When Speaking Out Comes with a Lawsuit: BCSDN Launches Regional Campaign Against SLAPPs

One lawsuit lands on the table. Then another. And another. Eventually, the person trying to speak is almost hidden behind a wall of legal cases.

This is the story at the centre of BCSDN’s new regional campaign against Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) — and a reality increasingly confronting journalists, activists, CSOs, environmental and human rights defenders, and citizens who speak out on matters of public interest across the Western Balkans.

The impact therefore reaches beyond those directly targeted. SLAPPs can create a wider chilling effect on public participation, weakening critical scrutiny and discouraging others from raising issues of public interest.

SLAPPs misuse legal proceedings to intimidate, exhaust or silence critical voices. They do not need to succeed in court to have an impact: lengthy proceedings, legal costs, stress and uncertainty can be enough to discourage people from speaking out or participating in public debate.

One lawsuit. Many silenced voices.

The impact therefore reaches beyond those directly targeted. SLAPPs can create a wider chilling effect on public participation, weakening critical scrutiny and discouraging others from raising issues of public interest.

The campaign builds on BCSDN’s regional work on SLAPPs, which has sought to broaden understanding of the issue beyond attacks on journalists alone and draw attention to the experiences of civil society and other public-interest actors. It also highlights the role of civil society in documenting cases, supporting those targeted and advocating for stronger safeguards.

At the heart of the campaign is a regional video showing how legal pressure can gradually build a wall around those who speak out — and how that wall can be dismantled through stronger legal safeguards, early recognition, accessible legal support, systematic documentation and public solidarity.

The campaign will be rolled out across the region in local languages through BCSDN and members, raising awareness of SLAPPs, their impact on public participation and the need for stronger protection against their misuse.

Because when one voice is pushed into silence, the impact does not stop there.

SLAPPs: A slap in the face of truth. A blow to us all.