October 2008

Ethiopia
October 2008

The Ethiopian government has submitted the controversial draft legislation for Civil Society Organizations (CSO law) to the parliament. The draft has been strongly criticized as a document that criminalizes human rights activity of non-governmental organizations and seriously undermines civil society groups in Ethiopia. While the government claims that the CSO law is to strengthen democratic institutions and ensure constitutional rights of citizens, Human Rights Watch (HRW) warns that the bill violates both the Ethiopian constitution and several international agreements, including regional African treaties and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

June 2008

Zimbabwe - New Update June 27
June 2008

The Standard reported on 22 June that war veterans and Zanu PF youth militia continue to block relief agencies and HIV and Aids service organizations from accessing areas in dire need of aid in rural and peri-urban areas. This is despite recent assurances from the government that the NGOs could resume their humanitarian operations, the national association of NGOs has said. The government three weeks ago suspended all NGO licenses, accusing them of being conduits of foreign interference in Zimbabwe's politics. But there was an apparent about-turn on the blanket ban last week, with the government announcing that more than 400 organizations working in the HIV/AIDs sector would be allowed to operate after local and international NGOs protested at the ban. NANGO's spokesperson Fambai Ngirande said it was still impossible for the organizations to operate.

Zimbabwe - Clarification Issued on Suspension Order For NGOS/PVOS
June 2008

The Government of Zimbabwe wrote on 13 June 2008 to all NGOs/PVOs to give clarification on the order to suspend the field operations of all NGOs/PVOs. In a press release on its website, NANGO, the National Association of NGOs, states that according to the letter of clarification from the Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Sidney Mhishi, the suspension of field operations on 7 June 2008 does not imply banning or deregistration of PVOs/NGOs. This latest communiqué from the government appears to contradict the position stated by the Deputy Minister of Information, Bright Matonga, which was carried in the government’s official newspaper, The Herald, of 7 June 2008. The statement published there had indicated that government had suspended all licenses of NGOs and would require them to re-apply for re-registration. The clarification notice indicates that the only issue at stake is PVOs/NGOs engaging in political activities.

December 2007

Ethiopia
December 2007

Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie Convicted and Sentenced; May Soon be Paroled

An ActionAid International Press Release for 26 December 2007, states that the anti-poverty campaigners Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie, detained in Ethiopia in 2005 and convicted on 24 December, after a two-year trial, were given prison sentences of two and a half years each. Since they have already spent more than two years in detention, there is a strong possibility that they will be freed on parole in the next few days. In an unusual move, the sentencing judge praised both men for their work to solve the political impasse that followed the 2005 elections and described them as “courageous citizens promoting peace and the rule of law.”

October 2007

Ethiopia
October 2007

Anti-poverty activists Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie heard on 9 October 2007 that they must remain in prison for at least another six weeks, as judges in Ethiopia's Federal High Court delayed the verdict until 22 November 2007, bringing their total detention to over two years. Both activists are recognised by Amnesty International as prisoners of conscience. In delaying the verdict, the judges explained that the prosecution had submitted closing statements to the court one month later than expected, not allowing the judges adequate time to make a decision.

August 2007

Ethiopia
August 2007

Further Detention of Activists
On 3 August 2007 ActionAid announced that Daniel Bekele policy manager of ActionAid Ethiopia, and Netsanet Demissie, general manager of the Organization for Social Justice in Ethiopia, will now spend two more months in prison awaiting the verdict, while the court takes its annual recess.

A day earlier Daniel and Netsanet concluded their defense, after calling 29 witnesses and presenting 300 pages of documentary evidence. The prosecutors asked for time to consider the verbal and written evidence before presenting their concluding remarks. The judges agreed and said that the prosecutors must present a final written submission by 26 August and the defense should respond in writing by 31 August. The court will reconvene on 8 October, at the beginning of the new legal year, to give judgment.

Ramesh Singh, chief executive of ActionAid said: "This further delay comes as a big disappointment when we were so near to the end of the process."

