Civic Space Developments
Thursday 13.5.2021 Slovenia - Latest Developments -
Janša’s government continues its attack on media freedom; spreads misinformation about CSOs
Prime Minister Janez Janša's government has continued its attacks on CSOs and the media. In February 2021, the Slovene Democratic Party sent out a questionnaire to all households with a series of misleading and suggestive questions about the media and non-governmental organisations. In addition, CSOs reported that PM Janša once again used incorrect data regarding NGO financing during a vote of no confidence in parliament. Whilst the NGOs who are facing eviction from Metelkova have managed to successfully litigate to preserve their rights via a complaint to the Constitutional Court, the government continues to undermine CSOs through inserting similar restrictions in other bills, which are now up for parliamentary consideration. Numerous developments took place in relation to media freedom: journalists continue to face online attacks from the Prime Minister, there have been attempts to undermine the national press agency and attempts to censor media from reporting on COVID-19.
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Wednesday 12.5.2021 Myanmar - Latest Developments -
Crackdown on activists, protesters continue in Myanmar despite ASEAN summit and global calls
Over the last month, the deadly crackdown on protests has continued. The Myanmar junta added a ban on satellite television while journalists continue to be targeted. Protest leaders have been targeted by the junta with arrests and fabricated charges while a leading human rights monitoring group has been accused of operating illegally. Read more
Wednesday 12.5.2021 Romania - Latest Developments -
Protests over COVID-19 measures, debates about new legislation on whistleblowers
Newly introduced lockdown restrictions sparked a number of protests throughout the country under the aegis of "Freedom", starting on 29th March 2021. Some of these protests have turned violent, with 12 policemen being injured by the demonstrators and some of them taken to the hospital. No evidence of using disproportionate force by the police was reported. Healthcare workers also staged demonstrations in front of the Parliament on the threshold of the debate over the draft law for the state budget 2021. Romanian Ministry of Justice launched a public debate for the draft “Law on the protection of whistleblowers in the public interest”. While the current Romanian Whistleblower's Law is famous for being the first of its kind adopted in Europe, it fails to provide sufficient protection for whistleblowers. Read more
Wednesday 12.5.2021 Italy - Latest Developments -
Wiretapping of journalists raises red flag for press freedom
In April 2021, the Senate approved the proposal to grant Patrick Zaki Italian citizenship and it is now up to the government to formally decide on the matter. Zaki, an Egyptian student and human rights activist at the University of Bologna has been kept in prison by Egyptian authorities for more than 14 months, in violation of his fundamental rights. Several protests against COVID-19 measures and labour rights took place during this period. Dozens of Italian and foreign journalists and their sources have been secretly recorded as part of an investigation into the alleged link between some sea rescue NGOs and migrant smugglers. In March 2021 prosecutors took the decision to charge some NGOs, including Médecins sans Frontières and Save the Children, for collaboration with people smugglers, after almost four years of investigations. Media watchdog organisations have labelled the recording of journalists as a threat to press freedom.
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Wednesday 12.5.2021 Japan - Overview -
Opposition against Olympics continues, as state of emergency extended in Japan
In recent months, protests against the Olympics have persisted, including by nurses. A public broadcaster muted protests against the games during the Olympic torch relay. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it would prevent athletes from protesting or demonstrating at the Olympics, sparking criticism. Read more
Tuesday 11.5.2021 Brazil - Latest Developments -
Dictatorship-era National Security Law used to intimidate critics in Brazil
On 29th April 2021, Brazil became the second country to surpass 400,000 coronavirus deaths, according to data by Johns Hopkins University. In April 2021 alone, the country lost nearly 85,000 lives – the deadliest month yet of the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more | Read in Portuguese
Thursday 6.5.2021 Nicaragua - Latest Developments -
Three years on, human rights abuses continue in Nicaragua
18th April 2021 marked the third anniversary of Nicaragua’s widespread socio-economic protests of 2018, which sparked an enduring human rights crisis. Read more
Wednesday 5.5.2021 Benin - Latest Developments -
Protests and violence precede controversial presidential elections without main opposition
On 11th April 2021, close to five million people were called to vote in Benin's presidential elections, a tense and controversial election as electoral reforms introduced in 2019 require candidates for the offices of president and vice-president to be sponsored by at least ten percent of the total members of Parliament and/or mayors (16 representatives). Following the disputed legislative elections in April 2019 – in which opposition parties could not participate due to stringent requirements under the 2018 Electoral Code – and the municipal elections in April 2020, in which only one opposition party gained a majority of councillors in seven municipalities. On 27th November 2020, the African Court on Human and People's Rights (ACHPR) rendered a decision calling on authorities in Benin to annul the contentious reforms to the electoral code.
Just days before the poll, protests broke out throughout the country, with some turning violent and other dispersed by excessive force, killing at least two people in Savè.
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Wednesday 5.5.2021 Guinea - Latest Developments -
Wave of arrests of opposition supporters and activists; journalists continue to be imprisoned
At least 400 opposition supporters and civil society activists arrested, says human rights group
In a statement on 2nd February 2021, human rights group Amnesty International said that since the announcement of the official results of the presidential elections in October 2020, authorities have targeted at least 400 opposition supporters and civil society members in a massive wave of arrests. Four people – including three members of opposition party Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea (UFDG) who were reportedly arrested in connection with protests against a new constitution in March 2020 – died while in pre-trial detention in the main prison in Conakry. Authorities have attributed these deaths to natural causes or illnesses, but according to Human Rights Watch (HRW) family members, lawyers and activists who they spoke to claimed the deaths were due to torture, ill-treatment, poor detention conditions and lack of adequate medical care.
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Wednesday 5.5.2021 Brunei Darussalam - Latest Developments -
Brunei drops two places in global press freedom rankings
In April 2021, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) released its latest press freedom index. Brunei’s ranking dropped two places to 154 out of 180 countries. RSF reported that self-censorship is the rule for journalists working for state-owned Radio Television Brunei and for the leading daily newspapers, which are directly owned by the Sultan’s family.
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