A new report by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) reveals alarming trends in surveillance and censorship across the Western Balkans. Covering developments through the end of 2024 and early 2025, the study highlights how digital technologies are increasingly used to monitor citizens, suppress dissent, and restrict media freedom despite formal legal alignment with EU standards. The report exposes serious gaps in implementation. Weak institutions, political interference, and lack of transparency have paved the way for widespread use of biometric surveillance, facial recognition, and sophisticated censorship tools—often deployed without proper legal safeguards or public oversight. Journalists, activists, and human rights defenders are facing growing digital harassment, legal pressures, and institutional censorship, underscoring a deepening crisis for freedom of expression and democratic accountability in the region. Read more here.
Source: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans