Procedures for establishment of the Association soon

(Klan Kosova)

Kosovo Government might soon initiate procedures for establishment of the Association of Serb majority municipalities on the grounds of the Brussels Agreement.

Deputy Minister of Local Government Administration Bajram Gecaj stated for Radio Free Europe that Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa will primarily establish the group which will analyse the Constitutional Court verdict of December 2015 regarding this Association.

According to Gecaj, the management team will be composed of two Serbs from the north and two from the south, which, together with MLGA and OSCE personnel, will work on drafting the statute of this Association.

OSCE facilitates agreement on free legal aid for defendants in criminal cases

(RTK2)

Kosovo Bar Association, Police, Judicial Council, and Prosecutorial Council signed in Prishtinë/Pristina an agreement on free legal aid to the defendants in criminal proceedings.

This form of legal aid covers the entire defence.

After many years of analyzing Kosovo’s Criminal Code, the OSCE Mission in Kosovo concluded that the rules for the provision of criminal defense were deficient. The agreement between Police, Judicial Council, Prosecutorial Council and the Bar Association anticipates engagement of pro bono lawyers, without any financial obligation by the defendants.

“Today’s Memorandum of Understanding aims to solve these problems. A special unit in the Bar Association will be established with this Memorandum, which will channel appointment of all free legal counsels in criminal law. This unit will have to make sure that defendants will get the same lawyer or legal representation during all the stages of the proceedings and ensure that their performance is adequate,” Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Jean-Claude Schlumberger stated.

Ex officio lawyers are obliged to provide legal assistance to the parties, whereas remuneration for their engagement will be paid from the municipal budget.

President of Kosovo Bar Association, Osman Havolli said that people eligible of receiving this assistance are the defendants who do not have financial resources to pay for their legal defense.

Free legal representation is stipulated by the Constitution of Kosovo as part of guaranteeing a fair and impartial trial.

Kosovo Judicial Council chairperson, Nehat Idrizi, said that the MoU will coordinate inter-institutional activities and advance the respect for human rights.

General Director of Kosovo Police Shpend Maxhuni concluded that this memorandum is important and commended the OSCE assistance.

President of Kosovo Prosecutorial Council, Blerim Isufaj, said that “the state should create conditions for effective defence, as well as mechanisms that assess impact of these laws.”

This agreement will enable effective legal representation at public expense. With this agreement, Kosovo judicial joins the international legal system where free legal aid is a regular practice.

ICRC also says that it was not done enough for the missing persons

(Most monitored broadcasters, KTV)

Family members of the missing, who were never found after the war, request from Kosovo institutions to seriously deal with their issue.

Agim Gashi, from the Red Cross working group, called on Government to increase the support for the Government Commission on Missing Persons and Department of Forensic Medicine.

Laurent Burkhalter from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) pledged in front of the family members that he will continue to work on shedding light on the fate of these missing persons.

He also admitted that very little was done in this regard recently. Associations and family members of the missing expressed their concern about missing presence of Office of Prime Minister and EULEX representatives in a meeting held on Tuesday.

On the other hand, Klan Kosova reported that a person from Zajm village of Klinë/Klina returned home alive after 17 years of being considered as missing. His family members said his health situation was not all that good. Nephew of the returned person told Klan Kosova that his uncle remembers only the arrest and that another missing person died five months ago. “He cannot tell, but we know that he entered Kosovo from the northern part,” nephew of the returned person said.

High corruption level in Kosovo is not only a perception

(Most monitored broadcasters, KTV)

Kosovo President and MPs have different assessment regarding corruption. While the President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, in the meeting with Head of Kosovo Anti-Corruption Agency, Hasan Preteni, considered that perception and reality on corruption in Kosovo differ, members of the Assembly legislation committee emphasised that Kosovo has a high presence of corruption.

KACA Head Hasan Preteni reported to this Committee on Tuesday. Armend Zemaj, a member of this Committee, said that high level of corruption is not a perception but a reality, and that this phenomenon, according to him, continues to remain a concerning fact for all the institutions.

Preteni said that false declaration of assets by certain officials and procurement field remain a problem in the fight against this phenomenon.

New political party on the horizon, names still not known

(KTV)

A new political party is coming in the political scene of Kosovo, but except Ilir Deda, who made the news on this party public on Monday after leaving Vetëvendosje Movement, it still is not clear who are the other names that will join him.

The new political alternative that is expected to be made public within a few months, aims to bring in important people in it. Vjosa Osmani, who qualified coalition with PDK as the death of LDK and who voted against her party leader for Prime Minister, continues to have collisions with many individual supporters of Isa Mustafa within LDK. However, regardless of difficulties in the party, Osmani does not plan to stop, but she will go on with her engagement in LDK, with the idea to bring changes.

Name of expert on the field of economy, Lumir Abdixhiku, has also been widely mentioned that he will be part of the group in the new political alternative. However, he denied these voices. He qualified them as slander for daily consumption.

Analyst Besa Luzha admitted she is interested to strongly get involved in politics, but she still has not decided which party to join. She said that Kosovo needs a new approach in politics; however, she is against fragmented ideas.

Ilir Deda’s initiative was supported by analyst Dukagjin Gorani. Former President of Kosovo Atifete Jahjaga and current mayor of Gjakovë/Djakovica Mimoza Kusari-Lila are among the names mentioned.

Nisma Secretary resigns, qualifies AAK-Nisma coalition a sneaky agreement (TV21)

Dissatisfied with the AAK-Nisma coalition, Secretary of Nisma political entity -Xhevat Bislimi, resigned his post.  He qualified Nisma’s coalition with AAK a sneaky agreement reached to break the unified opposition.

According to him, the sneaky anti-agreement, as he qualified it, of Nisma and AAK to break the unified opposition collapsed this political initiative. Bislimi did not tell if he will join another political party.

Hand grenade found in in Slavisa Ristic’s courtyard

(RTK2)

An unexploded hand grenade was found on Tuesday in the courtyard of Slavisa Ristic’s family home, in Jagnjenica village of Zubin Potok municipality.

Kosovo Police carried out investigation at the scene, and the Explosive Ordnance Disposal team was called to dispose the explosive ordnance.

Kosovo Police regional commander Zeljko Bojic confirmed the incident to RTK2 and said that investigations were on-going.

Ristic is an MP candidate for the Parliament of Serbia.