Special court will be voted on without debate (Koha)
The paper reports on the front page that members of the Kosovo Assembly are under local and international pressure to vote in favour of the establishment of the special court on Wednesday. According to the paper, Assembly members will not even have the right to debate on the matter.
Sources told the paper that the session will start at 10:00 a.m. and not last long. There are two points on the agenda: the vote on the ratification of the international agreement on the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, and the vote on legal amendments related to the Mission’s mandate. Both bills contain provisions for the establishment of the special court.
“There is preliminary agreement among the majority of parliamentary groups not to have a debate during the voting on the two bills. Only chiefs of parliamentary groups will express their opinions. I don’t believe that the session will last longer than 30 minutes,” a source told the paper.
Decision on special court expected today (Epoka e Re)
The PDK, LDK and AAK have announced that they would support the draft law to ratify the international agreement between Kosovo and the EU, for the extension of EULEX’s mandate. This is foreseen to create the legal basis for the establishment of the special court, which would investigate alleged KLA crimes. Immediately after action on the draft law, leaders of these parties stated that Kosovo institutions should assume responsibility for the establishment of the court. The US Embassy in Pristina and the EU have also appealed to the deputies to support establishment of this court.
Biden: Adopt the court (dailies)
Several dailies report that US Vice President, Joe Biden wrote a letter to Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, welcoming Kosovo’s recent progress. “In the spirit of this sustainable friendship, I am writing to highlight the important work of the European Union, namely the team led by Clint Williamson, to investigate claims made in Dick Marty’s report for the Council of Europe in 2010. We strongly encourage Kosovo to fully cooperate with the European Union in establishing the court,” Biden wrote in his letter.
US welcomes Kosovo government’s decision (dailies)
Several dailies carry a press release issued by the US Embassy in Pristina, welcoming the Kosovo government’s approval of the ratification law on the Exchange of Letters between President Jahjaga and Baroness Ashton. The press release said this decision clearly puts Kosovo’s long-term interests ahead of short-term political considerations.
It added: “We now call upon members of Kosovo’s Assembly to sustain this momentum by approving the creation of a Kosovo court to deal with the serious allegations in the 2010 Council of Europe Report. The world is watching to see whether Kosovo is committed to a judicial process that can impartially resolve these allegations with finality.”
“To move forward, Kosovo must deal with these allegations. Failure to create this court will force other international bodies to consider these claims. This will do immeasurable damage to Kosovo’s image and its Euro-Atlantic aspirations. Deputies will best serve Kosovo’s interests by committing to a credible judicial process acceptable to the international community.”
“The Embassy realizes that this is a sensitive issue for Kosovo. However, this is an investigation that focuses on individuals, and is not a judgment against Kosovo’s collective efforts towards liberation. The creation of this court is the best option for closing this chapter of Kosovo’s history. The United States is prepared to stand by Kosovo as it continues moves forward with this essential task.”
Haradinaj: We don’t like the Tribunal very much (Lajm)
Ramush Haradinaj, leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), said on Tuesday that his party would vote in favour of the extension of EULEX’s mandate and the establishment of the special court. Haradinaj told reporters in Pristina that he does not prefer the establishment of a court. “But we support it in principle and we will have to see how representatives of our party will vote in the Assembly,” Haradinaj added.
Kosovo can reach an agreement with the Netherlands (Kosova Sot)
In an interview for the paper, the Dutch Ambassador to Kosovo, Robert Bosch, said that the establishment of the special court is a result of investigations by the EU task force. “There could be an agreement between Kosovo and the Netherlands, but it is too early to talk about possible names or cases that the court will address,” Bosch was quoted as saying.
Tribunal can investigate Thaci too (Zeri)
In a front-page report, the paper quotes former US diplomat Daniel Serwer as saying that the special court will be able to sentence every person mentioned in Dick Marty’s report if incriminating evidence has been found against them. This even includes Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci. Serwer, a supporter of the special court, said Marty did not provide evidence for his allegations that members of the former Kosovo Liberation Army were involved in organ trafficking.
Petition for establishment of a tribunal for Serbia (Epoka e Re)
Deputy Prime Minister Edita Tahiri has informed this daily that she will meet today (Wednesday) with the Agency for Gender Equality, to discuss initiation of a petition to request the UN Security Council to establish a new tribunal for Serbia, which would deal exclusively with rapes of women during the war in Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. She stated that UN Security Council resolution 2016 of 2013 has opened the possibility to request establishment of this tribunal.
Jevtic against demolition of church in Pristina University yard (Lajm)
Following the announcement that the Orthodox church in Pristina University’s yard will be demolished, Kosovo’s Returns and Communities Minister, Dalibor Jevtic, said that the building is part of Serb cultural and religious heritage in Kosovo, and that it should not be demolished.
Rugova: UNMIK destroyed rape evidence (Bota Sot)
Civil society activist Igballe Rugova told the Albanian broadcaster Top Channel that thousands of women and girls were stopped and raped during the war on their way to Kukës. She criticized the media, which were not sensitive to this issue. Also, according to her, a major crime was committed by the international administration in Kosovo, which allegedly destroyed evidence gathered from women’s associations, in order to defend the Serbian state. “Serbian secret services had a lot of influence after the war. Associations collected evidence from raped women and delivered them to UNMIK. But UNMIK destroyed this evidence so that Serbia would not be punished.”
“The fight for justice is not over and I plan to sue UNMIK in an alternative court. We have made several public announcements. These women deserve legal protection and dignity. We plan to form a court and we will sue UNMIK because it committed a crime by destroying the evidence. This is an alternative court, but the lawsuit will pave the way to a real court” said Rugova.
