On September 18, the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project (EHAHRDP) and its local Ethiopian organization, the Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO), held a panel in coordination with key Geneva-based NGOs to discuss and analyze the Draft Proclamation on Charities and Societies (the CSO Bill), which will be under review by the Ethiopian Parliament when it reconvenes in October. (20-SEP-08)

Based on one of the items in the World Movement for Democracy´s most recent newsletter, this article has been edited and prepared for publication here by HRHF / Niels Jacob Harbitz.

The panel was organized to raise awareness of the provisions of the bill, and its
potential consequences on human rights work in Ethiopia, in the hope of generating greater attention, concrete international action, and mobilization around the issue. 

A very real threat to all human rights activism
Human rights defenders and their partners in Ethiopia are concerned that if passed under its current form the CSO Bill will have a detrimental impact on all forms of activism in Ethiopia, particularly human rights work. Of particular concern is that the Draft Proclamation provides that charities and societies receiving more than 10 percent of their income from external sources are considered foreign organizations, and once considered to be “foreign” may not engage on issues relating to human rights, governance, democratization, and conflict resolution.  According to EHAHRDP, this clearly poses a significant risk given that the majority of NGOs in Ethiopia receive some form of foreign funding to carry out their activities. The bill, which has been put forward with only a limited and inadequate level of involvement of civil society organizations, undermines the very existence of human rights activism in Ethiopia.

To read the EHAHRDP statement, go to:
www.wmd.org/documents/EHAHRDNET092008.pdf

To read the EHRCO statement, go to: www.wmd.org/documents/EHRCO092008.pdf