COVID-19 and Civic Freedoms

As the COVID-19 pandemic wrapped the world with uncertainty, governments’ emergency measures have intensified. Many of these are limiting and violating our civic freedoms, going beyond what is justifiable on public health grounds. This has resulted in decline of rights, justice and democracy. We already see the detrimental impact of these approaches, particularly on the vulnerable and marginalized parts of society.  

We map government responses and analyse their impact on civic space in wider Europe (including the EaP region) and globally. We use the outcomes of monitoring to shape arguments to both prevent and push back on restrictions.  We also advocate jointly with partners to improve global and international standards and build upon positive examples where civic freedoms are at the core of tackling the crisis. Moreover, we disseminate findings of our mapping work and engage in constructive knowledge exchanges. 

Highlights

• Civic space in the era of securitised COVID-19 responses: how states have introduced new security-related legislations or used existing measures to further restrict civic freedoms under the cover of fighting the pandemic. 
• COVID-19 and civic freedoms in Europe in 2020: Top trends we identified in Europe last year based on an analysis of the COVID-19 Civic Freedom Tracker data.
• Keep Civic Space Healthy: Saving Lives and Human Rights (in 12 languages):  Guidance developed by ECNL in collaboration with ICNL, on what states should consider when adopting emergency measures.
• Rights card on public participation in decision making during COVID-19:  Highlights of the key standards that safeguard the right to participation even in times of emergencies.
• COVID-19 response in the Eastern Partnership region: emergency measures and civic freedoms: First of a series of briefers on the emergency measures taken by governments affect human rights and civic freedoms and responses by the CSOs. For further updates in the region see: https://csometer.info/

For other analysis of drivers and impacts on civic freedoms as a result of the pandemic measures see here.

We monitor the adoption and implementation of the COVID-19 related measures to understand the impact, identify threats and opportunities and draw evidence to use in advocacy. We work with partners to prepare strategies to engage, and where necessary to also defend these freedoms.

1. COVID-19 Civic Freedom Tracker launched by ECNL and ICNL that monitors government responses to the pandemic that affect civic freedoms and human rights, focusing on emergency laws. The tracker is developed with the generous research support from the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Fionnuala D. Ní Aoláin.
2. CSO Meter explores and summarizes the emergency measures taken by governments in the Eastern Partnership region, their affect over human rights and civic freedoms and how CSOs have responded. We are currently supplementing the CSO Meter framework to include monitoring guidance for emergency measures.
3. Monitoring Assembly in Pandemic: ECNL is supplementing its framework for monitoring of laws and practices in the implementation of the right to freedom of assembly in order to support partners in tracking and responding to COVID-19 related measures that impact on their right to assemble. 
4. Country Action: ECNL is closely following COVID-19-related developments in different countries (Netherlands, Hungary) across Europe to provide analysis and support to partners.

We bring together and collaborate with partners in Europe and across the globe to identify trends and threats arising from the COVID-19 response measures. We exchange strategies, test arguments, design actions and put forward solutions to remedy the problems.  We jointly undertake advocacy before international fora to help improve global and European standards, we conduct research, organise training and exchange events to increase capacity and share learning.

Advocacy

• Participation of CSOs in the preparation of EU National Recovery and Resilience Plans: ECNL, together with Civil Society Europe explored the participation of CSOs in this process and prepared a Report as well as a Guidance Note to help CSOs get engaged in the process, but also to provide good case studies for participation. Read more about our findings here.
• Joint Statement- interactive dialogue with the High Commissioner for Human Rights: ECNL joined a statement with Civic Space Initiative partners to discuss the adverse implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for civic space and stress the importance of civil society in responding to the crisis. 
• States responses to Covid 19 threat should not halt freedoms of assembly and association: Statement by the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Assembly and Association that highlights negative trends and puts forward 10 principles how states can respond to the crisis in a manner compliant with their human rights obligations. ECNL provided input to the Rapporteur to inform the preparation of his statement.
• Calling on Governments to Ensure Corporate Accountability in COVID-19 Response: ECNL collaborates with the Business and Human Rights Resource Center and the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable (ICAR) to advocate and engage governments, corporations and investors to increase public participation in designing and implementing emergency measures.
• How Croatia pushed back on COVID-19 mobile phone tracking (for now): In Croatia the government proposed a law to track the movements of all citizens through mobile phones. The adoption of the law was successfully prevented due to public pressure, and from experts amongst them ECNL.
• Contact Tracing in the Netherlands: ECNL provided input to the Dutch parliamentary committee in response to a public hearing about the COVID-19 app development that would help with contact tracing and infection tracking. The submission focused on the need for a more rights-based and participatory approach in the development of the tool. Read interview of ECNL Legal Advisor Berna Keskindemir here (in Dutch).

