March-April, 2011

FCRA 2010: Facing the Reality

The Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (2010), the sword that hang above the heads of the voluntary organizations in India for the last few years, finally became a reality on May 01, 2011.  The rules as they are presented today, in some way, reflect the series of representations, appeals, delegations, and consultations which were carried out for last many years. Devoid of such efforts, the outcome could have been different.

The formulation process, which included delegations to the Home Minister and his ministry, the standing committee, Members of the Parliament, the media and the general public, should be a learning experience for voluntary organizations. It made us to realize the new realities and forces. One of the paramount conclusions that can be drawn from this process is that they are poorly informed about the difficulties of voluntary sector at the grass roots level. Further, it underscores the prominence attached to the page-3 types and ornamental NGOs. Therefore, we need to re-consider our advocacy strategies and redefine our relationship with the people in the power. No doubt, they agree on the thematic contribution of the voluntary sector, but when we negotiate for a democratic space for voluntary action, examples are cited from those deviant players which have intruded into the sector.

The members of VANI have proposed a two-fold strategy to address these new challenges. First, share the new law with voluntary organizations and inform them about their responsibilities and rights. This can be done through regular communications from VANI and through regional and state level workshops, popular publications and updates on our website. Secondly, we have also realized that to influence the policy makers and for the redressal of unnecessary harassments, there is a need to document such cases. These cases will be shared with the Home Ministry, MPs and Planning Commission.  They will also be compiled into a “Citizen’s Report”, which will be released in the national convention of VANI.

I would also like to take this opportunity to share with you some of the significant changes in the new FCRA law;

1. Need for renewal of registration after every five years:  Those who are already registered will require renewal only after five years, but we need to prepare ourselves. Along with sending the hard copies of the documents, we also need to apply online. VANI is trying to get a tracking system introduced in the online process so that accountability of the department is ensured and there are no incidences where documents get lost. The registration can be canceled due to non-compliance with the FCRA law, false information or doing something which is against national interest. It is highly recommended that VOs regularly submit required documents in time. There are instances where ‘nil’ returns are not filed if foreign currency is not received. This leads to complications, therefore submission of nil returns is very crucial.
2. Organizations engaged in political activities and those who, as a means of protest, take up actions which might eventually lead to violence can also be denied the FCRA. If in the organizational mission or in the actions of the organizations it is evident that organizations aspire to achieve a political goal then FCRA approval could be denied. If decision of the department is arbitrary then, the concerned VO must have enough data to litigate. We must ensure that none of the genuine organizations engaged in social-economic change are harassed.
3. In line with Income Tax Act, the FCRA now requires records of six years to be stored for scrutiny. As per the act,, investigating agency cannot demand papers for more than six years.
4. The onus to ensure the source of the currency whether it is foreign or Indian, is on the receiving agency. Hence, from now on, we must have it in writing from the donor whether the currency that we receive falls under FCRA. This is very important, as companies having foreign equity more than fifty percent will be considered as foreign. 
5. No permission from department is required if funds are transferred from FCRA holder to another FCRA holder, but we need to ensure that recipient organizations are not defaulters with the department. Permission will be required if funds are being transferred to non-FCRA organization.
6. The provision of deemed permission is gone, so ensuring timeliness from the department is very necessary. Therefore, we suggest that after submitting the documents for FCRA registration either for permanent or prior permission, organizations must keep tab of the time and in case of failure write to department with documentary evidence of the application.
7. Another change is that banks holding FCRA accounts will send their annual statement to the department. This statement will also be submitted along with other required documents by the voluntary organizations.
8. Anyone receiving more than one crore as foreign money is expected to share information through its website.

I have listed some of the major changes in this communication, but VANI will provide detailed information through workshops and website. Sharing of information and preparing ourselves will not only safeguard us from unnecessary harassments, but also act as a deterrent to ‘agents’.  We would be grateful if you can assist us with the following steps to take the information far and wide:

1. Please send us emails of your colleagues, friends to whom you think VANI should share information.
2. Regularly visit our website for updates.
3. Mobilize and attend the state and regional workshops which will be organized by VANI.
4. Send us “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQs); these will become basis for the popular publication. The text of this publication will be verified and vouched by the department.
5. Send us the details of cases where you think harassments are taking place curtailing the space of voluntary action in the country.

