Albanian Language Media:

• Radoicic’s seized properties in north will be managed by Kosovo Police (media)
• Osmani meets Hovenier, discuss latest developments (media)
• Szunyog: Killing of Serb policeman, Banjska, completely different cases (media)
• Kurti says Faton Hajrizi should not be glorified (RFE)
• NGOs, activists call for resignation of Radio Television of Kosovo Board (media)
• Haxhiu gives information to prosecution about Slobodna Bosna article (media) 
• UK Ambassador Hargreaves visits north of Kosovo (media)

Serbian Language Media: 

• Djuric: Italy key partner to Serbia, region, in economic development, preservation of peace (Tanjug)
• Visa-free Coordination Directorate passports: Too little too late or freedom and new horizons? (KoSSev)
• Mijacic: New decision on visa-free passports in force no later than October 1; Andric Rakic: Reactions in Kosovo worrisome (Alternativna.com)
• Jelena Petkovic on IMC law: Attack on media freedoms (KoSSev)
• Sljuka: Insistence on Kosovo and Serbia peace agreement is distraction from problems (Kosovo Online)
• EULEX on Hajrizi case: We received request from Serbian police, processed it in line with our mandate (Kosovo Online)
• EC Report: Political pressure on Serbian judiciary still high, concern over safety of journalists (N1)

International:

• Kosovo’s media law enables political capture of regulatory body (IPI)                                                                          

Albanian Language Media  

Radoicic’s seized properties in north will be managed by Kosovo Police (media)

Several news websites report that the Kosovo government adopted today amendments to an administrative directive [13/2022] “which enables for confiscated and seized properties to be given for use to public institutions or state mechanisms without a public bid”.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said that some properties, which have already been confiscated, are located in several strategic points, namely in the north. He argued that their use by security institutions is “of national importance and contributes to increased security”. 

Justice Minister Albulena Haxhiu said the amendments are important because they eliminate prolonged procedures, and that some properties that are in the north of Kosovo will now be managed by the Ministry of Interior Affairs, namely by the Kosovo Police. “This pertains to the properties of former chief terrorist Milan Radoicic … the properties that were in his ownership are under the management of the Ministry of Justice, namely the agency for the management of seized or confiscated wealth and they will now be passed to the Kosovo Police,” she explained.

Osmani meets Hovenier, discuss latest developments (media)

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani met on Tuesday with U.S. Ambassador to Kosovo, Jeffrey Hovenier, and discussed latest developments including Osmani’s participation in activities that were part of the NATO Summit, following an invitation from President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “Appreciating the U.S. invitation and Kosovo’s presence in the key activities of the Summit as a strategic development in the service of advancing and safeguarding peace and security in the region and beyond, President Osmani highlighted the positive impact that Kosovo’s membership in NATO would have for sustainable and long-term peace and security,” a press release issued by Osmani’s office notes.

Osmani and Hovenier also discussed her latest meetings with senior U.S. officials and the concrete steps that need to be made in terms of coordinating actions for the good of Kosovo’s interests and the partnership with the U.S.

Osmani expressed concern over the EU Council’s decision “to remove visa requirements for Kosovo citizens that have illegal Serbian passports, saying that this decision negatively affects the enforcement of rule of law throughout Kosovo and that it attacks the efforts for the integration of the Serb community in Kosovo”.

Szunyog: Killing of Serb policeman, Banjska, completely different cases (media)

Outgoing head of the EU Office in Kosovo, Tomas Szunyog, said in an interview with T7 that the attack by a Serbian armed group in the north of Kosovo in September last year and the killing of a Serbian policeman by a fugitive from Kosovo are two completely different cases.

“These two cases are completely different, and I don’t think they should be compared. The activity of the criminal group in Banjska was organized. The attack in Banjska was clearly carried out by a well-organized criminal group and this is confirmed if you look at the large number of people involved, the number of confiscated vehicles, the number of weapons and ammunition. This clearly cannot be compared with the activities of an individual, who was a known criminal and who had recently fled from prison,” Szunyog said.

Kurti says Faton Hajrizi should not be glorified (RFE)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said today that the people of Kosovo should not glorify Faton Hajrizi, a fugitive from a Kosovo prison suspected of killing a Serbian police officer and wounding another in Serbia. “I call on the people of our country not to fall prey to the euphoria about the heroism and romanticism of Faton Hajrizi,” Kurti said during today’s government meeting. He also said that the circumstances starting with Hajrizi’s escape from a prison in Kosovo and his reported killing “require a local and international investigation”.

The news website notes that different accounts on social networks shared notes and pictures of Hajrizi calling him “a hero” and “brave”. Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that Hajrizi was gunned down by Serbian authorities on July 19.

NGOs, activists call for resignation of Radio Television of Kosovo Board (media)

Non-governmental organizations, including the Association of Journalists of Kosovo, and activists in Kosovo have issued a joint statement today calling for the resignation of the Board of the Radio Television of Kosovo, following the situation created with the publication of the Slobodna Bosna article and broadcasted by RTK.

“The Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK) has republished disinformation with the purpose of attacking online media Nacionale and Periskopi alleging that they are controlled by Serbia. This narrative fed for years by the ruling Vetevendosje Movement is aimed at denigrating reporters and inciting citizens against them, which constitutes a threat to their safety.

Instead of suspending all those responsible for broadcasting this disinformation, the RTK Board sufficed with expressing ‘regret’ about the said article and forming a committee that will ‘explain the situation’ and failed to distance itself or apologize. It is extremely concerning that the disinformation article published by RTK was qualified by the board as ‘controversial’ and saying untruths that the RTK allegedly did not mention the names of the media. This was done to soften the scandal that happened with the public broadcaster and ignoring the fact that this news falls in contravention with the Law on the RTK, the Statute of the RTK and Professional Standards. The establishment of such committees is a well known method that is used to prolong the procedures with the hope that the public will forget.

