CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is working towards Rio+20 on several fronts, including by acting as an organising partner of the NGO Major Group and co-organising critical meetings and workshops around the world.

In this issue: Time for a new social contract: CIVICUS’ inaugural State of Civil Society Report suggests a generational opportunity for civil society in the face of multiple global crises CIVICUS and the Arab NGO Network for Development highlight Syrian crisis and demand a political solution CIVICUS analysis piece: strengthening civil society voices at the UN Human Rights Council ALGERIA: Continued harassment of activists one year after repeal of emergency BAHRAIN: Demands to release human rights defender on hunger strike increase IRAN: Renewal of the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran welcomed Read this issue online | Subscribe and never miss a future issue

Time for a new social contract: CIVICUS report suggests a generational opportunity in the face of multiple crises Turning principles into practice: a successful platform strengthening CSO transparency and accountability practices in Latin America A slippery slope in Southern Africa Bahrain: UNESCO head condemns killing of citizen journalist India: civil society seeks effective use of Right to Information Act Mexico: our future lies in nature CIVICUS interview with Jose Muvango Roundtable discussion between CSOs and members of the UN Secretary-General’s High-level Group on Sustainable Energy for All Introducing Bribespot Job: CIVICUS seeks a Senior Executive Assistant (application deadline 16 April 2012) Job: Human Rights Advisor (application deadline 21 April 2012) Read Online now | Subscribe to the e-CIVICUS here

The South Africa Forum for International Solidarity (SAFIS) yesterday issued a letter to the Prime Minister of Swaziland requesting that he reverse the decision to deregister the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA).

Since 2004, through its Legitimacy, Transparency and Accountability (LTA) programme, CIVICUS has been working to improve public trust and the credibility of civil society organisations (CSOs) and their activities through the enhancement of their accountability systems and structures.

Civil society faces a generational opportunity to prove its value as a source of alternatives at a time of profound global crisis.

International civil society alliance CIVICUS and the University of the West Indies are working together to consult on the emerging challenges civil society in Trinidad and Tobago faces, Thursday 5 April.

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is an international alliance of members and partners dedicated to strengthening citizen action and civil society around the world, with a secretariat based in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Rio+20: help shape the CIVICUS alliance message Support CIVICUS’s CivNet proposal Jamaica, the Caribbean and global governance CIVICUS to launch first annual State of Civil Society report in April 2012 The Value of Community Philanthropy: Results of a Consultation Malaysian civil society's growing importance acknowledged New EU-Kazakhstan agreement offers scope to push for human rights progress Malaysian CSO wins annual UN population prize Job - Legislative Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs (open until position filled) Read Online now | Subscribe to the e-CIVICUS here

Campaigners around the world will today (Thursday 15th March) mark one year of violence in Syria by calling on Russia to back UN Security Council action to end the crisis.

March 14th marks the 8th anniversary of the “Proclamation of Mpalabanda”.

How does one bid farewell to the job I believe is the best in the world? Regrettably, that is what I must do.

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have signed an agreement to implement the new Civil Society Index Rapid Assessment (CSI-RA) in Tunisia.

Greenpeace today issued an open letter to world leaders calling for an end of the Threat of nuclear power.

Defining a new social contract - making the future together - CIVICUS board The 11th CIVICUS World Assembly: why participate? -  Malorie Flon 2012 Call for activity proposals - Be part of the programme! 2012 World Assembly programme Register today! Support the CIVICUS World Assembly This year receive a free CIVICUS Citizen Membership Read online in: English, French and Spanish | Subscribe to the e-CIVICUS here

Johannesburg.

Interview with an Azerbaijan civil society activist Dr Leila Alieva, President of the Center for National and International Studies in Baku, Azerbaijan, speaks to CIVICUS about the deteriorating civil society environment in her country.

Dr Leila Alieva, President of the Center for National and International Studies (CNIS) in Baku, Azerbaijan, spoke to CIVICUS recently about the deteriorating civil society environment in her country and what international civil society can do to assist colleagues in Azerbaijan.

