Headlines - 25.11.2017

• Thaci to seek accountability from Haradinaj on border demarcation (Koha)
• Supreme Court not expected to decide on vote recount before Monday (Koha)
• NISMA leader Limaj acquitted of all charges (dailies)
• Minister: EULEX to end mandate next June (RTV21/RTK)
• Ministry of Finance ‘freezes’ development fund for the north (Koha)
• Woman succumbs to injuries afflicted by her husband (Koha)

Kosovo Media Highlights

Thaci to seek accountability from Haradinaj on border demarcation (Koha)

President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, is expected to ask for accountability from Prime Minister, Ramush Haradinaj, after the latter asked heads of Kosovo diplomatic representations to present his view on border demarcation agreement as being the official position of Kosovo, the paper reports on the front page. Bekim Collaku, President Thaci’s chief of staff, said Haradinaj will be asked to clarify the move. He said that while the government has the right to give Kosovo ambassadors guidelines or recommendations on certain matters, anything relating to foreign policy needs to be done through consultations with the president. “In the specific case, this did not happen. As a result, the government’s official stance distributed to the embassies of the Republic of Kosovo, through the MFA, was not consulted or coordinated with the president. If this is a result of the lack of experience and practice in foreign affairs matters by the Office of the Prime Minister, we will regard it as an isolated and not ill-intended action. Be as it may, this will be clarified in the coming days,” Collaku told the paper.

Supreme Court not expected to decide on vote recount before Monday (Koha)

Kosovo’s Central Election Commission (CEC) will wait for the ruling of the Supreme Court on whether to go ahead with the recount of runoff elections votes in Pristina and Prizren, as well as 35 polling stations in Dragash/Dragas and Rahovec/Orahovac. Unconfirmed information however suggest that the issue will not be decided before Monday.

NISMA leader Limaj acquitted of all charges (dailies)

Media report that the leader of the Initiative for Kosovo (NISMA), Fatmir Limaj, was acquitted yesterday of organized crime and corruption charges during his term in office as minister of transport. Upon announcement of the ruling, Limaj told a press conference that allegations against him were fabricated but that he never ceased to believe in justice.

Minister: EULEX to end mandate next June (RTV21/RTK)

In an interview to RTV21, Minister of Justice Abelard Tahiri said that the EU rule of law mission, EULEX, will not be part of the Kosovo’s justice system as of June next year. “We are entering a transition phase meaning transfer of all cases at the courts or prosecutions. This means that everything EULEX has relating to the Kosovo institutions will be carried over to justice institutions,” Tahiri said.

Ministry of Finance ‘freezes’ development fund for the north (Koha)

KTV reported that Kosovo’s Ministry of Finance insists on not approving requests from the four northern municipalities for financial support from the development fund until they abide by all applicable legislation. The fund, agreed by Pristina and Belgrade, has collected over €13 million but that of 21 projects only 2 have been so far implemented.

Woman succumbs to injuries afflicted by her husband (Koha)

A 52-year-old woman from a village in the municipality of Klina has died at the Pristina hospital after being attacked with an axe by her husband, the paper reports. The mother-of-three and her daughter-in-law were attacked on 17 November in the village of Kpuz. Prosecutor in the case said the suspect is still in detention and will be charged with murder. The second victim sustained injuries to her head but is in stable condition. Kosovo Women Network condemned the attack which coincides with the 16 days of campaign against gender-based violence and called on Kosovo institutions to seriously address violence against women.