UNRC Talking Points at the Working Group meeting for developing the national strategy for Civil Society

Thank you for inviting me to this important consultation. The United Nations has a prominent role to play vis-à-vis our two main counterparts in the sustainable development of the country – this is to support the Government in its endeavors to widen and strengthen the democratic space with informed participation of all citizens, and to support an independent, strong, safe and active civil society. This nexus is where the UN role is most prominent – to provide expertise, mediation, facilitation and secure the application of principles and standards that aim to protect the civic space and to support the dialogue of the two sides. This is a key objective of the UN Secretary General, one at the forefront of the UN Resident Coordinator’s job.

The UN in Serbia commends the efforts made by this ministry of human rights and social dialog, and by other parts of the government, when they aim to address the gaps and trends in democratic space as identified in the reports of the EU and the UN Mechanisms, as well by the civil society, concerning potential “shrinking” of the civic space in recent years. With a designated Ministry for Social Dialogue, we are hopeful that the dialog will continue and expand, involving organizations contributing to the advancement of human rights across the country.

We have a shared responsibility to make this dialog work, and shape genuine results, beyond the processes that this ministry has started and consistently followed. While the efforts supported by several authorities towards the civil society in recent past provide a welcome opening for engagement (such as the Prime Minister monthly dialog with the EU Convention of NGOs, and the monthly thematic dialogs organized by this), they may still appear predominantly declaratory and spurious. Many organizations do agree however to engage in new dialogs, while observing that in past several years, the civic space, individual activists and NGO leaders have experienced numerous attacks, threats, lack of acknowledgment in substantive matters, and nepotism may prevail in certain areas of governance.

In particular, the specific concerns and requests raised in the past year by representatives of the Civil society must be addressed. It has been a year now since a list of CSOs and individuals was established by public authorities for specific investigation under the law for prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing. This case must be dealt with promptly, transparently and closed. Explicit and implicit verbal and physical threats from selected media and political representatives must stop. Easier said than done, as such threats and behaviours may be rooted in a certain political culture. In this regard, I will continue to say that freedom of speech is not an open door for hate speech.  In 2021, the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression will visit Serbia, within its mandate under the Human Rights Council. Such expert will support the Government and the civil society through recommendations, guidance and evidence-based findings from their visits. We must protect the safe space for all, as we move into a future shaped by uncertainty and change.

These are topics that need to be addressed in the national strategy for civil society, and beyond, in the wider context of expanding and strengthening the rule of law, in particular the ethical behaviour of elected representatives of the citizens, both a national and local levels.

My next point is geared towards NGO colleagues. I have met many of you in the past 2 years. I have been impressed by the diversity of knowledge, the passion, the commitment. I have also noticed the challenge that exist within the CS to rally strategically around common causes. There are tens of thousands of NGOs in this country, many being a one or 2 person show. This has an impact on funding for the NGO sector, as well as on impact and quality of actions. It may lead to unhealthy competition between service providers or loss of visibility on important topics. I urge NGO representatives to continuously explore partnership opportunities based on complementarity of mandate, and to develop and agree on how to strategically engage with the government on specific thematic issues. We have some great work ahead of us to steer the economic and social transformations towards a greener and more equal world for all. We need to work better together to achieve this.

Finally, I also want to mention that NGOs chose different ways of engaging or not engaging, with this ministry, the government in general, and a range of public authorities. Engaging or not engaging is both a strategic and tactical decision. Everyone has the freedom of choice, and should feel safe in their choice, without being influence by others.

While the expertise of the UN is at the disposal of the Ministry, we are hoping a wide buy-in and ownership over the important strategic document will be secured, utilizing all the good avenues and resources the Ministry has created with a wider civil society. The UN stands ready for further facilitation and outreach.

Hvala,

Francoise