• Escobar: Mutual recognition would be ideal for normalisation of relations (RFE)
• Minister of Justice says EU supports vetting in judiciary in Kosovo (KTV)
• Krasniqi: Serbia must be held responsible for crimes in Kosovo (Klan Kosova)
• Kosovo sanctions individuals and company linked to Hizballah (BIRN)
• Serbia is on a shopping spree for weapons (The Economist)
• Hoxhaj: Russia and Serbia seeking to return history of violence (media)
• Women in Balkan media ‘must speak out’ against sexual harassment (BIRN)
• Agron Bajrami leaves Koha; rumored as new ambassador to Brussels (media)
• COVID-19: 16 new cases, no deaths (media)

Escobar: Mutual recognition would be ideal for normalisation of relations (RFE)

The US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and envoy for the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar said on Thursday that the administration of US President Joe Biden has doubled the commitment to work with allies and partners so that the Western Balkans can on its European path. He said the US authorities were working closely with partners in the European Union to strengthen the message that membership remains an opportunity within realistic timeframes, it is an impetus to carry out reforms and that it is a form of resistance against Russian and Chinese influence.

Escobar also talked about the importance of continuing the EU-facilitated dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia. He said he visited Brussels last month to support the efforts of EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak to convince the two parties to reduce tensions over the license plates and to find a solution. “Together we have made it clear that the dialogue is a forum where both parties, as equal, must work together to resolve their differences and to normalise their relations, ideally through mutual recognition,” Escobar said.

Minister of Justice says EU supports vetting in judiciary in Kosovo (KTV)

Kosovo’s Minister of Justice, Albulena Haxhiu, said in a debate on KTV on Thursday that the European Union had requested a vetting process in the judiciary and that this should also include the Constitutional Court.

“We have presented arguments for the vetting process. It is a request from the people. My mandate is not to convince the ambassadors on why something is right. If we as a society believe that there is a need for vetting, we need to act in line with the pledges we have made to the people. What the report says does not stand. We have been requested to implement a vetting process even for the Constitutional Court,” she said.

Haxhiu said she expects the law on the vetting process to be ready next year.

Krasniqi: Serbia must be held responsible for crimes in Kosovo (Klan Kosova)

A protest with the motto “Rally for her justice” was held in front of the Serbian Consulate in New York to demand justice for the victims of the wars in Kosovo, Croatia and Bosnia Herzegovina. Vetevendosje MP Vasfije Krasniqi-Goodman told Klan Kosova that there was great support for the march. “The key message of the march was that Serbia must be responsible for the crimes it committed in Kosovo, Croatia and Bosnia, and especially about the rapes. We will continue organising the march until justice is served,” she said.

Krasniqi-Goodman is the first woman in Kosovo to speak openly that she was raped by Serbian forces during the war in Kosovo. In March this year she was elected to the Kosovo Assembly and said her priority would be the fight for human rights and the victims of war.

Kosovo sanctions individuals and company linked to Hizballah (BIRN)

Following the US’s lead, the Kosovo government has imposed sanctions on seven individuals and one company linked to the terrorist organisation Hizballah.

Seven individuals and one company linked to the Islamist terror group Hizballah have been put under sanctions by the Kosovo government following a decision taken by the US administration last month.

The decision, taken by Pristina authorities on Wednesday, was published on the government’s website on Thursday.

It says that Kosovo is implementing sanctions imposed by the United States in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1373 on international sanctions, adopted in September 2001, weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington DC.

Under the decision, seven individuals linked with Hizballah and AlDar Properties company have been sanctioned “to prevent financing of terrorist activities and freeze the financial wealth of Hizballah terrorist organisation or their supporters in … Kosovo”.

All seven individuals, Ali Reda Hassan-Banai, Ali Red al-Qassabi Lari, Abd al-Muayyid al-Banai, Abd al-Rahman Abd al-Nabi Shams, Yahya Muhammed al-Abd-al-Muhsin, Majdi Fa’iz al-Ustadz and Sulaiman  al-Banai were declared global terrorists under an Executive Order signed in 2001 by then US President George W. Bush.

Sanctions include freezing their assets in Kosovo, travel bans and a ban on Kosovo individuals and entities sending direct or indirect funds to them

The company listed in the sanctions, the Qatar-based AlDar Properties, according to the decision, has been declared as “directly or indirectly controlled by Sulaiman al-Banai”.

On September 2020, the then Prime Minister of Kosovo, Avdullah Hoti, and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, signed separate under the auspices of then US President Donald Trump, mainly on “economic normalisation” but also covering political and security topics.

“Both parties pledge to designate Hizballah in its entirety as a terrorist organisation, and fully implement measures to restrict Hizballah’s operations and financial activities in their jurisdictions,” said one document which Kosovo Prime Minister signed.

Hizballah is a militant Shia Musim organisation based in Lebanon. it is designated a terrorist group by the EU, the US and most members of the Arab League, but not by Lebanon or Russia.

