I see no valid reason for any further delay in forming the Special Court for crimes committed in Kosovo. The constitutional amendments are already in the assembly and the law is ready, this for Vecernje Novosti said Samuel Zbogar, EU Special Representative in Kosovo.
Is there a general political will to form the court?
– I do not envy deputies of the Assembly of Kosovo, both those representing the Albanian parties, nor those representing the community. On the one hand, they are worried how their vote will reflect the history of Kosovo, and on the other they look to the future. In previous months, I spoke to deputies of the Assembly and the people throughout Kosovo, and I am confident that Parliament will make the right decision. I cited three main reasons for this: only a court can determine the truth about the allegations in the report of the Council of Europe on trafficking in organs, Kosovo alone will make decisions which are of its interest, and will be respected the adopted international obligations.
You said that any delay harms Kosovo and that Europe has a way to punish Pristina. What do you mean?
– I did not talk about punishment of Kosovo, but the main centres are asking us, everyday, why a special court is delayed. We explain to them how it is demanding and difficult process. However, this is an international obligation.
If Pristina, however, avoid this duty, whether the court will be formed by the United Nations?
– I believe that the legal basis for the formation of the court will adopt the Kosovo Assembly. As the EU, we are not a permanent member of the Security Council, so I cannot speak on their behalf.
How many cases could be found before the court? And, how to solve the issue of witness protection, because this is a big problem in Kosovo?
– At this stage we cannot speculate on the number of cases. The court would deal with the cases mentioned in the report of the Council of Europe. And because of witness protection, the court will work outside of Kosovo.
