Albanian Language Media:

• EC: No problem with regulation, but how it was done (Gazeta Express)
• Konjufca assures U.S. there won’t be unrest over Dinar decision (Kallxo)
• Court sentences Kosovo Serb to 13 years in prison for war crimes in 1999 (media)
• Police, prosecution with action against parallel structures in Peja region (media)
• IMC draft law seen as attack against news websites (Koha)
• AmCham: Kosovo to free itself from discourse of conflict and instability (RTK)
• Unknown persons removed table set up by Ministry in Zubin Potok (media)
• Haradinaj: Kosovo’s main objective is NATO membership (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• Vucic: Serbia demands a session of the Security Council, letters to the EU, Russia, and China on Monday (N1)
• The police harassed the team of Radio Gorazdevac (KiM radio, Radio Gorazdevac)
• Revolted by the police action, young people gathered in the center of Osojane (KiM radio)
• Serbian List: The raid of armed special forces in three Metohija municipalities another proof of ethnic cleansing (Radio Mitrovica sever, Kosovo Online)
• Office for KiM: Closure of Serbian municipalities in Metohija, continuation of ethnic cleansing and extermination of Serbs (Kosovo Online)
• After Pec and Istok, the police raided the premises of the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Klina (Kosovo Online, Danas)
• Gorazdevac: KP raided the facility of the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Pec (Kosovo Online, Radio Gorazdevac, media)
• Osojane: Kosovo Police special forces raided Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Istok, the post office and the ambulance (KiM radio, media)
• Dusko Arsic sentenced to 13 years in prison (RTS, media)
• Lawyer Vlajic: This verdict destroys everyone’s hope of getting justice in Kosovo (KiM radio)
• Shahini: The government should respect the Kosovo Constitution, but also the Serbs who have dinar accounts (Kosovo Online)
• Andjelkovic (Serbian Democracy): Workers of Serbian companies in Kosovo cannot receive money in Kosovo banks (Danas)
• EC spokesperson: The solution for the dinar can be found within the dialogue led by the EU (N1)

Albanian Language Media  

EC: No problem with regulation, but how it was done (Gazeta Express)

Spokesperson for the European Commission, Eric Mamer, commented today about the decision of Kosovo authorities to move forward with a regulation of the Central Bank that bans the use of the Serbian Dinar as a currency in Kosovo and reconfirms the Euro as the sole currency. 

Mamer said that Brussels expressed concern that the decision was made without prior consultations and knowing that it would affect the lives of the local Serb community. “We don’t criticize the fact that Kosovo uses the Euro, or the fact that they want to regulate what currency can be used in Kosovo. What we did comment on was that this decision was taken without prior consultations, because there are people and institutions, including schools and hospitals, that operate within a different framework and still receive financial support from Serbia. Therefore, they need to be given space to adjust,” he said.

Mamer said that it would be suitable to ensure a discussion on the matter within the EU-facilitated dialogue and find a practical solution to which the people could adjust.

Konjufca assures U.S. there won’t be unrest over Dinar decision (Kallxo)

President of the Kosovo Assembly, Glauk Konjufca, said today that the situation in the north of Kosovo would not get out of control only because of the decision to ban the use of the Serbian Dinar as a currency for payments in Kosovo. After meeting U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey Hovenier, Konjufca said: “what I heard from Hovenier was the concern that there can be unrest in the north over this decision. We can assure you this will not happen. We are the institutions that ensure that security will be provided for all and also that all those who could try to misuse the legitimate decisions of Kosovo in an attempt to create unrest will be faced with the law. The situation cannot get out of control because the Dinar has been removed from use as a currency for transactions and payments in Kosovo”.

Konjufca said that in his opinion the Serbian Dinar and its use should have been terminated in Kosovo when Serbia fled Kosovo after the liberation war and NATO bombing in June 1999. He argued that Serbia abused its parallel institutions in Kosovo and funded structures that did not include only doctors and teachers “but also people that carried out illegal and highly dangerous activities that threatened the security and state of Kosovo”.

Court sentences Kosovo Serb to 13 years in prison for war crimes in 1999 (media)

The Basic Court in Pristina sentenced today a Kosovo Serb – Dusko Arsic – to 13 years in prison for war crimes committed in April 1999. Arsic was found guilty for involvement in the expulsion, mistreatment and murder of Kosovo Albanian residents of Pristina in 1999.

