NGOs Must Work Closer with the Society

- When was the law on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) passed in Armenia? Were later any amendments made to it and what was the reason of such changes?

- The Law of the Republic of Armenia on Non-Governmental Organizations was drafted based on experience. In mid 1990s when international donor organizations began to implement projects in Armenia, a need arose to legally register active civil groups. In 1996 the law was passed. In the future so many amendments were made to the law that they exceeded the volume of the main text. Taking this fact into consideration a new law was passed in 2001. In 2009 an attempt was made to make another amendment, and this was given a hostile reception by non-governmental organizations.

One of the groups acting against the amendments claimed that the amendments to the law would have a negative impact on NGOs, since it was with their help that the state was trying to establish control over NGOs. From the perspective of the second group of criticizers the problem was not the potential control, but the fact that the requirements put forth were not clear. Also critics from NGOs came about who not perceiving the logic of the changes were appealing to procedural issues. They claimed that any legal act should first of all be discussed by stakeholders, and that public hearings were supposed to be organized. This protest brought together many NGOs, demanding to hold public hearing sessions. Even though the law was at the time on the agenda of the Parliament, it was not yet presented for MPs’ discussions, and the process was frozen until 2011 when an active stage of legislative reforms was launched in our country. Teams were formed, and in the course of their work we understood that it is not amendments or reforms that we needed in this sphere, but a complete and global review of the law. It became clear that the law in effect did not meet the present-day requirements. At the moment the concept put forth by the Ministry of Justice of the RA is being discussed. It is based on the legislative and institutional reforms in the structures within the civil society.   

- To what extent does this law contribute to the formation of a strong and independent civil society in the country?

- The problems of NGOs are not so much related to the text of this law, as with the practical questions and the accompanying legislation. For example, one of the practical issues is that the non-governmental organizations have quite developed, and that today there are types of civil structures the requirements of which the enforced legislation does not meet. In particular, organizations structured as the so-called Think Tanks or research organizations are facing a serious problem. Professional labor force that does scientific research is important for these organizations. In fact, the management of such kind of an organization is more similar to the model of management in businesses. There is no need here to organize meetings, to admit new members and so on. And such organizations have to register themselves as NGOs, have to follow all formal procedures, envisaged for non-governmental organizations. This is a waste of their time and efforts.  

The problems posed by the legislation in force are related to, for example, accounting. Sometimes donors would like to see how much tax was paid from the project they funded, and this is a very complicated task for accountants. Why? Because with us they pay income taxes with a single document every month, and they cannot provide tax statements where it would be possible to show which part of the income tax was paid from the money of the sum from this project, and which part was paid from another fund.   

Here is another problem, volunteering, that is not regulated by our law. If the non-governmental organizations involve volunteers in their activities, in state structures they may be viewed as illegal workers. In the new concept of the law I mentioned, an attempt was made to propose the solution of all these problems. I hope that it will be adopted.

- How actively do NGOs in Armenia work, and where do you see the power and weakness of the civil society in Armenia?

- One of the best sides of this is that recently NGOs have started to actively work with the society. For example, I believe the efficiency of steps undertaken by environmental organizations is related to the fact that they will manage to mobilize citizens. 5 – 7 years ago there were only few NGOs that worked with the government. There are still few of them now, too, but their number is growing. And still, in general in Armenia the ties between NGOs and citizens are weak.

Public opinion polls show that only 6% of surveyed citizens trust NGOs. Three years ago this indicator of trust was 3%. But this 6% is quite a low indicator. But for this there are both objective and subjective causes.

One of the objective causes consists in the dependence of NGOs on donors, and essentially, they are more accountable to the party that provides the funds rather than the citizens. By the way, in the new concept of the law on non-governmental organizations I have mentioned earlier solutions for alternative funding are also provided. Among the subjective causes is the passivity of NGOs in presenting NGO activities to the society. For many these organizations are means of earning money, that is to receive huge amounts of money from donors.

- Does the law envisage many benefits or limitations in the activities of NGOs? What is the practice of the application of these benefits and limitations?

- I have already mentioned the limitations. Many assume that tax exemptions should be administered for NGOs. According to our legislation, those who are dealing with charity, have a right to cut their tax obligations by 0.25%. And these are their only benefits. 

From my perspective, there are more important steps than the ascription of benefits to NGOs. At this stage the process of legislative reforms and the formation of a culture for public accountability are more important.