We look forward to hearing from you,
Harsh Jaitli

Voluntary Sector – A Global Perspective

– Interview with Ingrid Srinath, Secretary General, CIVICUS

(Ingrid Srinath was in VANI to take part in the discussion that VANI organized on National and Global Voluntary Organizations: Linkages, Possibilities, and Opportunities. During the sideline of the meeting, she shared her perspectives on variety of issues ranging from global challenges to the possibilities of engagement for the voluntary sector. Here are a few excerpts of the conversation.)
 
VANI: Taking a macro perspective and looking at some of the recent global developments like, financial crisis, food insecurity, civil unrest in a few countries, do you think that the developmental paradigm professed and practiced hitherto needs a shift? Can we look at these as a harbinger for an alternative discourse on development that is holistic and inclusive?

Ingrid: If there is one lesson the recent confluence of crises has to teach us, it is that the market fundamentalist development paradigm espoused over the past 3-4 decades is fundamentally flawed. It has been conclusively shown to promote growth without development or jobs, increase inequity and threaten our very existence as a species through its ecological impact.

Even its most ardent champions, people like Alan Greenspan who presided over the US Federal Reserve through the period, as well as the World Bank and the IMF, now acknowledge its failings. One would imagine that the scale and severity of the impact of these crises would compel a fundamental re-evaluation of the model. Regrettably, despite the pious pronouncements of politicians and bureaucrats, and the clamour for alternatives by civil society, progress in this direction is still being systematically blocked by powerful interest groups.

If there is a reason for optimism on this front, it arises out of the wave of public outrage sweeping the globe demanding more equitable and sustainable solutions. A key challenge for civil society at local, national, regional and global levels is to coalesce and channel the thinking, experience and anger of citizens into political clout that counterbalances the power of elite groups. The CIVICUS World Assembly, taking place in Montreal, Canada in September this year will focus on just this issue. Under the broad theme “Acting Together for a Just World”” this year’s Assembly will focus on “Civil Society and Global Decision Making: Doing it Better.”

VANI: There is a growing consensus within the voluntary sector across the globe that the space for the sector to get involved at the political and economic level is further contracted. How do you respond to this observation?

Ingrid: The evidence for the contraction is now incontrovertible. Anyone who monitors these trends – from CIVICUS itself to Human Rights Watch, Freedom House and a range of national platforms, human rights activists and international NGOs – corroborates the trend. CIVICUS’ Civil Society Watch project logged over 90 countries changing legislation and policies to effectively limit freedoms of expression, assembly and association in 2009-10 alone. Our report “Civil Society: the Clampdown is Real” drawing on our own data as well as that of others is available at: http://www.civicus.org/content/CIVICUS-Global_trends_in_Civil_Society_Space_2009-2010.pdf

In India too we have witnessed the growing criminalisation of dissent, targeting of activists and attempts by government to exercise greater control over the sector’s funding and activities. As Dr. Binayak Sen pointed out when he was released on bail recently, he is only one of thousands in our country subject to arbitrary and unjustified incarceration, intimidation and harassment. And India is far from the worst case scenarios that we observe in Central Asia, South East Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Even more ominous is the trend towards greater constraints in so-called developed democracies. In North America and Western Europe civil society is facing funding cutbacks and increasing pressure to align its agendas with national security, foreign policy and trade priorities. At the global level too, civil society finds both access and influence at fora like the G-8/G-20 and at the UN diminishing rapidly.

VANI: Let us look at the voluntary sector itself. How best do you think the voluntary sector is equipped to respond to the critical issues affecting the globe? What challenges do we need to overcome in this direction?

Ingrid: On the bright side, civil society has come a long way over the past decades. We now have better data, better analysis and better networks than ever before. Despite this progress, we still face a few challenges. The first is in the area of resources, where funding for rights based advocacy and for convening activities has seen disproportionately large cuts as the political climate and economic circumstances in the North have shifted in the wake of the economic crises.

These have been exacerbated by the changing global power balance which has the effect of constraining action on human rights, for instance, towards countries whose significance at the global level has grown. Countries large and small, including but not limited to India, which can provide access to markets, capital and natural resources, especially energy, now face negligible international reaction when they abuse their constitutional or international commitments. And countries who have in the past taken pride in their commitment to democracy and human rights, including India, have backtracked significantly in deference to business or strategic interests.

If civil society is to successfully meet these challenges and seize the opportunities for radical change, we will need to collaborate far more substantively than ever before. This requires those with technical expertise in areas like financial regulation, economic models and metrics, climate science and governance to join forces with those that have political clout through their credibility with grassroots communities. Most importantly, it will require visionary leadership that has the foresight and the humility to subsume short-term brand needs and organisational priorities in favour of solidarity, collaboration and critical mass.

