Thread by @ichbinilya

I wrote about how @OCCRP's award-winning Serbian member center, @KRIKrs, is being persecuted through smear campaigns, death threats, and an incredible 9 lawsuits at once.

And what this says about the EU's commitment to democracy. (1/11)
occrp.org/en/blog/15706-…

KRIK are some of the best investigative journalists in the world. They have uncovered story after story exposing corruption and criminal connections at the highest level of the Serbian government. These are things the Serbian people deserve to know. (2/11)

In return, KRIK has been stalked, harassed, spied on, and threatened. Apartments broken into. And, as my story explains, lawsuit after frivolous lawsuit, which wastes time and money and distracts them from their work. (3/11)

So where does the EU come in? Well, Serbia is probably the front runner candidate to join. Just a couple of weeks ago, it opened new chapters of negotiation. Commission president @vonderleyen has praised "dear Aleksandar," as she called President Vučić, for his reforms. (4/11)

Here's the text of her recent speech in Serbia. "You have done a lot of hard work. This hard work pays off," she says. "It is amazing to see the progress." (5/11) ec.europa.eu/commission/pre…

But it's another thing about her speech that catches the eye. She acknowledges there's work to be done — "It is essential ... to progress on the rule of law" — and then adds: "I know that you are working on it." (6/11)

This is the part I can't believe. It assumes political will. It assumes Vučić and his government is *trying* — it's just a hard technical problem that the EU is rooting for them to solve. (7/11)

But look at who's suing KRIK: Some of the closest people to the president. Look at who's painting targets on their backs: State-funded tabloids. Look who's spying on them: the intelligence service. These are not accidents. This is not a gov't that has the will to reform. (8/11)

Unfortunately, the assumption that it *wants to* is baked into the way the EU handles its accession process. It's a box ticking exercise. And the same thing shows up again in again, in its dealing with other governments as well. (9/11)

It really threatens the whole European project as an exercise in democracy. And it highlights a broader problem with international bodies: The assumption of good will by their constituents. But not everything is a technical problem. (10/11)

This is something I hope the democratic world will learn to reckon with. Meanwhile, happy holidays to my friends at @KRIKrs. We'll be with you all the way. (END)