CAIRO: Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa will host today around 100 representatives of civil society groups from the Arab world, the European Union and other international organizations to discuss freedom of assembly in the region. The conference, which will take place from Feb. 10-12, aims at devising a joint Arab document on freedom of assembly and association. "A report analyzing the current status of freedom of assembly and association in nine Arab countries, including Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan, will be discussed during the conference, Hafez Abu Saeda, secretary general of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), told Daily News Egypt. The conference wraps up a project launched by the EOHR three years ago, with the support of the European Union and the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty. The project aimed at reinforcing the legal framework for the freedom of assembly and association in the Arab world through national dialogue and empowering civil society. Participants will draw up a document with guidelines on supporting freedom of assembly and association that will act as a legal and political reference to filter out articles in laws in the Arab world that restrict this freedom - be it with regards to civil society or political parties and syndicates. The guidelines will also make sure these laws meet international standards. "Freedom of assembly and association is one of the basic crucial rights, and a main pillar in any democratic foundation. It is [dictated] in constitutions of the Arab world and international human rights accords. However, some legislation in the Arab world does not comply with . international agreements, he added. According to Abu Saeda, Egyptian civil society groups agreed on a draft law for NGOs to replace Law 84/2002, but the government refuses to approve it.
