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Briefing Paper: Draft Law On Associations & NGOs: Comments on the Fourth Draft
Pages: On Dec. 12, 2011, the Royal Cambodian Government released the fourth draft of its proposed Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations (LANGO). The release comes almost exactly one year after the first draft was introduced in mid-December 2010.
The contents of the three earlier drafts provoked extensive criticism from local and international civil society organizations, donor governments, and legal analysts. Twice previously the government has acknowledged these criticisms and promised to come up with a better draft. Twice previously they have failed.
With the fourth draft, they have failed again.
Although the law has shrunk by more than 20 articles and contains some notable improvements, it is also now more confusing than ever. Several key provisions raise more questions than they
answer, both in terms of the law's application and the intent of the government.
The law assures, for example, that domestic associations and non-governmental associations (NGOs) can be "freely established" without prior permission from the government, but then denies unregistered groups the legal status that could be essential to their operations. Is registration truly optional?
Released in December 2011 (permalink)
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Five Cambodian laws proposed or enacted since 2008 include dangerously vague or oppressive provisions that undermine freedom of expression, according to a new report from LICADHO.
This report analyzes provisions in five laws that improperly restrict - or threaten to restrict - fundamental expressive freedoms: the new Penal Code, the Anti-Corruption Law, the Law on Associations and NGOs (LANGO), the Law on Peaceful Assembly (the Demonstrations Law), and the Law on Unions of Enterprises (the Trade Union Law). The report also offers dozens of examples of how the laws have been misapplied and abused in the past year.
Released in October 2011 (permalink)
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The National Assembly is preparing to vote on the Cambodia's new Law on Prisons, which will serve as the Kingdom's primary legal authority on the prison system . Cambodia's prisons have previously operated without a proper prisons code, though an assortment of prakas, sub-decrees and internal guidelines do exist.
LICADHO has reviewed a draft of the law, and believes that it is a positive step toward imposing stability and uniformity in Cambodia's prison system. However, LICADHO also believes that the law falls short in several key areas. This briefing paper summarizes LICADHO's most serious concerns, and is meant to serve as a guide for the National Assembly as it debates the law this week.
Released in October 2011 (permalink)
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The newly-enacted Sub-Decree on "the Management of the Sending of Cambodian Workers Abroad through Private Recruitment Agencies" (hereinafter Sub-Decree 190) is a dismal failure from the perspective of migrant worker rights. It not only fails to expand legal protections for Cambodians who migrate overseas to work, it actually marks a regression. When compared to the law it superseded, Sub-Decree 57 of 1997, worker protections have been rolled back in many key areas.
Released in August 2011 (permalink)
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On July 29, 2011, the government released a third draft of its widely criticized Law on Associations and on-Governmental Organizations (NGO Law), once again claiming that the newest draft addresses the litany of concerns that have been raised by civil society. One needs look no further than the first chapter of the law, however, to discredit the government's reassurances. Registration is still mandatory, meaning Cambodians cannot exercise their fundamental rights of assembly, expression and association without navigating complex registration procedures and securing the blessing of government officials, who would be given absolute power to create or dissolve civil society groups.
The majority of LICADHO's comments in its briefing papers discussing the first and second drafts of the law are still relevant. As with the second draft, the remaining changes in the third draft are almost entirely cosmetic. The third draft does, however, make one significant improvement in that it expressly mentions a right to appeal a denial of registration. This welcome addition is not without its own issues - namely the lack of a timeline and legal standards for assessing an appeal - but it is an important reflection of the impact that advocacy efforts have had to date.
Released in August 2011 (permalink)
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Cambodia's prison population is in the midst of an unprecedented population boom. Just seven years ago, the 18 prisons monitored by LICADHO were at roughly 100% of their collective capacity. Today, they are filled to roughly 180% of their capacity, making Cambodia's prison system among the 25 most overcrowded in the world.
This report provides an overview of the prison overcrowding crisis - its causes, its effects, and detailed statistics concerning the growing number of prisoners in Cambodia.
Click here to reach additional website supplement to the report.
Released in July 2011 (permalink)
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The International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL) is an international organization that provides technical assistance, research, and education to support the development of appropriate laws and regulatory systems for civil society in countries around the world. ICNL has worked on civil society law reform projects in over one hundred countries; in Asia, ICNL has worked in China, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Lao P.D.R., Mongolia and Vietnam. ICNL has worked with the United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Volunteers, the Community of Democracies Working Group on Enabling and Protecting Civil Society, the European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the United States Agency for International Development, New Zealand AID, the Swedish International Development Agency, human rights groups, private foundations, and scores of in-country colleagues.
Released in April 2011 (permalink)
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Recognizing the importance that the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) has placed on strengthening institutions of governance and implementing reforms aimed at ensuring sustainable development and long-term poverty reduction; and the commitment to strong cooperation among all ministries and agencies, development partners, the private sector, civil society organizations, and other relevant stakeholders embodied in key policy documents such as the "National Strategic Development Plan" and the "Rectangular Strategy"; the INGO community has been a dedicated partner in Cambodia's development efforts for decades. As the 2009 National Strategic Development Plan Update notes, "Civil society is an important partner and many NGOs, both national and international, play an active and vigilant role in social and economic development efforts as well as in promotion of democracy and human rights."
Released in April 2011 (permalink)
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The recently-released draft Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations confirms long-standing fears that the government's desire for such a law is in order to control, rather than promote and strengthen, civil society. The draft law - which falls far short of meeting international standards for laws on the nonprofit sector - constitutes the most serious threat to civil society in Cambodia in years. While this threat may appear to be most acute for human rights defenders, it has serious negative implications for community development and democratic participation on a broader scale.
Upon cursory examination, the draft law might appear to be positive in that it omits some draconian provisions which had been mooted by the government in the past. However, the law remains - in letter and in spirit - extremely pernicious to civil society.
Released in March 2011 (permalink)
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In the six-month period covered in this report, LICADHO documented nearly 50 cases involving violations of expressive rights in Cambodia. These cases follow patterns, and their similarities are not coincidental. They have the markings of a systematic crackdown.
The targets range from community leaders to union representatives to opposition politicians, but anyone who speaks out against the interests of the elite is at risk. As the government has consolidated power, it is growing increasingly intolerant of criticism, more topics are becoming taboo, and the space for dissent is shrinking. The end result is that Cambodians are being prevented from participating in their own democracy.
Click here to reach additional website supplement to the report.
Released in December 2010 (permalink)
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