Exchange and Learning

ECNL has recently spoken at the following events to share data and findings from our ongoing COVID-19 mapping:

• Protecting freedom of peaceful assembly. A political participation tool also during COVID-19: organised by Novact and the European Civic Forum. 
• It´s Time to Rise and Shine: Legal Response to the Impact of Pandemic: Legal Dialogue Symposium of the EU-Russia Civil Society Forum. Here's a short video with ECNL's contribution.
• Rights in a pandemic: organised by the Irish Civil Liberties Union.
• OSCE Human Dimension Committee meeting: upon invitation of the Czech Republic mission, we talked about the main challenges of exercising the right to freedom of peaceful assembly today.
• SANE Virtual Exchanges: ECNL's presentation discussed the state of affairs six months after many countries introduced lockdowns and emergency laws. 
• Emergency End Game - Oversight of COVID-19 Measures that impact civic space: ECNL and Balkan Civil Society Development Network (BCSDN) webinar to identify common challenges in the Western Balkans and to guide future activities. 
• Public Participation at the Forefront of the Corona Crisis in the Balkans: ECNL and BCSDN online conference on participatory and multi-stakeholder approaches to responding to COVID-19 and beyond.
• Stato d'emergenza e diritti umani: webinar hosted by In Difesa Dianised on how emergency measures in response to COVID-19 impact civic freedoms in Europe.
• Intersectional crises in a time of pandemic - securitisation and civic space: webinar hosted by the Funders Initiative for Civic Society and the Ariadne network on the impact of security policies and frameworks on civic space.

To learn more about our engagements, see our News section.

Blogs and Media

• Can civil society survive COVID-19?: Blog on OECD Development Matters by ECNL Research and Monitoring Advisor, Simona Ognenovska and ICNL on countering COVID-inspired constraints on civic freedoms.
• Within Reach: Exploring standards and platforms for Participation in pandemics in the Balkans: Key insights from the discussion organised with BCSDN on participatory and multi-stakeholder approaches in responding to the COVID-19 crisis.
• #EUlaw4civicfreedoms: A blog series showcasing different practical examples of how to use EU law to safeguard civic space, especially in times of pandemics.
• How parliaments can keep an eye on surveillance technology during COVID-19. Guest blog post from our colleagues Franklin De Vrieze and Alex Read at the Westminster Foundation for Democracy in a series discussing to what extend COVID-19 emergency powers constitute a threat to democracy.
• Why we need to protect the human right to assemble and act online: Blog by ECNL Senior Legal Advisor, Marta Achler on the need to protect the internet as space for civic activism, especially in times of pandemic.
• El coronavirus “contagia” también a las libertades: Interview with ECNL Senior Legal Advisor Francesca Fanucci on the COVID-19 measures, use of technologies and consequences of ill defined policies and measures (in Spanish).
• Een corona-app kan onze vrijheid onder druk zetten: Interview with ECNL Legal Advisor Berna Keskindemir on contact tracing in the Netherlands (in Dutch).
• Coronavirus is putting Europe’s privacy protectors front and center – and they’re coming up short:  Article with insights from ECNL's Senior Legal Advisor Francesca Fanucci on data protection bodies in the EU, tackling impact of COVID-19 digital solutions on privacy. 

For key international standards and guidelines in the context of the pandemic, click here.