All the news

Dačić's Serbia looks to Moscow

12/09/2012 -  Luka Zanoni

Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dačić declares himself allergic to Brussels, while the new government grows more and more enthusiastic of Moscow. Data, however, show that from an economics point of view Serbia is very closely linked to the European Union, while pro-Russian sentiments are based on populism

Kosovo: The end of supervision?

11/09/2012 -  Andrea Lorenzo Capussela

The supervision of Kosovo does not end today: the ICO did many things, good or bad, but it certainly did not supervise Kosovo. Kosovo was, and will continue to be, supervised by foreign powers. A comment

Paralympics 2012: Albania's first time

11/09/2012 -  Nicole Corritore

Haki Doku is the first Albanian athlete in the history of the Paralympics. He competed in London on his hand-bike, a special, three-wheeled bike driven by force of arms. The road to get there was an uphill struggle, but thanks to the Integra Foundation and many others, Haki's dream was fulfilled

Bosnia: rampant festivals and bankrupt museums

06/09/2012 -  Marzia Bona

Bosnia and Herzegovina's major cultural institutions, including the National Museum, the Art Gallery and the National Film Archive, are in a state of neglect. The State does not support them, because doing so would imply acknowledging the existence of a common cultural and historical heritage. Some, in the capital's artistic milieu, have suggested privatization

Macedonia: The Communist Reality

05/09/2012 -  Risto Karajkov Skopje

In Macedonia, the process of dealing with the communist past of the country is becoming more and more to resemble a reality show. Lists of former secret service agents are published on the internet, civil servants are removed from office, new categories of citizens end under screening. But some warn that privacy and civil rights are at stake

North Kosovo, one year after the crisis

05/09/2012 -  Tatjana Lazarević Mitrovica

The two crossings at Jarinje and Brnjak, heavily guarded by international military and police forces, today de facto separate central Serbia from North Kosovo. The distance between Pristina and Mitrovica, however, has not diminished

Azerbaijani movie and tv world

05/09/2012 -  Arzu Geybullayeva Baku

The long story of Azerbaijani cinema, from a documentary on oil gushes filmed in 1898 to Soviet-time musicals, and its bleak situation today. The government tries to help the local industry by banning foreign TV series and shows on local TVs, but hope comes from young directors

The burden of truth

03/09/2012 -  Paolo Martino

1915: in the countryside around Diyarbakyr, Armenians and Kurds have been living together for centuries. The Ottoman empire, on the verge of collapse, is about to launch its witch-hunt. Ethnic cleansing in Anatolia is systematic. But some men, helped by luck or their neighbors, manage to save themselves. The ninth episode of our report, “From the Caucasus to Beirut”

Gakayev, the enemy Kadyrov needs

30/08/2012 -  Majnat Kurbanova

Over the years, almost all historical leaders of the Chechen separatist rebels have been killed. In the movement there are no more figures known to the general public, but attacks continue. For the Chechen leadership, however, it is important that enemies have a name. Today, the enemy's name is Gakayev

Tamara and Van, a same fate

27/08/2012 -  Paolo Martino

A city symbol of the Armenian resistance. Razed twice to the ground, first by the Ottoman troops and then by the terrible earthquake of last winter, Van seems to share its destiny with the beautiful Tamara, a legendary figure disappeared in the abysses of the lake it looked over. The eighth episode of our report, “From the Caucasus to Beirut”

NGO headaches from grant co-financing

23/08/2012 -  Risto Karajkov

Donors hardly ever support projects if they are not partially co-financed by the applicant. In principle, this makes total sense, but in practice the rule often sets off creative accounting and limits NGO capacities

Sarkan, the guardian

20/08/2012 -  Paolo Martino

When a State is founded on a myth, that myth is to be defended at all costs. These words by an Armenian university professor come to Paolo’s mind while walking through the cold rooms of the Turkish Genocide Museum, in Igdir. Here, history becomes myth and the past is turned upside down. The seventh episode of the story “From the Caucasus to Beirut”

From James Dean to Stalin: the tragedy of the Armenian repatriation

17/08/2012 -  Hazel Antaramian Hofman

As a young child, she always wondered why she lived in Yerevan when her father was born in the U.S. and her mother was from Lyon. Then she understood. With an historical-artistic project, Hazel Antaramian Hofman follows the footprints of those people, who, from all over the world, decided to migrate to Armenia after the Second World War

Places of memory: the 11/07/95 gallery

16/08/2012 -  Marzia Bona

In Sarajevo, a new space dedicated to the memory of Srebrenica lives on Turkish funds, with little support from local institutions. Art, memory, and cooperation in an interview with Ivica Pandžić, spokesperson for the association that manages the memorial gallery

Bosnia: agony over Dayton

14/08/2012 -  Andrea Oskari Rossini

The European integration process of Bosnia and Herzegovina is on stand by until the country adapts its Constitution to the standards required by the European Court of Human Rights. Sarajevo between human and ethnic rights, the Komšić factor

Pastures for Angora flocks

13/08/2012 -  Paolo Martino

Desolate lands, where the mountains of the Caucasus descend towards the Anatolian plateau in big steps, and names come from politics rather than history. The sixth episode of our report “From the Caucasus to Beirut”

Croatia: the return of the Pelješac bridge

09/08/2012 -  Drago Hedl Osijek

Caught in the grip of economic crisis, Croatia is desperate for investments. So much that the centre-left government is reconsidering the long-opposed Pelješac bridge

Ingushetia, the circle of injustice

08/08/2012 -  Irina Gordienko Moscow

The "circle of injustice" that leads to continuous violence in Ingushetia and throughout the North Caucasus is the focus of a recent report by Amnesty International. Irina Gordienko, special correspondent of Novaya Gazeta, tells OBC readers about it

Macedonia: last chance for Crvenkovski?

07/08/2012 -  Risto Karajkov

He's the only Macedonian politician who has been riding the crest of the wave since the '90s. Branko Crvenkovski seems to have reached his final challenge: the next local elections. He would do anything to win them, even shaking hands with former arch-enemies

Albania: if the Kanun degenerates

03/08/2012 -  Marjola Rukaj

In the north there are frequent cases of blood revenge. Killings occur in the name of the Kanun, the traditional law, which in fact is not observed. And women are targets too. Marjola Rukaj explains why the Kanun, tradition, and Lek Dukagjini are not the main causes of the problem, but its symptoms