European Press Prize 2012: Shortlisted

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My work has been shortlisted for the European Press Prize 2012. The selection was based on stories that I have edited for the Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence, as well as for the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. The shortlist described the work as a “revelation”, praising the “excellent” way  in which strong on-the-ground reporting had been shaped for an international audience.

Other contenders for the prize’s Innovation Award include The Guardian’s Paul Lewis for his year-long research into the causes and consequences of the London riots, and Lukas Hassig of Inside Paradeplatz, a website that has investigated the practices of major Swiss banks.

Separately, an investigation that I edited about the racket in Romanian passports has also been shortlisted for the European Press Prize’s Reporting Award.

 

 

Secrets and Lies: No Closure for Victims of Albanian Communism

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An investigation into Albania’s failure to address the excesses of its communist past. Former prisoners of the gulag system have spent decades in pursuit of justice. They have been promised disclosures and compensation by successive governments – but have yet to see much action. Report by Aleksandra Bogdani. My edit for BfJE/Balkan Insight and The Atlantic.

Football and Ultra Violence: Balkan Hooligans Escape Penalties

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An examination of the relationship between football hooligans and nationalism in Macedonia and Serbia. The “ultras” believe their violence serves a political cause, and will not be punished by the courts. However, the politicians deny any links with the violent hooligans. Report by Aleksandar Manasiev. My edit for BfJE/Balkan Insight and The Guardian.

Collective Punishment: A Forlorn Tale of Farm Privatisation in Croatia

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An investigation into the mismanagement and suspicious deals that stripped bare a Socialist-era farm – one privatisation scandal among many in the breadbasket of the former Yugoslavia. Report by Ana Benacic. My edit for BfJE/Balkan Insight and the Christian Science Monitor.

Better a Polish Plumber than a Romanian Builder

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An investigation into how British restrictions on EU workers have created a supply of underpaid and unprotected manpower for the construction sector. The UK government insists that its rules are meant to stem the tide of migrants. Report by Sorana Stanescu. My edit for BfJE/Balkan Insight and the New Statesman.

Ten Balkan Tales

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Here are all ten of the stories I edited in 2012 for the Balkan Fellowship of Journalistic Excellence, an annual award for investigative and long-form reporting. The stories were published by Balkan Insight, as well as in the international and regional press.

  • Top prize-winner Sorana Stanescu reveals how British immigration laws – a door left half open – have led to the exploitation of Romanian and Bulgarian builders.
  • Second prize-winner Saska Cvetkovska investigates why so many Macedonian youngsters are locked out of a deeply politicised job market.
  • Third prize-winner Aleksandra Bogdani examines why the former prisoners of Albania’s gulags have yet to be compensated for their suffering.
  • Aleksandar Manasiev reveals how violent football hooligans keep ethnically divided Macedonia on edge.
  • Arbana Xharra examines how Muslim hardliners are sowing conservatism among Kosovo’s poor, sparking resentment in a traditionally secular society.
  • Ana Benacic’s investigation into the collapse of a Croatian farm shows how bad privatisation is a modern version of the Biblical plague of locusts, stripping the land of its wealth.
  • Dimiter Kenarov asks if poverty and murky politics in Bulgaria can stop the seemingly unstoppable rise of the environmental movement.
  • Eldin Hadzovic asks why the dysfunctional state in Bosnia seems to care least for its most vulnerable citizens – the thousands of children abandoned by their families.
  • Samir Kajosevic travels among ethnic Albanian minorities in Montenegro and beyond, discovering some hope amid economic desperation.
  • Miodrag Sovilj asks the activist-squatters of Croatia and Slovenia how they fought the state and won, while their counterparts in Serbia failed.

‘Pssst! Wanna buy EU citizenship?’

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Investigation into the racket in Romanian passports for fake applicants. Report by Adrian Mogos and Vitalie Calugareanu. My edit for Balkan Insight.

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