My name is Iva and I live in a modest apartment in Belgrade with my 84-year-old-mother. Right now, we are in grave danger of losing the home we’ve worked our whole lives to keep.

The government has recently targeted citizens like us with debts that are tiny in comparison to those of companies or rich individuals as a last resort before supposedly introducing a property protection act. Because we were late on a few payments, our consolidated debt was brought back to its original amount and now we risk being repossessed.

We need urgent help to show that we can pay at least a part of our debt, to delay or stop eviction, and to give us a chance to benefit from the new property protection law. We are obviously very keen on keeping our modest, unrenovated place and I want mom to have a normal old age and not be affected by this. If we fall deeper in the times of such frightening political turmoil we won't be able to get out of it - plain and simple.

We got into a debt over building facade renovations which were forced on the homeowners in the building because half of people or so agreed. Around the same time I suffered from severe depression and lost all my job connections as web designer. I did odd IT jobs here and there, but the pandemic severed the connections further and relegated me to an entry-level worker with 20+ years of experience and too old to be hired at an age that is not old. In the meantime, using outdated and second hand equipment, I was building a side hustle as a concert photographer.

Gradually, since the tragic events of May 2023 in Serbia, I got on the street to photograph protests and blockades, which intensified after the November 2024 railway canopy tragedy and the subsequent crisis. I have photographed over 120 protests and blockades since December, in all weather conditions and, as of this month, in dangerous circumstances involving violence.

Of course, the job market got even worse in the meantime. There is also pressure to change the law on citizens' debt to protect the housing rights but it's causing the exact opposite effect after it was announced that it's about to enter the parliament discussions.

My photography has been featured in the respected and independent Vreme weekly, Nova S portals across the region and Al Jazeera Balkans. My equipment is breaking apart but I am fully dedicated to this fight.

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Hello, my name is Kathrin, and I am running this fundraiser on behalf of my friend Iva, since GoFundMe is not available in Serbia. I have known Iva for over 20 years online, and we finally met in person this year when I visited Belgrade. I know first hand how hard she is working to keep her mother safe and how she is always there to support others even when she is struggling herself.

Any donations will go directly to Iva. Because this situation is very urgent, I will transfer the first payments via TIZI (an online money transfer service by the Postal Savings Bank Belgrade) which delivers funds instantly to her account. Any later donations will be passed on via a service with lower fees, but slower withdrawal.

Thank you so much for helping my friend!