Civil matters

The call for amendments to the current NGO law is an ongoing struggle: Amira El-Noshokaty looks at where it's heading

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Fighting illiteracy remains one of the main achievements of the Egyptian NGOs, and one that does not spur arguments with the government

In black-and-white movies, NGOs figure as the force behind fancy balls -- an elegant couple dancing. Now they manifest, rather, in small apartments in working and lower-middle class neighbourhoods, where they struggle to help with health, literacy and other global development goals to be achieved by 2015. There are some 22,500 of them, with three million members across the country, and they have formed the backbone of civil society since the early 19th century. Though the Human Development Report has emphasised their role, stipulating greater cooperation with the government, NGOs- government relations in Egypt remain legally vexed.

"The current NGO law [84/2002], though it has facilitated the registration procedure by reducing the requirements to a notification, continues to sustain constraints, which we suggest the government would reconsider in addition to other suggestions; with constitutional amendments underway, this should come as an integral part of the process of reform," says Mona Zulficar, lawyer and member of the National Council for Human Rights (NCHR). Zulficar, who has led the collaborative effort to reform NGO laws since the 1980s, has been particularly active in the last few weeks. The proposed amendments center on the civil sector's independence, notably from the Ministry of Social Solidarity. Among the articles discussed are 16, 42 and 76 -- respectively. These stipulate that an NGO must be registered with the ministry and cannot be affiliated with a foreign organisation without its prior approval. The ministry also has the right to disband an NGO, if it violates certain conditions (including the receipt of foreign funds without prior permission). Should an NGO not be registered as an association its members are subject to prosecution -- including imprisonment.Zulficar would also like to review articles like 32 which suggests that the NGO board members should include at least 20 per cent of members under 35, and introduce new articles to grant NGOs the legal power to file cases in defence of the causes they support.

For Wael Fattouh, executive manager of Al-Doaa Al-Mustagab, an NGO founded in 2006 and based in the lower middle-class Cairo district of Sayeda Zeinab, legal registration has been a major obstacle: "we had to shuttle back and forth between five governmental offices and wait for months before we were finally registered. My suggestion is to unify the bureaus involved under one roof, for one thing." Fattouh believes Article 11, which prohibits NGOs from political intervention, requires a clearer formulation: "because, while I agree that NGOs should not intervene politically, there have been cases where political parties take advantage of an NGO's social impact to win elections." He emphasises the tension between NGOs on the one hand and the Ministry of Social Solidarity on the other, suggesting workshops to reinforce dialogue and build trust -- since legal amendments, he says, will not clear the tension in themselves, and cooperation between the two remains essential to work.

Two weeks ago, lawyer and human rights activist Abdallah Khalil's The Arabic Legislation Guide for NGOs: A Comparative Study appeared. Published within the context of the Arab Network for NGOs, the book is the culmination of research undertaken since 1984, a how-to legal guide for NGOs in 17 Arab states, conceived against the backdrop of international treaties and global recommendations. Yet Khalil doesn't believe the problem with Arab civil society to be primarily legal.

"Take Morocco's or Lebanon's NGO law, which for instance dictate that an NGO's registration is formed through notifying the concerned government body, yet the NGOs have neither interacted nor grown in the realm of such liberation, due to their funding problems." On the other hand, the NGOs of oil-producing Arab states seldom cross the borders or aid their counterparts in Arab states. "In Egypt," Khalil says, "the gap between the law and reality is huge. Many NGOs which were formed after the latest amendments are individual affairs, one-man shows without sufficient institutional presence." Much of the problem has to do with social attitudes, Khalil elaborates. The law permits the establishment of a civil sector to operate in partnership with both the private and the public sector. "But there is a lack of trust in all three parties." In sum, Khalil expects the reactions to be quite interesting, where the government would insist on accountability and transparency, while laws regarding notification and funding are unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. Still, "I believe that some NGOs will oppose the idea of a new law sustaining accountability, transparency, rotation of power and democracy." Freedom is one thing, Khalil feels, but in order to attain it in any meaningful way, NGOs must fulfil their duties towards the community. There is no longer any room for "the culture of slogans" -- there ought to be real partnership between NGOs, the government and the private sector, which has had very little to contribute to the community -- and for that real planning is required. "That's why the law is an important factor. But it's not the only one. We need to promote civic culture in the media, starting from the NGOs themselves, that must be made more aware of their role in society and how to perform it, at their best."