President Obama Hosts Forum on Civil Society at UN General Assembly

President Obama has hosted a High Level Event on Supporting Civil Society in New York on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly on Monday, meeting with heads of state and leaders of civil society, multilateral organizations, and the philanthropic community to discuss growing restrictions being placed on civil society organizations (CSOs) worldwide. The event marks the beginning of a year-long effort to further intensify our work to support and defend civil society from a rising tide of restrictions.

The White House Blog made the following announcement regarding the event:

Civil society representatives play a critical role -- voicing the views of citizens, holding governments accountable, and forging solutions that improve people’s lives. For example, in Brazil, civil society recruited a thousand volunteer accountants to participate in a crowd-sourced review of the federal budget. Their work helped eliminate millions of dollars in waste. When many governments turned a blind eye, it was groups of citizen activists who organized themselves to sound the alarm and demand dignity who first generated the momentum to combat HIV-AIDS. Today, civil society groups work for and with small farmers, champion the cause of girls’ education, and run relief supplies into the most dangerous corners of Syria.

But around the world we’re increasingly seeing governments crack down on activists and advocates. They are limiting fundamental freedoms like freedom of expression and assembly by taking steps that inhibit the activities of civil society like passing laws and regulations, imposing tough registration requirements, and placing bans on external funding.

That’s why on Monday, President Obama will meet with heads of state and leaders of civil society, multilateral organizations, the philanthropic community, and the private sector to coordinate action to push back against these growing restrictions. This event marks the beginning of an intensive year-long effort to put a spotlight on the critical role civil society plays and to develop strategies to protect and defend those who seek to have a voice in their societies.

UN Deputy Secretary General Jan Eliasson of Sweden and Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, along with Mexican, Kenyan, Burmese and Zimbabwean representatives, have also offered their remarks at the event.

Below, full video is available via The White House YouTube Channel:

Those who are interested may also download the video from the White House as well.

Posted in: Barack Obama, Civil Society