Freedom House Report Notes Serbia's Downward Trend

The report marked Bosnia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia, Albania as only 'partly free'. Graphic: Freedom House.

The US-based watchdog Freedom House's annual Freedom in the World report, published on Tuesday, marked Bosnia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania as only "partly free", while some countries, like Serbia, experienced a downward trend.

In Serbia, the report warned that the EU's tolerance of President Aleksandar Vucic's authoritarianism had allowed him to "further sideline the opposition and undermine what remains of the independent media after winning the country's presidency in April".

"Serbia received a downward trend arrow due to ... Vucic'c continued consolidation of power, including through opaque party financing methods, politicization of law enforcement, and attempts to undermine critical journalists with financial investigations and smears in government-friendly media," it said.

The preliminary findings were released exclusively to Balkan Insight, while the full details will be made public on a rolling basis as the country reports are filed.

An editor with Freedom House, Shannon O'Toole, told BIRN that independent journalists and NGO workers in the Balkans have done indispensable work exposing crime, corruption, and right abuses.

"And they do this knowing that they could face intimidation or become the target of smear campaigns, or even experience physical violence as a result of their work. International organizations have a duty to help empower them as they work to defend political rights and civil liberties across the region," she added.

The report said that events in the Western Balkans demonstrated a need for continued engagement in the region by major democracies.

"In Macedonia, mediation by Washington and Brussels helped resolve a years-long political crisis, paving the way for a new,...

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