UNMIK Headlines 14 May
Jahjaga asks OSCE to help with elections in the north (Koha)
Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga met on Tuesday with the OSCE Ambassador to Kosovo, Jean-Claude Schlumberger, and discussed early national elections and the possible technical engagement of the OSCE mission in the elections. Jahjaga said all preparations are underway to have free and fair elections. Jahjaga also said she appreciates the engagement and assistance of the OSCE, which has great experience and the technical expertise to assist in the process organized by the Central Election Commission (CEC). Jahjaga also said the OSCE can assist the process by officially supporting the CEC in holding smooth elections in the northern municipalities. Schlumberger said his mission has begun consultations and preparations to play a supporting role and that it is ready to assist the CEC.
PDK with a pre-election coalition (Koha)
Hajredin Kuci, deputy leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), could not say on Tuesday with which party the PDK would enter a pre-election coalition. “This issue is managed by the Prime Minister,” he said. Meanwhile, Avni Klinaku, leader of the Movement for Unification (LB), said it is very likely that his party would enter into a coalition with the PDK. “We are holding talks with other parties too, but the best offer came from the PDK, and it is very likely we will enter a coalition with them,” Klinaku said. Ferid Agani, leader of the Justice Party (PD), said he is holding talks with the two biggest parties, the LDK and PDK. “I believed we should not enter into any coalition before elections, in order to measure our strength. But the party’s presidency has decided that we should,” he said.
“The New Mission” starts (Epoka e Re)
The leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and Prime Minister, Hashim Thaçi, presented the governing plan for his third mandate, called “The New Mission.” He stated that his plan will create 200,000 jobs in agriculture, industry, infrastructure, information technology, mining and tourism. He stated that during his next mandate, he will invest €500 million in agriculture, which would create 50,000 jobs. He added that his party also intends to build an alternative airport in Gjakovë/Djakovica. He also promised investments in the Kosovo railway system.
“Ibrahim Rugova” List dissolved, will support LDK on 8 June (Botapress)
The “Ibrahim Rugova” List has officially ceased functioning as of yesterday. This was announced by one of the party founders, Astrit Haraqija. He said that from now on, all activists of this List will be supporting the LDK and its candidates in the 8 June elections. The “Ibrahim Rugova” List was established in December 2010 and was represented in the Kosovo Assembly by MP Uke Rugova, while Bujar Bukoshi and Dardan Gashi had posts in the Kosovo government.
Kosovo gains membership in IMPEL (Tribuna)
Kosovo has joined the European Union Network for the Implementation and Enforcement of Environmental Law (IMPEL) and has managed to do so before many countries in the region. The Kosovo Ministry of Environment applied for membership in the international non-profit association a month ago and was unanimously accepted. The Network’s objective is to contribute to environmental protection through promoting effective implementation of EU environmental law.
Northerners refuse to meet Edita Tahiri (Kosovapress)
Citing unnamed sources, the news agency reports that mayors of four northern municipalities did not meet Deputy Prime Minister Edita Tahiri on Tuesday although the meeting had been planned to be held at the EU House in northern Mitrovica. Sources said the four mayors made a last-minute decision to reject the meeting and met instead with the deputy head of the US Embassy in Pristina, Jennifer Backuz. “We are not pleased with Tahiri’s behavior. The last time, in Pristina, she did not accept us as interlocutors. She said she had nothing to discuss with us, because we are not a party to the talks. Now that she was supposed to come and meet us, our question was what is there to discuss with her,” said one of the mayors. Tahiri will meet today with Adriana Hodzic, head of the Administrative Office in northern Mitrovica.
Kosovo has carcinogenic toys (Zeri)
The paper reports on the front page that it has managed to secure a copy of a report from a laboratory in Rome which shows that many toys sold in Kosovo contain highly dangerous chemical components. According to the paper, the document, which calls for the removal of the toys from the market as soon as possible, has been in the possession of Kosovo institutions for over a year now. The document was kept secret, and the millions of toys imported from China, Turkey and Serbia, have continued to circulate on the market. Kosovo’s National Public Health Institute confirmed to the paper that such toys contain dangerous chemical elements that pose a serious threat to children’s health.