Police, prosecution with action against parallel structures in Peja region (media)

Koha news website reports that the Kosovo Police and Prosecution launched “an action against the activities of illegal structures in the Peja region”. The news website learns that the action was carried out in the village of Gorazhdec near Peja and the village of Osjan near Istog, which are inhabited mainly by Serbs. Kosovo Police said around 14:00 that the operation was over and that they confiscated several Serbian flags and documents. Several persons were also interviewed as suspects. A spokesperson for the prosecution in Peja confirmed the operation. 

IMC draft law seen as attack against news websites (Koha)

Representatives of the Press Council of Kosovo (PCK), the Association of Journalists of Kosovo (AJK) and European organizations specialized in media freedom said on Thursday that the Kosovo government should back down from the draft law on the Independent Media Commission (IMC) as it constitutes an attack and attempt to control online media.

Representatives of these organizations told a press conference on Thursday that the draft law was passed without genuine public consultations. AJK chairman Xhemajl Rexha said the attempt is to control online media. “In our opinion, the changes that have been proposed are a new attempt by the current government to attack the media and a tendency to control them, because it is foreseen that the PCK would control, monitor and fine, if necessary, the online media that have video content, including the need for them to be licenses in a special way,” he argued.

PCK Executive Director Imer Mushkolaj said the self-regulation of news websites through the PCK is functional and that it is reflected with the awareness of citizens to complain against the news websites. “In Kosovo, the Independent Media Commission regulates the TV stations and radios and cable operators, while press media is self-regulated by the Press Council of Kosovo and this is common practice in the region and Europe. The purpose of the draft law on the Independent Media Commission, which has been sent to the Assembly, is precisely to weaken the Press Council of Kosovo, whereas the approach in European countries is to strengthen such councils. Therefore, this is about an approach by the Kosovo government which is opposite to the approach toward the councils in European countries,” Mushkolaj argued.

According to civil society representatives, obliging online media to register as businesses harms those that are registered as non-governmental organizations, as well as media of non-majority communities. Flutura Kusari, media lawyer and representative of the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, said the government’s justifications that a European directive foresees the registration of news websites are unsustainable and misinterpreting. “What we have seen with this proposal is that the legal initiative coming from the Prime Minister’s Office is an initiative to control the online media through licensing, and this is the latest attack against media freedom … You will hear in the coming days especially the justification by the government that allegedly the law has been approximated with the AVMS [Audiovisual Media Services] Directive. I ask you not to fall for that trap of justifications and not accept it because the directive does not say that online media must be licensed. It has been inaccurately interpreted, and the local context has not been taken into account,” Kusari argued.

AmCham: Kosovo to free itself from discourse of conflict and instability (RTK)

The American Chamber of Commerce in Kosovo (AmCham) said in a media statement today that Kosovo is not making evident progress in terms of increased economic sustainability and that the lack of a proactive approach in promoting opportunities for foreign investments is among the key factors preventing a substantial transformation of Kosovo’s economy.

“The American Chamber strongly believes that Kosovo must free itself as soon as possible from the discourse of conflict and instability. The latest report by International Crisis Group which mentions Kosovo as one of ten countries with threat of deadly conflict or escalation in 2024, furthers the negative perception about Kosovo, and renders it unable to attract quality foreign investments. Kosovo’s institutions need to understand the importance of concluding the agreement with Serbia, which is a repeated call also from Kosovo’s strategic international partners,” the statement notes.

The AmCham commended Kosovo and Serbia for their agreement on recognition of license plates and recommended the lifting of trade barriers. “The American Chamber repeats its call for the Kosovo Government to lift the current measures that ban the import of final products from Serbia, which mainly affect the commercial interests of Kosovo’s partners, including the United States of America. The lifting of trade barriers would make Kosovo more attractive for foreign investors,” it said.

The AmCham also argued that all actions following the implementation of the new regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo to be done in close coordination with international partners, including the request to postpone the provisions and allow for necessary preparations to eliminate any possible negative consequences.

Unknown persons removed table set up by Ministry in Zubin Potok (media)

Kosovo Police said in their 24-hour report that unknown persons removed a table set up by the Ministry of Local government in the municipality of Zubin Potok. The façade where the table was set up was also damaged, and the incident is being investigated by police.

Haradinaj: Kosovo’s main objective is NATO membership (media)

Leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Ramush Haradinaj, during his stay in the United States, visited the Pan-Albanian Federation Vatra, and highlighted its role in helping Kosovo and the Albanian issue in general in all stages. “In a heartily and brotherly meeting I talked openly about the continuous need for all Albanian organizations in the United States to continue to help Kosovo in all areas,” Haradinaj said in a Facebook post. 

Haradinaj said that the “United States are not only the main strategic ally, but also home to thousands of Albanians who left home in search for a better life”. He also said that Kosovo’s main objective is membership in NATO, “because this makes Kosovo and the region safe and helps peace in the world”.

