News and updates from BCSDN and the region
The EU Agency for Fundamental Rights’ 2026 Civic Space Update documents widespread and intensifying pressure on civil society organisations working on fundamental rights. Three-quarters of…
Read more →Turkish authorities have launched a large-scale operation targeting LGBTQ+ people, rights defenders, civil society organisations, journalists and businesses under the stated aim of protecting “family…
Read more →SCiDEV’s latest Digital Rights e-Bulletin reviews legal, regulatory and practical developments affecting digital rights in Albania during August and September 2026. Among the developments covered…
Read more →At least 14 people in Serbia, including members of the student movement, activists and opposition representatives, have been targeted with advanced spyware since the beginning…
Read more →Turkish authorities have launched a large-scale crackdown targeting LGBTI+ organisations, activists and human rights defenders, involving coordinated raids, detentions and restrictions on online content across…
Read more →At least 203 people were fined between 2021 and 2025 for content posted on social media and online portals under local public-order regulations in several…
Read more →Anti-government demonstrations in Albania have continued for more than 100 consecutive days, developing into a sustained protest movement centred on concerns over environmental protection, corruption…
Read more →The Macedonian Center for International Cooperation (MCIC) has published Civil Society in Numbers 2025, analysing the financial, economic and social position of the 100 largest…
Read more →A year has passed since Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted its first state-level Strategy for Creating an Enabling Environment for Civil Society Development 2025–2029, setting out a framework for more transparent public funding, stronger civil society participation in policymaking, improved institutional cooperation and better resource infrastructure for CSOs. BCSDN member Center for Promotion of Civil Society
Read more →In an opinion for Kosovo 2.0, KCSF Executive Director Dren Puka warns that public property and resources can become tools of pressure when access to them depends on an organisation’s relationship with those in power. Referring to the Municipality of Prishtina’s termination of BIRN Kosovo’s agreement for space in the Grand Hotel, alongside previous cases
Read more →In an interview for Radar, Maja Stojanović, Executive Director of BCSDN member Civic Initiatives, describes an increasingly restrictive environment for civil society and critical voices in Serbia. She argues that international expressions of concern have had limited effect as long as attacks and institutional pressure carry no political consequences. Stojanović points to police searches of
Read more →The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and the Association of Journalists of Albania (AGSH) have raised concerns over a new internal regulation of Albania’s Special Court against Corruption and Organized Crime (GJKKO), warning that it introduces significant restrictions on journalists’ access to and reporting from court proceedings. Adopted without prior consultation, the regulation reportedly deviates
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