Kosovo Assembly to vote on special court today (dailies)
All dailies report that the Kosovo Assembly will meet at 10:00 today to vote on the constitutional amendments that enable the establishment of the special court. Under the leading front-page headline “The Special Day”, Koha Ditore reports that Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) leader, Hashim Thaci, will meet his MPs once again before the Assembly session to be sure that the special court will receive the necessary votes. According to the paper, only four PDK MPs are expected to vote against the special court. Kosovo’s Prime Minister, Isa Mustafa, said on Sunday that the ruling coalition partners have secured the necessary votes for the establishment of the special court. Some dailies are reporting that the opposition parties are planning to block the entrance of the Assembly hall. The head of the Vetevendosje parliamentary group, Glauk Konjufca, did not confirm such a plan but said that “submitting once again the constitutional amendments to the Assembly is a non-democratic action.”
KLA war veterans to protest today (dailies)
The war veterans of the former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) announced over the weekend that they will protest today against irregularities in the lists made by the government commission for the status of war veterans. The chairman for the protection of rights of the KLA fighters, Xhevdet Qeriqi, said that one of the demands of the protest will also be the implementation of the law on war veterans. The war veterans are also opposed to the formation of the special court. A representative of the war veterans told KTV on Sunday he was confident that MPs would reject the establishment of the court and that if the Assembly passes the constitutional amendments, the war veterans would then launch radical measures.
Serbian List will vote in favour of special court (Klan Kosova)
All Serbian List MPs will be present in today’s session of the Kosovo Assembly that will vote on the constitutional amendments for the formation of the special court. Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister, Branimir Stojanovic, confirmed to the TV station that Serbian List MPs will vote in favour of the special court. He also said that their MPs will vote against the establishment of the Kosovo Armed Forces.
Jablanovic: Serbian MPs are being threatened for special court (Kosova Sot)
The leader of the Serbian List, Aleksandar Jablanovic, told Mitrovica-based Radio Kontakt Plus that some Serbian List MPs received threats in order to withdraw from voting on the formation of the special court. He said that the threats were reported to the Kosovo Police, while the Serbian List MPs “remain committed in their positions for the establishment of this court.”
Dacic: Kosovo is not ready for Association/Community (dailies)
Serbia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Ivica Dacic, said yesterday that no date has been set yet for the resumption of talks between Pristina and Belgrade at the political level. According to Dacic, “the Kosovo side is not ready to accept any agreement on the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities and the Telecom”. He also said that in Belgrade’s view, the Association/Community should have specific competencies and should be established as soon as possible.
Serbia promises a financially-strong Association (Koha)
Northern Kosovo Serbs have stepped up their activities with regards to the establishment of the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities and they are coordinating all activities with Belgrade, the paper reports on page three. Marko Djuric, head of the Serbian Government’s Office for Kosovo, summoned the representatives of the legal and illegal institutions in the north on Saturday to discuss issues that concern Kosovo Serbs. “The Republic of Serbia, in the next couple of months, will double up its efforts in support of the Serb community in Kosovo and implement reforms in our institutions operating here,” Djuric told the meeting. “After the formation of the Association/Community of Serb municipalities, the Serbian government will allocate considerable funds for its activities. I am confident that the Association will be an umbrella institution for the Serb people in Kosovo”.
