Headlines - 11.11.2015

Constitutional Court temporarily suspends agreement on Association (dailies)

The Constitutional Court decided on Tuesday to temporarily suspend the agreement on Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities. The Court took this decision after President Atifete Jahjaga’s request to interpret the agreement reached in Brussels between Kosovo and Serbia for the establishment of this Association. “The Constitutional Court has issued and published its decision on interim measure, suspending the implementation of any further legal actions on the basis of these “general principles/main elements” of the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities in Kosovo pending the Court’s review of the compliance with the Constitution of these Principles,” notes the Constitutional Court’s press release. The opposition parties issued a press release after the court’s decision saying that they will not stop their activities until the recent agreements with Serbia and Montenegro are withdrawn. “The victory of the opposition in its cause to protect the state is inevitable. We will not stop our activities to oppose these agreements. There will be the no normal functioning of the institutions as long as the agreements are not withdrawn,” notes the press release. 

Jahjaga: Association affects constitutional order (Koha Ditore)

Reporting on the decision of the Constitutional Court to suspend the agreement for establishment of Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities, the paper quotes President Atifete Jahjaga’s request to the court saying that the Association represents a “legal entity” and produces legal effects for the constitutional order of Kosovo and need therefore to undergo a constitutional review.

Were it not for challenges, Kosovo would have been EU member (Koha)

The paper writes that the recent European Commission (EC) progress report for Kosovo, apart from identifying problems in many areas, also mentions corruption 68 times. However according to local authorities, were it not for such challenges, Kosovo would already have been part of the EU. Minister for European Integration Bekim Collaku spoke in a press conference about the findings of the report and downplayed the criticism of political interference in the judiciary. “I have read the report from beginning to end and nowhere have I seen a specific case when the EC claims that there was direct political influence over the judiciary. So, as long as there is no concrete example, I take this generally,” said Collaku. “Do not expect Kosovo to excel at the stage we are at now,” he added.

Lunacek: EU should liberalize visas for Kosovo (Epoka e Re)

Ulrike Lunacek, Vice-President of the European Parliament, said in Pristina that the European Union should liberalize visas for Kosovo people, because, according to her, they are European citizens. She assessed that the Stabilization Association Agreement is very important for Kosovo’s European future. Lunacek stressed that dialogue between the government and opposition is the only solution to the normalization of the institutional life.

AKJ demands security for journalists (Zeri)

Association of Kosovo Journalists (AKJ) welcomed through a press statement the progress report assessments in the area of freedom of expression, and stressed that the AKJ remains concerned about the unfavorable conditions for exercising the profession of journalism in Kosovo. “Increased attacks, intimidation and impunity of crimes against journalists are evidence of the continued violation of freedom of speech in Kosovo, resulting in missed progress in this area.  AKJ calls on the media to implement the European Commission's recommendations in this report to establish individual and ethics and professional codes, which will help the independence of journalists and editors,” noted the press release. 

EULEX launches investigations against its former prosecutor Bamieh (Koha)

Sources inside EULEX said that the head of the mission’s executive division, Jaroslava Novotna, and the acting chief prosecutors Claudio Pala have convinced a local prosecutor to ask for the stripping of immunity of the former prosecutor and whistleblower, Maria Bamieh. The request, according to the paper, is expected to be submitted to the UN headquarters in New York through the EU representative in Kosovo, Samuel Zbogar. EULEX officials confirmed that they received a request from Kosovo authorities to strip from immunity one of its former staff but did not reveal what is the focus of the investigation.

Civil society: Political responsibility and review of dialogue (Zeri)

Representatives of civil society yesterday issued a joint statement after the failure of Kosovo to join UNESCO, where among other things it says that the failure of membership in UNESCO should not be passed without political responsibility and review of the position of the dialogue. ‘Through this statement we demand the review of the Pristina – Belgrade dialogue, equal opportunities for Kosovo and Serbia by the EU, institutional responsibility for failing to join UNESCO and fulfillment of international obligations on preserving cultural heritage even without being in UNESCO,” notes the statement. 

Selimi: UNESCO campaign united Kosovo people (Epoka e Re)

Kosovo’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs told this paper that despite the failure of Kosovo’s UNESCO bid, the battle for membership has had a positive impact for Kosovo. He assessed that Kosovo has strengthened its friendship network and it has created new channels of communication. “Even though Serbia led an aggressive campaign to impede Kosovo’s membership at UNESCO, the process of Euro-Atlantic integrations cannot be stopped. However, he added, there should be serious discussions with Brussels regarding Serbia’s aggressive and racist campaign.