July 2007

Ethiopia
July 2007

Some Convicted Journalists And Opposition Figures Released; Bekele And Demissie Remain Incarcerated
According to an ActionAid Press Release of the same date, on 20 July 2007 the Ethiopian government pardoned 38 convicted prisoners who had been charged with serious crimes in connection with their activities surrounding the 2005 elections in the country.  They had signed a document admitting using “unconstitutional means to change the constitutionally established government functions” following the 2005 elections.  Daniel Bekele, policy manager of ActionAid Ethiopia and Board member of the African Centre for Civil Society Law, and Netsanet Demissie, general manager of the Organisation for Social Justice in Ethiopia, decided not to sign, arguing that their activities in 2005 were entirely legal and served not to undermine but to protect and promote Ethiopia's constitutional order.  They wish to establish this in court and secure their acquittal.  The two anti-poverty campaigners expect to begin presenting defense evidence in the High Court towards the end of July – unless the Supreme Court has by then already ruled in their favor.

August 2006

Ghana
August 2, 2006

Dr. Leon Irish is currently in Ghana working on several projects

July 2006

Zimbabwe
July 27, 2006

The Institute for War and Peace Reporting says that the NGO Bill is due to be presented in the Parliament of Zimbabwe when the legislative session resumes in August. Taken together with other legislation that will further curtail the rights of citizens to speak their minds and criminalize ordinary civic activities as "terrorism," the package of legislation has been called the equivalent of "martial law."

Kenya
July 13, 2006

Sessional Policy Paper No. 1 of 2006 on Non-Governmental Organizations passed the Kenyan Parliament on July 13th. The NGO Policy Paper had been in development since 2001, and was submitted to the Parliament in late 2005. The NGO Council was involved in years past, but had not reviewed or commented in 2005 prior to the paper's submission. The NGO Council Executive Committee will review the Policy Paper immediately and issue a statement in this regard. They are currently in consultations with ICCSL as to international best practices with regard to regulation and self-regulation of the NGO sector.

Uganda NGO Law Update
July 1, 2006

The leading Ugandan NGOs, including the national apex body the Uganda NGO Forum, have filed a petition with President Yoweri Museveni urging him not to sign the recently passed NGO Registration (Amendment) Act 2006, saying it would have a negative impact on the operation of civil society organizations and their role in the region as it heads toward forming a political federation by 2013. They added that the Act includes registration restrictions that might lead to the closure of some currently operating CSOs.

In terms of objections to the Act based on the Treaty of the East African Community (EAC), the report accompanying the petition states that "The spirit of the Treaty establishing the East African Community clearly envisages Civil Society Organisations and the private sector as key actors in the integration process. The treaty recognises that a strong partnership with the Civil Society and private sector is essential in achieving the primary objective of the treaty set out in Articles 5(1) and 5(3). These articles provide that the Community shall ensure the enhancement and strengthening of a partnership with CSO and the private sector in achieving a sustainable socio-economic and political development. Critically reading Uganda's NGO law as amended reveals that the law fails to meet these provisions that the three partner states have agreed to...Uganda NGO law as amended clearly fails to meet this test."

In addition, the report states that, taken as a whole, the new Act does nothing to encourage the development of CSOs in Uganda. Although problems may exist under the currently effective Non-Governmental Organisations Act Cap. 113 (1990) (for example, under the current law, all NGOs are required to register with the NGO Board which then issues a Certificate of Registration to a successful applicant subject to conditions or directions it may deem fit), the new requirements (for example, an NGO must first obtain a permit in order to register) would be retrogressive and serve not only as a bad development for Uganda but for the EAC as a whole.

Other Ugandan NGOs that have joined the petition include the Development Network of Voluntary Organizations (DENIVA), the Human Rights Network Uganda (Hurinet (U)), and the Advocates Coalition for the Development and Environment (ACODE). This story is based in part on an article published in The New Times, Kigali, and posted to the web by AllAfrica.com.

June 2006

Ghana
June 15, 2006

GAPVOD launched a new NPO Directory for Ghana, which covers the years 2005 to 2008 and gives accurate information on the number of NGOs that are actively operating and their areas of operation among others.

