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Global Civil Society in the Shadow of Coronavirus Richard Youngs, editor Cristina Buzaşu | Youssef Cherif | Hafsa Halawa | Ming-sho Ho | Maureen Kademaunga | Jasmin Lorch Paweł Marczewski | Vijayan MJ | Ilina Neshikj | Elene Panchulidze | Federico M. Rossi | Otto Saki Natalia Shapovalova | Janjira Sombatpoonsiri | Biljana Spasovska | Mariam Tsitsikashvili Rostislav Valvoda | Marisa von Bülow | David Wong | Özge Zihnioğlu
Global Civil Society in the Shadow of Coronavirus Richard Youngs, editor Cristina Buzaşu | Youssef Cherif | Hafsa Halawa | Ming-sho Ho | Maureen Kademaunga | Jasmin Lorch Paweł Marczewski | Vijayan MJ | Ilina Neshikj | Elene Panchulidze | Federico M. Rossi | Otto Saki Natalia Shapovalova | Janjira Sombatpoonsiri | Biljana Spasovska | Mariam Tsitsikashvili Rostislav Valvoda | Marisa von Bülow | David Wong | Özge Zihnioğlu
The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Democracy, Conflict, and Governance
Program thanks the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the UK Foreign,
ii Commonwealth and Development Office, and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and
Trade for research support that makes possible the work of the Civic Research Network.
The views expressed in this report are the responsibility of the authors alone.
© 2020 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are the
author(s) own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without permission
in writing from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Please direct inquiries to:
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This publication can be downloaded at no cost at CarnegieEndowment.org.CONTENTS
About the Authors v C HA P TER 7
Georgia’s Fight Against the
Coronavirus: Fusing State and
Introduction 1 Societal Resilience 37
Richard Youngs Elene Panchulidze and
Mariam Tsitsikashvili
CHA P T E R 1
Southeast Asia Between C HA P TER 8
Autocratization and Democratic Confrontation Versus Cooperation
Resurgence 5 in Polish and Romanian Civil Society 41
Jasmin Lorch and Cristina Buzaşu and Paweł Marczewski
Janjira Sombatpoonsiri
C HA P TER 9
CHA P T E R 2 Filling Democracy’s Gaps in the
Watchdogs and Partners: Taiwan’s Western Balkans 47
Civil Society Organizations 11 Ilina Neshikj and Biljana Spasovska
iii
Ming-sho Ho
C HA P TER 10
CHA P T E R 3 Reclaiming Civil Society Legitimacy
Dark Clouds and Silver Linings: in Zimbabwe 53
Authoritarianism and Civic Action Maureen Kademaunga and Otto Saki
in India 17
Vijayan MJ
C HA P TER 11
An Increased Role for Civil Society
CHA P T E R 4 in the United States 59
The Coronavirus and Civic Activism David Wong
in the Middle East and North Africa 21
Youssef Cherif, Hafsa Halawa,
C HA P TER 12
and Özge Zihnioğlu
The Coronavirus and Civil Society
Realities in Latin America 65
CHA P T E R 5 Marisa von Bülow and
Civil Society Versus Authoritarians Federico M. Rossi
in Eastern Europe and Central Asia 27
Rostislav Valvoda
Notes 71
CHA P T E R 6
The Coronavirus Crisis as an Carnegie Endowment for
Opportunity in Ukraine 31 International Peace 86
Natalia ShapovalovaCIVIC RESEARCH NETWORK
iv The Carnegie Civic Research Network is a network
of leading experts on civic activism, dedicated to
examining the changing patterns of civic activism in
their countries and analyzing the implications for a new
generation of civil society assistance. Additional reports
by the Civic Research Network include Global Civic
Activism in Flux and The Mobilization of Conservative
Civil Society.ABOUT THE AUTHORS
C R I STI NA B UZ AS U is a state adviser in the JA SMIN LORCH is a research fellow at the
Romanian government, where she advises the prime German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA).
minister on European affairs. She is also a member of
the Carnegie Civic Research Network.
PAWEŁ MA RCZEWSKI is the head of the
Citizens research unit at the ideaForum, a think tank of
YOU SS E F C HER I F is the director of Columbia the Batory Foundation in Warsaw. He is also a member
Global Centers Tunis. He is also a member of the of the Carnegie Civic Research Network. v
Carnegie Civic Research Network.
VIJAYA N MJ is an independent researcher and
HA FSA HA L AWA is an independent consultant writer associated with The Research Collective and
who works on political, social, and economic affairs the Centre for Financial Accountability in New Delhi,
and development goals across the Middle East and India. He is also the secretary general of the India
North Africa. She is also a nonresident scholar at the Chapter of the Pakistan India Peoples’ Forum for Peace
Middle East Institute and a member of the Carnegie and Democracy. He is a member of the Carnegie Civic
Civic Research Network. Research Network.
M IN G -S H O H O is a professor of sociology at the ILIN A N ESH IKJ is a former executive director
National Taiwan University. He is also a member of the of the Balkan Civil Society Development Network
Carnegie Civic Research Network. (BCSDN) and now interim executive director of
Accountable Now.
M AU R E E N K ADEMAUNGA is a doctoral
fellow at the Human Economy Research Program of ELEN E PA N CH U LIDZE is an analyst at the
the Center for the Advancement of Scholarship at the Georgian Institute of Politics and an academic assistant
University of Pretoria. She is also a member of the at the College of Europe, Bruges.
Carnegie Civic Research Network.F E DE R I CO M. ROSS I is a professor of MA RIA M TSITSIKA SH VILI is a researcher
political science at the Argentine National Scientific and project manager at Georgia’s Reforms Associates.
and Technical Research Council (CONICET) at the
National University of San Martín, Buenos Aires, and
a Humboldt senior fellow at the German Institute for ROSTISLAV VA LVODA is the executive
Global and Area Studies. director of the Prague Civil Society Centre.
