Western Balkans
For three decades (1992), the Friedrich Naumann Foundation has been active for freedom in the Western Balkans and supports the countries on their way to a united Europe. From her project office in Belgrade she coordinates her political education work and advice in Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia and Kosovo. Together with her partners from politics, science and civil society, she works primarily on the topics of human and civil rights, digital and open society, democracy and the rule of law as well as communicating political strategies and market-economy structures.
News
-
Long road to new government – Liberals in it for the first time
On 2 October 2022, Bosnia and Herzegovina held its ninth regular parliamentary and presidential elections amidst brewing crises, both domestic and international. The liberal party “Naša stranka” is poised to be the part of the new governing coalition. Despite some successes of progressive parties, the ethnic nationalist and conservative parties continue to dominate. All of this will make for a challenging environment in which liberals will have to manoeuvre, seeking to affirm the principles and values around which the party was built.
-
Final Report on Media Monitoring Serbia - Study confirms Serbian media bias in favour of President Vučić
The project focusses on a detailed analysis and assessment of election-related media coverage and the (equal) representation of election candidates in the media, including the identification of possible cases of political bias and violations of standards of truthful objective reporting. One of the main results of this project is that a brief flicker of supposed *media pluralism” was rather artificial and due to the awareness of international observation. I
-
EuroPride 2022 - the complicated birth of the first EuroPride in South Eastern Europe
Belgrade hosted EuroPride this weekend, an international event dedicated to the rights of the LGBTIQ+ community. Despite strong opposition from the ultra-right, but also from the Serbian Orthodox Church and parts of the government, the final rally took place in the centre of the Serbian capital on Saturday.
-
Regular Economic Report for the first half of 2022
The economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina entered the year 2022 with a series of uncertainties, but also with optimistic expectations that the COVID-19 pandemic has finally passed and that the normalization of economic activities will continue. "There is no more time to lose: 2022 must be the year of social and economic recovery in Bosnia and Herzegovina" is the author's text of the resident coordinator of the United Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
-
Serbia: Gays and lesbians “temporarily” declared personae non-gratae
Europride begins today in Serbia. Although thousands of protesters have once again taken to the streets in Belgrade against the large-scale event and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić had previously announced the cancellation of the Pride event, the international pressure was too great. In the conservative world view of the Serbian president, same-sex partnerships and alternative life plans have no place. LGBTIQ activist Stefan Šparavalo talks about equal rights and social participation in Europe.
-
Rainbow Families in Croatia
Two years ago, political scientist Nikolina Herceg Kolman presented an exciting and interesting analysis of how respect for LGBT* rights became a “key issue” and even a “litmus test for being European” in Croatia, which began accession negotiations with the EU in the early 2000s.
-
New Head for the Foundation in the Western Balkans
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Belgrade has a new director for its activities in the Western Balkans. In mid-August, Markus Kaiser took over from his predecessor Michael Roick, who is leaving the region after three years. The 42-year-old, who is now in charge of the Foundation’s work in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Kosovo, previously worked as Head of Unit for Europe at the Foundation's headquarters in Potsdam.
Social Media
-
0
A new edition of “Two Ambassadors, One Topic” - this time featuring the ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden - is waiting in the wings. Available on the Facebook channel of @FNFWesternBalkans from Monday noon! Novi video „Dva ambasadora - jedna tema“ - ovoga puta u razgovoru sa Ambasadorkom Kraljevine Švedske - je u startnoj poziciji. Video je dostupan na Facebook kanalu @FNFWesternBalkans od ponedeljka u podne!
-
0
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom congratulates Edin Forto (middle), President of our liberal partner party Naša stranka, on his appointment as Minister of Telecommunications and Transport at the state level in Bosnia and Herzegovina! It is good to see that liberals take responsibility in complicated situations. Edin Forto is the right person to improve the situation for all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina within his area of responsibility. We wish him success in this endeavour! #BiH #liberal #ALDE #ReshapeEurope
-
8
We are pleased to have had Helmut Brandstätter, an 🇦🇹 Austrian liberal from NEOS, visit 🇽🇰 #kosovo. Only with joint efforts will liberals succeed in making European society more open, tolerant and inclusive. Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit and NEOS stand side by side for this and on the side of all peoples of the Balkans! #Europe #Austria #Kosovo NEOS" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">#NEOS #Freedom #EU
