Zambia urged to guarantee enabling environment for civil society

Zambia urged to guarantee enabling environment for civil society

Ndola, February 15, 2013, ZANIS —  CIVICUS World Alliance for Citizen Participation Policy and Advocacy Officer Tor Hodenfield  has urged Zambia to guarantee an enabling environment for Civil Society in the country.

Mr. Hodenfield says  that the government should take immediate steps to protect media and civil society freedoms.

He  has noted that said this in relation to the assertions that the Office of the Registrar of Societies threatened to deregister Foundation for Democratic Process (FODEP) in January 2013.

ZANIS reports that the  CIVICUS World Alliance for Citizen Participation Policy and Advocacy Officer said this in a statement made available to ZANIS in Ndola

CIVICUS has since urged the Zambian government to reconsider its decision to deregister FODEP .

The civil organization has expressed its hope that the Patriotic Front government would make good on its campaign promise to guarantee an enabling environment for civil society.

Mr. Hodenfield said the involuntarily dissolution of a civil society organization should only be considered as a measure of last resort and subject to independent judicial oversight.

His organisation further called on the Zambian government to respect media freedoms and ensure an enabling environment for civil society in line with recommendations adopted during the country’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council on 30 October 2012.

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is a global movement of civil society dedicated to strengthening citizen action and civil society across the world.