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This article participates on the following special index pages:
NGO Bill - Index of Opinion and Analysis
Government
Probe on NGOs
National
Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NANGO)
April 22, 2005
An inter-departmental
Probe Team appointed by the Minister of Public Service Labour and
Social Welfare under the Private Voluntary Organisations Act as
Inspecting Officers is currently doing the rounds and investigating
NGOs around various aspects of their operations. We understand that
the Team also includes representatives from different line ministries
as well as the Central Intelligence Office. The Terms of reference
for the Inspectors are as follows:
To inspect
the affairs and activities of Private Voluntary Organisations and
to examine all documents relating thereto in particular.
- The Registration
status of Private Voluntary Organisations and the constitution
of the Board
- Whether activities
sponsored or funded are within the mandate of the Private Voluntary
Organisation
- Foreign currencytransactions
from pledge to conversion into local currency
To examine
the books accounts and other documents relating to the financial
affairs of Private Voluntary Organisations including:
- Sources of
income
- Structure
of Expenditure
- Verification
of Activities implememnted on the ground
The
probe as a surveillance mechanism
Whereas
the Minister is legally entitled to carry out investigations under
the auspices of the Private Voluntary Organisations Act on incidents
of maladministration
the process
appears to go beyond merely adhering to the dictates of the law,
as there are other political dimensions evident particularly in
the identification of the probed Organisations. According to a recent
ZIMRIGHTS publication, the PVO Law which is being used as justification
for raiding NGO offices is prone to wide interpretation and bestows
too intrusive powers on the part of the appointed inspectors. The
National Association of NGOs which has been spearheading the campaign
for a positive and enabling legal and policy operating environment
for Civil Society in Zimbabwe received a first time visit from the
Probe Team on Tuesday the 19th of April and expects further visits
from the Team.
A cursory analysis
of the list of Organisations that have already been probed indicates
that one of the Organisations had a former founder Board Member
who is now a key figure in the opposition, another organisation
is one
set up by the Commercial Farmers Union, another is a prominent and
outspoken human rights Organisation. However as evidenced by the
rarity of NGO prosecutions for violations of the present law, the
NGO sector has throughout the year been cooperative with government
and committed to operating within the confines of the Law. Direct
raids and survaillance of NGOs and personnell within the sector
is therefoe uncalled for and in bad faith. In this regard the challenge
for NANGO and the sector at large is therefore to contest the underlying
political objectives of the probe where it is felt that they contradict
the functioning of a free and independent civil society.
Dangers
imposed by wanton raids on NGOs
- The unnanouced
raids limit both individual and corporate constitutionally guaranteed
fundamental freedoms
- Information
sourced through these investigations/inspections might be used
to justifuy the enactment of the proposed NGO Law
- The investigations
by government inspectors might project continued harrassment and
victimisation of NGO staff and civil society activists
- The intrusive
Ministerial powers monitoring and control powers over the internal
administration of NGO s and Civil Socity curtails development
work
- The raids
on NGOs can be used as a vindictive and punitive response to what
has been termed as subversive activities by NGOs
- Forced disclosure
of foreign funding might be used as a political weapon and as
justification for the labelling of NGOs as anti-state western
contacts acting against national sovereignity
- The possible
criminilisation of non-registered NGO activity goes against the
constitutionally guaranteed Freedom of Association
*Zimrights NGO
Operating Environment Alert
The
sector's response to the probe
The Legal Node of the
NGO Bill response strategy has been put on high alert to give legal
advice and support to affected organisations. As such all Organisation
who may have been or will be approached by the Probe Team are requested
to immediately contact the NGO BILL Legal Node Team through the
NANGO office. The NANGO National Advocacy Committee has also met
to deliberate on the issue and has advised the NANGO Board on a
suitable response strategy which is currently being rolled out.
Legal
advice in relation to the probe
Although
the Probe Team is entitled to access
audited
financial information that meets the requirements of public disclosure,
the Team however cannot,
except on the basis of a search warrant or a ministerial decree,
gain access to an Organisations' internal and governance documents.
In this regard NANGO would like to advise
all organisations to ensure that all their books are in
good order
and their operations are in compliance with the requirements of
the PVO ACT. In the event of the Probe Team visiting any Organisation
the Organisation is advised to first verify the Team's supporting
documents and to request the presence of a lawyer before the Team
can begin its Probe.
Visit the NANGO
fact sheet
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