 April - A draft law on voluntary activity has passed its first reading in the parliament, reports the Azeri Press Agency. Amendments to the law of freedom of assembly are also being debated in parliament, reports Trend News.

http://news.trendaz.com/index.shtml?show=news&newsid=1194872&lang=EN

http://en.apa.az/news.php?id=47753

 

BELARUS: Office of women's rights defenders raided

4 April - The offices of the organisation Female Centre "Adliga" were raided, and the apartments of two members were also searched, and an additional two members were arbitrarily detained, reports Front Line.

http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/1388

 

CHINA: Lawyers harassed and threatened

29 April - Chinese lawyers who take cases seen by the government as politically sensitive or potentially embarrassing face severe abuses ranging from harassment to disbarment and physical assaults, Human Rights Watch reports.

http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/04/28/china18656.htm

 

COLOMBIA: Paramilitary threatens social leaders

18 April - Death threats were issued by the paramilitary umbrella group Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC) against Fr. Rafael Gallego, an animator and representative of the community radio station Ecos de Tiquisio, and against other priests and members of social organisations of the region, reports AMARC-Latin America.

http://canada.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/92801

 

CUBA: Rally violently suppressed

25 April - Authorities violently suppressed a demonstration organised by the Ladies in White who were demanding the release of prisoners of conscience, reports the Cuban organisation Fundacion para los derechos humanos.

 

IRAN: Nobel laureate threatened

14 April - 2003 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi received an anonymous letter threatening her life, reports OMCT. No investigation has reportedly yet taken place.

http://www.omct.org/index.php?id=&lang=eng&articleSet=Appeal&articleId=7720

 

KAZAKHSTAN: Draft laws threaten religious activity

6 May - Religious leaders have expressed serious concerns about proposals now in parliament to amend the religion law and a number of other laws affecting religious activity, reports Forum 18 News Service.

http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1125

 

KUWAIT: Law restricts freedom of assembly

15 April- A new law introduced by the Kuwaiti government infringes on the right to organise gatherings or peaceful protests, reports HRinfo.

http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/92803/

 

PALESTINE: Lack of fuel halts NGO operations

29 April - An Israeli blockade causing a lack of fuel has forced many organisations in the Gaza Strip to reduce their activities over the last few months, reports Al Mezan Center for Human Rights.

http://www.mezan.org/site_en/index.php

 

PERU: Government smears human rights NGOs

2 May - The Peruvian government, with the backing of the parliamentary bloc that supports former President Alberto Fujimori, has unleashed a smear campaign against non-governmental organisations that defend human rights, reports IPS.

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=42217

 

RUSSIA: Law to allow for closure of media outlets

1 May - An amendment that would allow the Russian courts to close media outlets for publishing defamatory statements has made its way through the parliament’s lower house, reports the Committee to Protect Journalists.

http://www.cpj.org/news/2008/europe/russ01may08na.html

 

TURKEY: Amendments fail to protect freedom of expression

2 May - Recent amendments to Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code - insulting Turkishnes - are wholly insufficient and will not protect freedom of expression, reports Article 19.

http://www.article19.org/pdfs/press/turkey-art-301-reforms.pdf

 

VENEZUELA: Rights body concerned over restrictions on dissent

4 April - In their 2007 report on Venezuela, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has expressed concern over the hostile environment toward political dissent; criminalisation of social protest; and harassment of non-governmental organisations and human rights defenders, among others, reports el universal.

http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/04/04/en_pol_art_2007-report-of-the-o_04A1492245.shtml

RESOURCES AND PUBLICATIONS

New Tactics: Ongoing community dialogues

Got a question? Got an idea? Need some advice? Want to connect with other people doing human rights work? The New Tactics dialogues area is a collection of community member blogs, and is the right place for all of those things.

For more information, visit http://www.newtactics.org/dialogues/home

CONTACT US

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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.