News and updates from BCSDN and the region
A Declaration developed with inputs from over 30 national and regional people’s assemblies was adopted at the three-day Global People’s Assembly on 22 September, organized by Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP) and allies, during the 77th session of the UN General Assembly. “The time to act is now,” the group calls for a
Read more →For all the challenges linked to digitalization, here is a new resource that examines the occurring challenges and maps the opportunities from using digital tools. The idea of the internet as a medium for freedom has suffered. Authoritarian regimes use digital technologies as a tool for control. However, the internet does still hold significant emancipatory
Read more →DLA Piper, ECNL, and PILnet have published a comprehensive document guiding CSOs in navigating worldwide laws that enable their work. The Global Nonprofits Guide aims to help CSO workers to unpack the laws around different forms of nonprofits, the registration process, internal governance structures, and compliance with employment and tax regulations. It provides information on
Read more →The right of peaceful assembly is essential to democracy and a central mean for people collectively to express their views and needs; to associate or affirm group identity or solidarity; to contribute to social, cultural, and political discourse; and to hold authorities to account. In line with the creation of enabling environment for practicing civic
Read more →The Press Advertising Agency canceled the right of independent Turkish newspaper Evrensel to publish advertisements from state and public authorities. According to the outlet’s managing editor, this was a politically motivated decision targeting one of the few remaining independent media outlets in the country. He added that the state ad revenues are vital for the
Read more →During the 79th session of the Government of North Macedonia, an Advisory Body was decided to be formed to provide opinions on the use of the name of a historian and other famous persons on behalf of the associations and other legal entity. Previously, the Government adopted information for the needs by initiating an interdepartmental
Read more →The research analyzes hate discourses and good practices of European and national standards, targets, actors, definitions, and anti-discrimination policies. It studies the emergence and embodiments of Euroscepticism in predominantly Eurooptimistic and Eurorealistic countries. The study also examines civic activism in countering hate discourses and practices and promoting European values of respect for difference, liberty, equality,
Read more →The European Handbook for SDG Voluntary Local Reviews – 2022 edition provides policymakers, urban practitioners, and experts with a consolidated method and examples of indicators that European local and regional governments can use to monitor the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs) are processes that encompass both the monitoring
Read more →Major online platforms, emerging and specialized platforms, players in the advertising industry, fact-checkers, research, and civil society organizations delivered a strengthened Code of Practice on Disinformation following the Commission’s Guidance of May 2021. The Code is a first-of-its-kind tool through which relevant players in the industry agreed – for the first time in 2018 –
Read more →The Minister of Justice of North Macedonia initiated the proposal for establishing an expert body that will define the criteria for registering CSOs at a government session after the storm of reactions in public about the established associations in the country that bear disputed historical names, including Hitler’s collaborators. According to the minister, the expert
Read more →War, emergencies, the pandemic, and political turbulence significantly affected the environment for CSOs in the Eastern Partnership (EaP) region in 2021. Their space to operate and possibilities for activism faced restrictions, both in law and in practice. The report analyses 11 key areas of civil society operation, such as freedom of association, participation, or access
Read more →The Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) has published a few user-friendly documents produced for the Higher Education sector and the Public Enterprises sector, intending to outline the sector-specific risks with selected examples of how the most prevalent risks can be successfully targeted and equip beneficiaries with the right tools and building their capacities on using them. The documents
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