Civil Society Support Research Articles

When David meets Goliath. Inclusive Multi-track Peacemaking amidst Geopolitical Competition for Syria

ABSTRACT This article discusses the inclusion and multi-track nexus by empirically analysing how it originates and influences Track-One actors in the context of high geopolitical rivalry. Illustrated by the UN mediation in Syria, I argue that inclusion modalities, conceived as fixed and Track One-dependent, are adaptable and create parallel spaces for interaction alongside high-level political actors. In Syria’s conflict, the Civil Society Support Room has emerged as an example. Based on 24 interviews, this article demonstrates how inclusive multi-track, such as the CSSR, evolves into adaptive participatory systems through the lens of patchworked peacemaking, thereby questioning traditional hierarchical notions of multi-track.

The EU as a Political Determinant of Global Health: The Case of Research and Development Incentives for Orphan Medicines and Biotechnology

Context: The European Union (EU) governs global health through its constituent laws, institutions, actors, and policies. However, it is unclear whether or how these political factors interact to position the EU as a political determinant of global health. Methods: The authors conduct a case study of the political factors influencing the adoption of the EU's Biotechnology Directive 98/44/EC and Orphan Medicines Regulation 141/2000. Findings: The European Commission (EC) generally framed both of its proposals around economical and biomedical paradigms aligned with the needs of the EU's industry and patients, whereas the European Parliament (EP) contested some of these frames and proposed amendments supporting global access to medical products. The political factors influencing the adoption (in the Biotechnology Directive) or rejection (in the Orphan Regulation) of the EP's amendments include the complementarity between the EP and EC proposals, the EP's power in the intra- and interinstitutional negotiating process, the existence and support of civil society, and the alignment with member state priorities in the Council. Conclusions: In the late 1990s, the EU was an internally fragmented and politicized player concerning global health matters. These political factors should be considered for a coherent post-2022 EU strategy on global health.

Documentation of crimes against cultural heritage of Ukraine: main projects and initiatives with the support of civil society

The article analyzes the projects initiated and implemented by the public, related to the documentation of crimes against the national cultural heritage (NCH) of Ukraine in the conditions of a full-scale Russian invasion. It is noted that the activity of public organizations in documenting crimes against the Ukrainian National Security Service is conditioned by the need to form a single database of crime records of the Russian Federation, which will allow solving a number of issues that will become urgent after the end of hostilities. The classification of motives for crimes against cultural values in conditions of armed conflict is presented; the ways of accounting for cultural heritage and the principles of documenting damage to cultural heritage are outlined. It is emphasized that there is no National Blue Shield Committee in Ukraine, which is being created with the support of the Blue Shield International (BSI) by the decision of four other committees: the International Council of Museums (ICOM), the International Council for the Protection of Monuments and Historic Sites (ICOMOS), International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). Within the scope of the powers of the official representative of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions in Ukraine, the NPA "Ukrainian Library Association", together with the official representative in Ukraine of the International Archives Committee, the State Archives Service of Ukraine, once again raised the issue of the creation of the Committee and joined the development of its charter. And although the creation of such a representation in Ukraine does not guarantee protection from Russian vandalism, the international experience of involving non-governmental organizations, representatives of authorities, cultural heritage protection bodies, the State Emergency Service, the National Police, and the Prosecutor's Office in the mission to assess the damage to the NCH in the conditions of the Russian-Ukrainian war will enable in the future, to achieve fair decisions on the implementation of the Hague Convention and to receive funding for the restoration of cultural values.

Constitutional and Legal Foundations of Interaction Between the State and Civil Society in Ensuring the Protection of State Sovereignty and Territorial Integrity of the Russian Federation

