[wanabidii] Press Releases: Joint Statement on the Fifth Annual Lifeline: Embattled Civil Society Organizations Assistance Fund Donor Steering Committee Meeting

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

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09/28/2015 07:32 PM EDT

Joint Statement on the Fifth Annual Lifeline: Embattled Civil Society Organizations Assistance Fund Donor Steering Committee Meeting


Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
September 28, 2015


The text of the following statement was released by the Governments of Australia, Benin, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mongolia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Uruguay following the Fifth Annual Donor Steering Committee Meeting of the Lifeline: Embattled CSOs Assistance Fund.

Begin Text:

On Monday, September 28, Deputy Secretary of State of the United States Antony Blinken and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway Børge Brende chaired the fifth annual donor meeting of the Lifeline: Embattled Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) Assistance Fund in New York, New York. The governments of Australia, Benin, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Mongolia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Uruguay; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; and the Ford Foundation are pleased to welcome the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg as a new donor to the Fund, as well as to announce additional financial support from Estonia, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, and the United States. The Government of Estonia announced it will serve with the United States as co-chair of Lifeline for the next year.

Launched in July 2011 in Vilnius on the margins of the Community of Democracy Ministerial, Lifeline provides emergency assistance to CSOs when they are threatened or attacked because of their advocacy work, as well as funding for short-term initiatives that allow CSOs—at local, regional, and international levels—to fight back against regulatory and extralegal barriers. The Fund has provided targeted assistance to 672 CSOs operating in 94 challenging countries, 97 percent of which report that the funding they received improved their safety and 75 percent reported that assistance allowed them to resume their work with few or no limitations. Together, the donors have committed more than $16.25 million for activities between 2011 and 2019.

Yesterday’s Lifeline meeting provided an opportunity for donors to further discuss the practical and concrete ways Lifeline has continued to support civil society over the past year and reaffirm their commitment to the fundamental freedoms of association and assembly through this joint effort. Lifeline is a vital component of the Stand with Civil Society Initiative, launched by President Obama in 2013. Over the past year, the Fund has advanced the Stand initiative by expanding assistance to provide additional security resources for CSOs and delivering more coordinated diplomatic engagement in priority countries. The Fund also announced the creation of a new Freedom of Association Barometer that will measure civil society’s ability to operate. The donors look forward to reporting back on this new effort next year.


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