United opposition announces next protest (Epoka)
Vetevendosje MP Albin Kurti told a press conference on Wednesday that the leaders of the three opposition parties will very soon announce the date of the next protest. He said that this protest will demand new parliamentary elections and will oppose the Association/Community of Serb-majority Municipalities and the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro. Kurti also called for the immediate release of Vetevendosje leader Visar Ymeri who was arrested on Wednesday.
Thaci: I will be a different President (Epoka)
In an interview for Top Channel, the President-elect of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, promised to be a different President. Asked about his plans for the first day as President Thaci said “I think that it will be a special day, a new day for new Kosovo, for the European Kosovo. It will be a different Presidency and a different President. He also said that he has faith in political leaders of Kosovo that they will resolve the political tension. Asked about the Special Court, Thaci said that Kosovo has fulfilled its obligations to the international community and added that the Court should be used as a positive for consolidating and strengthening Kosovo. “Therefore, we have nothing to hide and we will support it,” Thaci said. He said that as the President of Kosovo but also Commander of the armed forces of Kosovo, he will work on immediate establishment of the Armed Forces, and start of the partnership for peace in order for Kosovo to integrate into NATO over a five-year period.
AAK claims Thaci’s election is anti-constitutional (Telegrafi)
The Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) issued a statement to the press listing a number of reasons why it considers Hashim Thaci’s election as President of Kosovo unlawful. One of the reasons, according to AAK, is that immediately upon election, Thaci failed to publicly resign his previous posts, as required by the Constitution of Kosovo. Second, Thaci was voted by an Assembly that did not have 120 MPs but 119. “The Constitution stipulates that the empty seat at the Assembly should be filled immediately and this did not happen,” said the AAK referring to the resignation of its leader Ramush Haradinaj from his MP mandate days before Thaci’s election. Furthermore, the AAK alleges that the Assembly President Kadri Veseli did not report how many MPs were absent at the voting session, how many were excused and how many suspended. The candidacy of Rafet Rama to the president’s post, according to AAK, was a farce and lastly, “unjustified breaks following the first and the second round of voting created room for suspicion that they were aimed at interfering in the will of the elected MPs.”
Ymeri: Justice is being selective (Zeri)
Vetevendosje leader Visar Ymeri accused the Kosovo judiciary of applying selective justice stressing that it is dealing exclusively with Vetevendosje activists and neglecting serious cases. Ymeri told the paper how he was taken by the police to a court hearing yesterday where he, along with three fellow-party members, are accused of causing bodily harm to the PDK MP Bekim Haxhiu. He said the case at hand was a “masquerade”. “This case also demonstrates how deeply and extensively the Kosovo judiciary has been captured,” added Ymeri.
“Serbia’s behavior might delay establishment of the Association” (Epoka)
Kosovo’s Minister for Dialogue, Edita Tahiri, told the paper on Wednesday that Serbia’s destructive behavior in the process of the normalization of the relations with Kosovo, could delay the establishment of the Association/Community of Serb-majority Municipalities. She added that with non-implementation of the agreements, Serbia is delaying the start of the work of the tripartite group for disintegration of the parallel structures in Kosovo, and this will also delay drafting of the statute for establishment of the Association/Community of Serb-majority Municipalities.
Collaku: Visa regime to be lifted this year (Zeri)
European Integrations Minister Bekim Collaku said in an interview for the paper that Kosovo has fulfilled all the visa liberalization criteria and that he is convinced that the decision for visa-free travel to the EU will be taken this year. He, however, expressed concern with what he said were unnecessary delays on the part of the European Commission in granting visa liberalization for Kosovo. “I am convinced that 2016 will mark the end of isolation for the citizens of Kosovo,” said Collaku.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs unblocks decreeing of ambassadors (Koha)
The paper reports on its front page that Kosovo’s President-elect, Hashim Thaci, wants some of Kosovo’s ambassadors, which he has proposed, to be decreed when he takes up his new office. According to the paper, Thaci has already given up on some political personalities in order to reach a balance with other career diplomats. Officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the paper on Wednesday that such balance has been achieved, but they refused to disclose names. An unnamed source told the paper that the names of the new ambassadors will be sent to the Assembly in the next couple of days. “With the latest appointments we will achieve the required balance, because in total we will have 14 career diplomats and 13 politically appointed people in Kosovo’s diplomatic missions,” the source said.
