Oxfam India has said its jobs in the country will be jeopardized by the government’s refusal to renew a license that will allow it to receive funds from abroad.
Oxfam is on a list of thousands of NGOs, according to local media, whose license has not been renewed. Without a license, these organizations may only use donations and contributions from India.
“Oxfam India will contact the Ministry of the Interior and urge them to lift funding restrictions to ensure that vulnerable communities continue to receive the support they need at this critical time in the pandemic,” he said. ‘Oxfam India, Amitabh Behar, to a statement.
A few days ago, she realized that Mother Teresa’s Charity Missionaries, who work among people with leprosy, the dying, abandoned sick children, people with AIDS, and the indigent, are also banned from receiving foreign funds. The Interior Ministry said it had detected some “adverse entries” in the audit of its accounts.
The drying up of the funds is expected to have a major impact on the work of both organizations, along with many others whose licenses have not been renewed either. Some donations will continue to come from Indian philanthropists and charities, but will not cover the gigantic deficit.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been campaigning against NGOs and social activists, especially those working among the rural poor, forest dwellers, lower castes and the marginalized, and on issues of inequality.
BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have mocked social activists as “anti-nationals” and “urban naxalites” (a reference to revolutionaries fighting in the jungles of India to overthrow the state). They have also accused some NGOs of having links with extremist groups.
Analysts say the government sees NGOs, which by the very nature of their work speak of their human rights policies and history, as a source of undesirable criticism.
“Inevitably, given how Oxfam and others work among the poorest of the poor, the most disadvantaged communities, their reports on India do not shed light on the government. This government has always struggled to accept criticism. and this withdrawal of foreign funds can be seen as a way to gain the acquiescence of NGOs, “said political analyst Parsa Venkateshwar Rao Jr.
The most notable example was the government’s goal against the human rights organization Amnesty International, which prompted Amnesty to close its offices and stop its operations last year.
He made the decision after his offices were raided and his bank accounts frozen. Amnesty has accused the government of “witch-hunting” and seeking revenge for reports of human rights abuses.
Since 2014, the government has made it difficult for NGOs to function. It has altered the rules of the Law on the Regulation of Foreign Contributions under which they receive foreign contributions to make it more difficult for them to receive donations from abroad.
In 2018, the licenses of nearly 20,000 NGOs were canceled. However, the lack of renewal of licenses for such internationally renowned names as Oxfam and Missionaries of Charity has been a shock.
