For the last few months, people in the western part of Serbia near the city of Loznica have been struggling to preserve their homes and livelihoods from the invasion of lithium mining investors. This region is rich in jadarite ore from which much-demanded lithium metal is extracted (used in nearly all technology). But the extraction procedure itself would not come without consequences for the environment and the local population. […]

On October 17th, local elections will be organized in North Macedonia. For the first time in the history of the state’s independence—obtained exactly 30 years ago to the day—several cities, including the capital Skopje, have lists with independent candidates. This is of immense importance for Macedonian society, because the government has frequently attempted to sabotage elections with ad hoc changes to election rules. Earlier this week, I interviewed Dragana Velkovska, long-time activist and founder of the movement Zelen Human Grad […]

Last November, Montenegrin politician Dritan Abazovic publicly commented that female politicians and women in general should stay out of negotiations to form a new government so that they are not overburdened with complicated political matters. The statement provoked major backlash in Montenegro, and two female activists, known as Jeka and Joka, using the pseudonym Ljeposava, decided it was time for women to take things into their own hands. […]

“I met Mariah Rafaela Silva in December 2019, at an EU Parliament conference on the trade agreements negotiated and signed between the EU and Mercosur. Mariah spoke passionately about the nonviolent struggles of indigenous and LGBTQI people to protect their human rights in her native Brazil. The stakes are high: the Bolsonaro administration itself verbally attacks and has adopted discriminatory policies against these communities, and indigenous land has been destroyed by fire or stolen by the government and its oligarchic allies. […]”

For almost a decade, Macedonians have engaged in a nonviolent struggle to protect their land and air from mass pollution as a result of foreign direct investments in copper, gold, and silver mining in the Balkan state. Actions have intensified since 2017 with citizen initiatives like SOS Valandovo, Zdrava Kotlina (“Healthy Valley”), and Youth Against Stuka-Ilovica Mine of Death organizing protests and road blockades to prevent the opening of mines. They count a number of successful closures so far, but the struggle isn’t over […]

Corruption is spreading through the Balkans as countries like Bulgaria, Serbia, and Macedonia are impacted by the government-backed construction sector. Monuments, renovations, demolitions, and kitsch construction projects are being commissioned by state governments—not to create something that will last for future generations, but instead to launder money for government officials and private businesses. […]

On the Minds of the Movement blog, Sonja Stojadinovic comments on the 2015-2016 nonviolent movements for freedom from corrupt government that have set the people and politics of North Macedonia on a new historical path.