Serbia is on a shopping spree for weapons (The Economist)

“Come with me,” says Aleksandar Vucic, Serbia’s president. “Now you are going to see a smile on my face!” From the terrace of Belgrade’s presidency building he points at skyscrapers shooting up and declares triumphantly: “Like a phoenix rising from the ashes!”

Other former Yugoslav states worry that Serbia’s army is also rising from the ashes. During a petty dispute with Kosovo about car number-plates in September, Serbia flew warplanes close to the border and deployed armoured vehicles to cow its smaller neighbour.

Read full article here: https://econ.st/3mohbg0

Hoxhaj: Russia and Serbia seeking to return history of violence (media)

Kosovo’s former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Enver Hoxhaj, reshared a tweet by Tim Judah who wrote that “Serbia is on a shopping spree for weapons” and shared an article by The Economist. Hoxhaj tweeted: “Russia and Serbia through their proxy Dodik are seeking the return of history of violence! This is the consequence of arm race in Balkans! Buying weapons by Serbia and Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina establishing its own army will replace weak regional cooperation with strong confrontation!”.

Women in Balkan media ‘must speak out’ against sexual harassment (BIRN)

Media organisations in the Balkans should have proper regulations on sexual harassment and gender-based abuses, and media workers should speak out and support female colleagues if they are targeted, journalists told a BIRN debate.

Despite that the majority of journalists in the Western Balkans are women, they still face gender-based discrimination and abuse and often do not feel secure in speaking out due to fears of losing their jobs or reputation and not receiving the necessary support, an online panel discussion organised by BIRN was told on Thursday.

Media organisations in the Balkans should have proper codes and procedures to follow in cases of sexual harassment or other kinds of gender-based discrimination, said BIRN’s project coordinator Sofija Todorovic, who moderated the debate entitled ‘#MeToo in Journalism: When Will Balkan Journalists Speak Up?’

This would “enable that every journalist at the media outlet where she works to be aware of the steps she can follow”, said Todorovic.

Dafina Halili, contributing editor at online magazine Kosovo 2.0, spoke of the difficulty of speaking out in a small country such as Kosovo.

“Women journalists are often harassed in the newsroom in front of journalists who then speak in public and on live TV about sexual harassment [as phenomenon] but do not intervene in cases when their colleagues are being harassed [while they are present,” she said.

Halili said that Kosovo has yet to witness a #MeToo movement, as no public figures have yet spoken out about the harassment they have suffered. But she said that it is positive that young people in Kosovo are organising protests and other events for women rights.

Jelena Jovanovic, a journalist at Montenegrin news outlet Vijesti, said that a patriarchal mindset often stops women from speaking out, particularly in rural areas where even domestic violence is kept hidden.

Jovanovic explains the situation is not much different for women journalists who often are faced with gossip that they achieved where they are by sleeping their way up.

“I took the approach saying ‘yes I did it’ to shut people up and at one point it worked but it did not stop, the gossip moved to other colleagues” Jovanovic explains.

Natalija Miletic, a journalist and fixer who works between Serbia and Germany, explained that despite the #MeToo movement, the situation remains difficult.

She said that in Serbia, despite the fact that some media organisations are overwhelmingly staffed by women, “there is no woman editor-in-chief in the mainstream media”.

Zhaklin Lekatari, a journalist, sex blogger and human rights activist in Albania, said that a #MeToo movement does not exist in Albania either, and that there are two main issues women in the country face when considering speaking out about their experiences of abuse and sexual harassment – fear and lack of trust.

“We don’t have a gap in the gender representation of editors-in-chief in Albania, but the [media companies’] policies are not feminist,” Lekatari said.

The panellists agreed that the problem will not be solved by having more female editors-in-chief, but by improving management practices and editorial policies.

Lekatari advised young female journalists to seek support and solidarity – “find support, identify, link groups together and organise them”.

Urging women journalists to come forward and speak to BIRN about their stories, even anonymously, Todorevic said: “The right time to speak up is whenever the women [who have been victims of abuse or sexual harassment] are ready to speak up and if they don’t speak sooner it is everybody’s fault.”

The panel discussion was organised as a part of the regional Media for All project, implemented by consortium led by the British Council, along with BIRN, the Thomson Foundation and INTRAC.

Agron Bajrami leaves Koha; rumored as new ambassador to Brussels (media)

Several media outlets report that Agron Bajrami has resigned his post as editor-in-chief of Koha Ditore daily newspaper. Koha reported on Thursday that Bajrami is leaving journalism and that he will most probably join Kosovo’s diplomatic corps. Some media reported that Bajrami has been proposed as Kosovo’s ambassador to Brussels, but neither the Ministry of Foreign Affairs nor Bajrami confirmed the information.

COVID-19: 16 new cases, no deaths (media)

16 new cases with COVID-19 and no deaths from the virus were confirmed in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. 16 persons recovered from the virus during this time. There are 428 active cases with COVID-19 in Kosovo.