OTTO SAKI is a global program officer on civic MA RISA VON B Ü LOW is a professor of
engagement and government with an international political science at the University of Brasília, Brazil.
foundation. He writes here in his own capacity. She is also a member of the Carnegie Civic Research
Network.
NATA L IA S HAP OVALOVA is an independent
researcher based in Kyiv, Ukraine. She is also a member DAVID WON G is a former junior fellow with the
of the Carnegie Civic Research Network. Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program at the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
B I L JA N A S PASOVS KA is the executive
director of BCSDN. RICH A RD YOU N GS is a senior fellow in the
Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program at
vi Carnegie Europe.
JA NJ I RA SO MBAT P O O NS I R I is a researcher
at the Institute of Asian Studies at Chulalongkorn
University in Thailand and an associate at GIGA. ÖZGE ZİH N İOĞLU is a lecturer in politics at the
She is also a member of the Carnegie Civic Research University of Liverpool. She is also a member of the
Network. Carnegie Civic Research Network. She would like to
thank Mehmet Ali Çalışkan and Ayşe Yıkıcı for their
helpful comments in preparing her chapter.INTRODUCTION
R ICHA R D YO U NGS
The coronavirus pandemic has placed acute stress and to tighten control over civil society actors? To the
high expectations on governments around the world. extent that they have emerged, what do new forms of
Much has been written on a return to big government. civic activism look like? Do they portend a different 1
The focus on government responses is understandable, kind of global civil society, a remolded civic sphere
as citizens have looked to authorities for effective likely to influence global politics in different ways in
responses—and often, these responses have made the the post-pandemic world? If so, what are the political
difference between life and death. Yet, the pandemic has implications of this civic adjustment?
had a profound impact not only on government policies
but also on societies. The crisis has played out at the The compilation explores these issues through twelve
public authority level and, equally, at the community chapters that cover Southeast Asia, Taiwan, India, the
and civil society levels. Somewhat unnoticed amid the Middle East and North Africa, Eastern Europe and
focus on governments’ crisis responses, the coronavirus Central Asia, Ukraine, Georgia, Poland and Romania,
pandemic has sharpened and intensified the importance the Western Balkans, Zimbabwe, the United States,
of organized civil society action. and Latin America. The cases show that the pandemic
has acted as a powerful catalyst for global civil society.
This compilation examines the nature of these In all regions, demand for civic activism has risen and
coronavirus-related shifts in global civil society. It is new spaces have opened for civil society organizations
based on the contention that a deeper understanding (CSOs) to play prominent and multilevel roles in the
is required of society-level responses to the crisis and crisis. The pandemic has given global civil society
the ways in which the pandemic is reshaping the a new sense of urgency, unleashed a spirit of civic
relationship between states and societies. Across several empowerment, and prompted CSOs to deepen their
regions and countries, the compilation asks a series of presence in local societies. In some countries, civic
questions: How far has the pandemic galvanized new activism has also had to move up a gear and assume
forms of civic activism? How far has it led governments stronger defensive strategies because regimes have usedthe pandemic to attack critical civil society voices. The the cases studies here, civil society has moved up a gear
coronavirus pandemic period has seen heightened to monitor government responses to the pandemic.
demand for, and an increased supply of, civic activism This has entailed a focus on the emergency powers
as well as a need for CSOs to push back against harsher that executives have appropriated to manage the crisis.
government restrictions. While these measures have clearly infringed on many
basic freedoms, they have also triggered a wave of new
In terms of the ways civil society has expanded, the case monitoring initiatives as civil society seeks to keep
studies reveal three levels of new, coronavirus-related governments under close scrutiny in the way they use
civic activism. First, the crisis has prompted CSOs to these powers.
step into emergency relief roles to help manage the
effects of the pandemic. This has involved both new This level of activism has also focused on the basic
civic groups emerging, often at a very local community governance effectiveness of crisis responses and on the
level, and existing CSOs repurposing themselves away breadth of measures to offset the economic impacts of
from their normal activities. Civil society has moved the coronavirus. Governments that have scored badly
in to fill the gaps left by governments in their often on these counts have been subject to sharper critical
strained and chaotic policy responses to the emergency. pressure from civil society. Civic groups have been
In some countries, these gaps have been left by sheer ready not only to support governments in consensual
government negligence and obliged societies to spirit but also to engage in confrontational tactics when
adopt a self-help mentality of managing the crisis for governments fall short.
themselves. In other countries, the gaps reflect the scale
of the tragedy, with governments taking wide-ranging At a third level, the crisis has galvanized global civil
2 measures more in constructive cooperation with civil society into pushing harder for far-reaching, radical
society. Coronavirus-related activism has been a matter change to social, economic, and political models. The
of both compensation for government failure and coronavirus crisis has magnified many of the imbalances
partnership with government intervention. of countries’ political and economic systems. As many
governments have reacted in restrictive and ineffective
This strand of civic activism has seen many civic ways, civil society has pushed back hard. It has begun
organizations assume new functions and identities. to mobilize more proactively and with vibrancy for
Many CSOs have sought to prove themselves in ways major reform of social and economic models whose
that are relevant to the health emergency and have shortcomings the pandemic has cruelly revealed. This
taken on vital coronavirus-related roles. This has, in is, so far, the least widespread and least prominent of
many places, helped civil society actors gain greater the three levels of modified activism; yet, it could prove
prominence and even a renewed legitimacy with to be the most significant over the long term.
their local societies. Not all civil society actors have
adjusted, but in many countries they have shown The balance between these three dynamics has varied
themselves more attuned with local communities than dramatically across countries. If this is civil society’s
for many years. This is true of both very new, informal, moment, CSOs are rising to the challenge better in
mutual aid initiatives and the more structured parts of some countries than in others.
organized civil society.
