Modi’s government revokes licences of 25 organisations over ‘anti-national activities’ as pool of foreign-funded bodies shrinks by almost half in two years
At least 25 Indian NGOs have lost licences to receive international funding because of their “anti-national” activities, while a further 11,319 have lost licences for failing to renew them, shrinking India’s pool of foreign-funded organisations to a little more than half the number it was two years ago.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the licences were revoked because the NGOs “failed to meet legal requirements” under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) (pdf) of 2010. The move could mean that some NGOs reliant on international funding will be forced to close.
Many of the 25 NGOs received notices saying their licences would be cancelled based on the government’s “field reports”. They said they were not given any indication of which laws they had violated or what the field reports said.
Henri Tiphagne, executive director of social justice and human rights organisation People’s Watch, said the decision to revoke his NGO’s licence was the latest in a series of moves by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party to quash opposition.
“The government is determined to see no dissent. I completely uphold the principle that NGOs should be transparent and that is why we have been filing all the documents, and we have even put our accounts from the last 10 years on our website,” he said. “But the government should at least give us a reason why they have taken this step, so if we need to appeal the decision we know what we are appealing against. …
“It’s harassment for the NGOs. When things go wrong, we speak up. Perhaps that is what is irritating the government.”
Dunu Roy, director of the Hazards Centre – which also lost its licence – said: “All we know is that there is a field agency report, but we don’t know which field agency, or what the report says, or when it was written. They can’t take one-sided action like this. If they found a genuine reason that we should not operate, then they should tell us that reason.”
Charities said that, with the bulk of their funding cut, they would find it difficult to keep operating in India. Anil Chaudhary, who heads the Indian Social Action Forum (Insaf), another NGO that lost its licence, said: “Around 85% of our funding comes from foreign donations. Now we cannot receive foreign funds and we cannot operate our accounts.”
Many NGOs had opposed the government’s draconian laws by refusing to file renewal documents. They argued that human rights and environmental groups that campaign against Modi’s corporate-friendly development programmes were being targeted by the government.
Modi’s latest cull is part of a growing antipathy towards NGOs as India tries to modernise its infrastructure and push economic growth. In February, Modi said NGOs were acting as fronts for foreign lobby organisations or terrorist groups conspiring to destabilise India and defame him.
In 2014, a leaked Intelligence Bureau document to Modi said foreign-funded NGOs that highlighted issues such as caste discrimination, human rights or environmental concerns were part of a “growth-retarding campaign” to discredit India at international forums. Under his government, major international charities including Greenpeace have been targeted by the government.
A joint statement from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said the government was using the FCRA to muzzle NGOs. “The law’s use of broad and vague terms such as ‘public interest’ and ‘national interest’ have left it open to abuse,” read the statement.
It added that in May the government temporarily suspended funding licences for the Lawyers Collective, citing alleged violations under the FCRA. “The charges appeared to be politically motivated because of their work in routinely representing people in cases against the current government, including Priya Pillai of Greenpeace India and Teesta Setalvad, an activist who has been seeking justice for victims of the 2002 communal violence in Gujarat.”
Three UN special rapporteurs have urged Modi to repeal the FCRA, which they say is being used increasingly “to silence organisations involved in advocating civil, political, economic, social, environmental or cultural priorities, which may differ from those backed by the government”.
Home ministry spokesman KS Dhatwalia said he would not comment on why NGOs had been targeted by the government. “Obviously, the government has no personal agenda against these NGOS. The NGOs know there are certain regulations they are supposed to follow. If you do not follow the law of the land, your licence will be removed. It’s as simple as that.”
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/nov/24/india-modi-government-accused-muzzling-ngos-by-blocking-foreign-funding
At least 25 Indian NGOs have lost licences to receive international funding because of their “anti-national” activities, while a further 11,319 have lost licences for failing to renew them, shrinking India’s pool of foreign-funded organisations to a little more than half the number it was two years ago.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the licences were revoked because the NGOs “failed to meet legal requirements” under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) (pdf) of 2010. The move could mean that some NGOs reliant on international funding will be forced to close.
Many of the 25 NGOs received notices saying their licences would be cancelled based on the government’s “field reports”. They said they were not given any indication of which laws they had violated or what the field reports said.
Henri Tiphagne, executive director of social justice and human rights organisation People’s Watch, said the decision to revoke his NGO’s licence was the latest in a series of moves by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party to quash opposition.
“The government is determined to see no dissent. I completely uphold the principle that NGOs should be transparent and that is why we have been filing all the documents, and we have even put our accounts from the last 10 years on our website,” he said. “But the government should at least give us a reason why they have taken this step, so if we need to appeal the decision we know what we are appealing against. …
“It’s harassment for the NGOs. When things go wrong, we speak up. Perhaps that is what is irritating the government.”
Dunu Roy, director of the Hazards Centre – which also lost its licence – said: “All we know is that there is a field agency report, but we don’t know which field agency, or what the report says, or when it was written. They can’t take one-sided action like this. If they found a genuine reason that we should not operate, then they should tell us that reason.”
Charities said that, with the bulk of their funding cut, they would find it difficult to keep operating in India. Anil Chaudhary, who heads the Indian Social Action Forum (Insaf), another NGO that lost its licence, said: “Around 85% of our funding comes from foreign donations. Now we cannot receive foreign funds and we cannot operate our accounts.”
Many NGOs had opposed the government’s draconian laws by refusing to file renewal documents. They argued that human rights and environmental groups that campaign against Modi’s corporate-friendly development programmes were being targeted by the government.
Modi’s latest cull is part of a growing antipathy towards NGOs as India tries to modernise its infrastructure and push economic growth. In February, Modi said NGOs were acting as fronts for foreign lobby organisations or terrorist groups conspiring to destabilise India and defame him.
In 2014, a leaked Intelligence Bureau document to Modi said foreign-funded NGOs that highlighted issues such as caste discrimination, human rights or environmental concerns were part of a “growth-retarding campaign” to discredit India at international forums. Under his government, major international charities including Greenpeace have been targeted by the government.
A joint statement from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said the government was using the FCRA to muzzle NGOs. “The law’s use of broad and vague terms such as ‘public interest’ and ‘national interest’ have left it open to abuse,” read the statement.
It added that in May the government temporarily suspended funding licences for the Lawyers Collective, citing alleged violations under the FCRA. “The charges appeared to be politically motivated because of their work in routinely representing people in cases against the current government, including Priya Pillai of Greenpeace India and Teesta Setalvad, an activist who has been seeking justice for victims of the 2002 communal violence in Gujarat.”
Three UN special rapporteurs have urged Modi to repeal the FCRA, which they say is being used increasingly “to silence organisations involved in advocating civil, political, economic, social, environmental or cultural priorities, which may differ from those backed by the government”.
Home ministry spokesman KS Dhatwalia said he would not comment on why NGOs had been targeted by the government. “Obviously, the government has no personal agenda against these NGOS. The NGOs know there are certain regulations they are supposed to follow. If you do not follow the law of the land, your licence will be removed. It’s as simple as that.”
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/nov/24/india-modi-government-accused-muzzling-ngos-by-blocking-foreign-funding