May 2006

Global
May 10, 2006

Mixed Reactions to Human Rights Council Elections

On May 9, 2006, the elections for membership in the UN's new Human Rights Council were held and the reactions to the membership of the new body are mixed, with many human rights organizations expressing concern that so many of the countries elected have at best mixed records on human rights. On the other hand, Human Rights Watch noted the following three factors in favor of the election in its press release:

• New membership standards and election procedures discouraged states with some of the worst records of human rights abuses from even running for election, including recent commission members Sudan, Zimbabwe, Libya, Syria, Vietnam, Nepal, and Egypt, and others of the worst violators, including North Korea, Burma, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Belarus, and Ivory Coast.
• A handful of politically powerful violators were elected, including China, Russia, and Cuba. But major oil producers such as Iran, which has a very poor human rights record, and Venezuela, which declared it was not bound by the council's new standards, were defeated. While Human Rights Watch had expressed opposition to six of the new members on human rights grounds, they account for only six out of 47 seats on the new council.
• Countries campaigned for election in large part by highlighting the contribution they would make to the promotion and protection of human rights. While issuing human rights pledges and commitments was voluntary under the resolution creating the new council, all 64 candidates published written commitments for advancing human rights.

Nepal
May 12, 2006

Media crack-down lifted

A report on the University of Pittsburgh Law School's Jurist website says that Nepal's government annulled a media ordinance promulgated by King Gyanendra [official profile] during his 15-month absolute rule to muzzle press that criticized his seizure of power [JURIST report] in February 2005. The ordinance was criticized both in Nepal and internationally as it increased punishment of journalists and banned broadcast of informative programs from independent radios. The law also discouraged cross-ownership in the media sector. National and international media rights groups had termed the ordinance as a "black law" and had asked King Gyanendra to repeal it. Nepal's press freedom situation deteriorated after the enforcement of the ordinance and the international community sent two high-level diplomatic missions to Nepal to protect independent media.

April 2006

Global
April 8, 2006

ICCSL President and ACCSL Associate Participate in ABA Program

ICCSL President Dr. Leon E. Irish and ACCSL Associate Mr. Tamuka Muzondo, Director of Policy and Planning for NANGO, the National Association of Nongovernmental Organizations in Zimbabwe, spoke at the American Bar Association's Section of International Law Spring Meeting in New York on April 7, 2006. The program, which was entitled Global Governance: International Organizations' Response to Civil Society's Demand for Accountability, also included Bharati Sadasivam, Senior Policy Adviser, Civil Society Organization Division, UNDP. The session was chaired by Karen Hudes, of the Legal Department of the World Bank, and Chair of the Section's Committee on International NGOs and Not-for-Profit Organizations Committee. The Africa Committee of the Section also co-sponsored the meeting.

The discussions of the panelists focused on issues with regard to how the UN deals with civil society input; how regional groups, such as NEPAD and the African Union address the ways in which civil society; and the problems presented for additional civil society engagement at the UN, following on Secretary General Annan's appointment of the Eminent Persons panel and the failure of the General Assembly to implement the Panel's recommendations. All panelists, the Moderator, and the audience agreed that non-state actors, whether or not they can be deemed representative of constituencies, have expertise that should be brought to bear on policies for social an economic development. One important role of knowledge providers like ICCSL is that they can help both national governments and inter-governmental organizations to create policies for civil society and broader citizen participation.

Developments in Africa
April 2006

Ethiopia

In a letter to the members of CIVICUS, Kumi Naidoo, its Secretary General wrote about a visit to Daniel Bekele (a member of the Board of the African Centre for Civil Society Law) and Netsanet Demissie, who are being detained by the Ethiopian government on charges of treason.

"Last week, a delegation from the Global Call to Action Against Poverty visited Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie, both civil society leaders in Ethiopia where they have been held in prison for five months. You can read more about the outcome of the visit elsewhere in e-CIVICUS 287 but I wanted to share some of the highlights here.

"We met with various civil society leaders and the families of the political prisoners on the first day of our visit. They painted a very troubling picture of the political space available in Ethiopia at the moment.

