The Association of Journalists of Serbia (UNS) and the UNS in Kosovo are demanding that the Draft Law on Kosovo Public Service be withdrawn from the procedure, as it foresees the abolition of guaranteed funding for the Second Channel of Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK2 – the Serbian language channel), reported Serbian media in Kosovo.
UNS and UNS in Kosovo remind that the current Law on Public Media Service stipulates the obligation to allocate ten percent of the total budget of Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK) for RTK2. Both journalist’ associations in Kosovo are demanding that the Serbian media community in Kosovo be consulted in drafting laws, and that Serb political representatives seriously understand what the consequences may be caused by the adoption of the proposed version of the Kosovo Public Service Law.
The UNS and the UNS in Kosovo point out that the RTK2 current status is also unacceptable as the Article 59 of the Kosovo Constitution of Kosovo guarantees Kosovo Serbs an “independent television channel in the Serbian language”, which RTK2 is not because it is part of RTK.
The UNS and the UNS in Kosovo warn that even if the legal text is essentially acceptable, no one, not even the Assembly of Kosovo, should not adopt a law that is vague and incomprehensible in Serbian language and differs from the English and Albanian versions, which is noticeable from the text of the Draft of this Law.
The UNS and the UNS in Kosovo are inviting the European Commission to support withdrawal from the procedure of the draft of this law, and because the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms implies clarity as a requirement that every law must fulfil.