Introduction. The relevance of the study is caused by three main factors. First, there is the need for further in-depth scientific and legal analysis of the amendments 2020 to the Constitution, which contain a number of fundamentally new provisions for domestic constitutional legislation that consolidate the legal foundations for ensuring the protection of state sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Russian Federation. Secondly, the undoubted interest of the Russian state in modern conditions in the development of civil society in Russia as a whole, and in particular its individual institutions that have a direct impact on the activities of the state in this area, as well as the understanding that in modern conditions only with the support and active participation of civil society in the policy implemented by the state In the field of protection of state sovereignty, it is possible to achieve the set goals and objectives. Thirdly, the difficult geopolitical situation that the Russian Federation has been in for the past ten years, striving to preserve state sovereignty and prove its belonging to one of the leading countries of the world under unprecedented pressure from the collective West. Theoretical Basis. Methods. The theoretical basis of this study is made up of scientific works of scientists in the field of the theory of state and law, constitutional law, administrative law. The work uses general scientific methods (system analysis, dialectical, formal-logical) and special research methods (system-legal, comparative-legal, historical-legal, formal-legal). Results. Firstly, based on the supremacy of national sovereignty over state sovereignty, the need to strengthen the latter through the development of institutions (elements) of civil society, which carry out certain types of relevant public (socially useful) activities provided for in legislation in this area, is justified. Secondly, the requirements imposed on the institutions of civil society, called upon, especially during the period of a special military operation, to carry out activities aimed at strengthening the state sovereignty of the Russian Federation, are highlighted. Thirdly, a scientifically based conclusion has been made that the term “civil society” to a greater extent than the legal category “people” emphasizes the presence of common interests among citizens of the Russian Federation, awareness of their constitutional rights and freedoms and opportunities and desire to carry out, especially during the period of a special military operation, public (socially useful) activities, including those aimed at ensuring state sovereignty. Discussion and Conclusion. In the context of further increasing threats to the state sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, there is a need to consolidate civil society in the current legislation as a source of democracy and the basis of the constitutional system, its formation as a public law institution designed to be the natural support of the state, to perform appropriate functions in the field of patriotic, including military-patriotic education of citizens of the Russian Federation Federations, as well as stabilizing functions that allow consolidating the interests of the state and society, using its full potential to protect national interests.

Why Do Activists in Exile Support Civil Society in Non-democratic Regimes? The Case of Perviy Otdel

Abstract This study delves into the identities and motivations of members, specifically focusing on the human rights organization, of Perviy Otdel (First Department). Amid escalating tensions and the outbreak of war, these activists find themselves navigating the challenges of addressing politically-charged court cases related to state treason in Russia, all while operating from abroad due to increased risks and threats. Drawing from the theoretical lenses of transnational activism and an identity-based paradigm, our research unpacks the complex dynamics of activism in exile. Through a discourse analysis of ten semi-structured interviews with Perviy Otdel members spanning various hierarchical positions, research uncovers how the war and subsequent displacement have reshaped their professional and personal identities. The findings illuminate the unwavering commitment of these activists-in-exile to the cause of human rights and offer insights into the evolving landscape of global human rights advocacy in the face of geopolitical challenges.

Socio-spatial dynamics of E-participation: A case study of the Mudamos app in João Pessoa (2017–2020)

Emerging civic technologies can support civil society and the state toward participatory democracy. They offer citizens alternative tools for online participation or e-participation. In this study, we explore the socio-spatial dynamics of an e-participation activity in a city's policy-making process through the artifice of the network analyses. We build upon the idea of a network conceived as an object of human action, considering its social, technical, and spatial elements. We propose a conceptual framework to translate the geographic network of an e-participation activity in the city's policy-making process constituted by six dimensions: vocation, technology, institutional design, spatiality, participation, and the deliberative system. The case study applies the framework to the Mudamos application in the city of João Pessoa, in the State of Paraíba, Brazil. This e-participation tool facilitates digital signatures for Citizen Initiative Draft Bills (CIDB). Despite initial technical, institutional, and financial support, the app did not deliver its potential value. The reasons for low adoption are the lack of economic resources, low levels of civic skills, discontinuation of citizen recruitment, and discontinuation of the partnership between the control agents. Furthermore, socio-spatial inequality was critical in users' access and participation. Our findings suggest that the development of state capacities and participatory literacy are crucial to the success of e-participation initiatives. Consequently, the proposed framework and its application serve as a valuable starting point for researchers and policymakers seeking to understand the socio-spatial relationships involved in this process, offering knowledge to address digital inequalities and increase the effectiveness of e-participation initiatives.

