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Le dernier numéro du Journal Officiel vient de publier le nouveau Code de la route, officiellement signé par le Président de la République, Abdelmadjid Tebboune. […]

L’article « Ceintures obligatoires à l’arrière » : Ce qui change avec le nouveau Code de la route (Journal officiel) est apparu en premier sur .

Quelle : © Europäische Union, 2026 - EP

Derrière les États-Unis, l’Algérie occupe désormais la deuxième place mondiale des exportateurs de GPL acheminé par voie maritime. C’est ce que révèlent les dernières données […]

L’article L’Algérie est désormais 2ème exportateur mondial de ce produit est apparu en premier sur .

Quelques semaines après les tensions à la foire de Paris, le stand algérien de la Semaine africaine de l’UNESCO a été la cible d’une nouvelle […]

L’article Le stand algérien pris pour cible à l’UNESCO : Alger promet des poursuites est apparu en premier sur .

Météo Algérie lance une alerte pour ce jeudi : plusieurs wilayas du Sud s’apprêtent à subir des conditions climatiques sévères. Entre vents violents, pluies orageuses […]

L’article Vents, orages et tempêtes de sable attendus ce jeudi 21 mai : les wilayas placées en alerte météo est apparu en premier sur .

Plus de 420 000 étudiants étrangers ont déjà fait le choix de la Russie, et les Algériens sont de plus en plus nombreux à suivre […]

L’article Étudier en Russie : ce qu’il faut savoir sur les universités et les opportunités offertes aux Algériens est apparu en premier sur .

En Afghanistan aujourd'hui, trois personnes sur quatre ne peuvent pas subvenir à leurs besoins fondamentaux.

Thursday 21 May

Source : © European Union, 2026 - EP

Thursday 21 May

Source : © European Union, 2026 - EP

Thursday 21 May

Source : © European Union, 2026 - EP

Thursday 21 May

Source : © European Union, 2026 - EP

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah is named in Egypt's preliminary World Cup squad, which will be trimmed by one player this month.

En 2006, nombreux étaient ceux qui imaginaient la Serbie rejoindre l'Union européenne avant le Monténégro. Deux décennies plus tard, Podgorica approche de l'objectif, tandis que Belgrade accumule blocages politiques, tensions géopolitiques et critiques sur l'état de droit.

- Articles / Courrier des Balkans, Une - Diaporama, Monténégro UE, Indépendance du Monténégro 2006, Monténégro, Serbie, Questions européennes, Relations régionales

En 2006, nombreux étaient ceux qui imaginaient la Serbie rejoindre l'Union européenne avant le Monténégro. Deux décennies plus tard, Podgorica approche de l'objectif, tandis que Belgrade accumule blocages politiques, tensions géopolitiques et critiques sur l'état de droit.

- Articles / Courrier des Balkans, Une - Diaporama, Monténégro UE, Indépendance du Monténégro 2006, Monténégro, Serbie, Questions européennes, Relations régionales

En 2006, nombreux étaient ceux qui imaginaient la Serbie rejoindre l'Union européenne avant le Monténégro. Deux décennies plus tard, Podgorica approche de l'objectif, tandis que Belgrade accumule blocages politiques, tensions géopolitiques et critiques sur l'état de droit.

- Articles / Courrier des Balkans, Une - Diaporama, Monténégro UE, Indépendance du Monténégro 2006, Monténégro, Serbie, Questions européennes, Relations régionales

Le Monténégro a restauré son indépendance le 21 mai 2006. Le souvenir de cette journée est toujours vif pour celles et ceux qui l'ont vécu, mais quel bilan tirer des vingt années écoulées depuis le référendum ? Et quelles priorités pour l'avenir ? Les réponses de neuf personnalités de la société civile.

- Articles / Une - Diaporama - En premier, Après Milo, Indépendance du Monténégro 2006, Monténégro, Une - Diaporama, Politique, Courrier des Balkans, Société, Questions européennes, Monténégro UE, Corruption Monténégro, Gratuit

Le Monténégro a restauré son indépendance le 21 mai 2006. Le souvenir de cette journée est toujours vif pour celles et ceux qui l'ont vécu, mais quel bilan tirer des vingt années écoulées depuis le référendum ? Et quelles priorités pour l'avenir ? Les réponses de neuf personnalités de la société civile.

- Articles / Une - Diaporama - En premier, Après Milo, Indépendance du Monténégro 2006, Monténégro, Une - Diaporama, Politique, Courrier des Balkans, Société, Questions européennes, Monténégro UE, Corruption Monténégro, Gratuit

By CIVICUS
May 21 2026 (IPS)

 
CIVICUS discusses the cancellation of RightsCon 2026 with Barbora Bukovská, Senior Director for Law and Policy at ARTICLE 19, a human rights organisation that works on freedom of expression and information around the world.

Barbora Bukovská

On 29 April – days before RightsCon, the key global gathering of digital rights advocates, was due to open in Lusaka – the Zambian government announced a postponement that effectively cancelled the event. The government stands accused of giving in to China’s pressure over the participation of people from Taiwan. The event had been set to bring over 2,600 participants to sub-Saharan Africa for the first time, with another 1,100 joining online. Instead, it became the latest casualty of growing authoritarian pressure on the spaces where civil society convenes.

Why does the cancellation of RightsCon matter?

