Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 781 new cases, 17 deaths (media)
• Kurti: President election to take place soon (media)
• Kurti reveals his approach to the dialogue with Serbia (Prishtina Insight)
• Kosovo leaders commemorate anniversary of NATO air strikes on Serbian forces (media)
• CEC replaces MPs who accepted government posts (media)
• EULEX refutes KLA war veterans: No one was invited to our offices (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• 42 new cases of Covid-19 in in Serbian communities (KoSSev)
• Twenty-two years ago, NATO bombs started falling on the then Yugoslavia (Beta, N1)
• Vucic with UN official: UN SC session on UNMIK in mid April (Tanjug, Kosovo-online)
• Office for KiM: Krstic’s verdict shameful, victim of persecution by Pristina (RTS)
• Defense lawyers on Krstic and Shabani verdicts (Radio KIM)
• Rakic assumed office of Minister for Communities and Returns (Kontakt plus radio)
• 22nd anniversary of the bombing marked in Gracanica (Kosovo Online)
• No easing of measures, Serbian anti-epidemic Crisis Team says (N1)
• North Macedonia journalists vaccinated in southern Serbia (N1)

International:

• 78 Days of Fear: Remembering NATO’s Bombing of Yugoslavia (Balkan Insight)
• WB2EU: Citizens need some re-branding of the idea of what the rule of law is (EWB)

Humanitarian/Development:

• Preparations for Manifesta14 underway (Prishtina Insight)
• Patagonia CEO: Hydropower Plants are not Green, Albanian Government Stop Decimating Balkan Rivers (exit.al)

Albanian Language Media  

COVID-19: 781 new cases, 17 deaths (media)

Kosovo’s National Institute for Public Health has recorded 781 new cases of COVID-19 and 17 deaths in the last 24-hour period.

764 recoveries have meanwhile been also recorded during the same timeframe. 

Ekonomia Online reported that there were no free beds this morning at the Infectious Disease Clinic in Prishtina for COVID-19 patients as there are currently 120 persons hospitalised and 105 of whom are on oxygen therapy.

Kurti: President election to take place soon (media)

Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti said the Assembly session for election of the new president will be called soon.

In visiting the grave of the late President of Kosovo Ibrahim Rugova, Kurti said: “As soon as MPs that became ministers are replaces, we will be able to call a session which no doubt the one that the people supported with 300,000 votes will be legitimised also with necessary votes in the Assembly,” Kurti said in reference to Vjosa Osmani’s candidacy for the post.

“Two important steps have been concluded, election of the Assembly speaker and the prime minister. There is only the election of the president left and this will be crowned in success.”

Kurti reveals his approach to the dialogue with Serbia (Prishtina Insight)

New Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has outlined four principles he believes should guide the EU-facilitated dialogue with Serbia and dismissed the need to discuss the formation of an Association of Serb-Majority Municipalities.

In a discussion aired by the Kosovo Foundation for Open Society, KFOS, on Tuesday night, new prime minister Albin Kurti outlined the four key principles that he believes should guide the EU-facilitated dialogue with Serbia. 

The first principle was that the reality of Kosovo’s independence must be accepted. “We can not go back on independence. If that were possible, we would ask for more,” Kurti said. “Independence was a compromise and was not declared last year, but 13 years ago.”

The new prime minister added that the truth of the Kosovo war must also be accepted, stating that this was his second principle. “We cannot sit at the negotiating table forgetting and flattening history,” he said. “Serbia must acknowledge the crimes it has committed in Kosovo, and its government must distance itself from them.”

The third principle Kurti outlined was that Kosovo and Serbia must sit at the dialogue table as equals. “We can not talk as unequal parties,” he stated. “Kosovo has been more of a subject of the dialogue than a party to the dialogue, and that needs to change.”

Kurti also argued that the dialogue should be structured in a way so that “it is citizens who benefit from future talks, not political leaders,” which he said was his fourth guiding principle.

Earlier this month, Kurti met with EU Special Envoy Miroslav Lajcak, who has spoken of the need to continue the dialogue as soon as possible, and build on talks between the Hoti administration and the Serbian delegation.

However, during the KFOS discussion, Kurti insisted that the new Kosovo administration would need to do an assessment of the situation before talks continued, stressing the need for the dialogue to be well prepared in order to avoid another failure.

“I do not want to hurry by using the words like ‘historic’, ‘comprehensive’ or ‘an agreement that will end all agreements,’” he said. “It is better to be more modest and realistic than to offer big words and short deadlines, which are then spectacular failures.”

Kurti seemed particularly keen to reopen discussions over missing persons, which Lajcak claimed had already made “full progress” during talks in September. 

“If there is something that we need to discuss as soon as possible, even without preparing the future dialogue fully, it is the issue of missing persons,” Kurti said. “That does not wait and for this issue we need to engage seriously and honestly. We are aware that out of more than 1,600 persons one-third are not Albanians, and we do not want to differentiate on ethnic lines.”

Kurti added that Serbia has information that can help resolve questions over the fate of those still missing from the war and has a responsibility to share that with affected parties.

“The wounds of hundreds of families did not heal,” he said. “Serbia is responsible for revealing the truth about missing persons, and should sentence those responsible. This is a war crime, a genocide. In Belgrade they have the data and the archives.”

Kosovo’s new prime minister also discussed the need for financial reparations, another topic opened and repeatedly discussed between the Hoti administration and the Serbian delegation under the auspices of Lajcak. Kurti claimed that Serbia owes Kosovo around three billion euros in material and non-material damages, and that a succession agreement is required to resolve numerous property disputes.

The subject of the formation of the Association for Serb-Majority Municipalities, a topic which became a sticking point between the delegations in discussions in September 2020 was also raised. 

Kurti stated that any organisation formed must be in line with the Constitution and cannot be monoethnic in character. 

“There cannot be a monoethnic association,” he said. “There can be an Association of Municipalities in the Rugova Mountains, or the Sharri Mountains or even the Lepenc River, but there cannot be an Association of Municipalities based on ethnicity.”

He added that Article 44 of the Kosovo Constitution provides the right to associate, adding that this provision means there is no need to negotiate the issue further.

See at: https://bit.ly/3vP9lip

Kosovo leaders commemorate anniversary of NATO air strikes on Serbian forces (media)

In commemorating the anniversary of NATO airstrikes against Serbian troops, Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti and his cabinet visited Prekaz memorial site to pay tribute to the Jashari family and to the resting place of the late Kosovo president Ibrahim Rugova and activist Adem Decani.

“We continue to come back again and again here in Prekaz, this place of sacrifice and unification, where three generations of the Jashari family were killed by Serb forces, the heroic fall of which raised to their feet the Albanian people, gave rise to the Kosovo Liberation Army and awoke the international community,” Kurti said.

Acting President of Kosovo Glauk Konjufca thanked KFOR Commander, Major General Franco Federici, for the role NATO has played in the liberation of Kosovo. In a meeting between the two officials today, Konjufca recalled 24 March 1999 as the beginning of NATO airstrikes on Serbian forces. “In June of 1999 the return of one million Albanians expelled by the Serbian regime took place. You have revived us,” he said.

Former Assembly Speaker and candidate for President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, said 24 March 1999 was a turning point for Kosovo. “Today and always we remain eternally grateful to all women and men of NATO peacekeeping forces. Today and always, we are grateful to all those that aligned with the right side of history. Without your contribution, freedom for us would have been impossible,” she wrote on Facebook. “Let us remember not to forget looking clearly to the future! Future is with the Republic of Kosovo, a member of our saviour alliance – member of NATO,” Osmani concluded.

Acting leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Enver Hoxhaj said the Alliance carried out a historic mission in protecting the rights of the citizens of Kosovo for freedom. He said that on this day, the absence of leaders of the KLA who he said are being unjustly held at The Hague is felt more than ever. “Those that were the creators of our sacred alliance with NATO and Euro-Atlantic values are not with us to together mark this unforgettable day for the history of Kosovo,” Hoxhaj wrote on social media.

Leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) Lumir Abdixhiku said the start of NATO airstrikes on Yugoslav targets marked the beginning of the end for the oppressed people in Kosovo. “24 March 1999 marks a new momentum for Kosovo and its century-long plight for freedom. This momentum paved the way for freedom and finally independence of the country. Therefore, citizens of Kosovo remain forever grateful to the western world, U.S. and allies, for offering long-awaited hope through NATO.”

Leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) Ramush Haradinaj said 24 March 1999 was not an ordinary day. “As the United States of America and NATO allies covered the sky with planes, the enemy launched attacks against the unarmed population across the country,” Haradinaj said in paying tribute to the fallen. “Forever grateful to NATO,” he said.

CEC replaces MPs who accepted government posts (media)

The Central Election Commission (CEC) has approved recommendations for replacement of 13 MPs who accepted posts in the new Government of Kosovo.

The move comes after the acting President of Kosovo Glauk Konjufca asked the CEC to provide the names of MPs in line for replacing those that left their mandates vacant after being elected to serve in the Government. 

Twelve MPs joined the Kurti-led government, nine from the Vetevendosje Movement and three from non-majority communities. Meanwhile, Daut Haradinaj from the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) gave up his MP seat. 

EULEX refutes KLA war veterans: No one was invited to our offices (media)

The EU rule of law mission, EULEX, issued a statement rebutting media reports claiming that EULEX did not return seized equipment to the KLA War Veterans Organisation.

“EULEX has no role in this and did not invite anyone to its premises,” the mission said, highlighting that there is a difference between EULEX and the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office.

Earlier, Faton Klinaku from the KLA war veterans and lawyer Tome Gashi, representing the organisation, said that equipment seized during the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office search in their offices in September of last year was not returned to them despite being notified that they would be able to retrieve it at the EULEX premises in Fushe Kosove. Gashi said he went to EULEX and was told that he could not be given the equipment for logistical reasons. 

Serbian Language Media

42 new cases of Covid-19 in in Serbian communities (KoSSev)

Out of a total of 88 tested samples in Serbian communities in Kosovo, 42 are positive for coronavirus, while the number of active cases is 808, according to the North Mitrovica Crisis Staff. 

Out of the total number of newly infected, 36 are from the North, while 6 from central Kosovo. 

The new cases by municipalities: North Mitrovica – 13, Zvecan – 6, Leposavic – 8, Zubin Potok – 9, Gracanica – 2, Strpce – 1, Priluzje – 2 and Prizren – 1.

According to the latest data, there were no deaths, reported portal KoSSev.

Twenty-two years ago, NATO bombs started falling on the then Yugoslavia (Beta, N1)

On the evening of March 24, 1999, the first NATO bombs fell on targets in the then rump Yugoslavia, made up of Serbia and Montenegro, after peace talks between Belgrade and Pristina failed.

Kosovo representatives signed an internationally brokered agreement in Paris, while Serbia’s President at the time Milan Milutinovic refused to accept the deal.

The bombing was justified with Belgrade violent intervention to prevent its southern province from succeeding from Serbia.

Serbia’s Defence Ministry’s data said that during the 78 days of non-stop bombing, 1,031 soldiers and police officers and 2,500 civilians died, including 89 children. Some 6,000 civilians and 5,173 soldiers and policemen were slightly or seriously wounded, while 25 people are still officially missing.

The decision to punish the then Yugoslavia was taken by the UN Assembly, avoiding the UN Security Council meeting and possible veto by either Russia or China, as the Council’s permanent members.

Ahead of the bombing, the two-week peace talks at the French town of Rambouillet ended in Pristina delegations accepting the offered solutions, while Belgrade officials rejected it.

Milutinovic told the AP the signature to the proposed solution would have meant the de facto capitulation with NATO forces unrestricted access to Serbia’s roads and barracks.

”Who would sign something like that,” he said then.

During the 11 weeks, NATO carried out 2,300 airstrikes dropping 22,000 tonnes of different projectiles, including some 30,000 cluster bombs, said to be banned. Many infrastructure objects were destroyed or damaged beyond reparation – roads, bridges, factories, military premises, some hospitals, radar sites, and civilian targets such as radio and TV transmitters.

On April 23, early morning, NATO bombs hit the state RTS TV main building in down-town Belgrade killing 16 technical staff on duty at the time. The justification for bombing the TV station was it had “spread propaganda“.

Some six hours later, RTS resumed broadcast from another location.

Yugoslav Army was in a poor state to put up any serious resistance to NATO planes which dropped projectiles from the sky, some 5,000 meters above the targets. But it managed to be shot down then the most modern ‘invisible’ NATO Stealth aircraft, designed to avoid detection using various technologies reducing radar reflection/emission, infrared, visible light, radio and audio frequencies.

Defiant Serbs made badges reading ‘Sorry, we didn’t know you are invisible’, put a drawing of targets on their backs, wrote ‘F… you F16’ on roofs and gathered on Belgrade’s bridges, singing, every night before the warning sirens went off.

The bombing ended on June 10, 1999, after Yugoslavia signed a peace agreement in northern Macedonia’s Kumanovo town, accepting the NATO-led KFOR to take military control of Kosovo and the European Union mission EULEX to oversee civilian issues.

Yugoslav Army and Serbia’s police withdrew from the then province, the Kosovo Liberation Army, a guerrilla group that fought the Belgrade forces, was disarmed, and the UN Security Council brought the 1244 Resolution, which remained neutral regarding the final Kosovo status.

The UNHCR data say that after Kosovo came under the international jurisdiction, 230,000 Serbs and Roma left the territory, while 800,000 Albanians returned.

Kosovo declared independence in February 2008 and has so far been recognised by some 100 countries worldwide, including the US, UK and all but five EU member states.

This year’s anniversary will be marked with a series of manifestations across Serbia.

See at: https://bit.ly/2QA169L

Vucic with UN official: UN SC session on UNMIK in mid April (Tanjug, Kosovo-online)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic received today newly appointed Representative of the Secretary General and Head of UN Office in Belgrade Mari Yamashita who informed him that the next UN SC session on the work of UNMIK would take place mid April, Tanjug news agency reports.

Vucic pointed out that Serbia considers the UN as an international organization of highest importance primarily for the protection of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia.  

He also said the work of the UN Office is very important given that it is a link with the UN Mission in Kosovo, and expressed hope the good cooperation would continue, the President’s press office announced.

Vucic underlined Serbia attaches great importance to the work of UNMIK, having in mind that based on UN SC Resolution 1244 it is a guarantor of the status neutrality of the international presence in Kosovo.

He also expressed expectations that UNMIK would remain engaged in undiminished scope and with an unchanged mandate.

Vucic said Serbia remains committed to ensuring peace and stability in the region, with readiness for dialogue and compromise as the only way to resolve all the open issues, such as the Kosovo issue.

Vucic welcomed and wished success in the work to the new head of the UN Office in Belgrade, and Yamashita congratulated President Vucic on the successful vaccination campaign Serbia is implementing. 

Office for KiM: Krstic’s verdict shameful, victim of persecution by Pristina (RTS)

The Office for Kosovo and Metohija expressed the deepest indignation and protest over, as they said, a shameful verdict of 14 and half years given to Zlatan Krstic, accused of allegedly committing war crimes against civilian population, RTS reports.

The Office added Krstic was imposed a draconic punishment although none of the twenty witnesses recognized him as a perpetrator of the crime nor saw him committing an act he is accused for.

As the Office said, his right to fair trial has been denied, and Krstic became yet another victim of a political persecution by Pristina.

“It has been demonstrated once again that Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija are tried on ethnic basis, while judges make decisions not grounded on facts and evidence”, the Office said in a statement. 

Defense lawyers on Krstic and Shabani verdicts (Radio KIM)

Following decision of the Basic Court Special Department in Pristina to sentence Zlatan Krstic to 14 and half years in prison and Destan Shabani to seven years for the war crimes against civilian population, their defense lawyers Dejan A. Vasic and Zivojin Jokanovic announced filing appeals with the Court of Appellate, Radio KIM reports.

Commenting on the verdict, Vasic said that “this was certainly the most severe punishment rendered ever since the Special Department of the Basic Court has been established. The court made a decision that could easily be described as horrifying and illegal. At no time during proceedings any of the victims mentioned that they have directly witnessed that Zlatan committed anything he had been convicted for”.   

“None of the specific actions that today’s verdict charged him for had been supported by the evidence during proceedings. I am confident that such a verdict can’t be upheld at the Court of Appellate”, Vasic said.  

Meanwhile, Zivojin Jokanovic, defense lawyer of Destan Shabani said “the verdict to Destan Shabani, who was a member of the police prior to the conflict and worked as inspector, is legally and factually unsustainable”, he said.

“It is unsustainable for the reasons that all actions took place outside of the scope of his authority. He was present in the both previous investigations when the victims were discovered only to gather information and identify the victims”, Jokanovic said, adding Shabani performed his duty in line with the law and filed a criminal report against unidentified persons.

Rakic assumed office of Minister for Communities and Returns (Kontakt plus radio)

The president of the Serbian List, Goran Rakic took over the duty of the Kosovo Minister for Communities and Returns from his party colleague Dalibor Jevtic. On that occasion, Rakic thanked Jevtic for “dedicated work in the interest of the Serbian people”.

According to the press release, Rakic stated that “the most important thing is that this department, which is one of the most important for the Serbian people, remained in the hands of the Serbian List, so that the work on the return of displaced persons to their homes can be continued”.

Dalibor Jevtic will soon take over an important function, and that Rakic is “convinced that Dalibor will continue to fight successfully for each member of our community in this area”, added the statement to the media. 

22nd anniversary of the bombing marked in Gracanica (Kosovo Online)

In front of the restored cross in memory of the victims of war, NATO aggression and all those who died in Kosovo, today in the yard of the House of Culture in Gracanica, 22 years have been marked since the bombing of Serbia by NATO, reported portal Kosovo Online.

Memorial service was held by a priest for all those killed during the bombing, after that, as in previous years, all those gathered had the opportunity to hear an alarm siren that brought them back to 78 days of bombing Serbia. 

“We want to pay tribute to the fallen brothers and sisters, our soldiers and our heroes. We pay a modest tribute to them in front of this monument to those killed, kidnapped and killed in the NATO aggression,” said Ratko Popovic.

“Although in the days to come our friends died, children perished, Orthodox shrines burned, many disappeared without a trace, we believed that everything must come to an end. And then when the international community declared peace, we suffered more and more. The senselessness of the war took away a lot of valuable things, and most valuable of all, the lives of our relatives, neighbors and friends. Resisting force, defying violence, we survived, engraved forever in the faith in survival and stay,” said Dejan Popovic.

Wreaths were laid in front of the monument to the victims by president of the municipality Srdjan Popovic, in front of the Assembly of the city of Pristina, the president of the temporary body Ljubinko Karadzic and in front of the Kosovo district, the Head Srdjan Petkovic.

No easing of measures, Serbian anti-epidemic Crisis Team says (N1)

Serbian Crisis Team for curbing the coronavirus epidemic decided on Wednesday to keep the current restrictions in place, despite, as N1 said, politicians’ pressure to ease them.

The Team also said Serbian nationals and foreigners could enter the country if they received two doses of Sinofram, Pfizer or Sputnik V vaccines or one dose of AstraZeneca vaccine, without a negative PCR test during the forthcoming Easter Holiday.

North Macedonia journalists vaccinated in southern Serbia (N1)

A group of more than a 100 journalists from North Macedonia are being vaccinated against the coronavirus in the southern Serbian town of Vranje, the Serbian Journalists’ Association (UNS) said on Tuesday.

The 105 journalists are being inoculated with the AstraZeneca vaccine which was secured at the request of the North Macedonia journalists’ association in cooperation with UNS and support from the Serbian President’s cabinet. The journalists were brought to Vranje by bus.

North Macedonia is inoculating health care system staff. It has procured 11,000 doses of vaccine and is having trouble procuring more to launch a mass vaccination of its population.

See at: https://bit.ly/3f6QYzu

International

78 Days of Fear: Remembering NATO’s Bombing of Yugoslavia (Balkan Insight)

Twenty years after the start of NATO’s air strikes to force Slobodan Milosevic’s troops to withdraw from Kosovo, reporters who covered the bombing campaign recall the 78 days of violence, terror and destruction that changed the course of Yugoslavia’s history.

When air-raid sirens sounded across Belgrade at 7.45pm on March 24, 1999, people grabbed the bags they had already packed and headed down to their basements with their families and neighbours, ready to wait out an onslaught from the NATO planes in skies above the capital.

The first targets were Belgrade, Pristina in Kosovo, Podgorica in Montenegro and several other cities. The day beforehand, it had been announced on national television that Yugoslavia had declared a state of emergency.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3tJxHIm

WB2EU: Citizens need some re-branding of the idea of what the rule of law is (EWB)

Democracies are under pressure, the rule of law in the Western Balkans and some EU countries has weakened and the current health and economic crises further complicate the search for renewed energies and optimism. This was a conclusion of the panel “New perspectives on rule of law and justice – Where do we stand and what do we need”, organised by the “WB2EU network”.

Marta Pardavi, Co-Chair of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, said that rule of law is a very important European topic and the very top political priority, adding that for a very long time this was not a topic in Hungary.

She underlined that without a good framework and strong constitutional framework, the rule of law is a human right that can not be implemented.

“In Hungary, we had bad practices 10 years ago. We have moved from recognizing problems, we need a solution”, she told adding that Hungary is the classic example of a democratic backsliding.

She identified problems in rule of law in Hungary, which are linked with the problems in the countries of the Western Balkans.

Nedim Hogić, PhD Candidate Sant’ Anna School of Advanced Studies, pointed out that insisting on the non-existence of a culture of the rule of law in the Western Balkans is dangerous, adding that it is necessary to explain to the citizens the advantages of the rule of law.

“We need to focus on mobilizing citizens and explaining to them the benefits of the rule of law” he said.

According to him, it is necessary to put a greater focus on issues of justice and transparency.

Panelists agreed that citizens need some re-branding of the idea of what the rule of law is because the language of the rule of law is sometimes very technical. According to them, citizens need a much better explanation of the rule of law.  

See more at: https://bit.ly/2P6xyQu

Humanitarian/Development

Preparations for Manifesta14 underway (Prishtina Insight)

In 2022, Prishtina is set to host the 14th edition of Manifesta, a roving biennial of contemporary art, which has been putting on site-specific three month exhibitions and making artistic interventions in cities across Europe for 25 years.

Manifesta has a long history of conducting extensive research into its host cities to inform its programme, and the same is true in Prishtina. Organisations have already been selected to form an urban vision for the city and conduct consultation workshops with citizens.

Manifesta’s director, Hedwig Fijen, tells Prishtina Insight that the concept behind the biennial is “to focus on meaningful relationships, learn about the environment and its history, and try to help citizens to reclaim public space and rewrite their future.”

To help achieve this aim, an urban vision for Prishtina will be conducted by the Turin-based design company Carlo Ratti Associati, in collaboration with the Senseable City Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with the research conducted informing how Manifesta 14 takes shape.

See more at: https://bit.ly/2NN7jOt

Patagonia CEO: Hydropower Plants are not Green, Albanian Government Stop Decimating Balkan Rivers (exit.al)

Hydropower plants are not green, not sustainable, not cost-efficient, and are sending species to extinction and displacing populations not just in Albania, but across the world.

This is according to Ryan Gellert, CEO of Patagonia who gave an exclusive interview to Exit on the campaign to save the Vjosa River in Albania.

He explained that hydropower is antiquated technology and that its classification as a “renewable energy” is a “dated notion”.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3cUuiQ4