Fertile grounds: Co-creating agroecological knowledge in a pluriverse

How can civil society support community-based organizing that puts ways of knowing and being at the heart of food systems change? Drawing upon a collaboration between 2 nonprofit organizations and a community-based network of rural women across Bangladesh, this essay explores frictions and contradictions that trouble our efforts to co-create knowledge for agroecological transformations. Rather than suggesting these troubles can be resolved, we attempt to stay with them in this article, locating them as vital disruptions to the hegemonic order of one-world-making. Using personal vignettes as framing devices, we combine critical analysis, art, and poetry to explore working with and within a plurality of ways of knowing and being. With a vignette about soil, we begin with unsettling questions about what constitutes knowledge in a world where constructs of truth and belief rub up against each other. We then tension this in the context of agroecological markets and social justice activism as these intersect with different notions of relationality. We pursue this further by introducing a narrative-framing tool called a “value web” which mobilizes both material and immaterial domains of agroecology. Finally, we conclude by examining the role of international civil society in food system transformation and raising fundamental questions of allyship which help us navigate the constitutive contradictions of knowledge co-creation.

Eviscerated to Revolutionary: Rethinking International Aid and Civil Society in Cambodia and Myanmar

International aid actors and their role in supporting civil society, particularly non-government organisations (NGOs), in Asia has attracted extensive debate. Some view donors’ New Policy Agenda to have de-politicised and “NGOised” civil society, undermining broader emancipatory movements. Such analyses, however, often take limited account of historical and political factors that are deeply influential. Cambodia and Myanmar offer unique insights into these debates; following decades of international isolation, both countries experienced vast influxes of aid, from the early 1990s and late 2000s respectively. Yet in 2024, civil society activism is eviscerated in Cambodia, while a broad alliance is pursing revolution in Myanmar against the 2021 military coup. Through a comparative analysis, this article examines how aid and civil society interact over an extended time, and what the radically different trajectories mean regarding the dynamics between international aid and civil society actors. The article concludes that although international aid had a distortionary impact, historical and political factors were far more consequential in shaping civil society in both countries, particularly the scale of informal, non-NGO activism, which has ultimately proven far more resilient and transformative.

Civil society’s development in Tunisia’s democratization process, 2011-2021

ABSTRACT In the years following the 2011 overthrow of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, the international democracy promotion community enthusiastically embraced Tunisia’s burgeoning civil society. Ten years later, however, when the democratically-elected president Kais Saied began to dismantle the country’s democratic institutions, civil society largely stood on the side-lines. This paper examines what happened during the intervening decade that left civil society’s international funders so disappointed. The paper finds that three key changes over time help explain the gap between donor expectations and what civil society ultimately delivered: the development of an antagonistic and uncooperative relationship between civil society and the state; differences between Tunisian civil society activists and international donors on the types of issues they prioritized and other matters; and an overall lack of trust and lack of cohesion among civil society activists in working towards common goals – despite some successful coalition work around particular legislation – which came on full display after July 2021. This paper contributes to studies of Tunisian civil society’s development process in the context of its transition experience between 2011 and 2021, and of how and why donors continue to ‘miss the mark’ in their efforts to support civil society as a means of promoting democracy.

Adaptation of national legislation to EU law: experience of member states and candidate states for Ukraine

The article is analyzed the experience of EU member states and candidate states for EU accession in the sphere of adaptation of national legislation to EU law. The relevance of the topic is due to the fact that on June 23, 2022, Ukraine received the status of a candidate state for EU membership, and today it is very close to the beginning of the negotiation process on joining the EU. Negotiations on accession to the EU provide for the screening of the compliance of the national legislation of the candidate state with EU law in order to identify differences between them in each part of the negotiations. After the screening, direct negotiations begin on the conditions under which the candidate state accepts and applies EU law. Each candidate country operates according to a separate schedule and can be accepted into the EU as quickly as it can adapt its national legislation to EU law (a decisive criterion for EU membership). Adaptation of the national legislation of the candidate country to EU law is a long-term process that continues even after the state has acquired full membership in the EU. It is not only about the formal adaptation of legislation, but also about the creation of institutions that ensure its compliance and implementation in practice. Ukraine, which is at the beginning of the negotiation stage, will be helped to speed up its path to the EU by using the positive and taking into account the negative experience of other states in adapting national legislation to the EU acquis. The experience of the EU member states shows that they overcame the process of joining the EU and the related adaptation of national legislation through various legal and institutional mechanisms, but always in one form or another, success depended on the coordination of the actions of the parliament and the government. In particular, it is the development and implementation of programs for the adaptation of national legislation to EU law; establishment of special institutions responsible for European integration; consultative, methodical and financial assistance of the EU and member states; control of projects of normative legal acts for compliance with EU law; a high level of coordination of the activities of state authorities involved in the process of adapting legislation to EU law, etc. At the same time, the main guarantee of successful European integration is the presence of the political will to carry out the necessary reforms in the state, a quick transition from declaring intentions to become a full member of the EU to concrete actions along the way, as well as the support of civil society. The adaptation of national legislation to EU law as a process of bringing the laws of Ukraine and other normative legal acts into compliance with the EU acquis is, first of all, a separate direction of law-making activity that requires proper legal, institutional, methodological, organizational and personnel support. However, the experience of other countries shows that the approximation of the national legal system to the EU law should also include the application and interpretation of the law in the spirit of the EU legal standards.

