Welcome to the first Civic Space Watch Alerts Roundup, bringing you some of the latest developments in European civic space emerging from the Early Warning and Alert System (EWAS), developed as part of the MACS (Monitoring Action for Civic Space) project.
Civic space — the operating environment for civil society — is increasingly under threat across Europe. The EU’s response has often been reactive and fragmented, as seen in the cases of Hungary and Poland. However, evidence shows that early signs of deterioration, such as attacks on civil society’s legitimacy or targeting of specific social groups, already have a negative impact on civil society actors.
The MACS partners aim to change this approach by providing timely alerts and calling for interventions before restrictions take hold. The goal is to shift toward a preventive model, where EU institutions intervene earlier to protect civic space.
In this roundup, we’re putting developments in Hungary, Italy, Slovakia, and Bulgaria in focus, alongside other updates in brief.