Headlines - 17.10.2013

Kosovo receives 2013 Progress Report (dailies)

All dailies report that the Government of Kosovo has welcomed the European Commission’s 2013 Progress Report, calling it positive and realistic. Government officials focused more on achievements highlighted in the report and said that delays presented there are challenges.

Kosovo’s European Integration Minister Vlora Çitaku began the press conference on the Progress Report with news about the start of negotiations for the Stabilization/Association Agreement with the European Union. “Negotiations will officially commence on October 28th, and at the first meeting between the two chief negotiators Kosovo will receive the draft of the Stabilization/Association Agreement,” she said.

Commenting on the Progress Report, Çitaku said, “the report reflects our achievements as institutions, but also highlights challenges that await us and will be the subject of our permanent focus. In this respect, by the end of this year, the government will adopt the revised action plan for the Stabilization/Association Agreement in order to plan all concrete activities and timelines that are needed to address the recommendations of the Progress Report.”

Koha Ditore quotes representatives of the European Union in Kosovo as saying that in addition to achievements, Kosovo needs to provide concrete evidence in the fight against organized crime and corruption.

Kosova Sot highlights on the front page that according to the Progress Report, the rule of law is the biggest failure in Kosovo. The paper also notes that visa liberalization for Kosovo is not in this year’s agenda of the European Union.

Epoka e Re quotes EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule as saying that Kosovo is entering a new chapter with the European Union and that the start of SAA negotiations is acknowledgment of Kosovo’s progress in key reforms and in the normalization of relations with Serbia.

LDK: Progress report, a slap for Kosovo Government (Bota Sot)

Democratic League of Kosovo called yesterday a press conference where it commented on the findings of the latest European Commission Progress Report on Kosovo. LDK officials expressed concern with the findings of the report and MP Vjosa Osmani claimed that it is evident that Kosovo Government has failed to address a number of issues identified in last year’s report. The main concerns from the report continue to be corruption, organized crime, human trafficking, political interference in independent institutions, lack of public administration reform, uncompetitive economy, and restricted freedom of the press.

LDK called on the Government to immediately address shortcomings identified in the Progress Report and failure to do so will only make Kosovo’s path to European integration and visa liberalization more difficult.

Dacic in Kosovo on Saturday (Tribuna)

Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic will visit Kosovo on Saturday and according to his agenda which the paper claims to have seen, he will initially stop in Partesh, then proceed to Ranillug and finally to the Orthodox monastery in Graçanica. The Government of Kosovo has allowed the visit as the purpose is said to be of religious nature and not electoral.

Dacic prefers to talk to Rama about Kosovo’s partition (Tribuna)

Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic would prefer to move the dialogue with Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi to one with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama. International sources in Pristina told the paper that the Dacic has not given up on his idea for redrawing of borders between Serbs and Albanians believing that this would be a more viable solution than the agreements reached with Kosovo in Brussels. To this end, Dacic is expected to raise the issue in a future meeting with Rama and will present it as a solution to the century-old Albanian-Serb problem.

Thaçi is running dishonest campaign (Koha Ditore)

The paper notes that four years ago when Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci visited Peja to support his party’s candidate in local elections, he had promised investments amounting to €155 million. Thaci had conditioned the investments with the support for PDK candidate Ilhami Gashi. The latter however lost to AAK candidate Ali Berisha. Meanwhile, investments that Thaci’s government promised for Peja over the last four years have been 10 percent of his initial promise.

Kosovo has entered the second week of the campaign for November 3 local elections. Thaci is actively engaged in the campaign and is applying the same strategy as four years ago, with regards to promises for investments. In average, he has promised municipalities €100 million. PDK officials meanwhile have said that promises for investments will be not realized in municipalities that are not won by the PDK. Civil society representatives on the other hand argue that Thaci is running a dishonest campaign.

Serb right wing against the church (Lajm)

The paper reports that Serb hardliners have called for the removal of the Patriarch of the Serbian Church, after he called on Kosovo Serbs to take part in the upcoming municipal elections. Several sources told the paper that the final two weeks of the election campaign in the northern part of Kosovo will be accompanied with tensions and violence. The same sources said that Serb nationalist parties and criminal groups operating in the north will call on people to boycott the elections and will carry out violent acts and place explosives on certain buildings in the four Serb majority municipalities in northern Kosovo.

Opposition insists: PTK should be investigated! (Zëri)

The Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) and Vetëvendosje Movement, the two biggest opposition parties, insist on the completion of the committee that will investigate the privatization of the Kosovo Post and Telecom (PTK). Opposition representatives expect that partners of the ruling coalition will appoint their members at the committee on Thursday’s session of parliament.

Ardian Gjini, leader of the AAK parliamentary group, said at the previous parliament session, “this investigation committee should go even further, because previous processes have been even more problematic than the latest case with AXOS, because there were times when certain people negotiated on behalf of the Government of Kosovo, and this is extremely problematic.”

Signing of PTK privatisation contract postponed for December (Koha Ditore)

Government committee for privatisation postponed for the fourth time signing ceremony for privatisation of Kosovo Post and Telecom (PTK). The decision was taken a day before the Assembly holds a session where an investigation commission that will look into the PTK privatisation process is to be established. Privatisation committee said in a statement that the postponement is a result of the Kosovo Assembly failure to review report on PTK privatisation process and formally approve it.