EU Investigative Journalism Awards 2023: Meet the Winners
We are excited to share the awarded stories:
ALBANIA
- 1stprize, Aurora Velaj, Euronews Albania, “Po na shujn!” (“They are whipping us out!”)
- 2ndprize, Osman Stafa, Investigative Network of Albania, “Mungesa e ilaçeve në QSUNT rrezikon jetën e fëmijëve, që vuajnë nga tumori” (“The lack of medicines in QSUNT endangers the lives of children suffering from tumors”)
- 3rdprize (Tied) Anila Hoxha, Reporter.al, “Sekret shtetëror: Historia pa lavdi e degradimit të flotës ajrore shqiptare” (“State secret: The inglorious history of the degradation of the Albanian air fleet”)
- and Artan Rama, Investigative Network of Albania, “Kush e kontrollon Butrinti” (“Who manages Butrint?”)
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
- 1stprize, Semira Degirmendžić,ba, “Turski Cengiz dobio poslove od milijardu maraka, a bh. radnicima neće da isplati odštete” (“Turkish Cengiz got deals worth a billion marks, but will not pay compensation to the workers”)
- 2ndprize (Tied), Predrag Blagovčanin, Tacno.net, “Između HDZ-a i DF-a: Kako je Ministarstvo odbrane BiH zaštitilo ratnog zločinca” (“Between HDZ and DF: How the Ministry of Defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina protected a war criminal”)
- and Džana Brkanić and Lamija Grebo, BIRN: “Uslovne kazne ne sprečavaju širenje mržnje” (“Suspended sentences do not prevent the spread of hatred”)
- 3rdprize, Arduana Pribinja, Al Jazeera Balkans, “Zloupotreba pacijenata u Sarajevu: Lažne dijagnoze za skupocjene lijekove” (“Abuse of patients in Sarajevo: False diagnoses for expensive drugs”)
KOSOVO
- 1st prize, Kreshnik Gashi, Kallxo.com, “Blerja e Kryeprokurorit I dhe II” (“The Purchase of the Chief Prosecutor I and II”)
- 2ndprize, Dafina Halili, Kosovo 2.0, “Shkolla fantazmë, shkolla geto e ndërrime të segreguara” (“Ghost Schools, Ghetto Schools and Segregated Shifts”)
- 3rdprize, Saranda Ramaj, Koha, “Abuzimet me Fondin per Trajtim Jashte Institucioneve Publike” (“Abuses of the Outpatient Treatment Fund”)
NORTH MACEDONIA
- 1stprize, Sashka Cvetkovska, Elena Mitrevska Cuckovska, Maja Jovanovska, and Trifun Sitnikovski, IRL Macedonia, “Нечиста крв” (“Bad Blood”)
- 2ndprize, Frosina Dimeska, Prizma, “Избеган украински политичар под санкции на САД, добил македонско државјанство” (“Ukrainian politician who escaped under US sanctions, received Macedonian citizenship”)
- 3rdprize, Miomir Serafinovic, Snezana Lupevska, TV Telma, KOD, “КОД: Државата не наплати пари од пресудено кривично дело-(Не)успешната конфискација на Трансмет” (“CODE: The state did not collect money from a convicted crime-(Un)successful confiscation of Transmet”)
MONTENEGRO
- 1st prize, Đurđa Radulović, CIN-CG, Vijesti, “Nasilje o kom se ćuti – porodilišta krše preporuke SZO” (“Silence Surrounding Violence – Maternity Wards Violate WHO Recommendations”)
- 2ndprize, Olivera Lakić, Libertas Press, for her series of articles shedding light on high-level corruption within the Montenegrin judicial system and uncovering crime and corruption within Montenegrin police structures.
- 3rdprize (Tied), Dejan Milovac, NVO MANS and ND Vijesti, “Pandora Papiri: Ruski offshore milioni za luksuzne nekretnine u Crnoj Gori” (“Pandora Papers: Russian offshore millions for luxury real estate in Montenegro”)
- and Vladimir Otasević, Jovo Martinović, Marko Vešović and Andras Kiraly(RTV Nikšić, Istraživački portal LUPA), “Tajna E-gambling afera” (“Secret E-gambling Affair”)
SERBIA
- 1stprize, Stevan Dojčinović, Bojana Jovanović, Milica Vojinović, Ana Adžić, KRIK, “Serijal priča o klanu Darka Šarića” (Series of stories about Darko Šarić’s clan)
- 2ndprize (Tied), Stefan Marković, Teodora Ćurčić, Jovana Tomić, Ivana Milosavljević, Vladimir Kostić, CINS, “Finansiranje političkih partija” (“Financing of political parties”)
- and Jelena Zorić, BIRN, “Klinička istraživanja i lažne dijagnoze” (“Clinical research and false diagnosis”)
- 3rdprize (Tied), Vuk Cvijić, NIIN, for his investigations about the connections between criminal circles and high state officials,
- and Dina Đorđević, Marija Ristić, Jovana Tomić and Saša Dragojlo, CINS, BIRN, for “Series of Stories: Paths of Serbian Weapons” (“Serijal priča: Putevi srpskog oružja”)
TÜRKIYE
- 1stprize, Murat Ağırel, Yeniçağ Gazetesi, “Uyuşturucu Kıskacında Türkiye” (“Türkiye in the grip of drugs”)
- 2ndprize, Doğu Eroğlu, Medyascope, “Belgelerle BTK-gate” (“BTK-gate with Documents”)
- 3rdprize, Çiğdem Toker, Sözcü Gazetesi, “Atatürk Havalimanı’na Millet Bahçesi Operasyonu” (“National Garden Operation at Atatürk Airport”)
This year, aside from national awards, the EU Award introduced a regional award, targeting the best stories from the entire region, but also supporting collaborations between journalists in the Western Balkans region and Türkiye.
Regional winners are:
- 1stprize, Sashka Cvetkovska, Elena Mitrevska Cuckovska, Maja Jovanovska, Trifun Sitnikovski, IRL Macedonia, “Нечиста крв” (“Bad Blood”)
- 2ndprize, Dragan Stanimirović, Al Jazeera Balkans, “Bitka za Neretvu” (“Battle for Neretva”)
- 3rdprize, Saša Dragojlo, BIRN, “Krijumčar-prevodilac i “major Deki”: Tvrdnje o kriminalu uz policijsku pomoć” (“With Police Connections, Serbian-Syrian Translator Turned People-Smuggler”)
Congratulations to all the winners!
The EU Award for Investigative Journalism 2023 is managed by the project`s partners -Thomson Media (TM) – Germany, The Independent Union of Journalists and Media Workers (SSNM) – North Macedonia, and Association of Journalists (AJ) – Türkiye.