Serbian Language Media

Vucic: Serbia demands a session of the Security Council, letters to the EU, Russia, and China on Monday (N1)

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, said today that Serbia will submit a request to hold an emergency session of the UN Security Council on Monday, reported N1.

Vucic said that he wrote a letter regarding the current situation that will be received by all representatives of EU member states, representatives of EU institutions, as well as presidents and prime ministers of all members of the Security Council, including Russia and China, “who we have informed in internal consultations how concerned we are.”

He said that all signed agreements in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina included the right of the Republic of Serbia to finance certain activities – health, education, pensions for the Serbian population.

“This right was not called into question by any act,” Vucic said in an address to the media in Belgrade regarding Pristina’s decision to abolish the dinar.

He said that there will be no talks between the National Bank of Serbia and the Central Bank of Kosovo on that topic, and that Pristina, when it asks for those talks, is actually asking for recognition.

“We believe that Kurti’s regime will continue with distractions and new shenanigans,” said the President of Serbia.

He said that Serbia will pay Kosovo Serbs about 22 million euros in advance in the name of salaries, pensions, and other benefits.

“We started paying salaries, pensions and social benefits to our people in Kosovo and Metohija in advance, long before it was time to pay the February benefits. By 12 o’clock, we had already managed to pay around five million,” said Vucic. 

He said among other things that 922 business entities at the “Postanska Stedionica” (Postal Savings Bank) will not be able to receive income in dinars and that this is “an additional blow to the economic flows in Serbian communities”, reported N1. 

The police harassed the team of Radio Gorazdevac (KiM radio, Radio Gorazdevac)

During this morning’s intervention by the Kosovo Police in Gorazdevac, there was an incident with the team of Radio Gorazdevac, when the Kosovo Police searched the car of this media team that was on its way to an assignment, reported KiM radio.

“The commander of the police station for the region of Pec, Nuen Nikola, approached me and asked me which car was ours. He told me that they had to search it, and that I should hand over him the key in the presence of two witnesses, which I did,” said the editor-in-chief of Radio Gorazdevac, Darko Dimitrijevic, who properly introduced himself to the policeman and explained where they were going, after which he was told that they have to wait for the search.

After 20 minutes, members of the Kosovo Police came in larger numbers and started the search.

“Of course, they didn’t find anything. However, there is another question, and that is the very brazen way in which they treated us despite the legitimization. When they saw that there was nothing suspicious in the car, they told us that they had to search us because we looked suspicious to them,” he added.

Dimitrijevic notes that a part of the Kosovo Police, after breaking into the PA building, also broke into the premises of Radio Gorazdevac, which was recorded on camera.

“This is an outrageous procedure for the police to harass journalists and try to seize a car with production equipment. There is a police station in Gorazdevac, the police in Pec also know that we are journalists, but despite that they decided to demonstrate some kind of force to us. We have reached such a stage that everything that is Serbian is suspicious to the police, so it does not matter whether it is journalists doing their job or someone from any other segment of society,” Dimitrijevic points out.

The editorial staff of Radio Gorazdevac will send a complaint to the Police Inspectorate of Kosovo, reported KiM radio.

Revolted by the police action, young people gathered in the center of Osojane (KiM radio)

KiM radio reported that a group of mostly younger people, gathered on the plateau in front of the building of the PA municipality of Istok in the center of Osojane. They are dissatisfied with the presence of armed members of the special police in the village, according to KiM radio. 

The situation is calm, but tense.

As KiM radio learns, the search in the PA building lasted for more than two hours.

According to the currently available information, the president of PA Istok, Kosta Belosevic, is also in the building with two other workers.

Documentation, as well as part of the inventory, was taken from the building.

Based on information from Gorazdevac, the police left that village.

Serbian List: The raid of armed special forces in three Metohija municipalities another proof of ethnic cleansing (Radio Mitrovica sever, Kosovo Online)

‘The wave of erasure of everything Serbian in Kosovo and Metohija under the baton of Albin Kurti and with the loud silence of the international community continued today with the incursion into the Provisional Authorities of the municipalities of Pec, Istok and Klina,” announced Serbian List, reacting to the latest incursion of special units of the Kosovo Police in three Metohija municipalities, reported Radio Mitrovica sever. 

“With the brutal incursion of dozens of special forces armed to the teeth into peaceful Serbian villages, Kurti’s regime is carrying out ethnic cleansing of Serbian communities in Kosovo and Metohija, while the European Union is silent, and KFOR does not react in any way, even though it has an obligation to protect peace, security and freedom for all citizens regardless of nationality”.