Публичная дипломатия США в отношении центральноазиатских стран

Introduction. Public diplomacy is an effective foreign policy instrument of the state. Public diplomacy is understood as the activity of an actor aimed at achieving foreign policy objectives by establishing and deepening long-term interstate relations. The purpose of such activities is to inform foreign audiences as well as broadcast the principles of national policy beyond the borders of one’s own state. Public diplomacy is designed to influence those who have the opportunity to shape public belief systems. Methods and materials. The methodological basis of the study was a transnational approach, which allows us to reveal the role of state and non-state actors in international relations. The work uses a systematic approach in order to form a holistic view of American public diplomacy as an instrument of “soft power.” To identify the individual tools used by the United States in promoting public diplomacy in each individual Central Asian country, a comparative method was used. Analysis and results. Public diplomacy seems to be an important tool of the American administration in the most important foreign policy areas. The priority instrument of US public diplomacy in the Central Asian region is the support of civil society and non-profit organizations. Using grant support mechanisms, the role of public organizations is strengthened, and dialogue between civil society and government authorities is encouraged in the formation and development of socio-economic policy. The second relevant tool is media support and working with information consumers among various segments of the population. According to the results of the study, it was revealed that these projects were most effectively implemented in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan. The third most successful tool is education, whose work is based on grant programs both in the republics and in the United States. Systematic work carried out, taking into account a deep understanding of the internal processes in the Central Asian republics as well as the active use of public diplomacy tools, allows the United States to strengthen its foreign policy potential in the region.

The Resort to Emergency Policing to Control Gang Violence in Jamaica: Making the Exception the Rule

AbstractThis article critically examines reasons for the persistent use of states of emergency (SOEs) as a tool of crime control in Jamaica and risks associated with normalising these measures in small, low-capacity, competitive democracies in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). We attend to the question of permanent SOEs as an issue of law and certain policing methods becoming normalised. This differs from scholars who think about the use of permanent SOEs as suspension of law or executive rule and make a clear distinction between law and violence and normalcy and emergency. Our findings show that persistent usage of SOEs in Jamaica reflects the incapacity of the state to control violent crime as well as its effort to strengthen its coercive capabilities and compensate for the ineffectiveness of the police. It is also a response to public demand for SOE policing. State strengthening is a necessary condition for a more peaceful and law-abiding society but is also a carrier of risks of democratic degeneration via rights-disregarding policing. Nonetheless, we have seen authoritarian management of crime without descent into authoritarianism, in general, and strong boundary-marking and patrolling by some state-oversight institutions that enjoy the support of civil society.

The Belgrade ‘Campscape’: Refugee Spatialities, Mobilities and Migration Corridor Geographies

ABSTRACT This article examines the institutional and makeshift refugee geographies of Belgrade, using Diana Martin’s concept of ‘campscape’. It argues for the importance of this concept as a lens through which the complex relationship between the presence of refugees, camps and the city may be analysed. Accordingly, it takes into consideration key refugee spaces related to the role played by Belgrade as a migration hub along the so-called Balkan Route: institutional and makeshift camps, together with spaces associated with civil society and humanitarian support. After reviewing the key literature, the paper presents three sections that explore Belgrade’s distinctive campscape by analysing its (1) spatialities, (2) mobilities and (3) institutional geographies. The article concludes by claiming that the concept of campscape, when applied to a refugee mobility hub like the one developed in Belgrade since 2015, may be useful for illustrating the endlessly morphing refugee geographies of a well-established informal migration corridor.

