Headlines: "It's like war, except that we are not shot at"

Text by: Philippe Bertinchamps | Mail from the Balkans

Publicity

Curfew and ban on going out on the streets, shortage of flour in shops, and fear of the "invisible enemy". In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the containment measures taken to deal with the coronavirus epidemic inevitably bring back memories and traumas of the war. Testimonials.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: " It's like war, except that people don't shoot us "
April 1992-December 1995: the endless siege of Sarajevo

They are masons, waiters or truck drivers in Great Britain or Italy. 250,000 Romanians from the diaspora have returned to the country since the start of the pandemic. Between the fear of being welcomed as scapegoats carrying the coronavirus, the concern about the economic crisis and the happiness of finding their family, they confide.
Romania: when the pandemic brings the diaspora back to the country
Romania: seasonal workers' departure for Germany creates a rush at Cluj airport
Demography: the great exodus that empties the Balkans

They resign or go on sick leave. Despite the Hippocratic oath, Romanian doctors and health workers believe that the dramatic lack of protective means puts their own lives at risk. The government is unable to stem the tide.
Coronavirus in Romania: when healthcare workers throw in the towel

Houses or apartments become dangerous places for women or children. In these times of confinement, the home is not a safe haven for everyone. In Montenegro, the SOS domestic violence hotline has seen an increase in distress calls since mid-March.
Confinement in Montenegro: red alert to domestic violence
Violence against women: a (also) Balkan problem

In the absence of basic hygiene conditions, access to drinking water and electricity, without more work or money, the Roma in the slums live in fear of the Covid-19 and fear to be the next victims of a humanitarian disaster. Report in Niš, Serbia, and in the Brčko district, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In the Roma slums of Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the great fear of the coronavirus
Balkan Roma: racism and discrimination

Serbia is subject to a very strict containment regime, but this does not concern the employees of Yura Corporation, a South Korean manufacturer of cables ... On Wednesday, the workers of the factories of Niš and Leskovac refused to return to work - and the bonus of 500 dinars per day offered by the management.
Covid-19 in Serbia: workers at Yura factories refuse to return to work

Serbia has released a package of public aid of more than five billion euros to try to cushion the economic shock of the coronavirus. But these measures will do little for small businesses - not to mention the growing number of self-employed workers who will get nothing.
Serbia: demagogic aid measures with no effect on the economy

Tax credits, relief from social charges and 80 million euros for tourism. The Croatian government announced on Friday a new package of economic measures in response to the coronavirus crisis. The opposition approves and the unions reiterate the importance of social dialogue.
Coronavirus in Croatia: new plan to help the economy

Ritsona and Malakasa, two refugee camps in the Athens area, have been quarantined after being screened for several cases of coronavirus. NGOs fear the spread of the virus in places that are not at all suitable for hygiene or social distancing.
Coronavirus in Greece: two quarantined refugee camps
Refugees: on the “Balkan route”, trapped in closed borders

Strong American pressure brought down the Kosovo government. In the midst of a coronavirus pandemic, Albin Kurti continues to manage "current affairs" and remains politically essential. Besnik Pula's analysis.
Kosovo: Albin Kurti overthrown, but not defeated
Kosovo: government on hold in times of epidemic

The Kosovo government has lifted taxes on goods imported from Serbia, but trucks entering the country must carry the "Republic of Kosovo" as their official destination, a formulation unacceptable to Belgrade ...
Between Kosovo and Serbia, it always blocks at the borders
Between Kosovo and Serbia, the European Union, the United States and " dialogue "

43 million tweets to the glory of President Vučić or discrediting opposition leaders: in Serbia, the regime has put an army of "bots", these automated pirated software, at its service. Twitter has just closed thousands of fake accounts.
Serbia: on Twitter, 'an army of bots' serving Vučić
Serbia: Aleksandar Vučić, the authoritarian drift

Croatia wants to bury the waste from the Krško nuclear power plant in Čerkezovac, on the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. A project which arouses the indignation of the local populations, on both sides of the border. The director of the plant's dismantling fund justifies the project and tries to reassure the public.
Croatia: “not dangerous” nuclear waste in Čerkezovac?
Industrial disasters: the Balkans, a region at risk

For years, the town of Pljevlja, in the north of Montenegro, has been poisoned by a coal-fired power station. An ecological modernization project of the plant is planned, which should be completed in 2050 ... Until then, the inhabitants of Pljevlja will continue to die from pollution, for those who simply have not left the region.
Pollution in Montenegro: the Pljevlja coal power plant, a silent killer
Air pollution: the Balkans are slowly suffocating

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