"We also succeeded in securing a meeting with the government. During our meeting, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Meles Zenawi was cordial and knowledgeable about civil society debates and his knowledge of the development challenges facing Africa were impressive. He explained that he places great confidence in indigenous, membership-based African civil society organisations, as opposed to those which primarily receive overseas funding and have no membership constituency. He did, however, acknowledge that these NGOs often do good work….

"Both Daniel and Netsanet … had lost weight and said that the conditions under which they are being held were far from great but yet they are trying to cope. They have been charged with treason. However, unlike the political prisoners from the opposition political party also awaiting trial, they do not have access to the evidence that the state plans to use against them and which they could use has a basis for the preparation of their own defence.

"From my own knowledge of these two colleagues, I am absolutely certain that there is no basis for the charge of treason. Both of them are human rights activists that have a consistent record of using their legal skills and training as lawyers to advance the interests of the poor in Ethiopia.

Kenya

After coming back into official existence in September 2005, the National Council of NGOs in Kenya is facing a possible reform agenda set out by the Government of Kenya. A report sent out by the Kenya News Agency says that the Government has published a Sessional Paper that will see to a comprehensive review of the legal framework regulating non governmental organizations (NGOs) in the country. The Minister of State for National Heritage said that "The paper due to be presented in parliament, will replace the NGOs Coordination Act of 1990 and will seek to promote stability within the National Council of NGOs." In a speech read on his behalf by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry during the opening of a three-day workshop on NGO regulation in Naivasha yesterday, the Minister said it is imperative that there is established a stable National Council for self-regulation within the NGO sector. The Minister expressed the government's deep concern over recent wrangles within the NGO Council and appealed to donors to resume funding to it.

The Council is also embroiled in corruption allegations against many of its members. A report published in the AFRICAN STANDARD on 21 April 2006, states that the National Community-Based Organisations (CBO) Council has presented complaints of massive corruption in the NGO world to the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission. The Council wants certain Non Governmental Organizations, mostly those involved in health issues, investigated for using CBOs to cover up misuse of donor funds. According to the head of the head of the CBO Council, the non-profit sector has many rogue organizations that mock the system of accountability and regulatory ethics.

Uganda

After several years of discussions and objections from the international community, the Ugandan Parliament on 7 April 2006 passed the Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) Registration Amendment Bill 2001 which requires NGOs and evangelical churches to renew their registration permits annually. The House also approved a controversial clause that gives security (ISO and ESO) representation on the NGO Board. The NGO community has opposed the clause since 2001, when the Bill was first introduced. The Bill gives the NGO board powers to register or deny registration to NGOs opposed to government policy or whose activities are not in the "public interest." ICCSL's principals worked in Uganda in 2001 and 2002 to try to prevent the adoption of the bill, but obviously to no avail.

March 2006

Africa Region
March 15, 2006

ACCSL Associates have had two panels accepted for the international meeting of ISTR, which is to be held in Bangkok, Thailand, in mid-July. Arrangements are currently being made to acquire funding for the panel participants.

Zimbabwe

ACCSL Associate Taumka Muzondo will be visiting the United States in early April to speak at the Catholic University of America School of Law and at the Section of International Law of the American Bar Association's Spring Meeting in New York. More information will be available shortly.

ICCSL Associate Tamuka Muzondo has been appointed to the post of Manager, Research and Policy, with NANGO, the national umbrella organization for NGOs in Zimbabwe. He will continue to work with ACCSL and ICCSL on projects in Africa, and this will assist the focus of his research for a PhD in law at the University of KwaZulu Natal.

January 2006

Ethiopia

In a much-watched development some 131 people in Ethiopia who are in opposition to the current government - among them Daniel Bekele, a board member of ICCSL's sister organization the African Centre for Civil Society Law - were arraigned on charges of treason and "genocide" on 23 December 2005. Aid agencies, in particular the World Bank and the European Union, have threatened to withhold some $375 million in aid. The Ethiopian government has protested this move, according to the IRIN News of 30 December 2005. Further information on these developments and related protests around the world can be found on the website of the Ethiopian Review.

Ghana

Lee Irish visited Ghana again in October 2005 to work on his project on district registration.