VANI: How do you look at the involvement of voluntary sector at the forums like BRICS, SAARC, G8, and G20? How do you rate the sector’s engagement with these forums? Do we have an effective voice/representation? If not, how can we change this taking the engagement to a higher stage, which is substantial and productive?

Ingrid: Civil society has made great headway since the WTO in Seattle in 1999 in establishing its right to participate in these fora. It would be near unthinkable for any global forum today to completely exclude civil society participation. That said, governments have exploited heightened fears of security threats and other ruses to limit or dilute civil society participation. Better linkages between international and national civil society groups could overcome this to a large extent by generating political traction at the national level for positions advocated at the global level. Building awareness at the grassroots of the consequences of global decisions, and making connections across national boundaries and thematic silos, are vital if we are to achieve progress on any of the key issues of our time.

VANI: Being head of an international body of voluntary organizations, can you make a comparative observation of the countries in terms of having a vibrant voluntary sector?

Ingrid: Countries vary widely in the scale, diversity, resilience and capacities of their civil societies. At one extreme are countries where repression prevents the very existence of civil society in any organised form. At the other end of the spectrum are countries where citizens enjoy their guaranteed freedoms of expression, assembly and association as well as financial support and openness to participation at the highest levels of policy formulation. CIVICUS has just concluded the second phase of its Civil Society Index reports. This round covered 24 countries, in which local civil society analysed the health of their own civil society on dimensions like extent of civic engagement, level of organisation, practice of values, perceived impact and external environment. The “CSI diamonds” and the detailed reports for each country permit comparisons across countries on each of these dimensions. It is interesting, for instance, to note that only 8% of the 4122 organisations who participated rated their country’s environment as “fully enabling” whilst 11% described them as “highly restrictive” and 36% as “quite limited”. More details may be found at: CSI Publications

Recent events in the Middle East and North Africa have demonstrated quite clearly the difference between those countries where civil society has had even a little space to survive and operate versus those where it has been almost completely extinguished. Much the same can be observed in the response to and recovery from recent natural disasters around the world. We can take some heart in the fact that even the most extreme repression appears unable to completely eliminate peoples’ basic human need to act collectively in defence of their rights, freedoms and interests.

VANI: How do you look at the voluntary sector in India from a global perspective?

Ingrid: India is fortunate in having a large, diverse, vibrant civil society with organic roots in communities. Despite recent attempts to impose constraints by politicians and interest groups, and in part because of these attempts, civil society survives and thrives, often on shoestring budgets, in its myriad forms across every part of India. The vast size of the sector, its diversity and its relative lack of dependence on state, corporate or international funding endows it with strength, credibility, influence and resilience. It could, however, leverage these strengths to a greater degree if it were willing to act collectively in investing a tiny fraction of its attention to protecting and enhancing the environment and infrastructure it depends on for its success and in engaging more at the international level. As in all large, complex countries, civil society in India has much to focus on domestically and relatively lower need for international support or solidarity. As India seeks to play a greater global role, however, Indian civil society is, in my view, lagging behind its government, business and media counterparts on this front. CIVICUS, and I personally, would be happy to provide any support necessary to advance these priorities.

Roundtable on New IT initiatives for the Voluntary Sector
26 April 2011: VANI organized a roundtable discussion to understand the current status of voluntary sector with regard to their current ICT/Internet usage, challenges faced and possible roadmap to empower the NGO community.  This was in collaboration with .ORG, the Public Interest Registry, with 9 million domains globally, along with Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF), which runs the highly unique eNGO program across the grass roots NGOs.

20th April 2011: National and Global Voluntary Organizations: Linkages, Possibilities, and Opportunities at VANI, New Delhi
The meeting was aimed to look at the challenges faced by the voluntary sector across the globe and to explore the ways to build a constructive and productive relationship amongst all the movements and campaigns both at the national and international level. Representatives from CIVICUS, GCAP, CAF India etc participated in the same.
Click here to read the report>>>

Mauritius Delegation visits VANI
April 11 – 23: A delegation of three members from Mauritius Council of Social Services (MACOSS) visited VANI as part of CIVICUS peer learning exchange programme. Besides meeting with VANI, the delegation also visited institutions like PRIA, CSE, Development Alternatives, Deepalaya, and CHRI. Possibilities of building a vibrant relationship between Indian and Mauritius voluntary sector are being explored.