Civil society is gaining importance in many
At a second level, a more confrontational form of civic contrasting ways. The balance between cooperative and
activism has gained force as CSOs have increased their conflictual dynamics differs across states, depending
role as watchdogs over state authorities. In nearly all on government policies. Those countries in whichregimes have downplayed the virus or resisted wide- while in other places, the danger is more one of co-
ranging responses have seen the most game-changing, optation as CSOs work with regimes on health issues
crisis-like civic activism. In some states, the powerful and then may struggle to revert to more contentious
dynamic is one of conflict, contention, and political political strategies. In some countries, governments’
crisis, while in others, governments have contained mismanagement of the pandemic has awoken more
turbulence. In some countries, incumbent regimes have critical pressure on wider political aims; yet in others,
doubled down on their assaults against civil society, the pandemic has somewhat diverted attention from
while elsewhere, CSOs have found ways to participate pressing reform imperatives. In this sense, global civil
more cooperatively and consequentially in key society may be in a phase of adjustment with significant
government decisions. ramifications: some activism is set to become more
practical and community rooted, while other civic
An important question is how these different levels of mobilization will become more overtly politicized.
civic activism sit in relation to each other—both in the
immediate crisis and in the longer-term recovery period. In sum, the coronavirus has been a wake-up call for
Many CSOs now face the challenge of cooperating global civil society. The pandemic has placed heavy
with authorities on coronavirus relief while trying to responsibilities and strains not only on governments
retain their more critical agendas on political issues. but also on societies around the world. While much
Civic organizations will increasingly wrestle with the attention has focused on governments’ emergency
question of how far their new, repurposed pandemic responses, at a deeper level the crisis is changing the
identities can coexist with their previous identities. relationship between states and societies. Global civil
society will come out of the pandemic looking very
These chapters show that in some countries, sharp different—and this change will be a significant factor 3
political tension is likely to crowd out positive in a now highly fluid international politics.
cooperation between governments and civil society,CHAPTER 1
SOUTHEAST ASIA BETWEEN
AUTOCRATIZATION AND
DEMOCRATIC RESURGENCE
JA S M I N LO RCH AND JANJI RA SO M BATPOON SIRI
In Southeast Asia, the coronavirus pandemic presents aid initiatives, organized relief efforts, and repurposed
both challenges for civic engagement and opportunities advocacy groups.
for positive change. On one hand, the pandemic has 5
provided a pretext for autocrats to tighten their grip
on power, deepening existing regional trends in TOUGHER GOVERNMENT
autocratization and shrinking civic space. On the other RESTRICTIONS
hand, civil society organizations (CSOs) have emerged
to focus on economic and social welfare needs, and The spread of the coronavirus is potentially accelerating
their activism may challenge autocrats in the long run. autocratization in the region as leaders in many
countries have used the pandemic as a pretext to increase
Although some regimes have been effective in their power.1 All major Southeast Asian governments
addressing the health emergency and nascent except Indonesia’s have imposed emergency decrees,
economic setbacks, others have performed poorly and curfews, or similar laws in light of the pandemic.2 This
faced growing domestic criticism. Southeast Asian has helped consolidate effective government responses
civil society will need to leverage the weaknesses of to the pandemic in countries such as Singapore and
autocratic governance that the pandemic has revealed by Vietnam, but such laws have also been used to crack
creating broad-based alliances, challenging autocratic down on government critics and undermine opposition
narratives, and proposing democratic visions for post- parties, furthering authoritarian power grabs.
pandemic societies.
A worrying case occurred in the Philippines, where
Five trends are emerging in Southeast Asia as a result Congress, dominated by President Rodrigo Duterte’s
of the pandemic and are pushing in very different loyalists, granted the president emergency powers
political directions: tougher government restrictions under an act that also contained a provision penalizing
on CSOs, contentious civil society action, new mutual fake news. This was widely seen as an instrument togo after opponents, and indeed, the National Bureau Apart from emergency laws, existing media and cyber
of Investigation pressed charges against online critics laws in most Southeast Asian countries have proved
of the government’s crisis management.3 Similarly, in useful in silencing civic and democratic criticisms
the middle of the pandemic, Congress passed a new of governments’ pandemic responses. For instance,
antiterrorism law, which defines terrorism in such Indonesia’s 2008 law on electronic information and
broad terms as to allow the government to classify transactions was used against an independent researcher
political criticism as terrorism.4 In September 2020, who was critical of the coronavirus measures taken by
Duterte extended the national “state of calamity” by the government of President Joko Widodo.11
a year.5
In Vietnam between January and March 2020,
Things are not looking brighter in Thailand or police responded to 654 cases of so-called fake
Myanmar. The Thai military-backed government’s news, sanctioning 146 people including a dissident
March 2020 emergency decree remains in place even publisher.12 In Singapore, the 2019 Protection From
though the threat of the coronavirus has been contained Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act has been
in the country.6 Along with other draconian laws, used to target not only spreaders of fake news about
the decree has been used to charge anti-government the pandemic but also journalists and political rivals of
protesters as young as sixteen years old and circumvent the ruling People’s Action Party government. Eighty-
parliamentary checks on executive power.7 The decree five percent of all online posts defined as false under the
has also limited the public backlash against allegations law consisted of negative portrayals of the government’s
of the government’s involvement in human rights activities or policies.13
violations, including the forced disappearance of an
6 exiled activist who was critical of the government.8 In Malaysia, citizens have been arrested for what
the government has branded fake news about
Myanmar’s quasi-civilian government has refrained the pandemic.14 For instance, through the 1998
from invoking a nationwide emergency but has arrested Communications and Multimedia Act, the Malaysian
large numbers of people for disobedience. Journalists police summoned a journalist who was questioning
have likewise been prosecuted for alleged violations the government’s treatment of migrant workers amid
of pandemic-related regulations, and a group of street the pandemic.15
artists was charged with offending religion in their
artwork about the coronavirus. Meanwhile, restrictions The Cambodian regime tightened its grip on power
on meetings between CSOs and parliamentarians on by declaring a state of emergency in March 2020.