“It is obvious that Kurti’s regime wants to expel, according to the principle of blitzkrieg, Serbian institutions, the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serbian people, using the passivity of the Western powers, whom the Serbian people consider to be direct accomplices in these anti-Serb actions of the regime in Pristina,” announced the SL. 

They called on the Serbian people to ”remain calm and restrained in order not to give reasons for the use of force and the arrest of honest and honorable Serbian hosts”.

“No matter how hard it is for all of us, we have to keep our composure and each other, because this evil will not last forever either. The actions of Pristina should be seen as the actions of the occupier and not otherwise, because the regime in Pristina does not even respect its own laws and rules that guarantee the rights of the Serbian people,” the statement added.

The Serbian List calls on Serbia “to react as soon as possible and requests the European Union and KFOR to prevent Kurti from dealing with the Serbian people in these areas, because this cruelty cannot be tolerated and will lead to the exodus of the Serbian people from their centuries-old homes,” read the statement.

Office for KiM: Closure of Serbian municipalities in Metohija, continuation of ethnic cleansing and extermination of Serbs (Kosovo Online)

”Today’s incursion by armed members of the Kosovo Police into the Provisional Authorities of the municipalities of Pec (in Gorazdevac), Istok (in Osojane) and Klina (in the village of Vidanje) is a continuation of the ethnic cleansing and extermination of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija under direction of Albin Kurti directly, and in front of the eyes of the complete of the international community,” announced the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, reported portal Kosovo Online.

“Kurti’s special forces closed the Serb municipalities in Metohija, which during the conflict in 1999 and then during the Pogrom in 2004 were completely ethnically cleansed of Serbs. With great difficulty, the Serbs returned in small numbers to their homes and to the returnee settlements where they life was guaranteed by the international community, and today Kurti is expelling them again with the police, long pipes, and armored vehicles,” the announcement states.

It is added that during today’s ”illegal and violent action, the presidents of the temporary authorities were also detained for informational interviews, and in the violent incursion into peaceful Serbian environments, health centers, clinics and pharmacies were also closed”.

“This kind of action followed last week’s incursion into the municipality of Gora, which was not condemned by any member of the international community, and by their loud silence they become accomplices to Kurti’s misdeeds,” concludes the statement of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija.

After Pec and Istok, the police raided the premises of the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Klina (Kosovo Online, Danas)

Kosovo Police raided the premises of the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Klina, located in the town of Vidanje, reported Kosovo Online.

The portal reports that after the break-in, the police took in the president of the temporary authority and his associates for an interview.

Gorazdevac: KP raided the facility of the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Pec (Kosovo Online, Radio Gorazdevac, media)

Kosovo Online reports that the Kosovo police raided the building of the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Pec, located in Gorazdevac. 

The flag of the Republic of Serbia has been removed from this building.

“A large group of policemen broke into the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Pec around 10 a.m. The workers who were in the building at that moment are still inside and currently a small number of citizens of Gorazdevac are gathered in front and the police do not allow them to come closer to the premises of the Provisional Authority. We have no more information about what is happening inside. They took down the flag of Serbia that was at the entrance,” Milic Petrovic, a journalist from Radio Gorazdevac, told Kosovo Online portal.

The Kosovo police seized the car and equipment of the Radio Gorazdevac team, Milic Petrovic confirmed to the portal.

Osojane: Kosovo Police special forces raided Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Istok, the post office and the ambulance (KiM radio, media)

KP vehicles broke into the yard of the PA of the municipality of Istok, located in Osojane vilage, KiM radio learns.

Members of the KP also entered the post office and the local clinic used by the residents of the returnee villages in the Osojane valley. 

Special police forces armed with automatic rifles arrived in four police cars.

As KiM radio learns, classes were interrupted in Osojane after the police raid, so the children were sent home.

In the meantime, more police have arrived in the village, and cars are currently stopped on the approach to the town center.

According to KiM radio, people in plainclothes came in two jeeps, arrived at the PA of the municipality of Istok. 

KiM radio recalls that Osojane is the largest returnee village in Metohija and is the only returnee community where life has begun to be restored in some acceptable form after the conflict in Kosovo.

Dusko Arsic sentenced to 13 years in prison (RTS, media)

Dusko Arsic from Maticane near Pristina was sentenced today in the first instance to 13 years in prison for allegedly committing a war crime in 1999, reported RTS. 

The judicial panel of the Basic Court in Pristina, composed of three Albanians, announced that it was confirmed that during the process it was confirmed that Arsic committed the criminal offense for which he was accused.

In the case against Arsic, prosecutor Adem Dema pointed out in his closing argument that the evidence presented established that the accused committed a criminal offense with intent as an accomplice.

