News and updates from BCSDN and the region
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
Read more →The Council for Cooperation between the Government and Civil Society has launched a public call for civil society representatives to join the Monitoring Committee for the Reform and Growth Facility. The Committee monitors the progress and quality of reforms and investments under North Macedonia’s Reform Agenda 2024–2027, linked to the EU’s Growth Plan for the
Read more →Following the EU Delegation’s consultation with civil society, Partners Albania submitted its written contribution to the programming of EU financial assistance to Albania under the next Multiannual Financial Framework. The contribution calls for greater focus on the effective implementation, monitoring and accountability of reforms, alongside stronger democratic governance, civic participation and an enabling environment for
Read more →Bosnia and Herzegovina still lacks a state-level Law on Citizens’ Initiative, leaving citizens without a unified framework for direct participation in decision-making. The Aarhus Centre in BiH has submitted a draft law to the Parliamentary Assembly, aiming to establish clear rules for launching citizens’ initiatives and ensure that institutions respond to issues of public interest.
Read more →At least 25 cases of satellite navigation interference have been recorded affecting Serbia over the past four years, several coinciding with major anti-government protests, elections and other politically sensitive events. The incidents include GPS jamming and “spoofing”, which transmits false navigation data to affected systems. During protests in Belgrade in May 2026, interference forced drones
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