grounds of health protection have further limited CSO Activists were detained on charges of spreading false
advocacy for fundamental rights, reinforcing a trend that information about the coronavirus, and the country’s
existed before the pandemic.9 After a spike in coronavirus prime minister directly threatened with arrest the leader
infections, the Myanmar government imposed partial of a local human rights nongovernmental organization
lockdowns in Rakhine state and the country’s largest (NGO) who had commented on the government’s crisis
city, Yangon, in late August and early September 2020, response.16 The allegation of spreading fake news also
respectively. Myanmar’s State Counselor Aung San Suu led to the arrests of key members of the opposition, a
Kyi warned that disrespecting coronavirus regulations practice all too common since the Cambodian Supreme
would be punished with up to a year’s imprisonment.10 Court dissolved the main opposition party before the
2018 general election.17CONTENTIOUS CIVIL SOCIETY In Thailand, growing economic concerns due to
ACTION lockdown measures have taken a new turn. Since
mid-July 2020, young people, whose job prospects
The second trend contrasts with the first, as contentious have dimmed and whose grievances over the country’s
civic activism has occurred despite and, at times, against autocratization are deepening, have been leading
draconian government restrictions. This activism has nationwide protests against the regime. Students were
been driven mostly by economic and social welfare already on the streets in February and early March
needs in conjunction with ensuing grievances against 2020 after Thailand’s constitutional court disbanded
regimes. Most Southeast Asian countries rely on a progressive party. Defiance against the regime
tourism and export industries. Without substantive diminished with the advent of the coronavirus and the
compensation for workers, governments’ lockdown subsequent lockdown but then resurfaced even more
measures have aggravated the lot of the unemployed, strongly. As of this writing, students—together with
who have sometimes responded by staging spontaneous LGBTQ groups, labor movements, and development
protests. Regimes’ unsympathetic responses have stirred NGOs—have organized more than 200 protests across
public anger. the country. One major event on September 19, 2020,
gathered between 50,000 and 100,000 people—the
For instance, in the Philippines, a small group of urban biggest protest since Thailand’s 2014 military coup.24
poor people affected by the Duterte government’s harsh In what has become one of the world’s most prominent
lockdown protested in Manila to demand livelihood revolts, protesters are demanding the prime minister’s
support. They were soon arrested, with Duterte calling resignation and democratic reform of the constitution
on law enforcers to “shoot them dead” if they caused and the monarchy. Corresponding to these three
any “trouble.”18 CSOs such as the leftist Solidarity of demands is a three-finger salute that protesters have 7
Filipino Workers were quick to condemn the arrests.19 taken from the movie series The Hunger Games as an
Meanwhile, rights groups and ordinary citizens tweeted anti-dictatorship symbol.25
their criticism with hashtags such as #DuterteResign
and #OustDuterteNOW.20 Another type of contentious civil society action has
countered problematic government narratives about
In Myanmar, factory workers staged small-scale the coronavirus and related government relief efforts. In
protests against the government’s pandemic-related several Southeast Asian countries, civil society activists
measures, resulting in the legal prosecution of some and journalists have actively disputed government
workers.21 In May 2020, over thirty Cambodian and misinformation about the pandemic, for instance
international NGOs issued a joint statement urging through online campaigns. In the Philippines, civil
the Cambodian government to allow around 150 society activists have worked with the nonprofit media
Cambodian migrant workers stranded in Malaysia to organization Vera Files in a fact-checking community
re-enter their home country.22 With growing job losses on Facebook whose existence predates the pandemic.
and layoffs, independent labor unions in Cambodia, In Malaysia, civil society activists and media outlets
Myanmar, and the Philippines have called on their such as the online magazine Malaysiakini have sought
respective governments to provide urgent compensation to hold the government accountable during the crisis
for workers.23 and lobbied against government attempts to curtail
online expression.26NEW MUTUAL AID INITIATIVES In addition, Buddhist monks, religious leaders of the
Muslim minority, and Christian churches have allowed
New volunteer groups have emerged to provide their religious compounds to be used as quarantine
humanitarian relief and welfare services in place of centers.31 Similarly, in the Philippines, citizens have
governments. These groups are not necessarily run come together to make PPE for frontline health
by seasoned activists but often by local residents professionals, distributed food packs for the homeless,
who have organized to cope with the health crisis, and made cash transfers to the unemployed.32 In
subsequent economic setbacks, and coronavirus-related Cambodia, diverse actors, including CSOs and
lockdown measures. business tycoons, have made donations to support the
government’s efforts to counter the coronavirus.33
A striking example is the citizen-organized task force of
the village of Gumuk Indah in Yogyakarta, Indonesia,
where the government’s responses to the pandemic ORGANIZED CSO RELIEF EFFORTS
have been slow and uncoordinated.27 The task force has
provided health responses, including health education Organized CSOs have played critical roles in helping
and hygiene measures, to prevent transmission of the vulnerable communities. In Malaysia, Thailand, and
virus; supported people affected by the lockdown with Vietnam, charity groups were set up to raise funds
aid kits; and sought to counter the security impacts of to buy medical supplies and food for slum dwellers,
the pandemic and associated lockdown measures. The disabled people, and migrant workers.34 Although these
task force has drawn on volunteers, some of whom charities are not by nature advocacy organizations,
were previously active in neighborhood associations some have urged the government to adopt more
8 and local community-building organizations. The comprehensive social policies that aid economically
example of Gumuk Indah has sparked discussions in and socially vulnerable people in times of crisis.35
the international humanitarian community of ways to
include people-centered approaches in humanitarian In Malaysia, NGO relief efforts kick-started a
programs better and, possibly, move from community renegotiation of NGO-government relations in
engagement to community-led engagement.28 the field of care for vulnerable migrant and refugee
communities. The Movement Control Order,
While in March 2020 the Indonesian authorities issued by the government to counter the spread
still downplayed the seriousness of the pandemic, of the coronavirus, initially barred NGO access to
professional groups were quick to respond. Tech migrant and refugee populations, with the military
start-ups launched crowdfunding campaigns to raise and a paramilitary corps distributing all pandemic-
funds for informal-sector workers and buy personal related aid to these communities.36 But after NGOs
protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers. launched a campaign called Let Us Work With You,
By late March, around 15,000 medical students from the government adjusted the order to allow NGOs
158 universities across Indonesia had volunteered in to distribute food and other emergency supplies to
understaffed hospitals.29 The Women’s Police in West affected communities.37 Subsequent cooperation has
Java donated their already low salaries to buy food for improved relations between the government and some
affected residents.30 NGOs.38 Still, a recent study also shows that Malaysian
CSOs that help vulnerable communities themselves
In Myanmar, CSOs, religious organizations, and local face serious challenges in light of the pandemic,
companies have provided food and other emergency including financial shortages and the disruption of staff
supplies for the needy, filling gaps left by the state. development due to economic uncertainties.39In Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi’s government has for a Challenging Duterte’s militaristic framing of the fight
long time been reluctant to cooperate with civil society against the pandemic, Filipino human rights groups
and so far failed to provide adequate support for CSOs such as Active Vista have refocused their activities to
that work to counter the coronavirus pandemic.40 Yet, link human rights with equal access to public health.