VANI submits its appeal on FCRA Rules 2010 
In order to develop response to the proposed rules under FCRA 2010, VANI organized half day consultation with the Delhi based voluntary organizations on 18th March 2011 at NFI, New Delhi. Representatives from networks, donors, charted accountants, research and service delivery organizations attended. The Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs also joined the discussions. Many suggestions were offered for incorporation into the rules.
To see the appeal submitted by VANI Click here…

March 10, 2011: Challenges faced by the Voluntary Sector at Ranchi, Jharkhand
In continuation of its efforts towards sharing the challenges faced by voluntary organizations and disseminate the information about changes in regulatory environment, VANI organized state meeting in Ranchi. This meeting was organized on March 10, 2011, in collaboration with Jharkhand voluntary Action Network and Lok Jagriti Kendra.  25 participants representing state and district level organizations attended the meeting. The issues related to constraints faced by VOs due to disturbances in the state were discussed. Participants also shared their concerns with rapidly shrinking space for voluntary action. Read More...

Government tightens foreign fund flow for NGOs   
Sweeping changes in the rules to enforce the law governing foreign contributions can make it easier for the government to put advocacy groups on a tight leash. Easily branded as having a political nature, they will have to run to the home ministry every time they want to receive foreign funds. The rules drafted by the ministry cover NGOs that comment on 'political activities' and 'habitually' employ common methods of political action. Read more...

VANI - FMSF launches E-Help-line 
VANI in partnership with FMSF launched an "Electronic Help-line" for Voluntary organizations and Voluntary Activists on April 01, 2011. Those who have any question related to FCRA, Income Tax, Registration or any other related harassment on freedom of association and democratic action, can upload their queries on VANI website (www.vaniindia.org). The queries can also be mailed to e-helpline@vaniindia.org.

This initiative of VANI and FMSF is a response to the feedback received during various consultations with Voluntary Organizations about deliberate restrictions on the space of voluntary action. The objective is to collect such data for advocacy purpose as well as seek help from experts to provide solutions.

VANI supports Anna Hazare's Demand for joint committee to draft Lokpal bill 
The last six months have been very volatile for India. Scams and corruption cases worth crores have unfolded sporadically in the country e.g. CWG scam, 2G scam, Adarsh Housing Society, fake pilots, land allotments etc. Against this backdrop, VANI extends its whole-hearted support and solidarity with Shri Anna Hazare for his bold initiative to root out corruption.

Click here to read more>>>

A Brief Summary of Sanya Declaration of the BRICS Leaders Meeting
Representatives of the BRICS countries came together in China on April 14, 2011.  The meeting culminated with Sanya Declaration. VANI believes that for various reasons, the deliberations of the BRICS will have far-reaching implications for the development of the concerned countries. Therefore, VANI summarized the Sanya Declaration to highlight the major issues that we thought are important.

Click here to read the summary of Sanya Declaration>>>

Taiwan Foundation for Democracy is accepting nominations for 2011 Asia Democracy and Human Rights Award
The Taiwan Foundation for Democracy is open to accepting nominations from the public for its 2011 Asia Democracy and Human Rights Award given to an individual or organization making significant contributions to the advancement of democracy or human rights in Asia.

Voluntary Organisations and Rural Development
In his latest report submitted to Parliament on December 10, 2010, the CAG of India gives some interesting insight into the functioning of the Council for Advancement of People’s Action and Rural Technology (Capart), a society registered and operating as an autonomous body under the ministry of rural development.
Read more...

Counting of poor under SC scanner
The method for counting India’s poor is under a legal scrutiny. The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the government in Right To Food case the efficacy of the below poverty line survey, to be held in June this year, if all the poor identified fail to get government benefit.
Read more...

4-member sub-panel on corruption set up
The nine-member group of ministers (GoM) set up by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to recommend an effective anti-graft mechanism on Wednesday decided to discuss the Lokpal bill with civil society activists led by Anna Hazare.
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PM calls for increasing health spending to five percent
New Delhi, March 18 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Friday said public spending on health needs to be increased from the less than two percent right now to five percent in the next five years.
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India sitting over Rs. 1 lakh cr of unused external aid: CAG
India is sitting on unused foreign aid of over Rs. 1 lakh crore reflecting inadequate planning by ministries like urban development, water resources and energy, a report by government auditor Comptroller and Auditor-General of India (CAG) has said.
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India battles staggering tuberculosis burden
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