UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, March 27, 2023

Quint statement on local elections scheduled for April 23 (media)
Kurti: Agreement with Serbia is de facto mutual recognition(Koha/Klan)
PDK: As opposition, we will commit to protection of constitutionality(RTK)
AAK: Drafting of anti-constitutional laws becoming a norm (Koha)
Prosecution gives details about fire at Institute of Forensic Medicine(media)
Kurti: Serbian forces destroyed bodiesin an attempt to destroy the truth (Koha)
LDK: The government is punishing the municipalities of Kosovo(RTK)
Trajkovic talks about life threats she is receiving(Koha)
Albanians in Kosovo protest EU proposal to establish Union of Serb Municipalities (Anadolu Agency)
Right-Wing Serbian parties protest agreement with Kosovo on anniversary of NATO bombing campaign (RFE)
Athens assures Belgrade it will not recognize Kosovo(Anadolu Agency)

Quint statement on local elections scheduled for April 23 (media)

All media covered on Friday a statement issued by the Quint countries on the extraordinary local elections in the four northern municipalities in Kosovo.

The Embassies of France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States acknowledge that, following the postponement of municipal elections in December 2022, four mayoral elections and two municipal assembly elections will take place on 23 April 2023, consistent with legal requirements.

We regret that Srpska Lista did not make use of the democratic right to participate in these elections.

Elections are the cornerstone of democracy. Ensuring that they are held in a peaceful and orderly manner is essential.

We expect that the relevant authorities will act with professionalism.

We call on all sides to exercise restraint and avoid violence, which may disrupt the elections.

Kurti: Agreement with Serbia is de facto mutual recognition (Koha/Klan)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said that in his meeting with heads of institutions in Albania, he received the support that the Ohrid agreement is a de facto recognition of Kosovo by Serbia.

After meeting with President of Albania, Bajram Begaj, Speaker of the Assembly, Lindita Nikolla and Prime Minister Edi Rama, Kurti told the media that he informed them about the elements of the agreement reached between Kosovo and Serbia, in Ohrid on March 18.

"I wanted to inform them about closely and in detail about the dialogue process and the elements of the agreement that must now be implemented... President Begaj, Nikola and Prime Minister Rama have supported me in the dialogue process and on the agreement that I have achieved. Albania is always close to Kosovo and proves it in the international arena but also in our bilateral relations. We agreed with Prime Minister Rama that the next meeting of the two governments will be in June, but we also talked about the implementation of the signed agreements so far and what new agreements we can make," he said.

Kurti added that Albanian leaders supported his position that the Ohrid agreement is a de facto recognition of Kosovo by Serbia. "They supported my position that this agreement is de facto recognition of the Republic of Kosovo by Serbia, it is in fact a de facto mutual recognition and I also explained to them that Article 7, which talks about the self-governance of the Serb community and mentions the Council of Europe, actually corresponds to the framework agreement for the protection of national minorities. Meanwhile, point 10 refers to all the agreements so far that our government has inherited from the dialogue process in Brussels, which are 39 and which we have agreed should be implemented, of course those that are valid and mandatory which is stated in Article 10 of the agreement," Kurti said.

Kurti also said what Kosovo expects from Albania. "We ask the Republic of Albania for support in international forums for Kosovo, whenever the issue of Kosovo is discussed. Kosovo’s subjectivity, sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity must be protected, and Albania also needs to help us in membership in international organizations," he said.

Klan Kosova reports that Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said he supported Kurti for “the courage to take important very important steps towards normalization of relations with Serbia”. “I encouraged the prime minister on making further steps towards assuring of Serb municipalities the frame of an association which guarantees self-management of Serb community and providing necessary guarantees to the Serb Church about its religious places in Kosovo, assuring him that in this not easy process he has my full support,” Rama said.

PDK: As opposition, we will commit to protection of constitutionality (RTK)

The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) said that the Constitutional Court’s decison to declare unconstitutional the Law on the Prosecutorial Council of Kosovo is a great victory for Kosovo and justice. Head of the PDK parliamentary group, Abelard Tahiri, told a press conference, Abelard Tahiri, said that the law was unconstitutional from the beginning and that this was confirmed on Friday night.

"We will continue to work in defense of constitutionality and against the capture of institutions by the government," Tahiri said. He added that the Ministry of Justice is overcrowded with political staff, who do not produce anything concrete, but either come up political issues, or work contrary against the Constitution.

Meanwhile, PDK lawyer Faton Fetahu, as the drafter of this case in the Constitutional Court, has said that first of all, this is not a battle won by the PDK parliamentary group, but rather a battle won by the citizens of Kosovo. "The four articles which we contested, which the Constitutional Court correctly found, and which resulted in the violation of six articles of the Constitution, essentially affected the functioning of our constitutional order. Therefore, this victory is the victory of our constitutional right in the face of the government's efforts to intervene, to capture and subjugate the Prosecutorial Council," Fetahu said.

