Role of Civil Society in Democracy

What is a civil society?

J.S.Mill and Alexis De Tocqueville, political liberal thinkers of 19th century, conceived civil society as a domain of social associations, which would check the excesses of the State. They were concerned about the growing power of the State and held the view that ‘without active social associations, even democracies could become despotic regimes.’

Emergence of civil Society :

The focus on civil societies emerged during the first half 1980s, when the ‘state centric developmental’ approach proved to be ineffective. The central role given to the State and the bureaucracy precluded the real democratic participation of local communities and masses for whom the development was intended. Thus the State,eclipsing the civil societies could be held responsible for the developmental approach not reaching its proclaimed destination- the masses. So a revival and reconstruction of an active civil society  is supposed to be a precondition for the realisation of true democracy and development.

How are civil society movements different from trade unions?

In contrast to the old trade union and working class movements, which were political in the sense of having an alternate political vision of the state itself, civil society movements are people’s movements with varied objectives.

Following are few instances which played its role in shaping the policies of the country:

Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) was a social movement consisting of adivasis, farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists against the number of large dams being built across the Narmada River, which flows through the states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, all over India.

The Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (Association for the Empowerment of Workers and Peasants) is an Indian social movement and grassroots organisation best known for its successful struggle and demand for the Right to Information Act (RTI) which grew out of the demand for minimum wages for workers. It is one of the forefront civil rights movements in India, and can cite legislation of the RTI as its major achievement.

The Anna Hazare movement to alleviate corruption in the Indian government through introduction of the Jan Lokpal Bill resulted in legislating the Lokpal and Lokayutas Act.

Law relating to NGOs in India

The laws under which a civil society organisation like NGO can register are,

1. Societies Registration Act, 1860
2. State Public Charitable Trust Acts
3. Section 8, Companies Act, 2013.

The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 [FCRA] and rules framed under it regulate the receipt and usage of foreign contribution by non-governmental organisations (“NGOs”) in India. Thus, an NGO need to be registered with FCRA for receiving foreign donations. The approval for the registration is given by Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Further, Income Tax Act is also applicable to NGOs and are not immune from the taxman of the country.

What role does civil society play in a democracy?

1. Faced to the centralised power of the State, civil society  has a role of enabling the hitherto voiceless and unorganised communities interests to be represented in a larger canvas.
2. Civil society can also be considered as a “movement” that can influence public discussions on issues like health, education or security.
3. Civil society finally has a role of “ensuring the accountability” of the State in different spheres.

NGOs are the best examples of voluntary action. The need for voluntary action arises when individuals feel that the existing socio-political and economic structures of the society are not paying sufficient attention towards the pressing issuses of the society.  NGOs are increasingly being viewed as having an indispensable role to play in supplementing the developmental initiatives of the state. They work for varied causes like improving health and education for the vulnerable sections of the society, for improved implementation of laws like Domestic violence Act, child labour, combating AIDS, disaster management, environmental issues etc.

A 1995 publication by Commonwealth Foundation states the following as the characteristics of an NGO

• Voluntary: NGOs are formed voluntarily by citizens with an element of voluntary participation in the organization, whether in the form of small numbers of board members or large numbers of members or time given by volunteers.
• Independent: NGOs are independent within the laws of society, and controlled by those who have formed them or by elected or appointed boards. The legal status of NGOs is based on freedom of association—one of the most basic human rights. The International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights, developed by the United Nations in 1966 and since ratified by 135 countries, grants the right to assemble.

• Not-for-profit: NGOs are not for private personal profit or gain. NGOs may, in many countries, engage in revenue-generating activities, but must use the revenue solely in pursuit of the organization’s mission. Like other enterprises, NGOs have employees who are paid for what they do. Boards are not usually paid for the work they perform, but may be reimbursed for expenses they incur in the course of performing their board duties.

• Not self-serving in aims and related values: The aims of NGOs are to improve the circumstances and prospects of people and to act on concerns and issues detrimental to the well-being, circumstances, or prospects of people or society as a whole.

NGOs increase “social capital” by providing people with opportunities to build trust in each other and the capacity to work together toward common goals. NGOs play a critical part in developing society, improving communities, and promoting citizen participation.

Contemporary issues relating NGOs

Being a non-profit organisations, operations of NGOs are entirely reliant on donations, both domestic and foreign.  Recently Intelligence Bureau, in a report accused “foreign-funded” NGOs of “serving as tools for foreign policy interests of western governments” by sponsoring agitations against nuclear and coal-fired power plants and anti-GMO agitation across the country. The NGOs, are said to be working through a network of local organisations to negatively impact GDP growth by 2–3%.

It is alleged that Greenpeace [ an environmental NGO] was leading a “massive effort to take down India’s coal-fired power plant and coal mining activity” by using foreign funds to “create protest movements under ‘Coal Network’ umbrella at prominent coal block and coal-fired power plant locations in India”.

In April 2015, the Government of India shared a list of over 42,000 NGOs with Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to check suspicious foreign funding amid the crackdown on some top international donors for flouting the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), 2011. These 42,273 NGOs were put under watch after intelligence reports claimed that several charity organisations are diverting funds for purposes other than the permitted use of foreign contribution and revoked their licenses.

Also government brought in amendment to FCRA to better regulate NGOs.

It is often opined that when civil society criticises government policy or a private sector driven agenda, they are often labelled ‘anti-development’, ‘anti-national’, ‘politically motivated’ and even ‘against national security’. This rhetoric undermines both the legitimacy of many CSOs and their ability to operate. Moreover, individuals and civil society groups are directly intimidated or violently harassed when taking on vested interests on land or natural resource investment or allocations.

Conclusion

Civil society as the sphere of associational life forms the backbone of democracy. The right to participate in politics must not be limited to voting alone. The citizens must have the right to scrutinise the work of their elected representatives, publicise the acts and omissions and engage with leaders on the troubled issue of political conflicts, and this forms this essence of democracy. With the governmental backlash on NGOs and their activities, the civil society and their rights-based approach is marginalised.

Social security plans and legislations have to be brought out in consultation with  civil society organisation.  If the government respects the voice of citizens through the grant of the right to freedom of expression and association, it should be enabling civil society to articulate aspirations, critically engage with the state, and issue social report cards. The promises of democracy can only be realised through collective action in civil society.

Sources

• IGNOU
• The Hindu
• The Indian Express
• Wikipedia