the country’s CSOs play important roles in mitigating These groups hope to reshape human rights discourses
the social and economic impacts of the coronavirus in terms of “people working together out of generosity
and have engaged in critical advocacy to influence the to achieve a common goal” and “a shared sense of
government’s response to the health crisis. identity and treating others with respect and dignity
as [equals].”45
For instance, the Livelihoods and Food Security Fund,
a multidonor fund managed by the United Nations A similar trend has occurred in Singapore, where
Office for Project Services, estimates that over 80 percent xenophobic rhetoric against migrant workers has
of its coronavirus response activities are conducted by surged in light of the country’s second coronavirus
its local partners, with local CSOs engaging in relief wave. An outspoken LGBTQ movement, Pink Dot,
efforts as different as welfare and health service delivery, has extended its support to migrant workers by raising
education, awareness training, and the provision of funds for, and delivering care packages to, many of
legal assistance to migrant workers.41 In May 2020, those who were trapped in dormitories because of
over 200 CSOs from diverse professional and ethnic coronavirus restrictions. Based on the informal modes
backgrounds issued a joint statement in which they of activism the movement has developed, Pink Dot
urged Myanmar’s government to provide food and has organized online activities such as livestreamed
financial support for people in need; advocated respect performances and interactive discussions. On June 27,
for human rights, democracy, and social justice in the 2020, the movement invited supporters to light up 9
government’s crisis response; and demanded an end to their homes and workplaces in pink and share pictures
armed conflict in ethnic areas.42 of small gatherings with close ones. These activities
sent a message of solidarity between Singaporeans
and migrant workers, countered xenophobic
REPURPOSED ADVOCACY GROUPS attitudes toward migrants, and, most importantly,
FOR WELFARE DELIVERY ignited conversations about social justice in post-
pandemic Singapore.46
Finally, advocacy groups that repurpose their agendas
for social and economic welfare activities have been
able to leverage the health crisis to carve out a new HARNESSING OPPORTUNITIES
civic space, counter regimes’ narratives, and generate
progressive social visions for the post-coronavirus It is clear that the coronavirus pandemic is reinforcing
context. In Thailand, student activists who launched an existing trend of autocratization in Southeast Asia
anti-junta campaigns before the pandemic have partly and that this trend will persist in the short to medium
shifted to humanitarian work by distributing food term. This will have detrimental effects on contentious
packs to the unemployed, slum dwellers, and affected antiregime activism, although it remains to be seen
sex workers.43 Meanwhile in Myanmar, some ethnic whether Thailand’s high-profile, ongoing protests will
minority activists have reoriented themselves from yield substantive outcomes in the coming months. All
human rights campaigns to health advocacy and service Southeast Asian regimes have imposed severe legal or
provision, including by distributing food and other de facto restrictions on civil liberties, preventing the
basic goods in remote areas.44 development of strong, civil society–based oppositionmovements. However, increasing social engagement in For this to happen, politically contentious civic groups
the context of the health crisis seems to be enlarging will need to form alliances with welfare-based groups that
civic space in the area of social service provision. This are gaining traction among local communities. Human
engagement may have the potential to strengthen links rights and pro-democracy advocacy organizations will
between national and international civil society as well need to connect their political agendas with issues of
as between formally organized CSOs and informal, citizens’ welfare, including healthcare and economic
community-based groups in individual Southeast redistribution. Civic coalitions must counter regime
Asian countries. narratives that depict authoritarian leadership as
a success factor for an effective crisis response. In
This new dynamic of civic activism in the welfare sector Singapore and Vietnam, where governments have
does little to alter the autocratizing trend in the region. responded swiftly and effectively to the pandemic, such
However, improved relations between organized narratives are difficult to crack. However, in Indonesia,
CSOs and local communities may, in the long term, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Thailand,
contribute to creating a more legitimate and organic where governments have often failed to meet citizens’
civil society in many Southeast Asian countries. Thus, expectations, CSOs may well be able to challenge
new and reorienting civic groups with socioeconomic regime narratives about authoritarian effectiveness. And
welfare agendas may slowly gather the political force finally, the pandemic should push Southeast Asian civil
necessary to resist autocratization. society to develop more appealing visions of democracy
that leave no one behind in the post-pandemic world.
10CHAPTER 2
WATCHDOGS AND PARTNERS:
TAIWAN’S CIVIL SOCIETY
ORGANIZATIONS
M IN G -S H O HO
Taiwan adopted a widely acclaimed, successful In April, as Western countries began to experience
strategy to cope with the coronavirus pandemic. This rapid spikes in infections, Taiwan launched an
tempered criticism from civil society organizations international aid campaign, branded online with the 11
(CSOs). Unlike in most other countries covered in hashtag #Taiwancanhelp, and donated face masks and
this compilation, in Taiwan the pandemic did not medical supplies to countries in need. The campaign
trigger a major political crisis or polarization in civil garnered significant attention, raising Taiwan’s profile
society. Nevertheless, Taiwanese civic activists have as an international actor during the pandemic and
engaged strongly to make sure the government respects effectively neutralizing attempts by China and the
fundamental rights in its responses to the coronavirus. World Health Organization to isolate the nation.
