Zack, Jenn, and Alex talk about Amnesty International’s decision to suspend operations in India — the only other country in which the human rights watchdog has done so besides Russia. They explain the pressure campaign from the Indian government, centering on an obscure anti-money laundering law, that forced Amnesty into this move and talk about the broader context of democratic decline under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Then they zoom out to put this in global context, connecting India’s war on NGOs to developments in other backsliding democracies (or fully backslid ones) like Israel, Hungary, and the United States.

References:

Here’s the Indian government’s statement on the whole issue, and here’s Amnesty’s.
This is Amnesty’s report on the Delhi riots.
India’s Print has a great explainer on the FCRA and what it means for NGOs.
The UN condemned the FCRA in 2016.
Amnesty’s Rajat Khosla explained why Amnesty’s work is important for India in the Guardian.
As Jenn mentioned, Russia has also targeted NGOs.

Hosts:
Zack Beauchamp (@zackbeauchamp), senior correspondent, Vox
Jennifer Williams (@jenn_ruth), senior foreign editor, Vox
Alex Ward (@AlexWardVox), national security reporter, Vox
 
Consider contributing to Vox:
If you value Worldly’s work, please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts
 
More to explore:
Subscribe for free to Today, Explained, Vox’s daily podcast to help you understand the news, hosted by Sean Rameswaram.
 
About Vox:
Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines.
 
Follow Us:
Vox.com 
Newsletter: Vox Sentences
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices