UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, August 3, 2021

Albanian Language Media:

War veterans’ leader: Special Court will fail, like EULEX and UNMIK (Telegrafi)
Women’s Network: Gender equality is a legal obligation in local elections (Koha)
COVID-19: 110 new cases, 1 death (media)

Serbian Language Media:

Selakovic: We will know how to answer if Pristina starts lobbying for new recognitions (KoSSev)
Police: Fires in northern Kosovo localized and under control (TV Most)
Vucic: Serbia will help Skopje in firefighting, "Open Balkans" stipulates it (Kosovo Online, Tanjug)
Serbian election dates leaked from ruling coalition-opposition meeting (N1)
No new Covid-19 cases in Serb communities in Kosovo (KoSSev)

Humanitarian/Development:

Book Explores Kosovo Albanian Tradition of Dream Interpretation (Balkan Insight)

Albanian Language Media

War veterans’ leader: Special Court will fail, like EULEX and UNMIK (Telegrafi)

Faton Klinaku, acting leader of the KLA War Veterans Organisation, said in an interview with the news website today that the Specialist Chambers are not prosecuting war crimes but members of the former Kosovo Liberation Army. “It is absurd that even after six years, none of the trials have started yet. Five years passed before the first indictments were raised. We said that the Court is politically motivated and just like UNMIK and EULEX before it, the Special Court too will fail, because the Kosovo Liberation Army did not commit any crimes. This court does not prosecute war crimes, but only KLA members, because if it prosecuted war crimes it would have its hands full because Serbs committed crimes and massacres in Kosovo and no one is prosecuting them,” Klinaku said.

Women’s Network: Gender equality is a legal obligation in local elections (Koha)

The Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN) issued a statement today expressing concern today over the small number of women included in the ballots of political parties for the October 17 local elections. “The KWN appreciates the efforts of some political parties to have female candidates in the local election race. However, the fact that most candidates for mayors are men is very problematic. This practice by political parties is making it impossible for women to be involved in public life and in building a more equal society. The KWN reminds the political parties in Kosovo that Article 14 of the Law on Gender Equality obliges them to implement measures promoting the equal participation of men and women in the bodies of parties, in line with the provisions of Article 6 of the same law – which clearly says that in cases of inequalities, special provisional measures must be implemented to have equality between women and men in areas where there are inequalities. This is why the law must be respected and conditions must be created for women to be able to take part equally with men in decision-making processes,” the statement notes.

COVID-19: 110 new cases, 1 death (media)

Kosovo’s Ministry of Health said in a statement today that 110 new cases of COVID-19 and one death from the virus were recorded in the last 24 hours. Two persons recovered from the virus during this time. There are 689 active cases with COVID-19. 17,322 vaccine doses were administered in the last 24 hours. To date, 445,650 vaccines were administered in Kosovo.

Serbian Language Media

Selakovic: We will know how to answer if Pristina starts lobbying for new recognitions (KoSSev)

"Belgrade is a loyal partner. It is loyal to what was agreed," said Nikola Selakovic yesterday related to the undertaken obligations from the Washington agreement that Belgrade and Pristina would mutually refrain from the campaigns they were conducting - one for the derecognition, the other for recognition of Kosovo, reported KoSSev.

The moratorium on these obligations expires in September, and warnings are coming from both sides that the campaigns could continue soon.

"We are sticking to our obligations and we will stick to them. The President of the Republic has already said, we know very well what to do and not letting anyone underestimating our power and our strength because we are collected, because we do our job, we are silent, we don't wave (rock the boat) much," said the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia, Nikola Selakovic yesterday in Nis, where he attended the ceremony of handing over the keys to 75 apartments to refugee families from Croatia and BiH

He answered the question to confirm the news that some pro-government Serbian media reported yesterday that allegedly a dozen countries are ready to withdraw their decisions on the recognition of Kosovo if Pristina starts the process of re-recognition.

"What is clear to everyone is that, when you agree on something with Belgrade, it is fulfilled and it will be like that in the future," Selakovic added.

"Open Balkans" historic agreement

The agreement between the three countries within the "Open Balkans" initiatives was truly historic, he said, because "rarely, almost non-existent things in history, that were characteristic of the Balkan peoples and states, that they came to them themselves," Selakovic said.

He reminded that Serbia, Northern Macedonia and Albania have agreed to make a serious step forward, which would bring them and their citizens only good.

"I am absolutely convinced of that," Selakovic emphasized.

And the reason to be convinced lies in the political vision and wisdom of Aleksandar Vučić, Edi Rama and Zoran Zaev, and then there is the support of the foreign ministers of the Visegrad Group.

Albin Kurti and other Kosovo officials have been opposed to the initiative all along, and the latest criticism came from the Kosovo Assembly.

The head of the Self-Determination parliamentary group, Mimoza Kusari-Lila, claimed that the Open Balkans aimed to "create the superiority of Serbia", which, as she said, Serbia "has always abused and molested others".

At yesterday's session of the Assembly of Kosovo, Kusari-Lila said that the comparison of the mini-Schengen with the European Union was incorrect and misleading, and that Vucic "repackaged" the idea of the mini-Schengen with the new name Open Balkans.

"For all those who today are trying to justify the idea, with Serbia being in its center, which denies its citizens the right to live in that country only because they are Albanians, the same Serbia that constantly violates and hinders Kosovo's subjectivity internationally, and the same Serbia that buys weapons and drones from Russia, denies genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, which is believed immediately and strangely that it nurtures the idea of an open Balkans, a common idea," Kusari-Lila said, reported KoSSev.

Police: Fires in northern Kosovo localized and under control (TV Most)

“In the last few days, there have been several fires in various locations in northern Kosovo, and all of them have been localized and brought under control by a great effort of fire brigades, police and members of KFOR”, Kosovo police spokesperson for the region North Branislav Radovic said, TV Most reports.

In addition to very high daily temperatures above 40 degrees, the cause of fires, as he said in the statement, were also human factors and carelessness, as it happened in several cases determined by fire inspectors on the ground.

Radovic also pointed out that members of the fire brigade, police and KFOR are constantly on the ground and actively participate in localizing and extinguishing fires. “They are also constantly on duty at locations where fires have been extinguished or are under control for the purpose of preventive action and prevention of new cases”, he said.

He appealed to the population to pay maximum attention thus contributing to human safety and environmental protection and preservation.

Vucic: Serbia will help Skopje in firefighting, "Open Balkans" stipulates it (Kosovo Online, Tanjug)

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic stated today that Serbia has decided to help Skopje in extinguishing the fire, as planned within the "Open Balkans" initiative, reported Kosovo Online, citing Tanjug.

Vucic said that he was not interested in what some people in the West thought about that initiative, since it was good for Serbia, Northern Macedonia and Albania, as well as for the well-being of the citizens.

"If there is a need to help Skopje with firefighting, we have already planned and agreed that our helicopters with buckets of water, since they can carry up to 1,200 liters of water, will help put out the fire. I hope the situation is much better now," Vucic told reporters after visiting the final works on the reconstruction and construction of the Clinical Center of Serbia in Belgrade.

In response to the question whether there are reactions from the most powerful Western countries to the "Open Balkans" initiative and what German Secretary of State Berger, who visited Belgrade, Pristina and Sarajevo, told him about that initiative, Vucic said:

"We had comprehensive talks with Miguel Berger, we have different positions on Belgrade and Pristina and not absolutely the same on the 'Open Balkans'. I would not like to comment on the reasons, but they seem clear to everyone, but we will not give up from what represents the essence of European values and freedoms, and that is the freedom of movement of people and the flow of goods, services and capital," stated Vucic.

The President of Serbia pointed out that these are political and economic values that contribute to the growth of each of these countries, and that the agreements signed are good.

He pointed out that it was important what some in the West think, but that it was more important what we think and did, and that it should be for the benefit of our citizens.

Serbian election dates leaked from ruling coalition-opposition meeting (N1)

The Serbian tabloid press reported on Monday that a general election will be held between March 20 and April 3 next year, N1 reports.

The dates were leaked from a meeting of ruling and opposition parties in the Serbian Parliament which was supposed to have been held under Chatham House rules, meaning that none of the participants would say anything about what they discussed.

The meeting was another round of the inter-party dialogue on election conditions without the mediation of European Parliament officials. Separate meetings are also held on the same issues with the mediation of European Parliament officials.

Media crews spent two hours waiting to hear if any of the participants would reveal any details of the meeting.

Humanitarian/Development

Book Explores Kosovo Albanian Tradition of Dream Interpretation (Balkan Insight)

Two young anthropologists have delved into the ways Albanians have traditionally interpreted dreams – and what this says about their culture and society.

Eating honey signals sorrow and bitterness, fire signals joy, smoke signals distress while a snake means you will have an enemy the next day. Long hair signals worries, and short hair, riddance of them.

These are just some of the dream meanings as traditionally understood by Kosovo Albanians, and now collected in a book published in Pristina.

For months, two young anthropologists, Iliriana Blakaj and Bjeshka Guri, have been travelling all over Kosovo, collecting memories of the way people interpret their night-time thoughts in sleep.