Civic space

Civic space is created by a set of universally-accepted rules, which allow people to organise, participate and communicate with each other freely and without hindrance, and in doing so, influence the political and social structures around them. It is a concept central to any open and democratic society and means that states have a duty to protect people while respecting and facilitating the fundamental rights to associate, assemble peacefully and express views and opinions.

Although the term "civic space" has only been in common usage since after the turn of this millennium, the rights upon which the concept is based have been a necessary feature of every democratic society. Global civil society alliance CIVICUS began using the term regularly after the inception of the Civic Space Initiative in 2011, defining it as "the place, physical, virtual, and legal, where people exercise their rights to freedom of association, expression, and peaceful assembly. By forming associations, by speaking out on issues of public concern, by gathering together in online and offline fora, and by participating in public decision-making, individuals use civic space to solve problems and improve lives. A robust and protected civic space forms the cornerstone of accountable, responsive democratic governance and stable societies." Civic space is also closely connected to the development of post-world war II human rights norms, and particularly the Universal Declaration on Human Rights in 1948 which established clear protections for the rights to freedom of association, peaceful assembly and expression.

As a concept, civic space is also closely related to the evolution of the concept of civil society. While the ideas embodied in civil society can be traced to many different civilisations, the term civil society has many different definitions but has its roots in ancient Greece and the early work of Aristotle on the concepts of "community" or "polity" characterised by a shared set of norms or ethos. Some theorists interpret civil society very closely to the modern understanding of civic space, taking it to mean "the elements such as freedom of speech, an independent judiciary, etc, that make up a democratic society." Especially in the discussions among thinkers of Eastern and Central Europe, civil society is seen also as a concept of civic values. Most modern-day definitions of civil society however view it more in terms of "the arena, outside of the family, the state and the market where people associate to advance common interests."

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