INCREASING THE TRANSPARENCY OF THE BUDGET PROCESS OF UKRAINE IN CURRENT CONDITIONS

The transparency of the budget process is a guarantee of democratic governance and ensures the state's accountability to citizens. In Ukraine, a transparent budget mechanism is being implemented with the participation and active support of civil society. In 2015, a single web portal for the use of public funds "Electronic data" became operational (in 2017, the portal went from test mode to official mode), which became an important tool in the fight against corruption. An analogue of "Electronic data" is the search and analytical system “.007” — an accessible and easy-to-use web service for processing and convenient visual presentation of information on the use of state funds. Also, the state web portal “Budget for citizens” (Open budget) is active and effectively implemented today. It is an official state portal with open data on public finances: state and local budgets. The portal presents a glossary of budget terms, provides information about the budget process and its participants, and presents indicators of state and local budgets. The implementation of the principles of publicity and transparency guarantees a reliable budget, ensuring public trust in the state budget policy, and also increases revenues to the budgets of various levels and strengthens state control.

Probation in the Russian Federation: subjects of resocialization

Based on a study of the current stage of penal policy, the goals of the probation institution, the legal normative provisions of the Federal Law “On Probation in the Russian Federation” are analyzed. A list of functions and forms of resocialization influence of subjects of probation influence on persons under probation control is given: provision of services, client-centric approach, support for society institutions. The authors determine the essence of the basic categories of the problem under study with an emphasis on today's socio-criminological assessments. The main conclusions of the study are the need to supplement the list of probation subjects; the importance of a multi-level system of normative legal regulation of the probation in resolving issues of resocialization; openness of functioning of the probation institution with the support of civil society. Based on an analysis of the essence of the probation and the content of correctional interventions, a conclusion is drawn about the specific nature of the resocialization process, its duration, stages, sequence, continuity, dynamism, and interconnectedness of the actions of subjects whose competence includes issues of guardianship and support for offenders. The importance of variability of measures used in the resocialization and social adaptation of a convict has been proven, possible ways to control his behavior, and subjects capable of providing services in the field of probation are proposed. The need to study foreign experience in the field of probation is substantiated to develop the most effective ways to achieve the goals of punishment, successful practices of resocialization, and social adaptation of convicts.

THE POTENTIAL OF THE EXPERIENCE ECONOMY IN DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS IN CIVIL SOCIETY

In the conditions of war, economic, social, cultural and artistic institutions should promote the Ukrainian strategic narrative through the so-called "soft power", project activities, economic proposals, as this means strengthening the national identification of civil society, which is so important in the context of national liberation struggle. In fact, the demand for the experience economy can activate the cognitive factor that produces patriotic, socially significant values, feelings and emotions. Therefore, the subject of the study is the effective communication proposals of the impression economy in the context of civil society development. The purpose of the research is to analyse a package of economic proposals and strategies for achieving the progress of economic value, i.e., the implementation of the concept of experience economy, which in the context of war becomes a means of effective communication in the context of the request of responsible business of civil society to actualise the value of national economic identification. The research methodology is based on a combination of systemic and value-based approaches, discourse analysis, which help to reveal the drama and strategies of Ukrainian experience economy cases, their correlation with the specifics of civil society's demands at the national level and the identification of proposals in the context of war; synchronous method (focusing on the conditions of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine) and the use of the monitoring software Similarweb, which allowed to track the recognition of certain projects among customers and the phases of "dramatic development" of the economic offer. The article highlights that, according to J. B. Pine II and J. G. Gilmore, impression is the fourth economic proposition, a new economic value that cannot be compared to a service, because it is achieved through the organisation's cognitive space, through the customer's interest in emotional, physical, intellectual and spiritual dimensions, "effective management of impressions", where efficiency is achieved by "hitting" the intersection of four spheres of impressions – cognitive, aesthetic, entertaining and escapist. According to J. B. Pine II and J. G. Gilmore, the leading role in generating the progression of the economic value of business is played by the understanding of business as theatre (dynamic or stable), unfolding through drama (=strategy), script (=processes), theatre (=work techniques), performance (=proposal), which always has a context (within the limits of intelligence – national identification, patriotic), value markers (support for civil society in war conditions) and a field of interpretation. Thus, the conclusion of the research is the thesis about the evolution from the experience economy to the transformation economy, when the transformation of a customer or company is the ultimate economic offer of the initiator: in the case of the Silpo chain, thanks to the effective communication channels involved, there is such a concept of offer as change, which is a transformation that leads to the so-called "economic pyramid". The educational project "Instoryky" is about prominent historical figures, cases of psychological support for clients through the hotline, engaging clients in the practice of donation through hashtag activism and offers to support animals in wartime in exchange for "psychological support from animals" on the hotline, and educational activities for war veterans. The involvement of food entrepreneurs and their subsequent support through the special project "Lavka tradytsii" is also a good example of effective communication channels.