Arsic is charged with a crime against the civilian population, that during the war period in Kosovo, from January to June 1999, he participated in the displacement and looting of the property of the Albanian population.

Lawyer, defending Arsic, Nebojsa Vlajic previously requested an acquittal, stating that the Albanian who reported Arsic was not harmed, because no war crime was committed against him.

Arsic was reported to have allegedly committed a war crime after he did not want to sell the land to persons of Albanian nationality who had previously usurped it and transferred it to their name with forged documents, reported RTS.

Lawyer Vlajic: This verdict destroys everyone’s hope of getting justice in Kosovo (KiM radio)

The lawyer of the convicted Dusko Arsic says that he is not surprised by the verdict of the court panel, which sentenced his client to 13 years in prison for war crimes. The defense announces an appeal, reported KiM radio. 

“I think that after today’s announcement of the verdict, even the most well-intentioned observers lost their illusions about the democratic capacity of the Kosovo judiciary. Kosovo’s judiciary simply convinces the public with each subsequent verdict that they are not able to conduct a fair trial”.

Vlajic says that the case against Arsic was “the most obvious among the multitude of similar cases where war crimes are tried without any evidence and where there is an obvious connection with property disputes that preceded the accusations of war crimes.”

“Where a man is being trialed who has lived in Kosovo for 20 or more years and no one has anything against it, and when a property dispute breaks out, he is arrested and reported after 22 years of silence. Therefore, this case and this verdict are not yet final, but this verdict destroys the hope of anyone who hopes to receive justice in Kosovo and anyone who is awaiting trial for similar matters. I can only repeat my earlier statement that whoever hopes for justice in Kosovo, that is, from the Kosovo courts, is either very naive or deeply uninformed”.

Vlajic announced that he would appeal the verdict to the Court of Appeal.

Shahini: The government should respect the Kosovo Constitution, but also the Serbs who have dinar accounts (Kosovo Online)

The Kosovo Government should respect the Kosovo Constitution but also the Serbs who have dinar accounts, Agim Shahini, the President of the Kosovo Business Alliances said to Kosovo Online, regarding the implementation of the regulation by the Kosovo Central Bank preventing the use of the dinar.

“This decision, which is already in force, should be considered differently because the Kosovo Government should listen to the international community, especially the Quint countries, to postpone this until new companies or banks that citizens with dinars can use are licensed because, according to our data, there are more than 50,000 citizens who already receive various Serbian pensions, social benefits… Among them, there are Albanians who receive pensions, and now no one has the right to forbid them how to keep their capital in their homes and their accounts,” Shahini said.

He emphasizes that Serbs should also understand that, at a time when everyone aspires to Europe, using the euro is better than using any other currency in Kosovo.

See at:http://tinyurl.com/cnmxa78d

Andjelkovic (Serbian Democracy): Workers of Serbian companies in Kosovo cannot receive money in Kosovo banks (Danas)

The Vice President of the Serbian Democracy, Marinko Andjelkovic, denied the statements of the Government of Kosovo that the decision of the Central Bank of Kosovo to abolish the dinar will not have any impact on ordinary citizens, Danas reported, citing this party announcement. 

Andjelkovic went to Raiffeisen Bank, to transfer his salary to a Kosovo account as an employee of ”JKP Vodovod Ibar”, a Serbian institution, which he was not allowed to do.

“For us people who work in Serbian institutions like me, for example. in JKP Vodovod Ibar, it is not possible for the employer to transfer the funds to their bank, because Raiffeisen Bank only recognizes payments made by the Kosovo companies. It is not even possible to get any kind of loan, so there are no conditions for a further normal life”, said the vice-president of Serbian Democracy after leaving the aforementioned bank, reported Danas.

EC spokesperson: The solution for the dinar can be found within the dialogue led by the EU (N1)

The spokesperson of the European Commission, Eric Mamer, said that the EC is concerned about Kosovo’s decision to abolish the dinar and that it is asking for the transition period to be long enough to find a solution within the dialogue led by the EU, reported N1.

“The commission regrets that this decision was adopted without prior consultation, considering the impact of this decision on the daily life of Kosovo Serbs and other communities throughout Kosovo,” Mamer said.

He says the Commission is particularly concerned about the impact on schools and hospitals, “given the apparent absence of alternatives”.

“The Commission supports the statement issued yesterday by the High Representative through his spokesperson and furthermore takes note of the central bank’s decision to allow a transition period. The commission calls on Kosovo to ensure that this transition period is long enough to find a negotiated solution within the dialogue led by the EU,” he said.