By Dragon Umek
From 22-24 February, Claudio Minca and I took a short trip to Belgrade, Serbia. The main purpose of our trip was to consolidate relations with various organizations that have been working for years in close contact with migrants in Serbia, and in various contexts along the Balkan Route. We also sought to learn about recent events in the region concerning the Route, its informal spatialities, and the closure of several reception centres in the North of the country.
Over the first two days, we met with representatives of three separate organizations, learning more about their recent work and the changing context of informal migration in Serbia. On the last day, we briefly visited urban areas where the presence of migrants was previously more evident (including the bus station, “Afghan Park,” and the central market).