27 February 2012 Statement by David Bonbright, Board Chair, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation After four highly successful years as Secretary General of CIVICUS, Ingrid Srinath has, reluctantly, resolved to leave us in order to address pressing family matters at the end of her current contract in March 2012.

Invitation to participate in a webinarDate and time:  Thursday 1 March 2012, 12:00 -14:00 GMT Despite the existence of a vast body of national and international law guaranteeing the freedoms of association, assembly and expression, civil society organisations often find themselves impeded from carrying out their mandates.

24 February 2012 The Cassation Bench of the Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia is expected to hear a petition by the Human Rights Council (HRCO) on 27 February 2012 to admit an appeal against the freezing of its bank accounts.

Will business as usual trump transformational change at Rio+20? Bringing it together: organising for civil society effectiveness in Cameroon Submit an activity proposal for the 2012 World Assembly CIVICUS plays hosts to young activists for democratic change Etherington fears emergence of 'fourth sector' Belarus dissidents defy KGB and the threat of jail in latest crackdown January 2012 Violations Report Vacancy: Youth Development Officer for Rio+20 Read this issue online | Get all future issues | Explore archive of old issues

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is an international movement of civil society dedicated to strengthening freedom of association and citizen’s participation across the globe.

CIVICUS has added it is voice to those of Burundi CSOs to urge the president to release arrested anti-corruption activist and CSO leader Faustin Ndikumana, who faces a prison sentence of up to ten years.

2012: A Civil Society Agenda NGOs around the world condemn persistent crackdowns on Egyptian civil society and reject disabling draft NGO law CIVICUS advocates South Africans’ ‘Right to Know’ What does the activism surrounding SOPA reveal about the future of online organising? Democracy does not apply to Aboriginal people Human Rights Officer (application deadline 4 March 2012) Read this issue online | Get all future issues | Explore archive of old issues

Guide on Reporting Violations to UN  special procedures CIVICUS deplores sustained harassment of Belarusian NGO Freedom House: Freedom in the world in 2012? Interview with a civil society activist: Dale McKinley Myanmar: More political prisioners released Read this issue online | Get all future issues |  Explore archive of old issues

  Busan, Republic of Korea.

Responding to Increasing Demands of CSO Accountability: Reflections from Phnom Penh and Manila 2012 CIVICUS World Assembly - Registration Now Open Broadening civic space through voluntary action: Lessons from 2011 Governance advisor: Affiliate support (Application Deadline 24 January 2012) Fighting hunger & malnutrition: The HUNGaMA survey reportSystemic peacebuilding, conflict transformation & post-war recovery, and reconciliation (OCTR) Read this issue online | Get all future issues | Explore archive of old issues

Johannesburg.

What a year 2011 was! Reporting human rights violations to UN Special Procedures: An Introductory Guide Parents Forum gets Digital Book World Award Rio+20: Making it Happen Human rights defender Azimzhan Askarov goes on termless hunger strike in Kyrgyzstan Discriminatory laws and practices and acts of violence against individuals based on their sexual orientation and gender identity Director General Oxfam Hing Kong (Application deadline 31 January 2012) Read this issue online | Get all future issues | Explore archive of old issues

CIVICUS and the Caucus of Development NGO Networks (CODE-NGO), our partner organisation in the Philippines, co-organised a two-day workshop titled, "Strengthening Accountability of the Civil Society Sector on the 14th and 15th of December 2011 in Manila.

Dear friends, partners and supporters, What a year 2011 was! Often I found myself quoting Lenin: 'Sometimes decades pass and nothing happens, then weeks pass and decades happen.

The regional workshop on democratising governance through citizen participation brought together representatives of civil society organisations, international organisations and participatory governance practitioners from Ethiopia, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Malawi, Uganda, Zambia, South Africa and Zimbabwe to share experiences in advancing participatory governance, identify key gaps in participatory governance processes at local, national and continental levels and propose solutions aimed at filling these gaps and making participatory governance effective at all levels.