This cancellation is significant on three levels. First, it means the loss of community. The human rights movement depends on relationships built across borders and over time. RightsCon was one of the few global spaces where civil society organisations, funders, governments, journalists, researchers and technology professionals could meet without political interference. Losing it means losing opportunities to build solidarity and strengthen the networks the movement runs on.

Second, it was a symbolic blow. RightsCon represented the idea that at least one global space existed where civil society could convene freely, protected from political pressure. That illusion is now shattered. The space proved vulnerable. It is yet more evidence of shrinking civic space globally, and the message it sends is chilling: no space is truly protected from state interference any more.

Third, it caused financial damage. Following funding cuts from the USA in early 2025 and reduced funding from other major donor governments, civil society is struggling to secure resources. Organisations had invested precious funding to attend RightsCon, covering travel, organising side events and preparing advocacy materials. These are resources vulnerable civil society organisations cannot afford to waste.

What does this episode reveal about transnational repression?

The cancellation lays bare how emboldened China feels to globalise its political red lines and exercise transnational repression. For years, it has applied pressure on governments to sideline Taiwanese participation in multilateral forums. Taiwan’s leading role in digital rights and technology has long irritated China. What’s new is other governments’ willingness to yield.

China’s tactics have grown more sophisticated. Rather than open confrontation, it leverages threats of diplomatic fallout or lost investment. The pressure now extends into spaces once thought beyond its reach, such as cultural institutions, rights conferences and universities. China has shown it can coerce governments across sectors and at multiple levels.

The wider context matters too. The USA, once a leading global supporter of internet freedom, has retreated from diplomatic and financial backing for digital rights. China’s influence on the African continent has expanded in the absence of rights-based alternatives. When democratic states withdraw support for civil society, authoritarian influence fills the void.

How do China’s leverage and Zambia’s democratic decline combine?

China’s leverage across Africa has grown substantially in recent years. Chinese funding has built major infrastructure in Zambia, including Mulungushi International Conference Centre, the venue where RightsCon was due to take place. Only days before the cancellation, China signed a new agreement to fund further development projects. Zambia carries roughly US$5 billion in debt to China, and that dependency comes with strings attached.

Domestically, the picture is similarly bleak. Despite President Hakainde Hichilema being elected in 2021 on a promise of democratic renewal, civic space has shrunk steadily since. In 2025, parliament passed cybersecurity laws now used to curtail freedom of expression online and detain political opponents. Ahead of the August 2026 general election, the government is enacting further laws designed to entrench its power. Political control is winning out over democratic commitments.

Yielding to Chinese pressure while restricting civic space at home calls Zambia’s commitment to the rule of law and human rights into serious doubt. The debt creates a channel through which China can extract political cooperation. Together, these dynamics create a dangerous precedent for other global south nations facing similar pressure.

What does this mean globally?

The danger extends well beyond Zambia. If a government can cancel a major international civil society gathering without serious diplomatic or institutional consequences, it sends the wrong signals. States must show that interference carries costs. Democratic states, multilateral organisations and regional institutions must impose costs through sustained pressure and exclusion from future convenings.

International human rights mechanisms, including the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association, have already condemned Zambia’s decision. But statements alone are not enough. Zambia shouldn’t be considered a reliable host for rights-based global dialogue in future.

If governments can yield to authoritarian pressure at the expense of civil society protections without paying a price, the pattern will spread.

What steps should be taken to protect global civil society forums?

Civil society can adapt but cannot insulate its gatherings from state pressure on its own. Real responsibility lies with states that claim to support human rights. They must send a diplomatic and political signal that interference in global forums is costly and prevent other governments from following Zambia’s example. They must reaffirm their commitment to multi-stakeholder forums and invest in civil society’s ability to convene and participate.

That includes member states of international coalitions such as the Freedom Online Coalition and the Media Freedom Coalition. They must act against restrictions on civic space and freedom of expression, using these platforms to impose costs on governments that interfere with civil society. The behaviour Zambia has just normalised must be made costly.

The UN, other intergovernmental organisations and states must work to guarantee the safety and openness of global gatherings. As democratic states withdraw support and authoritarian states expand their reach, the spaces where global civil society can gather, build relationships and advance human rights will continue to shrink. What’s at stake is the infrastructure of global civil society coordination and solidarity.

CIVICUS interviews a wide range of civil society activists, experts and leaders to gather diverse perspectives on civil society action and current issues for publication on its CIVICUS Lens platform. The views expressed in interviews are the interviewees’ and do not necessarily reflect those of CIVICUS. Publication does not imply endorsement of interviewees or the organisations they represent.

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Barbora Bukovská/LinkedIn

SEE ALSO
Democracy: an enduring aspiration CIVICUS | State of Civil Society Report 2026
Zambia: ‘Constitutional changes in an election period tend to be driven by political expediency rather than the public interest’ CIVICUS Lens | Interview with Gideon Musonda 24.Dec.2025
Zambia: ‘The NGO Bill strengthens legal mechanisms designed to discredit or silence critical civil society voices’ CIVICUS Lens | Interview with Josiah Kalala 03.Jun.2025

 

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Le ministre de l’Énergie et des Énergies renouvelables, Mourad Adjjal, a reçu ce mercredi 20 mai 2026 une délégation mozambicaine de haut niveau, composée de […]

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