In an era of political turbulence and democratic backsliding, reimagining new ways of citizen-state engagements has become indispensable
Crackdown on civic space is increasing globally amid gradual erosion of democratic principles and practices. The erosion of civic space has been more vivid in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated by factors like growing surveillance, discriminatory prohibitory orders and their violent enforcement, deliberate misinformation and disinformation.
With the growing trends of democratic backsliding across the world, the civic space continues to come under severe scrutiny and censorship. Some of the defining features of the backsliding include an intent to undermine the public mandate, disregard for the principles of separation of powers, zero-tolerance to opposition's ideas and a vehement attack on individuals or institutions with differing perspectives.
The recently ousted leadership of Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh took harsh measures to curb students' protests against the discriminatory civil service job quotas privileging a certain section of society. An attempt to restrict media freedom has also emerged strongly. For instance, the BJP-led Modi government in India, in a bid to silence the dissenting voices, blocked the online account of Hindutva Watch, an online hate tracker, and group-based internet platforms of farmers protesting against the government's agricultural policies in recent months.
The above two cases show how civic space continues to be constricted in the South Asian region. Civicus Monitor, a global rights body, states that only 2.1 per cent of people live in countries where civic space is both free and protected, and this is the lowest percentage in the last six years.
One crucial aspect of the dwindling civic space is the drying up of foreign funds. Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in South Asia have scaled back programmes, reduced staff or even shut down operations altogether. In this regard, the South Asian regulatory frameworks have also been criticised for restricting foreign funding to organisations critical of the government.
In Bangladesh, international donors have reported challenges in working with local partners due to bureaucratic red tape and scrutiny. In 2020, India imposed legal restrictions on foreign funding through the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) which severely impacted NGOs. It is learnt that Amnesty International was forced to shut operations in India after its bank accounts were frozen, citing alleged FCRA violations.
Nevertheless, the degree of restrictions varies among all South Asian countries. Among the South Asian nations, Nepal sits at the top position (74th) in the press freedom rankings followed by the Maldives and Bhutan, according to the global rankings by Reporters Without Borders.
Under the decentralised system of governance, avenues for more coordinated government-community actions among government and citizens at the ground level to promote inclusive development are growing. On the one hand, the devolution of executive, legislative and judicial powers at the local government level serves the purpose of ensuring citizens' meaningful participation in the decision-making process. On the other hand, citizens can participate in local governance process, better organise themselves for collective actions with awareness of their rights and services.
As the saying goes, in every crisis there is an opportunity, and CSOs continue to seek creative ways of state-citizen engagement to challenge restrictions and make their voices heard. Mobilisation of youths and use of digital space lie at the heart of South Asian civic space innovations.
The voluntary and larger citizen-driven Aragalaya movement in Sri Lanka not only showcased the strength of youth mobilisation but, more importantly, the use of digital media to topple repressive governments. Bringing together youths from diverse political and ideological backgrounds including lawyers, trade unions, women's and religious groups, this movement proved that voluntary and organic movement without visible leadership can also be pivotal in governance reform.
The power of non-partisan youth-led movements to bring about policy change is a growing phenomenon in the civic space. During the COVID pandemic, Enough is Enough, an independent collective movement, initiated and joined by thousands of Nepali youths all around Nepal demanding a better COVID-19 response, caught media headlines. The movement ended when two youth activists after 12 days of hunger strike inked a deal with the government, ensuring adequate RT-PCR testing, providing personal protective equipment for frontline health workers, including proper management quarantine facilities and contact tracing.
Diminished freedom of speech, assembly and dissent weakens the foundations of a free and just society thereby reducing citizen participation. In an era of political turbulence and democratic backsliding, reimagining new ways of citizen-state engagements has become indispensable.
Effective civil society actions hinge upon 3Ps as suggested by the United Nations: Participation of civil society in the development process, protecting civil society actors through legal systems and processes, and promoting civic space in national decision-making processes. It is equally important for nations to devise strategies to support local organisations to raise community voices, ensure legal protection of freedom of expression and associations and join hands with civil society actors for achieving common goals of sustainable development and economic prosperity.
Pokharel is an independent researcher and science communicator based in Nepal