As political unrest continues to sweep through the Balkans, the region finds itself at a crucial moment in its journey towards democracy and accountability. Two leading experts from the Hellenic Observatory, Centre for Research on Contemporary Greece and Cyprus, Prof. Denisa Kostovicova and Prof. Kevin Featherstone, offer their insights in an article by Iliana Magra, published today in [in Greek].
A call for accountability and an end to corruption
Denisa Kostovicova, Professor in Global Politics (ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳) and head of the Observatory’s research group ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳E Research on South Eastern Europe, explains that the recent protests in the Balkans are far from isolated incidents. The tragic events that have led to public outrage are symptomatic of a deeper demand for democratic integrity and the restoration of the rule of law. While corruption remains a key issue across these nations, the protests represent a broader desire for political systems that protect citizens and hold leaders accountable. Prof Kostovicova emphasises: “It is very important not to confuse the reasons that led to the tragedies in the three countries, simply because corruption had the same outcome—tragic deaths in all three cases. The nature of corruption differs in each of the three countries. In Greece, we observe the consequences of clientelist relationships, which form the dark underbelly of an otherwise functional democratic system. Serbia and North Macedonia, on the other hand, are two countries burdened by the legacy of both communism and the wars of the 1990s and 2000s. The result of these historical legacies is the entanglement of political, economic, security, and criminal elites in both countries, where systemic corruption coexists with a façade of democracy.”
In her perspective, the tragic deaths in Serbia, North Macedonia, and Greece have sparked a realisation among citizens that corruption is not just an inconvenience—it is a threat to public safety. Citizens are no longer willing to tolerate systemic corruption as a normal part of life; ins