To proceed with its plans aimed at formalising the registration and regulation of non-governmental organisations (NGO) in a more amicable manner, the Government is planning to propose a Bill concerning NGOs in consultation with the NGOs community. Discussing this matter, Public Security Minister Tiran Alles further revealed that these consultations are aimed at addressing the sentiment expressed by certain NGOs that the bill the Government is planning to introduce is too adverse. 

In the recent past, both when the Government urged NGOs to register with the National Secretariat for NGOs and when rumours about new laws to monitor NGOs surfaced, many NGOs were concerned. While some of their concerns, such as the one that the Government would use the information that it gathers about NGOs’ activities against those NGOs in the future, are considerably subjective, some concerns pertained to confidentiality in information in funding, funders, stakeholders and project activities and objectives. In this context, NGOs should actively take part in these discussions and make them an opportunity to prevent the passage of any harmful legal provisions as they fear, if they want to see the proposed Bill to be a NGO friendly law.

However, to participate in these endeavours productively, NGOs should identify what their needs and issues are and the necessity of having regulations for NGOs. More importantly, now that the Government has expressed willingness to provide NGOs a platform to express the latter’s concerns, NGOs should also be receptive to the Government’s concerns. While NGOs have a right to seek confidentiality with regard to the above mentioned aspects of their activities, the extent to which such confidentiality is justifiable in terms of safety, confidentiality and autonomy is a matter that requires attention. In fact, in a context where the majority of the NGOs seek some form of transparency, accountability, lawfulness and fairness, especially on the part of the Government in the country, the proposed consultations between the Government and the NGOs are a situation where NGOs could demonstrate those qualities by supporting the positive elements of the proposed Bill. Instead of seeing this proposed Bill in its entirety as an anti-NGO plot hatched by the Government to control NGOs in an unfair manner, this opportunity should be used to direct the Government onto the right path.

The fact that the Government is willing to look into the concerns of NGOs is admirable, and is largely in favour of NGOs, provided that the NGOs use this as an opportunity to raise their concerns. However, the Government’s responsibility does not stop there. The Government needs to be open about its intentions and the necessity of such a legal introduction. While it is unlikely that the two parties would be able to agree on each and every element of the proposed Bill, in order for both the parties to find common ground, the Government should ensure that the proposed Bill has powers only to address the concerns pertaining to transparency and accountability on the part of NGOs, and that it cannot be misused to suppress NGOs activities, especially those against the Government. Most importantly, the Government should allow the relevant stakeholders to follow up on the formation of the said proposed Bill.

At the end of the day, for the above mentioned efforts to bear fruit, both the parties need to be receptive to each other’s concerns. The Government has a right and responsibility to take measures to prevent black money from entering the country and foreign funds from financing terrorism or other forms of illegal activities and also to monitor what sort of programmes are being implemented to change the country’s legal, political, economic and social climates and with what intentions. NGOs have a right to seek laws and regulations that do not interfere with their activities through excessive scrutiny, affect their funding, and jeopardise the safety of those working with NGOs. It is both parties’ willingness to genuinely take into account each others’ concerns, not to further label each other as a threat, that will make the proposed discussions a success.