Chief among the current challenges facing the global human rights community (and broader civil society) is a contagion growing in intensity described best as the closing space around civil society.

This document was issued by USAID in response to a closing civil society space in order to give guidance on balancing a democratic commitment to transparency and the imperative to protect the security of implementing partners and beneficiaries.

This article by Kay Guinane of the Charity & Security Network explains how the Financial Action Task Force has contributed to the global trend of restrictions on civil society.

Almost all European countries allow CSOs to directly engage in economic activities without requiring them to create commercial entities for that purpose up to a certain level of income.

This 2015 ICNL report examines the legal regulation of NGOs in Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. 

This 2015 policy paper by Daniel Smilov analyzes popular sovereignty and protests in Bulgaria, Russia, Spain, Turkey and Ukraine, along with 10 major policy implications of these protests.

This joint statement urges Member States to recognize, inter alia, that “the inclusion of civil and political rights is a significant step towards a balanced and transformative agenda that addresses freedom from fear along with freedom from want.

Despite clear protections in the Constitution, the fundamental right to freedom of peaceful assembly in Burundi is framed by a very restrictive law enacted on December 5, 2013: The law on assemblies and public demonstrations.

This report from Freedom House analyzes instances of mass social protests in 12 countries in order to identify best practices in promoting and protecting the right to peaceful assembly.

These Guidelines, published in 2015, aim to ensure that legislation is drafted with the purpose of promoting the establishment and existence of associations, enabling their operation and facilitating their aims and activities.