ATTN.: International Contact Group- Community of Democracies’ Working Group on Enabling and Protecting Civil Society
The WG calls your urgent attention to the latest draft of the Cambodian NGO Law which remains excessively restrictive. There is concern that the draft will move forward to final review by the Council of Ministers as early as Friday April 1st.
As a member of the International Contact Group, we ask you to share this Alert with your contacts on the ground and join diplomatic efforts already underway by the international community in Cambodia. The objective is to encourage the Government of Cambodia to engage in a serious, meaningful, comprehensive review of the proposed legislation and the introduction of amendments to it so that it is aligned with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
In the event that the review does not allow for the proposed law to be amended in a way consistent with the above-mentioned international human rights law instruments, consideration should be given to withdrawing the proposed text and entering into a meaningful consultation with all stakeholders that would lead to a bill reflecting international standards and best practices.
The Working Group of Community of Democracies is an intergovernmental organization of democracies and democratizing countries committed to strengthening and deepening democratic norms and practices worldwide.
The organization is composed of both governmental representatives and civil society organizations who meet as a group at biennial conferences.
No comments:
Post a Comment