Kosovo Assembly expected to vote on special court before Tuesday (Zeri)
The paper reports on its front page that the latest by Monday the Kosovo Assembly is expected to address the establishment of the special court that will deal with war crimes allegations. Unnamed sources told the paper that the session on the establishment of the special court will be held before the United Nations Security Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday, 26 May. The paper further reports that Assembly Speaker Kadri Veseli has summoned a meeting of the Assembly Presidency for today, where it will be decided if the extraordinary session for special court will be held today or on Monday.
Schwendiman calls for establishment of special court (dailies)
The new Lead Prosecutor of the Special Investigative Task Force (SITF), David Schwendiman, upon his arrival in Brussels on Thursday, said that his secondment is a reconfirmation of the United States’ commitment to the rule of law in Kosovo, and yet another sign of close EU-US cooperation. “I fully endorse the investigative work that has been conducted by the SITF team,” Schwendiman said in a press statement. He added that he is determined to take the work forward. “In order for this to happen, the Specialist Chambers and the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office need to be established as soon as possible. I encourage all stakeholders involved to do their best to adopt the necessary legal framework to make this possible,” Schwendiman said.
Delawie: Kosovo to fulfil its obligations (Kosova Sot)
The United States candidate for Ambassador to Kosovo, Gregor Delawie, said on Thursday that Kosovo must fulfill its obligations, by adopting the legal framework which enables the establishment of the special court. Delawie said that Kosovo has made progress since the declaration of independence, it has adopted and implemented modern laws, experienced economic growth and has made progress in the Pristina – Belgrade dialogue.
Failed attempt by opposition to dismiss Justice Minister (dailies)
Prime Minister of Kosovo, Isa Mustafa, responded to the call from the three opposition parties to report to the Assembly about the scandals that have occurred in the justice system in Kosovo. After the opposition’s request for the dismissal of Justice Minister Hajredin Kuci, Mustafa said that this requirement is unfair and that he has no intension of dismissing Kuci. “Minister Kuci has done good work in the justice system in Kosovo. The arguments that the opposition presented are not sufficient to take action against the minister,” Mustafa said. Opposition MPs mentioned the scandal in the case of the Drenica group, where the Mayor of Skenderaj, Sami Lushtaku, escaped for three days from the University Clinical Centre, and they also mentioned Kuci’s alleged influence in the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council.
Pack: Serbia should remove Kosovo from its constitution (dailies)
Doris Pack, a member of the European Parliament, said on Thursday that the preamble of the Constitution of Serbia which specifies that Kosovo is part of Serbian territory, goes not only against the development of good neighborly relations in the region, but also conflicts with Serbia’s aspirations to join the European Union. Pack said that now is a good time to eliminate the preamble, and according to her, it was repeated many times by foreign statesmen that this issue should be cleared, which also means a change of the Serbian Constitution.
Kroi i Vitakut reconstruction, through an inter-ministerial council (Zeri)
In a meeting with Serb ministers in the Kosovo government, Ljubomir Maric and Dalibor Jevtic, and with the Mayors of Mitrovica South and North, Agim Bahtiri and Goran Rakic, around 30 Albanians from the Kroi i Vitakut neighborhood agreed that the process of rebuilding their houses should go through an inter-ministerial council set up by the Kosovo government. This council will be composed of five ministers from the Kosovo government, the two mayors of Mitrovica and two representatives of Serb and Albanian residents of the neighborhood. After the meeting, Bahtiri said that it was the first time after 16 years that an Inter-ministerial Council had been created, which will resolve once and for all the problem of the return of Albanians in their homes.
New Constitutional Court President suspected of two penal acts (Koha)
The paper reports that the Judges of the Constitutional Court of Kosovo have elected as their new President Arta Rama-Hajrizi, despite the fact that she and current President Enver Hasani are under investigation by the Special Prosecution of Kosovo. The paper recalls that Rama-Hajrizi is suspected of forging official documents and the abuse of position. Rama-Hajrizi told the paper on Thursday that the legal proceedings will be clarified soon and that she would not comment any further.
Sela: A single Albanian bloc should be formed in FYROM (Koha)
The paper carries a front-page interview with Ziadin Sela, the chairman of the reforms movement in the Albanian Democratic Party (PDSH) in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). Sela told the paper that police terror and the framing of political processes such as the one in Kumanovo may be repeated in other cities in FYROM if the Democratic Union for Integration (BDI) continues to be part of the coalition government led by Nikola Gruevski. “If the BDI leaves the government then the whole Albanian political spectrum could be united around a single Albanian bloc that would negotiate a new political deal with the Macedonians, because the Ohrid Agreement has failed,” Sela added.
Bodies of Kumanovo victims returned to Kosovo today (Kosovapress)
The bodies of nine Kosovo citizens who were killed two weeks ago in Kumanovo, were returned this morning to Kosovo. The cortege was accompanied by Director of the Institute of Forensic Medicine, Arsim Gerxhaliu. The bodies were sent to the institute for a new autopsy.