On several specific issues, this has involved heightened Taiwan’s success has broader implications: a democracy
civic mobilization during the pandemic. that honors information transparency can generate
effective responses to the health crisis without resorting
to draconian measures, and citizens are voluntarily
A SUCCESS STORY complying with the government’s directives without
giving up their rights and liberties.
Despite its geographic proximity to China and high
flows of travelers to and from the mainland, the island There are several ingredients in Taiwan’s successful
nation of 23.7 million people had recorded only around recipe for responding to the pandemic. The government
500 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and seven adopted early and proactive measures, such as travel
related deaths as of mid-September 2020.47 Because bans and border screenings, to prevent the virus from
of rigorous preventive measures, Taiwan’s residents did entering the island. After its experience with the 2003
not experience lockdowns or stay-at-home orders, and outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS),
most commercial and civil activity went on as usual. a disease caused by an earlier coronavirus that came
While the world’s economy plunged, Taiwan’s gross from China, Taiwan already had legal and physical
domestic product has continued to grow in 2020. frameworks in place for responding to a public healthcrisis. Once news of COVID-19 broke, Taiwan’s opposition Kuomintang party had won the elections,
government leaders activated the Central Epidemic government officials might have been reluctant to issue
Command Center on January 21, 2020, two days timely travel restrictions and regulations for passengers
before a lockdown was imposed in Wuhan, China.48 entering Taiwan from China.
Taiwan’s public healthcare system, National Health
Insurance, played a critical role in this emergency. It What is more, the winning DPP government boasted
provided universal protection for citizens and residents, public health specialists among its top brass. Former
and the system’s database and pharmacy networks were Taiwanese vice president Chen Chien-jen is a leading
vital in distributing rationed face masks.49 epidemiologist with hands-on experience in the SARS
crisis, and Chen Chi-mai, a former vice premier, has
Taiwan’s strong machinery industry was a valuable a background in preventive medicine. These specialists
asset in helping to combat shortages of medical masks, were instrumental to the government’s ability to craft a
goggles, and protective clothing. Before the outbreak, robust package of responses.
Taiwan relied heavily on imports of masks, but with
concerted action by officials and industries at the Taiwan’s civil society, however, did not have to play a
outset of the pandemic, Taiwan quickly set up new prominent role in the nation’s crisis response, simply
manufacturing lines that dramatically increased the because the government reacted preemptively and
daily production of masks. With this, Taiwan became generated creditable results. It is sobering to see that
the world’s second-largest producer of face masks, not many affluent democracies have failed to deliver
only achieving self-sufficiency but also producing a sufficient personal protective equipment to frontline
surplus for international aid and export. medical workers and that charities and other CSOs
12 have had to take care of these basic provisions instead.
Finally, due to its previous experience of contagious While some democratically elected leaders have flouted
diseases, particularly SARS, the Taiwanese public the expertise of scientific communities and promoted
generally embraces a hygienic lifestyle. Hand washing contradictory and inconsistent messages, Taiwanese
before meals is rigorously promoted in kindergartens civil society has been spared the thankless task of
and elementary schools, and hand sanitizers are correcting misinformation and disseminating scientific
commonly available at the entrances to public knowledge about personal hygiene.
buildings. Wearing a face mask does not carry an
unwelcome stigma but is seen as a considerate gesture to The trend of civil society repurposing itself to fulfill
protect one another’s health. Adherence to government urgent needs is absent in Taiwan.51 Yet, Taiwan’s civil
guidelines on quarantine, physical distancing, and the society is not lying dormant in the ongoing health crisis.
compulsory wearing of masks is generally seen as a civic It has closely monitored the government’s coronavirus
virtue and duty.50 policies and decrees to make sure that these temporary
measures do not violate the fundamental principles
On January 11, 2020, Taiwan held presidential and of democracy and human rights or unnecessarily
legislative elections, which yielded landslide victories marginalize vulnerable groups. And Taiwanese civil
to the incumbent, independence-leaning Democratic society has collaborated with government agencies to
Progressive Party (DPP). President Tsai Ing-wen won ensure citizens receive undistorted information and
a second term, and her party maintained its legislative rationed face masks. In short, Taiwan’s civil society
majority. If the elections had taken place after the remains active simultaneously as a watchdog to, and a
coronavirus outbreak, politics could have prevented partner of, the government.
coordinated responses. And if the China-friendlyMONITORING GOVERNMENT the same place at the same time as those who were
RESPONSES reported to be infected with the coronavirus.54 The
government enforced a strict fourteen-day quarantine
With its stellar management of the coronavirus order for people who had recently returned from
emergency, the DPP government is enjoying high abroad and those who were permitted to enter
public approval—an unusual phenomenon for a Taiwan. These people were put on a rather intrusive
second-term presidency. In a June 2020 poll, 97 percent scheme of electronic surveillance by a mandated use of
of respondents assessed the Taiwanese government’s government-issued SIM cards in their cell phones.
response positively, while 80 percent judged the
Chinese government’s performance negatively.52 Chen While many officials appeared complacent about
Shih-chung, Taiwan’s emergency commander in chief these new digital tools and their efficacy, CSOs such
and minister of health and welfare, emerged as a as the Taiwan Association for Human Rights expressed
household name and Taiwan’s most popular politician, grave concern about the pernicious implications of
receiving a startling approval rating of 94 percent in a suspending privacy protections in favor of tracing
May 2020 opinion poll.53 the spread of the virus. Such human rights advocates
have issued many statements to remind the Taiwanese
By contrast, those critical of the government’s policies government that temporary measures need to be
have been met with a public backlash. The Kuomintang proportionate and terminated in due course and that
party’s approval rating has continued to nosedive since collected personal data must be properly disposed of
its electoral setback in January. One of the reasons for after the pandemic.
