Social Democratic Politics and Values

We hereby invite you to attend the online streaming of the Human Rights Award 2020 ceremony that will be held next Monday, 16th of November in Berlin from 4-5:30 pm CET. Unfortunatelly, due to existing circumstances the number of in person attendees at the ceremony will be limited, however we would still like to share this moment with You virtually.

The public and the media rarely make a distinction between the terms "refugees" and "migrants", and in many cases they use the phrase "illegal migrants". It is clear that only an act itself can be held as illegal, while an individual cannot. Such terminology further dehumanizes migrants, stigmatizes and discriminates against them, and politicians, the media and institutions are reluctant to accept the use of appropriate terms.

The policy paper offers analysis and policy recommendations to political actors in the EU and SEE6 on current reframing of the European Union ́s enlargement policy towards the region. Integrating the SEE6 into the EU would be a step towards achieving the EU's finalité. Ultimately, it would imply that the project of European integration has consolidated into a concrete political space with a precise boundary on a continental scale. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic could be, for good or bad, a turning point in the relations between the EU and enlargement countries in the Western Balkans. However, there is also a risk that things will come to a halt as nervous EU leaders struggle to find answers for the future of the EU.

In the Western Balkans, the COVID-19 pandemic has been met by already weak social protection systems. The broader social impacts are likely to be both severe and long-lasting. Some positive lessons can be drawn from the initial social policy response by regional governments, including changes to non-contributory cash benefits and insurance-based schemes, which have contributed to reducing income shocks. At the same time, investments were overall modest, some especially vulnerable groups were not targeted, and the effect of one-off measures must remain limited.