The Constitutional Court has accepted all the claims raised by the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) and the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), that the Law on the Prosecutorial Council of Kosovo in its material part is unconstitutional, therefore it must be declared invalid in its entirety.

Minister of Justice, Albulena Haxhiu, said in a press conference that they did not act on their own about this Law, but consulted with the Venice Commission and international partners, and she opposed the possibility of her resigning.

AAK: Drafting of anti-constitutional laws becoming a norm (Koha)

Representatives of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) said on Sunday that the ruling of the Constitutional Court on the Law on the Prosecutorial Council proves that anti-constitutionality has become a norm during this governance. AAK parliamentary group chief, Besnik Tahiri, told a press conference that the government’s opposition to the decisions of the Constitutional Court reveal “an authoritarian approach and an attempt by the people in power to capture every independent institution”. According to Tahiri, the government is trying to violate one of the key principles of democratic countries.

Prosecution gives details about fire at Institute of Forensic Medicine (media)

The Basic Prosecutor's Office in Pristina has provided details regarding the fire that engulfed the Institute of Forensic Medicine (FM) on Saturday night. “The Basic Prosecutor's Office in Pristina informs the public regarding the fire incident at the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Pristina, that all relevant units responded to the scene, including the fire brigade, the Police, fire experts, the State Prosecutor, the director of FM, as well as the electrotechnical expert, in which case they undertook all the necessary investigative actions from the scene, in order to clarify the causes of this incident.

The State Prosecutor has issued several authorizations and as part of the actions taken, FM officials, who were guardians at the time of the incident, were interviewed.

The prosecution is waiting for the reports with the findings from the performed examinations and in case of presentation of the elements of the criminal offense, it will take further actions in accordance with the provisions of the KPPRK.

We also inform you that the State Prosecutor in full coordination with the Kosovo Police, the FM and other relevant institutions are continuing with the undertaking of investigative actions until the case in question is fully clarified,” reads the communique.

Kurti: Serbian forces destroyed bodies in an attempt to destroy the truth (Koha)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, on the 24^th anniversary of the massacre of 50 members of the Berisha family in Suhareka, including 11 children, wrote that the Serbian forces, after the murders, also took the corpses. He said that Serbian forces destroyed the corpses in an attempt to destroy the truth. "But this criminal truth of the state of Serbia cannot disappear or be forgotten. This is our past which does not pass. We bow to the unparalleled strength of the only survivors of this massacre, Ms. Shyhrete, Ms. Vjollca and Gramoz. We bow with eternal reverence to all those who were sacrificed. May their memory be eternal," he wrote on Facebook.

LDK: The government is punishing the municipalities of Kosovo (RTK)

The Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) said that the government is punishing the municipalities of Kosovo in the budget allocations for 2023. According to this party, no investment has been made in 18 municipalities only because they are not controlled by the government.

"The government is punishing the municipalities of Kosovo very unfairly in the budget allocations for 2023. No investment in 18 municipalities just because they are not controlled by the government. Citizens are being punished through the municipalities. Is this the treatment they deserve?" the party wrote in a Facebook post.

Trajkovic talks about life threats she is receiving (Koha)

Kosovo Serb politician Rada Trajkovic, and advisor to Kosovo’s Minister for Returns and Communities Nenad Rasic, talked about threats to her life that she is receiving in Serbia. In the "Snaga uma" podcast, Trajkovic spoke about her childhood in Podujeva, the war in Kosovo and the pressures she is facing recently.

She said that she received death threats, which is worrying her children, "Kossev" reports.

“Considering that I am facing various threats of liquidation, then how can I survive? That's why my children accompany me everywhere. They worry that something will happen to me, and I don't trust people. There are many things that have been written about me. There are so many terrible things about me, that when you read everything that is written and what is on social networks, then you feel sorry," Trajkovic said.

Albanians in Kosovo protest EU proposal to establish Union of Serb Municipalities (Anadolu Agency)

Dozens of Kosovo Albanians protested a EU-backed deal Saturday to normalize ties with Serbia and the prime minister's plan to establish the Union of Serbian Municipalities.

The EU’s proposal to normalize relations between Kosovo and Serbia which will lead to the formation of the Union of Serbian Municipalities was protested in front of the Prime Minister's Office in the capital, Pristina.

Demonstrators carried pictures of Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Parliament Speaker Glauk Konjufca with long noses implying that they are “liars like Pinocchio."

Instead of state flags, demonstrators hung white flags on government buildings, symbolizing the surrender of the government and threw black smoke bombs because the Kurti government has “darkened Kosovo's perspective," said protesters.

The protest lasted about an hour and ended without incident.

The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo agreed on how to implement the EU-backed deal in the last round of talks March 18 in North Macedonia.