Last week the Central European University in Budapest announced it would partially relocate to Vienna given the Hungarian government’s unyielding hostility to civil society and academic freedom. Around the world, civil society including academics, journalists and philanthropists, courageously pursue their mission, often at great personal cost.

We are a group of leaders of private philanthropic foundations committed to strong and vibrant civil society. A healthy, functioning democracy depends on it.

We condemn the violence directed to civil society activists globally. We deplore the growing climate of fear and intolerance in which civil society is publicly demonized, physically threatened and administratively shut down.

We stand side by side with our civil society peers.

Civil society is an essential pillar of democracy. Without it, our democracy is diminished. We are proud to support it. We stand ready to defend it.

Signatories:

1. Max von Abendroth, Executive Director, Donors and Foundations Networks in Europe DAFNE, EU
2. Knut Olav Åmås, Executive Director, The Fritt Ord Foundation, Norway
3. Antti Arjava, Secretary General, Finnish Cultural Foundation, Finland
4. Andre Betting, Executive Director, Van Leer Group Foundation, the Netherlands
5. Nicolas Borsinger, Secretary General, Nicolas Puech Foundation, Switzerland
6. Göran Blomquist, Executive Director, Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, Sweden
7. Sanne ten Bokkel Huinink, Director, Fonds 1818, the Netherlands
8. James Chen, Chair, the Chen Yet-Sen Family Foundation, Hong-Kong
9. Kathleen Cravero, President, Oak Foundation, Switzerland
10. Aart De Geus, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Bertelsmann  Foundation
11. Lothar Dittmer, Chairman of the Executive Board, Körber-Stiftung, Germany
12. Adriana Esmeijer, Director, Prince Bernhard Cultural Foundation, the Netherlands
13. Michael Feigelson, Executive Director, Bernard Van Leer Foundation, the Netherlands
14. Rosa Gallego, Executive Director, Spanish Association of Foundations, Spain
15. Carrillo Gantner AO, Chairman, Sidney Myer Fund, Australia
16. Carl Gershman, President, National Endowment of Democracy, USA
17. dr. Michael Göring,  Zeit Foundation, Germany
18. Sandro Giuliani, Managing Director, Jacobs Foundation, Switzerland
19. Stephen Heintz, President, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, USA
20. Connie Hedegaard, KR Foundation, Chair, Denmark
21. Mall Hellam, Executive Director, Open Estonia Foundation, Estonia
22. Jenny Hodgson, Executive Director, Global Fund for Community Foundations, South Africa
23. Wilhelm Krull, Secretary General, Volkswagen Foundation, Germany
24. Massimo Lappuci, General Secretary Fondazione CRT, Italy
25. Peter Laugharn, President and CE, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, USA
26. Sara Llewellin, Chief Executive, Barrow Cadbury Trust, United Kingdom
27. Joanna Luberadzka-Gruza, President, Polish Donors Forum, Poland
28. Arto Mäenmaa, Executive Director, Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation, Finland
29. Bharat Mehta CBE,Chief Executive,Trust for London, United Kingdom
30. Benoît Miribel, General Director,  Fondation Merieux, France
31. Ieva Morica, Executive director, Foundation for an Open Society DOTS, Latvia
32. Isabel Mota, President, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Portugal
33. Anke Pätsch, Association of German Foundations, Germany
34. Hilary Pennington, Executive Vice-President of Programs, Ford Foundation, USA
35. Nick Perks, Trust Secretary, Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, United Kingdom
36. Sigrid Rausing, President, Sigrid Rausing Trust, United Kingdom
37. Ebrima Sall, Executive Director, TrustAfrica, Senegal
38. Gerry Salole, CEO, European Foundation Center, Belgium
39. Göran Sandberg,  Executive Director, Knut och Alice Wallenbergs Stiftelse, Sweden
40. Teresa Sanjurjo, Director, The Princess of Asturias Foundation, Spain
41. Dr. Andreas Schlüter, Secretary General, Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft, Germany
42. Michael Schwarz, Executive Director, Mercator Foundation, Germany
43. Moira Sinclair, Chief Executive, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, United Kingdom
44. Aleksander Smolar, President, Stefan Batory Foundation, Poland
45. Rupert Graf Strachwitz, Executive Director, Maecenata Foundation, Germany
46. Anna Talasniemi, Executive Director, Kone Foundation, Finland
47. Luc Tayart de Borms,  Managing Director, King Bauduoin Foundation, Belgium
48. Sergio Urbani, Managing Director, Fondazione Cariplo, Italy
49. Roxana Vitan, President, Romanian-American Foundation, Romania
50. Dimitris Vlastos, The Bodossaki Foundation, Greece
51. Katherine Watson, Executive Director, European Cultural Foundation, the Netherlands
52. Ridgway H. White, President, Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, USA