Synthesising the diversity of European agri-food networks: A meta-study of actors and power-laden interactions

Farmers are at the centre of scientific and political debates about sustainability in European agriculture, but rarely do we discuss the roles of other actors who shape their behaviour. Understanding the interactions and balance of power in agri-food systems is critical to effectively govern sustainability transitions. Here, we conduct a meta-study of 71 case studies in European agri-food systems to synthesise evidence on the diversity of actors and network configurations. We characterise the reported power-laden relationships to generate an agri-food network for each case study and then create a typology of archetypical network configurations. Our study provides three major insights. First, we find a diverse range of actors and complex network configurations. This indicates that the predominant focus on farmers in sustainability policy overlooks the other actors in their agri-food networks, thus risking suboptimal policy design and efficacy. Second, the typology identifies three groups of networks – agro-industrial control, multifunctional value chains, and civic food networks – associated with diverging levels of farmer autonomy. Agricultural governance should therefore consider the context-specific agency of farmers; policies that target farmer decision-making can only have impact if farmers have the capacity to change. Third, the typology demonstrates the potentially complementary roles of conventional and alternative value chains, as well as top-down state support and bottom-up civil society mobilisation. Agri-food networks hence provide diverse leverage points for sustainability transformation.

Father engagement in Syrian Asylum-Seeker families with children on the autistic spectrum

BackgroundAsylum-seeking has aspects that encourage and discourage father engagement. The additional care burden of a child on the autistic spectrum is combined with the psychological and economic effects of asylum-seeking for families. AimsWe aimed to contribute to understanding asylum-seeker fathers' experiences and to illuminate father engagement more comprehensively in the upbringing of children on the autistic spectrum. Methods and proceduresAs part of the research, fourteen Syrian asylum-seeker parents with children on the autistic spectrum were interviewed individually. The researchers used a inductive thematic analysis method. Outcomes and resultsWe identified two themes. The first theme related to the barriers to fathers' engagement. Barriers included economic problems, double stigmatization, belonging problems, Covid-19-related barriers, and gender role norms. The second theme related to the factors that motivate father engagement. These factors were the number of children, the mother's mental health problems, lack of social support, and belief in God (Allah). Conclusions and implicationsThe study provided important clues about the contribution of civil society support to individuals who have been asylum-seekers. In addition, policies that encourage reducing stigmatization and supporting the integration process of asylum-seekers can be developed.

Pengaruh Kebijakan Hukum Terhadap Perlindungan Hak Asasi Manusia di Negara Berkembang: Studi Pada Negara Berkembang

This research investigates the impact of legal policies on human rights protection in developing countries, focusing on the case of Indonesia. By employing a mixed-method approach, this study combines qualitative and quantitative data to assess the effectiveness of legal measures and their implementation in protecting human rights in Indonesia. The research identifies key human rights challenges, barriers to policy implementation, as well as the roles of civil society and international support in advancing human rights. The findings reveal the positive effects of legal policies and significant challenges in their implementation. Proposed recommendations aim to strengthen human rights protection through legal policies, contributing to a more just and equal society in Indonesia and other developing countries.

Civil Society and Social Integration of Asylum Seekers: The ‘Strength of Weak Ties’ and the Dynamics of ‘Strategic Action Fields’

The dramatic increase of asylum seekers entering the EU in 2015 profoundly changed migration politics in many EU countries. Not least in Sweden which accepted more migrants per capita than any other EU country but then swung abruptly to become among the strictest recipient countries. We use Sweden as a critical and extreme case to argue that the rapid shift in asylum politics and public opinion towards migration is not profoundly shared in society. Based on a local media analysis of three types of purposively selected rural municipalities followed by the analysis of a survey of civil society organizations sent to all 290 municipalities in Sweden, we find strong civil society support and willingness to both receive migrants and facilitate their integration into society. Despite increasing votes for political parties with anti-migration policies, we also find remarkably positive attitudes towards migrants in civil society organizations and among citizens in the EU27 barometer for Sweden. The upshot is optimism that civil society can balance the anti-immigration governance imposed by both left and right political regimes and that populism will succeed only if it has the capacity to thoroughly transform civil society attitudes—which we doubt.