Headlines - 14.12.2016

• Mustafa: The wall, a dirty act of Belgrade and Serb parallel structures (RTK)
• Tahiri: Wall in Mitrovica coordinated by Serbia (Klan Kosova)
• Albanians from the north accuse Mustafa, Tahiri and Bahtiri (media)
• “PM Mustafa should be transparent about his meeting with Markovic” (RTK)
• Albanian PM scolds EU over visa liberalisation for Kosovo (RTK)
• EU calls on Pristina to cooperate with the Special Court (RTK)
• Clash between legal and illegal structures in the north (Koha Ditore)
• First telephone call with 383 in February (Koha Ditore)

Mustafa: The wall, a dirty act of Belgrade and Serb parallel structures (RTK)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, took to Facebook to comment on the wall built recently in Mitrovica North, and criticised “all those who are using the wall for political intentions”. “The wall in the northern part of Mitrovica, a dirty act of Serb parallel structures and Belgrade, is being used for political swaggering by some roosters. Roosters do not destroy the wall, they sing on top of it. The wall is treated and ruined by law,” Mustafa wrote.

Tahiri: Wall in Mitrovica coordinated by Serbia (Klan Kosova)

Kosovo’s Minister without portfolio, Edita Tahiri, told Klan Kosova on Tuesday that the project of the wall that is being built in northern side of Iber River was coordinated by Serbia. “I can assure everyone that the wall will be demolished and there will be no delays in this regard,” Tahiri said, adding that there are still parallel structures in northern Kosovo.  “Some parallel structures in Police and Customs were dissolved and now we have Kosovo state authorities in the two crossing points. We have municipalities that participated in the elections in 2013, but still there are parallel structures in municipalities. There will be a complete shutdown of remaining parallel structures,” she said.

Albanians from the north accuse Mustafa, Tahiri and Bahtiri (media)

Several news websites report that representatives of the five Albanian-inhabited neighborhoods in Mitrovica North, have issued a media statement accusing Prime Minister Isa Mustafa, Minister for Dialogue Edita Tahiri and Mitrovica South Mayor Agim Bahtiri, about the political, economic, and social and security situation in the north. They argue that since Bahtiri took over leadership of the Mitrovica [South] municipality, “investments, construction of houses and support for the residents of Mitrovica North came to a complete halt. In this regard, Mitrovica Mayor Agim Bahtiri not only failed to make a single step in offering support, but moreover his immature statements gave way to negative processes in the north, despite the fact that many processes in the north are not within his range of competencies”. The representatives further argued that “while the Serbian side in Brussels is carefully looking at every detail, the Kosovo side and the negotiating team led by chief negotiator Edita Tahiri are making statements that do not correspond with the actual situation on the ground and they have no interest whatsoever in the details of the agreements and how they are being implemented in practice”. On the recently-built wall in Mitrovica North, the representatives of northern Albanians said: “we are against the construction of walls and we call on Prime Minister Isa Mustafa to publish the detailed plan for the revitalisation of the bridge and to undertake all legal measures to emerge from this chaotic situation. The Prime Minister has so far been indifferent vis-à-vis the political situation and developments in the north and he has not responded to a request for a meeting with the Albanian representatives and has left us in the mercy of fate. If the Prime Minister does not act, we will be forced to protest in front of the government about our dire political, economic, social and security situation”.

“PM Mustafa should be transparent about his meeting with Markovic” (RTK)

The general secretary of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) Blerim Kuçi, said on Tuesday that Kosovo’s Prime Minister Isa Mustafa should clarify to the public his recent meeting with his Montenegrin counterpart, Dusko Markovic. Kuci told Epoka e Re that the meeting serve to resolve the demarcation issue with Montenegro, however he added that Mustafa should have been more transparent about the meeting, considering the sensitivity of the matter. Kuci further argued that the best solution for demarcation would be to send the agreement to the Kosovo Assembly, to have rejected by MPs and then restart discussions on the matter with Montenegro. According to Kuci, Prime Minister Mustafa’s idea to measure the territory does not make any sense.

Albanian PM scolds EU over visa liberalisation for Kosovo (RTK)

Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, said it was shameful for the European Union that the people of Kosovo are not able to travel freely to Europe. In an end-year meeting with foreign diplomats in Tirana, Rama said Kosovo is not being treated justly by the EU. “This prohibition is an expression of weakness on the part of the EU, and Kosovo, as the youngest country in Europe, needs to be treated humanely. Kosovo is crucial for the EU security and for that of Europe as a whole,” Rama said.

EU calls on Pristina to cooperate with the Special Court (RTK)

The European Union, for the first time has officially requested from Pristina to cooperate with the Special Court that will address war crimes allegedly committed by members of the former Kosovo Liberation Army. The Slovakian Presidency of the European Union said in a statement that it welcomes the fact that Kosovo has fulfilled the remaining obligations for the establishment of the Specialised Chambers and the Office of the special prosecutor for investigation of the suspicions for crimes committed during and after the conflict of 1999. “All Kosovo authorities should commence their obligations towards the requests for their assistance,” the document notes.

Clash between legal and illegal structures in the north (Koha Ditore)

The paper reports on its front page that Leposavic Mayor Dragan Jablanovic’s cooperation with Pristina has irritated the Serb parallel structures that are still active in the municipality of Leposavic. According to the paper, Ljubomir Maric, Minister for Local Government in the Government of Kosovo, has joined the illegals in their position against Jablanovic. Representatives of the parallel structures in the north, aided by officials of the Serbian List, are calling for Jablanovic’s dismissal, claiming that he is ruining the unity of the Serb people in northern Kosovo by cooperating with Pristina. In a joint statement signed by Minister Maric, Mitrovica North Mayor Goran Rakic and representatives of so-called local self-government structures, Jablanovic is accused of distancing himself from the position of Serb political representatives north of Ibar to cease cooperation with KFOR until a reasonable decision is made. Serb representatives also accused Jablanovic of facilitating Prime Minister Isa Mustafa’s recent visit to northern Kosovo and of “cooperating with foreign intelligence services and Kosovo’s secret police”. Xhemshit Bekteshi, Deputy Mayor of Leposavic, confirmed the clashes between Serbs and said that many municipal projects are being delayed as a result. “The chairman of the municipal assembly has initiated the dismissal of the mayor. This is a result of political problems between them, especially with the parallel structures. He [the mayor] is being accused of cooperating with the central government,” Bekteshi added.

First telephone call with 383 in February (Koha Ditore)

In a front-page story, the paper reports that the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) will publish on Thursday its bulletin including the decision to allocate the three-digit prefix to Kosovo. Citing Kosovo authorities, the paper notes that the first telephone calls with the new prefix will be made in February. It is also estimated that it will take around two months for the existing codes - 377, 381 and 386 – to migrate to the new code.