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States should
facilitate not restrict access to funding for human rights by NGOs
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Just like the attempt to introduce detention
without trial as a subterfuge for gross failure to solve rising crime rates,
the Malaysian government now wants to introduce a law to stop foreign funding
for legitimate human rights work by Malaysian NGOs. The fact is that, after
the calculated and relentless harassment of SUARAM by the government of
Malaysia for more than seven months since July 2012, ostensibly to investigate
“foreign funding to destabilize the government”, the government came up with
nothing.
This was despite the fact that the government
agencies including the CCM carted away from SUARAM’s office all relevant
documents and data relating to SUARAM’s funding. Thus, what more can a new
law unravel that the CCM, ROS and Perkeso failed to uncover? The truth is
that Concerned Malaysian NGOs (Comangos) have always been transparent about
their funding and have been doing Malaysians a great favour by defending and
promoting human rights in Malaysia.
The problem seems to be the government’s own
guilty conscience and duplicitous stand on human rights. The whole harassment
of SUARAM started apparently after the Jaringan Melayu Malaysia (JMM), a
Government linked NGO lodged a report against SUARAM to the Company
Commission of Malaysia (CCM). This harassment was clearly an attempt to try
to silence SUARAM from exposing the scandal over the purchase of the Scorpene
submarines.
Ironically, while SUARAM was being being
investigated by no less than six government agencies, Sabah UMNO Chief Datuk
Musa Aman was at the centre of a RM40 million money laundering scandal
uncovered by the Hong Kong police.
Right of access to funding
The right to freedom of association is a
fundamental and universal right enshrined in numerous international treaties
and standards and especially Article 22 of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
The United Nations Human Rights Committee
(CCPR) observed that the right to freedom of association relates not only to
the right to form an association, but also guarantees the right to such an
association to freely carry out its activities legally.
The Declaration on the rights and
responsibility of individuals, groups and organs of the society to promote
and defend universally recognised human rights and fundamental freedoms
(Declaration on Human Rights Defenders) adopted the United Nations General
Assembly in 1998 explicitly grants human rights defenders the right to access
to funding; “Article 13 of this Declaration States, Everyone has the
right, individually and in association with others, to solicit, receive and
utilize resources for the expressed purpose of promoting and protecting human
rights and fundamental freedoms through peaceful means, in accordance with
the article 3 of the present declaration”.
The Report of the Special Rapporteur on the
rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Mr Maina Kiai
which was presented in the recent 23rd Session of Human Rights Council
clearly defined that; “The ability to seek, secure and use resources is
essential to the existence and effective operations of any association, no
matter how small.
The right to freedom of association not only
includes the ability of individuals or legal entities to form and join an
association but also to seek, receive and use resources – human, material and
financial from domestic, foreign, and international sources.” Many human
rights bodies and special procedures, particularly those within the United
Nations system have emphasized the principles that access to funding is a
component of the freedom of association and that NGOs should have free access
to funds, including foreign funds as long as the NGOs are not involved in any
malpractice or criminal activities.
Malaysian government receives the most foreign
funding
The fact remains that the Malaysian government
as well as many other governments in this world are the biggest receivers of
foreign funding - funding from World Bank and many other monetary foundations
for projects and development assistance. But why are foreign funds so
nefarious when NGOs get them yet apparently uncontroversial when others do?
Mr Maina Kiai also has raised concern and
questions related to double standards being practiced by the States against
the NGOs in their country. Why should NGOs be singled out for restriction? It
leaves the impression that their real sin is not accepting foreign
contributions but criticizing the government.
“It is paradoxical that some of the States
stigmatizing foreign-funded associations in their own countries are receiving
foreign funding themselves (in the form of loans, financing or development
assistance), often in substantially greater amounts than that flowing to CSOs
in their country.
Others are the very same States providing
funding to associations abroad, while rejecting foreign funding for
associations in their own countries. But what is clear is that these new
trends have a dramatic effect on civil society as they have not only resulted
in restrictions to the enjoyment of freedom of association, but also led to
further human rights violations”.
States should facilitate not restrict access
to funding for NGOs
With the lack of freedom of association in
Malaysia, any further restrictions on NGOs’ activities will be retrograde and
completely contradictory to the Prime Minister’s promise to turn over a new
leaf in terms of democratic reforms. Any regulation of NGOs should focus on
their conduct, not their source of funds.
The government’s ignominious failure to pin
anything on SUARAM should be a lesson for it to learn to play by the rule of
law. So long as an organization is engaged in peaceful advocacy and
independent in its decision making like SUARAM, even if that is critical
dissent, it should be entitled to do so as a matter of right, regardless of
who funds the NGO.
The Government should facilitate and not
restrict the access to funding for NGOs which undertake development, human
rights, environmental, as well as those that seek to increase transparency
and accountability in their countries. Ultimately, it is the obligation of
the Government to protect and promote this right, which is enjoyed by all
citizens.
Released by,
Nalini Elumalai
Executive Director SUARAM
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