1 November was the official close of the call for submissions to the compilation document for Rio+20.

Dear Friends and Partners, From the Arab Spring to the Occupy Wall Street protests, 2011 will be remembered as the year we realised the power we hold to change the world.

A propos de l’ISC-Rapide L’auto-évaluation de la société civile contribue à renforcer les bases factuelles pour le rôle plaidoyer de la société civile, fournissant une plateforme pour la société civile pour identifier les besoins communs, et pour aider à la planification et l'élaboration de stratégies autour des défis et des opportunités communes.

Human Rights Council 18th SPECIAL SESSIONThe Human Rights Situation in the Syrian Arab Republic 2 December 2011Delivered by Renate Bloem Thank you, Mme President, CIVICUS is deeply concerned at the crimes against humanity being committed in Syria as we speak.

by Andrew Firmin, Acting Research Manager, CIVICUS International Volunteer Day, and the culmination of the 10th anniversary of the International Year of Volunteers, offers an opportunity to emphasise the important role of volunteerism in civic life.

This joint submission from Association for Progressive Communictaion (APC), Centre for Applied Legal Studies (CALS), CIVICUS, Gender Links Highway Africa Chair in Media and Information Society,  IDASA, ODAC, Right 2 Know, Southern African NGO Network (SANGONet), Section27 and SERI focuses on: freedom of expression; the right to information; freedom from censorship; freedom of the press; the right to privacy; and the importance of affordable access to the internet.

Since the last High Level Forum in Accra, more than 20,000 civil society organisations (CSOs) - including trade unions, women’s groups, youth groups, faith-based organisations and other social movements – in more than 90 countries, have been consulted on the process, agenda and expected outcomes of the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness (HLF-4) that is meeting here in Busan.

CIVICUS outlines urgent concerns related to the environment in which civil society activists and human rights defenders operate in the Philippines.

CIVICUS outlines urgent concerns related to the environment in which civil society activists and human rights defenders operate in Brazil, and about threats faced by them in the exercise of the freedoms of expression, association and assembly.

Johannesburg.

About the CSI-RA Civil society self-assessment contributes to strengthening the evidence base for civil society advocacy; providing a platform for civil society to identify shared needs; and assisting the planning and strategising of civil society around common challenges and opportunities.

The State of Civil Society 2011: Through an Artist's Lens CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is seeking the ‘design of the year’ for the cover of The State of Civil Society 2011 report.

CIVICUS and the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) outline urgent concerns related to the environment in which civil society, human rights activists and ordinary citizens operate in Bahrain, and the vicious attacks by government security forces on those who dare to exercise their rights of expression, assembly and association.

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation launched its new civil society self-assessment tool, the Civil Society Index Rapid Assessment (CSI-RA) at the Africa Forum on Civil Society and Governance Assessments, 10 to 12 November 2011.

To Member States of the United Nations Human Rights Council: Joint Call by Civil Society for a Special Session of the UN Human Rights Council to consider the findings of the Syrian Commission of Inquiry and ensure accountability 22 November, 2011 Your Excellency, As civil society organizations from around the world we urgently call on the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (HRC) to convene a special session on Syria immediately after the release of the report of the HRC International Commission of Inquiry on Syria (the Commission of Inquiry), which is due before the end of November 2011.

The online film festival gives Every Human Has Rights (EHHR) and Tri Continental Film Festival (TCFF) a new platform to raise awareness about human rights abuses.

The clothes have no emperor Just how much can the state restrict a peaceful protest? Call for "Snapshots" TCFF and EHHR launch online film festival CIVICUS interview with Billy Mayaya Bill is a ‘shameful moment’ for Israel Palestinian civil society launches campaign to reform international aid to Palestine in run up to Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness And much more.