Civic space: threats, attacks and lack of funding face many civil society organisations in the EU
Date of article: 28/07/2020
Daily News of: 29/07/2020
Country: 
EUROPE
Author:
Article language: en
erbal threats, physical attacks and lack of funding are some of the main challenges for civil society organisations working on human rights in the European Union. Moreover, almost half say that the situation in their country has deteriorated in the last year. These findings come from the second annual consultation, carried out by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) among civil society organisations across the EU.
The ‘Civic space ― experiences of organisations in 2019’ paper draws on views from 205 civil society organisations from FRA’s Fundamental Rights Platform. It shows the main obstacles they face in their work:
- Almost half of national and local civil society organisations say that the situation in their country has deteriorated.
- More than half say they faced verbal and online threats and attacks, including hate speech, as well as negative media reports about them.
- One in five say they experienced a physical attack, targeting either one of their employees/volunteers or their office building.
- The majority has difficulties accessing or participating in public consultations, mainly due to short deadlines or lack of feedback from the authorities.
- Many face challenges arising from regulatory frameworks, such as provisions on freedom of expression, assembly and data protection.
- Availability of, and access to funding is a problem for most civil society organisations. The proposed EU Justice, Rights and Values Fund could assist their finances.
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