News and updates from BCSDN and the region
Three years after the Belgrade Court of Appeal acquitted four former Serbian security officials in the 1999 murder of journalist Slavko Curuvija, Serbia’s Supreme Court ruled that the verdict violated the law. The ruling, issued in October 2025 but only recently made public, found legal errors in how the Court of Appeal handled witness testimony
Read more →Despite recent efforts to strengthen Turkey’s cybersecurity framework, experts say mass data breaches continue to expose tens of millions of citizens, with the root causes tied less to technology than to governance, institutional culture, and poor coordination. In October, personal data of over 5,000 members of the Turkish Business Association appeared for sale online, followed
Read more →At the National Forum – Civil Society Fair, Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski emphasized that meaningful change requires government-civil society collaboration. He highlighted the government’s vision for a strong, independent, and sustainable civil sector that strengthens democracy, protects rights, and crucially, bridges the gap between institutions and the public. Swiss Ambassador Christoph Sommer echoed this, stressing
Read more →Bulgaria’s coalition government unexpectedly collapsed on December 11, 2025, due to sustained and intense pressure from citizen mobilization and anti-corruption protests. This political crisis, triggered by widespread public dissatisfaction over deep-seated corruption allegations and stalled reforms, forced a major political upheaval. The collapse underscores the direct and potent impact of organized civic action on governance
Read more →Civil Society Europe is urging organizations to sign an open letter demanding the European Commission reverse its decision to withdraw the European Cross-Border Associations (ECBA) Directive. The ECBA proposal, approved by the European Parliament in 2024, would allow non-profit organizations active in at least two Member States to be recognized and operate across the EU
Read more →The EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) 2025 report, Better Legislation – Human Rights Impact Assessments in Lawmaking, reveals that the use of Human Rights Impact Assessments (HRIAs) remains uneven and often superficial across the EU and its Member States. The report criticizes that the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is frequently overlooked in national
Read more →Two UN Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact Working Groups have launched new guidance to help Member States ensure full respect for human rights while implementing measures to counter the financing of terrorism (CFT). The document provides practical recommendations for defining financing offences, gathering financial intelligence, conducting investigations, and applying targeted financial sanctions. It specifically examines the
Read more →BCSDN underscores the vital role of volunteering as a powerful act of resilience against shrinking civic space in the Western Balkans. Following the Regional EU Conference, we emphasize that volunteers are crucial for activating local agency, building cross-border solidarity, and championing transparency. With 2026 declared the International Volunteering Year (IVY), BCSDN calls for governments to
Read more →The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), at its 600th plenary session, adopted an opinion emphasizing that EU enlargement is a value-driven process. The opinion stresses that social partners and civil society organizations (CSOs) are essential for advancing democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in candidate countries. The EESC calls on the European
Read more →The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) has launched the Human Rights Structures Navigator, a comprehensive new tool designed to support the enabling environment for human rights protection across Europe. The Navigator provides a centralised overview of major human rights institutions and structures across EU Member States and candidate countries. Designed for practitioners, EU
Read more →Disinformation surrounding youth protests in Serbia is being deployed to suppress civic engagement and undermine trust in democratic institutions. Following a “historic day of anger” in mid-March 2025—sparked by the tragic collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy and student demands for accountability—pro-government media quickly moved to reframe the demonstrations. Instead of addressing the
Read more →The Institute of Communication Studies in Skopje, North Macedonia, launched Kairos – Journal of Media and Communications Review in 2022. This open-access platform aims to foster knowledge exchange among academics, researchers, and professionals in media and communications. Kairos focuses on contemporary issues and future developments across interdisciplinary discussions, empirical research, and the interaction of expertise
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