UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, April 4, 2022

Serbian President, Ruling Party Won Elections (BIRN)
Elections in Serbia, Albanians eyeing to secure over 3 seats in parliament (euronews.al)
Shaip Kamberi expected to be the only Albanian MP in Serbia (Klan)
Osmani: According to reports, 6,000 Albanians denied vote in Serbia (media)
Svecla: The day was successfully concluded, thanks to Enver Zymberi's colleagues (media)
German and French ambassadors visited border crossing in Merdare (media)
Wigemark: Traffic between Kosovo and Serbia without any major delays or incidents (media)
End of practice - Kosovo Serbs head to Serbia to vote (Koha)
Cramon reacts after reports that Albanians are being removed from voter lists (RTK)
Still no agreement on license plates, EU calls for engagement (Koha)
Ahmeti: Kosovo to apply to international organisations at the right time (Kosovapress)
Pentagon official talks Ukraine war, Russian interference in Balkans (VOA)
Germany and Austria in favor of accelerating Western Balkans’ EU membership (Express)
Justice Minister Haxhiu meets KSC President at The Hague (media)
Kosovo Courts Too Lenient in Femicide Sentences, NGO Warns (BIRN)
Kosovo Muslims Want Ban on Religious Dress in Schools Lifted (BIRN)
COVID-19: 19 new cases, one death (media)

Serbian President, Ruling Party Won Elections (BIRN)

A Serbian-based NGO observing the parliamentary elections, CESID, said that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic won another five-year term in the first round, and that his Serbian Progressive Party, SNS, had won the most votes at the parliamentary elections and will again dominate the 250-seat parliament.

CESID said that Vucic had won 59.8 per cent of votes cast in the presidential elections, while his SNS won 43.5 per cent of votes cast in the parliamentary elections. Its partner party, the Socialist Party of Serbia, SPS, won another 11.6 per cent, giving them a healthy majority.

The NGO’s projection shows that the main presidential challenger to Vucic, retired general Zdravko Ponos, won 17 per cent of votes cast, it said.

In the parliamentary elections, the “United for Serbia” coalition, the strongest opposition option, won 12.9 per cent of the votes cast and the green-left opposition coalition “Moramo” (“We Must”), won 4.4 per cent.

Several right-wing options also crossed the threshold, including NADA, which took 5.4 per cent, Oathkeepers, which won 3.9 per cent and Dveri, which won 4 per cent.

Addressing the supporters and media at the party’s headquarter, Serbian Vucic said that the results show the country going in the right direction and that he is proud of the election results.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/36QujFT

Shaip Kamberi expected to be the only Albanian MP in Serbia (Klan)

According to the Republican Election Commission (REC) of Serbia, Albanians will be represented by only one member in the Serbian Parliament, Klan Kosova reports quoting the results of about 15 percent of the processed votes.

Shaip Kamberi's Coalition of Albanians for the Valley currently has 0.45 percent or 1 seat. Kamberi is expected to be the voice of Albanians in the Serbian parliament again. At the same time, the Alternative for Change of Shqiprim Arifi currently has 0.22 percent, meaning they have not secured any seats.

REC announced that the first official results are expected today.

Osmani: According to reports, 6,000 Albanians denied vote in Serbia (media)

President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani called on the international community to condemn what she said was "the true face of Serbia's authoritarianism".

"According to reports, 6,000 Albanians in Serbia were denied their fundamental right to vote because of Serbia’s deliberate passivization campaign to ethnically cleanse through administrative means," Osmani wrote on Twitter.

Svecla: The day was successfully concluded, thanks to Enver Zymberi's colleagues (media)

Kosovo’s Minister of Internal Affairs Xhelal Svecla said that they have worked on Sunday with increased police capacities in all municipalities and border crossings to avoid long waits and that no incidents or problems were reported during the day.

In a Facebook post, Svecla said that success was largely achieved due to the work of fellow police officers of Enver Zymberi, killed 11 years ago during an action of the Kosovo Police Special Unit, to put under control the border points in the north, Jarinje and Brnjak. "Today's success is largely due to the work of police officers, colleagues of Enver Zymberi who, if he had not been killed in efforts to extend sovereignty and territorial integrity, would have celebrated his birthday. The professionalism of all police officers today is the best congratulation he could receive," he wrote.

German and French ambassadors visited border crossing in Merdare (media)

The German Ambassador to Kosovo Jorn Rohde together with the French Ambassador to Kosovo, Marie-Christine Butel, visited on Sunday the border crossing point in Merdare. “Visited Merdare border crossing with Ambassador Butel @FranceauKosovo. We observed good cooperation: 4 lanes operational on both sides. I hear Kosovo has increased -as promised- staff at relevant border points for enabling smooth border crossings so eligible voters can vote,” Rohde wrote on Twitter.

Wigemark: Traffic between Kosovo and Serbia without any major delays or incidents (media)

EULEX Chief Lars-Gunnar Wigemark announced on Sunday that traffic at the border crossings between Kosovo and Serbia were flowing without delays and without incidents. “EULEX Kosovo Formed Police Unit and its Reserve consisting of European Gendarmes Force members are monitoring the situation at all six Common Crossing Points between Kosovo and Serbia since early this morning. Traffic is flowing without any major delays or incidents,” Wigemark wrote on Twitter.

End of practice - Kosovo Serbs head to Serbia to vote (Koha)

Kosovo Serbs voted on Sunday in Serbia's elections by physically heading to their nearest polls, in organised way through buses and cars, Koha Ditore reports on the front page. It adds that this is the first time Serbs were not allowed to vote inside Kosovo for Serbian elections after the Government of Kosovo ended the practice applied until now whereby ballots were collected by the OSCE.

