Open Society Fund–Prague

In cooperation with several nongovernmental organizations, the Open Society Fund–Prague undertook research to guide legal reform efforts in the Czech Republic. Programs focused on pursuing advocacy and litigation to secure access to justice for marginalized groups and a legislative framework for providing people free legal aid and alternative methods of resolving disputes; implementing new principles in police work and securing independent oversight of police performance; improving freedom of information; and supporting the foundation’s strategic partner, the Public Interest Law Association, in piloting new litigation strategies on cases of environmental law and access to justice.

The foundation helped create a network of active anticorruption nongovernmental organizations and, in cooperation with Transparency International, Oziveni, and the think tank GARDE, made recommendations resulting in several new legal provisions aimed at preventing corruption and lack of transparency.

Another foundation priority was promoting women’s rights, including equality in the labor market and the political framework for supporting equality in the Czech Republic. The foundation supported publication of Gender and Education, the third volume in a series of manuals for teachers and pupils focusing on the roles of women and men in the public and private spheres. The foundation joined the coalition ProEquality, a leader in creating a platform for ideas, knowledge, and exchange of experience to reduce the differences in the treatment of men and women in the labor market.

The foundation supported public debate on health care issues and advocated for reform. Its Migration Program website developed into a reliable and timely source of information on migration in both its Czech and English language versions. Since the program’s inception, comparative studies by its partners have supported legislative work and influenced migration policies and measures adopted to change the status of immigrants.