Balkan Unscripted #4 – Protests & The Freelancer’s Gamble
(No) Dispatch: The One (Protest) That Got Away
Hi all,
Being a freelance journalist covering foreign news offers a mix of thrill, uncertainty, and strategic guesswork. The Balkans, in particular, present a unique challenge in itself: it is considered by many news agencies as a region with low news activity. Of course, we think differently, but most events happening in the Balkans aren’t necessarily always seen as relevant, which is also why almost no foreign correspondents are based in the region. Many media outlets we work fo don’t provide enough coverage —or funding — to justify a full-time position.
But then there are moments when everyone suddenly jumps in at once. Case in point - the massive protests in Belgrade on March 15. And guess what? We were not there. Marjolein betted on Belgrade in January, believing in post-holiday momentum. Ingrid was in Serbia when the disaster struck in Novi Sad, covered the first protest, and was back in February. We were both gutted to miss this week’s protests.
We both had other work related obligations. But that too is the reality of freelancing. Unlike staff writers for newspapers or other news outlets, we don’t get paid by the hour or day. Instead, we survive by lining up stories. When breaking news hits, we can’t always afford to drop everything. And that is perhaps the most frustrating part of this beautiful job. On the other hand, we have the luxury to take a deep dive into the topics we love. Spending weeks, sometimes even months researching something, not having the obligation to also report on the fast-paced daily news.
At least we’re in good company. Balkan veteran Marcel van der Steen once shared his worst timing blunder: in 2011, while covering the region for Dutch media from Sarajevo, he was on a flight to the Netherlands, right as Ratko Mladić was arrested. By the time he landed and turned his phone on, the number of missed calls and messages with frantic editor requests piled up. He did catch the next flight back, but by then, Serbia was swarming with foreign journalists. That golden advantage of being the reporter on the ground? Gone.
Every time Marjolein misses a big story, she thinks of Marcel and finds comfort in the fact it can always be worse. Thanks for taking one for the team, Marcel 😉(That said, Marcel didn’t miss out this time and took a flight to Belgrade last Saturday).
But don’t worry - we're gearing up for the next chapter!
Vidimo se!
Ingrid and Marjolein
Things you need to know
Thousands in North Macedonia mourned the 59 victims of a deadly nightclub fire in Kocani, which lacked fire safety measures and operated illegally. Grief quickly turned to outrage, sparking protests and rallies over corruption linked to the club’s licensing. Authorities have detained over 20 people while launching nationwide inspections.
Memorial rally for the victims of the nightclub fire. EPA-EFE/GEORGI LICOVSKI
On 15 March, one of Serbia’s largest anti-regime protests ever took place in Belgrade. Allegations of an illegal sonic weapon use have further escalated the tensions, which the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy called a blatant attempt by the regime to incite chaos. They also warn that Vučić is exceeding his constitutional powers by exerting pressure on police officers and openly violating the Police Act.
An appeal by the international academic community regarding events in Serbia has gathered signatures from over 2,000 researchers, including eminent scholars such as Slavoj Žižek, Judith Butler, Francis Fukuyama and Nobel Prize laureate Annie Ernaux.
Throwing eggs at Vucic’s regime officials and supporters is still trending in Serbia.
The 16th victim of the Novi Sad disaster dies. A 19-year-old student died on Friday in a hospital in Belgrade, becoming the 16th fatality of the Novi Sad railway station disaster. The victim was a student at the Svetozar Miletic Secondary School of Economics. Classmates gathered to pay tribute to their friend and schoolmate.
Arrest warrant for Dodik. As the political crisis in Bosnia continues to escalate, the state court issued a new nationwide arrest warrant for the President of Bosnia’s Serb-dominated Republika Srpska entity, Milorad Dodik, along with RS Prime Minister Radovan Viskovic and entity assembly speaker Nenad Stevandic. All three are suspected of an “attack on the constitutional order”. This warrant means that any police officer who encounters Dodik must arrest him immediately. He had planned to travel to Russia and Serbia, but those trips were canceled—both Putin and Vučić reportedly didn’t have time for him. So now Dodik seems busy posting pictures of him drinking coffee with the friends he has left, claiming at the same time he is not afraid of this arrest warrant. For now, Banja Luka is his small safe haven, but it’s likely only a matter of time before he is either arrested or forced to flee.
Marjolein - with Nerko Hadziarapovic and NOS-correspondent for the Balkans and Greece, Thijs Kettenis - talked about the tensions in Bosnia-Herzegovina and the consequences of the arrestwarant of Dodik on the latest episode of The Balkanman.
Deadly pollution continues unchecked in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Lukavac remains the most polluted city in the country, with residents exposed daily to toxic fumes and hazardous pollution. Despite a decade of activism pushing for stricter regulations, little progress has been made. Read more at Naratorium.
Women in North Macedonia’s Albanian minority have to navigate a difficult web of challenges — the country’s simmering ethnic tensions, strict gender roles in their own community, and wider economic struggles. Despite all the obstacles, Ajshe Avdiji, a mother of two, pursues motorsports. Video by DW’s Vjosa Cerkini.
Movie recommendations
For those in the Netherlands: the Movies that Matter festival in The Hague has started and it has programmed quite some movies from the Balkans. Here’s a list of recommendations:
- The Srebrenica Tape - From Dad, for Alisa. In possession of a rare VHS tape shot by her father during the enclave years of Srebrenica, Alisa goes on a journey to uncover the history of her war-torn family, in search of understanding and healing. An intimate search for traces and a journey back to the enclave years of Srebrenica and the genocide of July 1995.
- Home Game. Acclaimed filmmaker Lidija Zelovic has been portraying her displaced family in the Netherlands since 1993, when they fled war-torn Sarajevo, in her own unique style and with self-deprecating humour. Zelovic’s film essay exposes the duality that all migrants live with: what is ‘home’? She draws attention to social and political developments in the Netherlands that she recognises from her fractured homeland, Yugoslavia.
- The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent. February 27, 1993, Štrpci, Bosnia and Herzegovina. A passenger train from Belgrade to Bar is stopped by paramilitary forces in an ethnic cleansing operation. As they haul off innocent civilians, only one man out of 500 passengers dares to stand up to them. This is the true story of a man who could not remain silent.
Meme of the week
This meme was shared by Vinko Šarac, a museum curator from Tomislavgrad! Thanks Vinko! For context, SIPA is Bosnia and Herzegovina's primary law enforcement agency, tasked with combating serious crimes such as organised crime, terrorism, corruption, war crimes, and financial fraud. Right now, it's going after Dodik…
Hi, from us
We’re Ingrid & Marjolein, two freelance journalists covering the Balkans. One Saturday night — after a few glasses of rakija — this newsletter was born. In each edition, we share stories that catch our eye, the ones worth reading, along with our observations from reporting in the region. So grab a coffee (or a rakija) and join us.