Koha notes that long queues were reported at the border crossing point in Jarinje. According to the Kosovo Police, the long lines came as a result of the slow pace of work by Serbian authorities.

Cramon reacts after reports that Albanians are being removed from voter lists (RTK)

European Parliament Rapporteur for Kosovo Viola von Cramon reacted after reports that Albanians are being removed from the voter list in Serbia, requesting that such cases be included in the preliminary report of the Election Observation Mission, but also in the EP statement.

Von Cramon thus responded to the complaint of Teuta Fazliu, who made it known on Twitter that she could not vote after she was removed from the voter list even though she is from Bujanovc. "Please ensure that these cases are adequately covered in the preliminary report of the Election Observation Mission, but especially in the EP Declaration," Von Cramon wrote.

Still no agreement on license plates, EU calls for engagement (Koha)

The European Union has called on Kosovo and Serbia to engage in reaching an agreement on license plates as the timeframe of the provisional agreement sets to run out in less than three weeks. EU officials said they have been facilitating the parties in identifying existing options.

Koha notes that so far the working groups of both sides have met six times but that details of discussions have not been made known. Kosovo's Deputy Prime Minister and chief negotiator Besnik Bislimi told members of the Kosovo Assembly committee on European integration that the working groups are expected to meet two more times with the next meeting scheduled for 7 April. "We hope that a constructive approach from both sides will be the factor that would lead to a solution," he said.

EU foreign policy spokesperson Peter Stano said the sixth meeting of working groups took place on 11 March. "We encouraged the parties to engage in finding a common basis as the end of the mandate of the groups is approaching," he said.

Ahmeti: Kosovo to apply to international organisations at the right time (Kosovapress)

Kosovo's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Kreshnik Ahmeti said that they have prepared the list of priorities of Kosovo's international organisations membership bid. He said Kosovo would be applying at the right time for membership to the European Union, the Council of Europe and is aspiring to get closer to NATO membership by first joining the Adriatic Charter A5.

"It is very important that apart from internal preparations we choose the right time," he said in an interview with the news agency. He added that Kosovo has identified at least 30 countries which Serbia lobbied with in an effort to secure de-recognition of Kosovo's independence. "This campaign is ongoing on their part. Therefore we are interested in making this known to our partners and we are working to make sure their campaign is not successful."

Pentagon official talks Ukraine war, Russian interference in Balkans (VOA)

Laura Cooper, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine, Eurasia, said the United States and allies are on the same page in supporting the Western Balkans in face of Russia's efforts to incite tensions in the region.

Cooper also rejected any parallels Moscow draws between the situation in Ukraine and NATO intervention in 1999. "There is absolutely no similarity between these situations. What we see today is a great power that has chosen to attack a democratically elected government without any provocation and is seeking to invade significant parts of that country by bombing the civilian population and obstructing the delivery of humanitarian aid. It has absolutely nothing in common," she told VOA.

Germany and Austria in favor of accelerating Western Balkans’ EU membership (Express)

Chancellors Olaf Scholz of Germany and Karl Nehammer of Austria met in Berlin and spoke in support of advancing the EU enlargement process with the countries of the Western Balkans.

“Any further delay makes the Western Balkans vulnerable and open to third-party influence,” said Scholz. Meanwhile, Nehammer said, “We do not only need speeches on possible European perspectives, but we must now make that happen. If no rapid progress is made this region could become an area of influence for Russia and China. “In the Western Balkans, Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia have the status of EU candidate countries, while Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo as ‘potential’ candidates are still far from membership. Accession talks with Albania and North Macedonia should have started long ago, but they have failed due to resistance from various EU member states. Scholz demanded that talks with these two countries finally begin. “We in the EU must also move forward with institutional reforms in order to be able to enlarge the EU,” he said.

Nehammer referred to the “large areas of influence of the Russian Federation” in the Western Balkans. “Given the geostrategic interest, it is important and right that we really offer people a fruitful perspective,” he said, adding that he would work to persuade “skeptics” within the EU. “The clear assertion that the Western Balkans belong to Europe must now be implemented,” said Nehammer.

Justice Minister Haxhiu meets KSC President at The Hague (media)

Kosovo Justice Minister Albulena Haxhiu, accompanied by the Assembly’s Deputy Speaker Saranda Bogujevci and MPs Adnan Rrustemi and Erxhan Galushi, visited on Friday the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC) at The Hague and met President Ekaterina Trendafilova and Registrar Fidelma Donlon.

According to a statement from the KSC, the meeting focused on matters relating to the KSC legal aid scheme, the facilitation of family visits to detainees and other matters within the legal framework of the court.

Kosovo Courts Too Lenient in Femicide Sentences, NGO Warns (BIRN)

A women’s rights NGO says Kosovo courts are sending the wrong message to women and society by routinely reducing life sentences for men found guilty of murdering their wives.

A Kosovo women’s rights NGO has said that judicial institutions are not treating femicide with due seriousness but are instead often reducing jail sentences from life imprisonment to tens of years.

The latest case concerning the NGO happened on Thursday, when the Court of Appeals reduced a 2021 verdict convicting Bajram Velija to life for murdering his wife to 25 years, citing mitigating factors.

“The reduction of these penalties is ridiculous and our institutions are only showing how they do not treat violence and murder of women seriously,” Besarta Breznica, from Kosovo Women Network, KWN, the largest women’s rights NGO in Kosovo, told BIRN.

“These punishments only encourage violators to commit such crimes and discourage domestic violence victims from reporting violence to the relevant institutions,” she said.

The Court of Appeals defended its decision, saying life imprisonment had been too harsh and did not take account of mitigating circumstances.

According to the indictment, Velija’s wife died on the spot when, after a quarrel, he shot at her 15 times on August 6, 2019, only meters from their house in Prizren.