Nenad Rasic, Kosovo Serb opposition politician and the Coalition Freedom candidate for Prime Ministers in the elections on Sunday, told Radio Free Europe (RFE) that the campaign was conducted in “abnormal conditions,” the Beta news agency reported on Wednesday.
He said that “everyday someone gets fired because they are not loyal to Serbian List. There is no person who hasn’t been called at least five times.”
“The conditions are abnormal. I don’t see how these elections could be presented as democratic since the situation on the ground is horrible. I feel sorry for what people here have to go through, and I’m more worried about them than myself,” Rasic said.
Commenting on reactions he triggered in Serbia’s media with his campaign video in Albanian, he said he expected that.
“But that doesn’t mean I should give up. I can’t teach them decency.”
“As in democratic societies, I wanted to directly address the Albanians as well because I believe there are some things which both peoples strive for,” he told RFE.
He added his policy is a reconciliation between two peoples in Kosovo and said that whoever became new prime minister the Coalition was “ready to cooperate with if our principles and requests are respected. I think that any serious prime minister will accept our suggestions.”
Basic Prosecutors’ Office in Gnjilane, in eastern Kosovo, ordered 48-hours detention for two men suspected of pressuring local Serbs to vote for the Serb List, thus committing a crime of violating the voters’ free will, the KoSSev website reporting, citing Pristina Koha daily. The Office said it had testimonies of the those pressured, SMS and taped phone calls as evidence.