the slump is that opposition politicians are perceived
to have politicized the government’s responses to the Another concern flagged by civil society was that an 13
coronavirus, from banning exports of face masks in existing law authorized the government to reveal, if
January to rationing them in February to donating necessary, the personal information of those who had
them internationally in April. violated a quarantine order. Taiwan’s human rights
activists urged the government not to invoke this
Taiwan’s advocacy groups have stepped up their emergency authorization. Many feared that these
watchdog functions. The groups have been largely reinforced measures of surveillance might become
free from short-term political considerations because permanent features, because they had popular support
their missions are inspired by universal values or and were perceived as necessary for safeguarding public
commitments to underprivileged groups. One concern health.
of advocacy groups has been the pervasive use of digital
technology by authorities to prevent the spread of the In February 2020, several illegal migrant workers were
coronavirus. In a health emergency, Taiwan’s laws allow found to be infected with the coronavirus, which
the government to link databases of immigration, quickly generated a nationwide wave of nervousness.
household registration, and national health insurance to Many migrants had either stayed beyond their
improve the surveillance of individuals with suspected permitted period or changed employer without due
travel and contact histories. process during the pandemic. Taiwan’s civil society
activists and academics urged the government not to
The government also accessed the global positioning stigmatize these illegal migrants or escalate deportation
system information of mobile network operators and measures, because, the activists argued, such steps
sent text messages to people who might have been in would be counterproductive by driving the migrantsfurther into hiding.55 Taiwan’s health officials took In this period, tuning in to his daily announcements
heed and formally promised not to take further action became an everyday routine that helped people manage
against illegal migrant workers. their anxieties. Chen was not a charismatic speaker,
but his willingness and patience to answer all the
Because the job of sex workers involves intimate reporters’ questions, including some patently hostile
contact with customers, the government ordered the and misinformed ones, made him an effective political
immediate suspension of related businesses, such as communicator during the crisis.
karaoke clubs and dancing halls. The decree brought
about acute economic distress to many sex workers and However, despite officials’ commitment to transparency,
their coworkers because of the lack of cash income. rumors and fears were bound to circulate in the present
Feminist scholars and women’s rights groups argued age of disinformation. Starting in February, news that
that the order was disproportionate and discriminatory, purported to reveal mass deaths in Taiwan began to
pointing out that confirmed cases in universities, spread on several online platforms. Lurid and untrue
hospitals, accounting firms, and other workplaces information, such as a claim that mass graves had been
outside the sex industry were not shut down and were dug in many places to bury the dead hastily, went viral.
treated differently. In June, the restrictions were lifted, Additionally, unfounded conspiracy theories were
although it remained unclear whether CSOs’ criticisms abundant, for example that officials kept a secret stash of
had been influential. face masks from which to profiteer during nationwide
rationing. Many of these rumors were found to have
Some activism and protests erupted around Taiwanese- been generated by online chatbots based in China and
Chinese family links. Affected family members took deliberately spread by pro-China collaborators based in
14 the lead in organizing these protests, and their voices Taiwan.
were amplified with the endorsement of Kuomintang
politicians. In what became a controversial move, As Western countries later experienced, China’s
certain Chinese nationals with kinship ties to Taiwan propaganda machine was at full throttle, even when
were forbidden from entering the island from late the coronavirus was killing thousands of people on a
January 2020 onward. The DPP government initially daily basis. In response, the Taiwan FactCheck Center
attempted to lift the ban in late February, but an (TFC), a nonprofit set up by communication scholars
outpouring of negative opinion brought about a policy and activist journalists, launched a project to monitor
U-turn. Protests by the affected families followed, and coordinated inauthentic behaviors in cyberspace
the ban was finally lifted in mid-July. and respond with fact-checked clarifications. TFC
attempted to cultivate digital media literacy so that
users were less likely to be misinformed. TFC also
COLLABORATING FOR DISEASE collaborated with Facebook, and as a result, more than
PREVENTION sixty accounts were taken down because of their role in
spreading coronavirus-related disinformation.56
Clarity and accuracy of information about the pandemic
has been another focus of emergent civic activism. In Another area of partnership between the government
Taiwan’s experience, transparent information has been and civil society focused on providing information about
necessary to maintain citizens’ trust in the government’s the distribution of face masks when the government
emergency responses. One of the reasons for Chen began to ration them in February 2020. G0v, an open-
Shih-chung’s surging popularity is that he held daily source platform for digital activists and programmers,
press conferences over one hundred consecutive days. worked with the government to design several free cellphone apps that gave real-time information about the The coronavirus pandemic has exposed democracies’
locations of face mask distribution centers and stocks of vulnerabilities across the globe. Many popularly
masks so that citizens could find and buy their rations. elected leaders have either ignored scientific expertise
This collaboration was made possible by Taiwanese or hesitated to implement necessary but unpopular
Digital Minister Audrey Tang, a former Silicon Valley preventive measures for political reasons. Unfortunately,
entrepreneur and a pioneer of Taiwan’s civic technology. the universal guarantee of citizens’ rights has often been
It was due to her intervention that software engineers abused for frivolous lawsuits, divisive protests, or the
could access the government’s database and build spread of inauthentic information, which all stand
accessible platforms for cell phone users. in the way of a coordinated response to the health
emergency. In the spring of 2020, China promoted
the narrative that its decisive yet draconian lockdown
CONCLUSION in Wuhan province was instrumental in flattening
the curve of contagion. Yet, Beijing’s claim was met
The worldwide coronavirus pandemic is far from over, with universal skepticism because it was precisely the
and Taiwan’s achievement in containing the virus dictatorial regime’s lack of transparency that had led to
remains precarious at best. Yet, Taiwanese civil society the global spread of the virus.
