A draft law being prepared in the Central African Republic aimed at regulating the activities of “foreign agents” is raising concerns among civil society organizations, NGOs, the media, and international partners. Scheduled to be examined in parliament this Friday, the text was finally sent back to the government by the National Assembly Commission for “additional information”, as indicated this Thursday by sources in Bangui.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The draft text designates as \u201cforeign agents\u201d individuals or organizations, whether Central African or foreign, receiving \u201csupport or assistance\u201d from abroad. The targets include political activities, the collection of military and technical intelligence, and the dissemination of messages described as \u201cinsurrectional.\u201d The bill also requires these agents to register with the authorities and provide an accounting report every six months, as well as details of their programs and media activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This text, perceived as liberticidal by a part of the population, has led to a significant mobilization: 44 national associations signed a petition demanding its withdrawal, presented Thursday to the National Assembly by the Network of Civil Society Organizations for Governance and Development (ROSCA-GD). Mo\u00efse Adoumbaye, representative of ROSCA-GD, warned of the restrictive effects of this bill, highlighting the risks for civil liberties and international cooperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Faced with criticism, government spokesman Maxime Balalou justified the project by the need to protect the country against alleged “infiltrations”, particularly within NGOs. He mentioned the possible presence of former military personnel within certain organizations and specified that “the text is not yet complete.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The \u201cforeign agents\u201d bill illustrates a dilemma for the Central African Republic: protecting its national sovereignty while maintaining cooperation with international partners essential to its development. The final decision could affect the country\u2019s economic and humanitarian support, while potentially marking a turning point for civil rights and freedom of expression.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A draft law being prepared in the Central African Republic aimed at regulating the activities of “foreign agents” is raising concerns among civil society organizations, NGOs, the media, and international partners. Scheduled to be examined in parliament this Friday, the text was finally sent back to the government by the National Assembly Commission for “additional […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2811,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39,43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africa","category-policy"],"yoast_head":"\n