New FRA’s report: "European civil society: still under pressure - update 2022"

The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) published a report “European civil society: still under pressure - update 2022" about the status of European civil society, which plays a key role in promoting a culture based on the rule of law.

The report, published July 19th, updates the findings FRA presented in 2021 and 2018 on challenges civil society continue to face across the EU.

The challenges for civil society highlighted in the report, range from harassment to restrictive laws, which are not conducive to a working environment for civil society.

"Civil society organisations are critical for contributing to the checks and balances that underpin the rule of law," says FRA Director Michael O’Flaherty. "That is why I firmly believe the EU and its Member States need to do more to ringfence the enabling space that allows civil society to safeguard human rights across the EU."

The report cites virtuous examples from EU: civil society organizations’ effort to shape laws and policies; support for human rights authorities; improved access to justice, accountability and legality; the vanguard achieved in supporting civilians fleeing the war in Ukraine; and recent legislative and quasi-legislative instruments to support civil society organizations.

FRA drew its findings from research in each Member State, and from responses to an online consultation from almost 450 human rights civil society organisations.