BRUSSELS – EU’s mechanisms for tackling the rule of law reforms in the Western Balkans have been improved in the past several years, but an increased effort is still needed if the real changes are to take place, concluded the participants of the panel discussion “Assessing the EU’s rule book for the rule of law…
Many of the most pressing rule-of-law related issues are deeply embedded in the political, economic and social structure of the countries of the Western Balkans. Tackling them is no easy matter and requires multi-faceted solutions: the coveted trophy of fostering better governance cannot be achieved within a few months’ time, nor even in a five-year…
On 27 April, 2017, after the parliamentary majority elected a speaker in Macedonia, the parliament was stormed by a mob. Some were wearing ski masks. Members of parliament who had voted to elect the new speaker were attacked. The attackers injured several MPs: Zoran Zaev (SDSM), Radmila Sekerinska (SDSM), Zijadin Sela (Alliance for Albanians), Oliver…
Throughout February, the Romanian people received international accolades for vigorously flexing their civic muscle against the government’s attempt to roll back hard-won achievements in the fight against corruption. While other member states in the European Union (EU) are grappling with the threat of illiberal disorder, the decisiveness with which hundreds of thousands of Romanians took…
After several sites on the Belgrade riverbank in the Savamala district were illegally demolished on April 25 in a well-coordinated action by a group of masked men in order to pave the way for the controversial Belgrade Waterfront project, Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić gave in to public pressure and promised that the state would investigate the…
Photo credit (©) EPA On Tuesday, April 12, the President of Macedonia, Mr. Gjorge Ivanov, dropped a bombshell: he announced his decision to issue a pardon to all individuals, overwhelmingly politicians, that are under investigation regarding the 2015 wire-tapping scandal under the jurisdiction of the Special Prosecutor, as well as those that were brought up against…
Over the past fourteen years, EU policy makers have placed a growing emphasis on the rule of law and particularly the reform of the judiciary in the transition countries of the Western Balkans (WB) region. The EU’s strategy of promoting rule of law in the WB relies on the demand to comply with certain political…