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Download the publication - Civic Mobilization as a Response to Institutional
Civil Mobilization
About the publication
Authors: Dušan Spasojevi, Daliborka Uljarević, Irena Cvetkovikj
Publishing year: 2025.
Across the Western Balkans, the last decade has seen an intensification in democratic backsliding, a rise in competitive authoritarian regimes, and increased instrumentalization of nationalism and religion in public life.
While the formal frameworks for EU integration remain in place, the spirit of democratic reform is increasingly under strain. Institutions are often captured, public discourse is deeply polarized, and civic engagement is frequently met with repression, marginalization, or co-optation. Within this fragile democratic landscape, youth movements in Serbia, North Macedonia, and Montenegro have emerged as some of the most resilient and imaginative responses to systemic erosion.
This analysis focuses on three emblematic waves of student and youth-led mobilization - Serbia’s civic uprising for accountability, North Macedonia’s renewed student plenums, and Montenegro’s “Kamo śutra?” movement - as critical expressions of generational resistance and societal dissatisfaction. Despite differing local triggers and political configurations, all three movements articulate a shared rejection of apathy, authoritarian drift, and served manipulation. They assert a demand for dignity and a future anchored in democratic values.
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