A tool designed by Directorio Legislativo to monitor
regulations with the potential to impact civic space
in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Fundación Directorio Legislativo | April 2020

About Civic Space Guardian (CSG)

Civic Space Guardian (CSG) is a tool designed by Directorio Legislativo to monitor regulations with the potential to impact civic space in Latin America and the Caribbean.

These are regulations affecting freedom of expression, freedom of association, freedom of peaceful assembly, citizen participation and access to public information. To provide a broader overview, we also include the rating assigned by Civicus according to the state of civic space in each country.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY

FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY

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FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

A law requiring legal persons to provide information on their authorities, bylaws and final beneficiaries was enacted

Paraguay

On December 2, the Executive enacted a law creating an administrative registry of legal entities, and another regarding “final beneficiaries” in Paraguay. The measure compels companies, associations and foundations to provide information on their authorities, by-laws and assemblies held to elect authorities within 9 months following its enactment. The final beneficiaries must also be notified during this period, i.e., those with over 25% of the voting rights or who control the organization by virtue of its internal regulations. In case of non-compliance, subjects will be unable to open new bank accounts or make deposits, their taxpayer registration will be blocked and other procedures suspended, and they may also be subject to fines. The obligation to inform also covers any changes in their structures and final beneficiaries. The norm arises from a recommendation made by the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering in Latin America (GAFILAT, for its acronym in Spanish).

Senate seeks bill to create specialized prosecutor’s offices to monitor crimes committed against journalists and human rights defenders

Mexico

On November 20, the Senate appointed to committees a bill from Senator Marco Antonio Gama Basarte (Partido Acción Nacional-Oposition) aimed at creating a specialized prosecutor’s office within the Attorney General’s Office to investigate crimes against journalists and human rights defenders. The initiative gives the prosecutor’s office constitutional autonomy and guarantees the tools needed for an effective access to justice. The author stated in the foundations of the proposal “the need to revert the prevailing human rights and security crisis in Mexico”. The bill should be reviewed by committees, as a step prior to the debate in the plenary session of the Senate, which could happen in the coming days.

Bill to create a 30% gender quota in civil society entities advances in Deputies

Brazil

On November 25, the Committee on Labour, Administration and Public Service of Deputies presented a draft opinion in favour of a bill for the establishment of a 30% gender quota in civil representation entities. The initiative, by deputy Soraya Santos (Liberal Party – allied to the ruling party), reaches out not only the civil society organizations, but also trade unions and professional associations. The foundations of the bill state that “although the Federal Constitution guarantees equal treatment and conditions between men and women, it is still necessary to have the participation of women at the top of these entities”. The committee is expected to vote on the draft opinion in the coming weeks.

President Bolsonaro seeks to expand the legal use of firearms by the public force

Brazil

On November 21, President Jair Bolsonaro sent to the Chamber of Deputies a bill that expands the grounds on which law enforcement officers can use firearms in security operations and be exempted from criminal responsibilities. These rules protect the Army, Navy, Air Force and police involved in federal intervention operations for the guarantee of law and order. According to Bolsonaro, “a protest is one thing, vandalism and terrorism is another”. The bill considers “legitimate defense” when a military or security agent responds to an aggression capable of killing or injuring, restricting the freedom of a victim and/or ostensibly carrying firearms or an act of terrorism. The initiative has not yet been referred to committees.

A package of bills to stiffen penalties for public order offences, backed by the Executive, continues advancing in Congress

Chile

On December 9, the Senate’s Public Safety Committee began debating article by article the bill that tipifies as a crime the alteration of public peace through the execution of acts of violence, better known as the “anti-sacking” bill. This initiative, which has already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies, is part of a series of bills that raise penalties for crimes against public order, in the context of the social crisis affecting the country since October 18. The package of measures is completed with an initiative to modernize the Carabineros and the Investigative Police, among others. President Sebastián Piñera asked Congress to give them urgent treatment, so it is expected that the bill will advance quickly despite the many proposals for amendment made by senators from different political spaces.

Armed forces cleared of responsability for excessive use of force for over two weeks

Bolivia

On November 15, Bolivia’s interim president, Jeanine Áñez, passed a decree clearing military personnel of criminal responsibility for having used excessive force when “acting in legitimate defense or a state of necessity”. Also, the law legitimized the participation of the armed forces in the re-establishment of public order. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights called the decree “serious” and reiterated the number of citizens killed or injured by excessive use of force during the protests. Days later, supporters of the Movimiento al Socialismo party, who called for president Añez’s resignation, agreed to demobilize in exchange for the measure to be dropped. On November 28, 15 days after its entry into force, Añez duly reversed the decree.

A bill on lobbying and special interests advances in the Assembly

Costa Rica

On 17 November, the Legislative Assembly Legal Affairs Committee issued a positive report on a bill on lobbying and the management of interests in public administration. The activities regulated include the drafting and approval of administrative acts and laws, as well as the design, implementation and evaluation of policies and programs. Provisions do not apply to consultancies carried out by non-profit associations, foundations, universities or other similar institutions hired by public agencies and legislators. Furthermore, the president and vice-president of the boards of directors of any organization or foundation are presumed to administrate interests and are thus obliged to provide certain information when requesting hearings or meetings, made public by means of a hearings register which must be completed. The file could move forward in the next few weeks if the Executive includes the bill in extraordinary sessions.