Headlines - 29.11.2016

• EU: No visa liberalisation without meeting last two criteria (Koha)
• Tahiri: Court in the north to be discussed in Brussels (Kallxo)
• Energy agreement remains in paper only (Zeri)
• Government of Kosovo condemns attack on Turkish consulate (Telegrafi)
• Election campaign in Drenas/Glogovac officially kicks off (dailies)
• Petition “Justice for Astrit” to be submitted to the Assembly today (media)
• Police arrest three persons in connection to Lumezi’s burglary (Epoka)
• Haradinaj: Propaganda against me is based in Moscow (Lajmi)
• Nikolic reacts to Union of Albanian Municipalities idea (Lajmi)

EU: No visa liberalisation without meeting last two criteria (Koha)

The paper quotes European Union officials in Pristina on its front page, saying that Kosovo will not get visa liberalisation until it ratifies the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro, and properly addresses the fight against organised crime and corruption. Unnamed diplomatic sources, however, told the paper that these are not the only two criteria that could delay visa liberalisation for Kosovo. Senior government officials from an EU member state, who preferred to remain anonymous, said there are at least another two obstacles before Kosovo can be included in the Schengen white list. First, some EU member states that have not recognised Kosovo’s independence, most notably Spain and Cyprus, could oppose Kosovo’s inclusion in the Schengen zone. “It is expected that Spain, and perhaps Cyprus too, could create major problems in the process,” the source said. The second obstacle, which is not specific for Kosovo alone, is that some EU member states are calling for an accurate and efficient mechanism of blocking freedom of movement whenever it is misused. “This implies suspending visa liberalisation within a short period of time if the country cannot stop asylum seekers,” the source added.

Tahiri: Court in the north to be discussed in Brussels (Kallxo)

The Kosovo Government announced on Monday that the tripartite meeting in Brussels today will focus on the judiciary and the telephone code for Kosovo. Kosovo’s Minister for Dialogue, Edita Tahiri, told the news website that the Kosovo delegation in Brussels will report about the integration of Serb judges and prosecutors in Kosovo’s judicial system, and the final preparations for establishing a basic court and a prosecution office in Mitrovica region that will cover seven municipalities in accordance with Kosovo laws. Tahiri said the Serbian delegation is expected to report on its obligations toward the agreement, such as annulling job contracts for judicial staff member that used to work in parallel structures. “After the meetings, we will also discuss timelines for concluding the implementation of this agreement,” she said. The news website recalls that Kosovo and Serbia Prime Ministers signed the agreement on the courts in February last year.

Energy agreement remains in paper only (Zeri)

The agreement on energy reached between Pristina and Belgrade in Brussels has remained on paper only, causing millions of losses in euros for Kosovo, the paper reports. The Serbian side has not yet expressed readiness to apply for a new energy distribution operator, as stipulated by the agreement, while the Kosovo side complains that the current situation is being used by Serb illegal operators which are causing huge losses to Kosovo. Chief negotiator Edita Tahiri told the paper that Serbia has been blocking implementation of the agreement for over a year now. “The EU will assess in December whether Serbia has implemented this agreement and the others and if it finds that it didn’t, it will block Serbia’s path to EU,” Tahiri said.

Government of Kosovo condemns attack on Turkish consulate (Telegrafi)

The government of Kosovo has condemned the attack on the Turkish consulate in Prizren, calling it an “ugly act” aimed at damaging the image of Kosovo and harm its friendship with Turkey. In a statement, the Government of Kosovo called on relevant authorities to find the motives behind this act and put the people responsible for it before justice.

Election campaign in Drenas/Glogovac officially kicks off (dailies)

Parties running in early mayoral elections in Drenas/Glogovac officially launched their campaigns yesterday. The Democratic League of Kosovo opened their campaign the first with candidate, Bedri Nika, promising a new alternative. Later in the day, the Initiative for Kosovo (NISMA) candidate, Isa Xhemajlaj, said in his opening campaign that the citizens of the municipality are tired of being let down by the current government and need a mayor who will be in their service. At the same time, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) race was opened by the party leader Kadri Veseli who said that Ramiz Lladrovci will be the absolute winner of elections. “The victory will be great because people of Drenica know what PDK can do for them,” Veseli said.

Petition “Justice for Astrit” to be submitted to the Assembly today (media)

Several media report that civil society representatives are expected to submit to the Kosovo Assembly today a petition with over 25,000 signatures, demanding justice for Vetevendosje activist Astrit Dehari who was found dead in his cell at the Prizren Detention Center. The petition calls for an independent and transparent investigation into the case, the resignations of Justice Minister Dhurata Hoxha and Interior Minister Skender Hyseni, the immediate prosecution of those responsible who failed to provide security for Dehari and an extraordinary session of the Kosovo Assembly.

Police arrest three persons in connection to Lumezi’s burglary (Epoka)

Kosovo Police have arrested three persons suspected of being involved in a number of criminal acts, including the recent burglary at the Kosovo chief prosecutor Aleksander Lumezi’s house. The police said the three persons, who could be part of a larger criminal group, are believed to have carried out several similar acts in the neighbourhoods close to Lumezi’s house.

Haradinaj: Propaganda against me is based in Moscow (Lajmi)

Ramush Haradinaj, leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), reacted on Monday against articles in the Serbian media that portray him as “the boss of crime and smuggling”. “The alliances of crime in Belgrade and Pristina have become active again in launching attacks against me, my family and the political organisation I lead. This time in the ‘science fiction’ style by producing stories about arms smuggling and claiming that I am the boss of such activities. This is neither the first nor the last time they do this, because these alliances of crime who are based in Belgrade and Pristina but with mentors in Moscow, were activated every time someone obstructed their influence in Kosovo. But this time they will not stop me,” Haradinaj wrote on his Facebook page.

Nikolic reacts to Union of Albanian Municipalities idea (Lajmi)

President of Serbia, Tomislav Nikolic, has reacted to the idea of the Union of Albanian Municipalities that would include Tirana, Pristina, Tetovo, Ulqin/Ulcinj, and Presheva/Presevo. Nikolic said that if Albanians try to come up with something resembling the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities, this would undermine the constitutional order in respective countries.