News and updates from BCSDN and the region
The Global Civil Society Summit held on 8 April in Belgrade, Serbia, as part of the ICSW 2019, around 150 leaders and CSO representatives gathered to unite in the fight for democratic participation and civic freedoms. The Summit launched a Call to Action, calling for international and national civil society civil society to stand together
Read more →From 8-12 April in Belgrade, some 900 human rights campaigners, civil society leaders and engaged citizens met for the International Civil Society Week (ICSW) 2019 – a global civil society gathering co-hosted by CIVICUS, Civic Initiatives (Serbia) and BCSDN. Throughout the ICSW, it was evident that individuals and organisations are increasingly under attack in many countries. Activists,
Read more →More than five months after it approved a highly restrictive law, the Kosovo Parliament on 15 April voted on the amendments proposed by the Office of the President of Kosovo on the NGO Law, in line with best international standards and practices, and civil society demands. Since November 2018, around 300 Kosovar CSOs came together to prevent
Read more →According to the 8th annual State of Civil Society Report by CIVICUS, 2018 was another year of immense contestation for fundamental rights. On the one side stood rising right-wing populists, authoritarian presidents, large corporations with few scruples and anti-rights groups. Yet, on the other side, progressive, rights-oriented civil society and citizens bravely stepped forward to
Read more →On 20 March, the EESC adopted its own-initiated opinion, concluding that liberal democracy relies on civil liberties and a pluralistic civil society, but considerable political forces in today’s Europe are challenging liberal democracy. The social, political and legal framework must allow for a pluralistic civil society. Strong social partners and civil society are needed to
Read more →The Council adopted conclusions approving the EU human rights guidelines on non-discrimination in external action. The Council reaffirms the EU’s commitment to the purposes and principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that applies to all human beings without distinction of any kind. The Council recalls that the Treaty on the European Union establishes
Read more →The International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL) published its latest report: “Closing Academic Space: Repressive State Practices in Legislative, Regulatory and Other Restrictions on Higher Education Institutions.” The report, authored by Kirsten Roberts Lyer and Aron Suba, seeks to understand the ways in which governments are repressing university autonomy and closing academic space. The authors
Read more →International Civil Society Week (ICSW) is a gathering for civil society to engage in finding shared solutions to global challenges, create connections that bring about positive social change, share tools that enhance citizen action, and celebrate people power. Organized in partnership between CIVICUS and Civic Initiatives as a local host and BCSDN as a regional
Read more →The European Parliament and EU Council have agreed a pathbreaking piece of legislation that will help protect whistleblowers around Europe. The political agreement was reached in tough negotiations on 12 March, and is the first time that the EU will have dedicated legislation in this area. The proposed legislation will give much greater protections for
Read more →European governments are complicit in the systematic, unlawful and frequently violent pushbacks and collective expulsions of thousands of asylum seekers to squalid and unsafe refugee camps in Bosnia and Herzegovina, said Amnesty International in a report. Pushed to the edge: Violence and abuse against refugees and migrants along Balkan Route details how, by prioritizing border control over compliance
Read more →At the CSO Partnership for Development Effectiveness (CPDE) Policy Conference 2019 held in Beirut, CSOs tackled emerging issues surrounding development cooperation and affirmed their commitment to advocate for and contribute towards achieving development effectiveness. The discussions culminated in the adoption of an outcome document, the Beirut Declaration: Upholding Accountability, Building Solidarity for Effective, People-Centred Development. A
Read more →The EU enlargement process in the Western Balkans has fallen short of reproducing the transformative impact it had in Central and Eastern Europe. Solveig Richter and Natasha Wunsch point to state capture as the core obstacle to deep democratisation in the region and argue that EU conditionality not only fails to overcome detrimental governance patterns, but unintentionally contributes to
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