This report documents the evolution of the institutional and legislative repression that threatens the freedoms of association and expression in each country of the MENA region. It highlights the authoritarian mechanisms used to reduce civic space, namely:
• The adoption of laws with vague and imprecise terminology that criminalize the legitimate activities of associations and individuals who criticize or disagree with the regimes and authorities in place.
• Bureaucratic constraints and sanctions, such as the arbitrary dissolution of organizations, the prohibition of foreign funding, authorities’ excessive access to private data, and the use of disproportionate authorizations and administrative requirements for the establishment of associations.
• A weakening of judicial safeguards, which allows for an arbitrary and opaque application of laws by authoritarian regimes or directly by administrations, which leads to excessive or unjustified sanctions and criminal convictions.
The report lays out a precise overview in each of the 10 countries of the recent initiatives taken by their respective governments, which led to the serious deterioration of the situation of human rights and of freedoms of association and expression in the region.
Laws which were adopted to protect the population against terrorism or cybercrime, become weapons to muzzle any dissenting opinion or criticism against the regime in place. Excessive bureaucratic control makes registration procedures for NGOs extremely laborious, preventing them from conducting their activities. Restrictive legislation confers extended powers to dissolve associations deemed politically undesirable, or impose restrictions on foreign funding, posing real threats to the survival of these organizations, which could lead to the freezing of their assets, or to administrative or judicial penalties.
The justifications and arguments used are varied, ranging from national security to the fear of foreign interference in national affairs, and the protection of national identity, values and traditional morals, religious beliefs, as well as economic growth. Despite formal differences, the results of this repressive arsenal are the same everywhere: a systematic repression of civil society, independent journalists, and activists.
The analysis underlines that these restrictive legal measures go against the international commitments of these states in the region and worsen a climate of fear and insecurity for civil society, while threatening the pillars of democracy and the rule of law. It also calls for a firm and rapid response from the European Union (EU), by actively supporting a dynamic civil society, and committed by denouncing the abuses of authoritarian regimes. The EU must reconcile its strategic interests with the values it upholds, the respect and application of which are an obligation of the constituent treaties of the European Union, including in all of its external relations with third countries (diplomacy, trade, development cooperation, security, mobility and migration, investment, etc.).
Finally, precise recommendations are formulated and addressed toward regional governments as well as European institutions. They urge the governments to repeal these restrictive laws, to recognize the crucial role of human rights organizations, and to promote a favorable legal environment to the exercise of fundamental freedoms. It also urges the European Union to use all existing spaces for dialogue, negotiation, and, when necessary, penalties with these States to request immediate and tangible progress in all of these aspects.