has been an integral part of the country’s effective
strategy for dealing with the unprecedented health Authoritarianism is emphatically not a solution to the
crisis and is an often-ignored source of the island common threats that confront human beings, be they
nation’s resilience. climate change or the coronavirus pandemic. In this
regard, Taiwan’s success story stands out as a vindication
CSOs can assume different roles vis-à-vis the of democracy. Democratically elected leaders are obliged 15
government. They can scrutinize the executive’s to abide by the norm of transparency so that official
policies and raise red flags when those policies have figures are unlikely to be doctored. What is more, a
consequences in the form of human rights violations vibrant civil society can thrive only in an environment
or discrimination. Alternatively, CSOs can enter into that fully respects human rights and the rule of law.
partnership with the government to improve legislative As such, while robust and timely government responses
measures. Whether Taiwan’s civic activism can maintain make up the necessary frontline defense against the
these two sources of vitality and resourcefulness remains coronavirus, CSO efforts embody the resilience that
to be seen for the post-pandemic era. can sustain a democratic nation over the longer term.CHAPTER 3
DARK CLOUDS AND SILVER LININGS:
AUTHORITARIANISM AND CIVIC
ACTION IN INDIA
V IJAYA N M J
The curve of the coronavirus pandemic will likely ACTIVISTS UNDER ATTACK
flatten sooner or later; the upward curve of
authoritarianism that has effectively used the The coronavirus hit India gradually but severely. The 17
pandemic and associated lockdown measures may take country had become a global hot spot for the disease by
much longer to do the same. In India, the government September 2020, when India was registering close to
converted a health crisis into a law-and-order issue, 100,000 new cases a day with an exponentially rising
and democratic governance slid into a police raj. curve of infections that reached 6 million.57 Many
The pandemic has helped the executive cover up factors have contributed to India’s particular struggles
misadventures with economic and foreign policies with the disease: a large population, high-density urban
and gain unchallenged authority under a narrative of dwellings that do not allow for physical distancing,
protecting citizens. and the fact that India’s impoverished majority simply
does not have the option of sitting at home to ride out
In the Indian case, the battle against the pandemic the pandemic.
cannot be separated from the battle to regain
democracy, the rule of law, constitutionalism, and The Indian government was slow to react. Although the
human rights. Indian civil society has intensified its earliest case of the coronavirus in India was detected in
actions and been at the forefront of the struggle; in late January 2020, there was no stringent government
short, the pandemic has been a game changer for advice of any sort for the public throughout
civic activism. A revival of democracy is needed to February and well into March. Many mass religious
underpin this resurgence of civic action. congregations and social gatherings were still allowed,
and business went on as usual. International arrivals
were not screened or quarantined, and Indian Prime
Minister Narendra Modi himself hosted U.S. President
Donald Trump in a large public gathering in the stateof Gujarat.58 Exactly a month later, on March 24, 2020, even years.68 The act was amended in 2019 for these
Modi announced a countrywide lockdown.59 purposes by the Indian parliament, in which the ruling
coalition enjoys a clear majority.69
Having reacted late, the government moved quickly
into an authoritarian response mode. It amended the More specifically, the government introduced new
1897 Epidemic Diseases Act to expand the powers of the restrictions on civil society activism related to the
central government. The police began intervening on disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir and to
the streets with striking brutality. Left with no income, rising tensions with Pakistan and China. The national
migrant workers started returning to their hometowns government and many media houses took the threat of
en masse; the police were on the highways and roads war as an opportunity to divert attention away from
harassing, abusing, and detaining thousands of these poor governance and the failure to curb the pandemic.
destitute workers.60 At the same time, a handful of pro- The government used military casualties—like the June
government media houses ran a campaign blaming the 2020 Galwan Valley tragedy, in which twenty Indian
Muslim community and, in particular, a sect called soldiers were killed by the Chinese People’s Liberation
Tablighi Jamaat for spreading “corona jihad” in India.61 Army—and so-called coffin nationalism to promote
chest-thumping about a strong ruler and sacrificial
The authoritarian drift entailed a direct attack on civil armed forces.70
society. The government used the lockdown to clamp
down on protests against the controversial, religion- The territory of Jammu and Kashmir was already
based Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)—the so- under a militarized lockdown after India revoked the
called anti-CAA protests, which had been raging since state’s constitutional autonomy in August 2019.71
18 November 2019.62 A violent crackdown on Muslim Thousands of activists were arrested and jailed under
and Dalit leaders engendered widespread criticism of preventive detention clauses of draconian legislation
the government. Anti-Muslim violence in February like the Public Safety Act and the Unlawful Activities
2020 killed fifty-three people.63 The Delhi Minority (Prevention) Act.72 The government used the pandemic
Commission reported that the Muslim minority to double down on these restrictions and impose a near-
community had suffered extensive damage to property total communication ban, despite the requirements of
and economic losses.64 Despite leaders of the ruling dealing with the coronavirus.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) being directly linked to
the incitement of violence, no inquiry was initiated.65
Instead, young Muslims and supporters from women’s CIVIL SOCIETY STEPS IN
groups like Break the Cage were jailed.66
This creeping authoritarianism did not provide effective
A wider witch hunt began against leading civil rights pandemic governance. The Indian government put out
activists, linking them to violence at a 2018 celebratory hundreds of often contradictory notifications in quick
gathering in the village of Bhima Koregaon.67 Well- succession. The Kerala state government was applauded
known human rights defenders and public intellectuals for its supportive actions to control the pandemic while
like Anand Teltumbde, Gautam Navlakha, and Hany assisting the people, but it was an exception. A survey
Babu were arrested. Activists were jailed under the of migrant workers found that almost 96 percent had
draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, received no government rations and around 90 percent
which gives the government and police the absolute of those had also received no wages in the first month
authority to declare individuals or organizations to be of the lockdown.73 A group study by this author in
terrorists and detain them without bail for months or working-class areas of New Delhi found a pervasiveYou can also read