Beyond the latest event, a series of other developments have happened at RTK indicating clearly that the board of the broadcaster no longer functions independently from the ruling party. These include the forcing of former Director General Shkumbin Ahmetgjekaj to resign and the pressure against him, the creation of a practice to publish information that violate ethical and legal standards such as the information about suspected assassinations against government leaders, the publication of different videos that help the government narrative and all the way to news like the last one whose aim is not to inform the public but to wage pro-government propaganda.

Therefore, we consider that by making consequent mistakes the board of the RTK board has allowed the government to spread control over the public broadcaster and that it no longer enjoys the required credibility and independence to continue their mandate and that they need to resign their posts.

At the same time we call on the Vetevendosje Movement to stop its harsh war against the media and reporters which has resulted with Kosovo’s drop by 19 points on the Reporters without Borders Index. 

Haxhiu gives information to prosecution about Slobodna Bosna article (media) 

Kosovo’s Minister of Justice, Albulena Haxhiu, told reporters on Tuesday that she gave information to the prosecution about an article published by Slobodna Bosna and which also refers to some media in Kosovo. “You have seen the news on RTK, and where Nacionale and Periskopi were mentioned. I gave information to the prosecution about this news. This is a credible media. I offered to the prosecution what I saw myself. It is important to know who is financed by Serbia. It is not my responsibility to say who prepared the research, the daily there is credible, and they did the research, therefore, it is up to the institutions to investigate more. I was obliged to give them what I saw as a minister and official of the government of Kosovo,” she said. 

The Association of Journalists of Kosovo (AJK) reacted to Haxhiu’s statement, saying that it is “scandalous” and that Haxhiu is interfering in the judicial system. The AJK also called on Haxhiu to refrain from such statements and from her party “to stop its dangerous smear campaign against reporters”.

UK Ambassador Hargreaves visits north of Kosovo (media)

UK Ambassador to Kosovo, Jonathan Hargreaves said in a post on X on Tuesday that he enjoyed his visit to Zubin Potok, Leposavic and northern Mitrovica. “So helpful to listen to the concerns and hopes of the Kosovo Serb community. Looking forward to many more visits to the area,” he said.

Serbian Language Media 

Djuric: Italy key partner to Serbia, region, in economic development, preservation of peace (Tanjug)

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric, who is on an official visit to Italy, said on Tuesday evening Italy was a key partner to Serbia and the region in terms of economic development as well as preservation of stability and peace, Tanjug news agency reported.

He thanked Italy for its extremely significant and strong support for Serbia's EU path and noted that he expected Serbia to become fully prepared for EU membership, institutionally and in terms of reforms, by 2027.

He noted Italy had been the first country in Europe with which Serbia had signed an agreement on strategic partnership, and thanked Italian friends for their decades-long work on preservation of peace in the region and protection of Serbian Orthodox Church Visoki Decani Monastery and Serbian cultural heritage in Kosovo.

Djuric also met with the Speaker of the Italian House of Representatives Lorenzo Fontana and members of the Italy-Serbia friendship group in the Italian parliament. 

Visa-free Coordination Directorate passports: Too little too late or freedom and new horizons? (KoSSev)

According to the results of the latest online poll carried out by KoSSev, the majority of respondents hold Serbian passports issued by the Coordination Directorate.

The news that the European Council finally adopted the decision on the visa-free regime for Coordination Directorate passport holders was welcomed by those from Kosovo who still hold this passport.

Pristina authorities continue to object to this decision, claiming that “it is unfair, harmful, illegal, and a violation of the law”.

Although there is no doubt that the holders of these passports were the only citizens on European soil who until now still needed a Schengen visa to travel within the EU, there is a lack of precise data on the remaining number of users of this passport.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/GO2mI

Mijacic: New decision on visa-free passports in force no later than October 1; Andric Rakic: Reactions in Kosovo worrisome (Alternativna.com)

The European Council adopted a decision on a visa-free regime for Serbian Coordination Directorate passport holders in Kosovo, Alternativna.com portal writes.

"The decision is final. There is a very complex mechanism within the EU for making such a decision, which includes the European Commission, the European Council and the European Parliament. Now we have come to a situation where all three institutions have made the decision to cancel the visa for the holders of the passports issued by the Coordination Directorate", Dragisa Mijacic from the National Convention for Chapter 35 told Alternativna.com. He added he hopes the decision will enter into force by October 1, the latest, noting it means a lot for the holders of those passports. 

Milica Andric Rakic from Mitrovica North-based New Social Initiative agreed this decision is significant for Coordination Directorate passport holders. Estimates are that there are around 18,000 holders of such passports.

"It means a lot to them", she said, adding this is a solution to the problem of discrimination that lasted for more than a decade, where people with Serbian citizenship were treated differently in terms of visas based on where they are geographically located.

Commenting on reactions from Kosovo authorities and Pristina, Andric-Rakic said those reactions are worrisome and speak of the extent to which inter-ethnic relations have degraded in Kosovo.

She also pointed out negative reactions of the Kosovo public to the EU’s decision on Coordination Directorate passports were the result of an inaccurate campaign by Kosovo Government, but also part of Albanian civil society about these documents. 

She argued what Pristina officials cite as an argument about the alleged possible "violations by holders of illegal documents" in the Schengen zone has no basis in the arguments. "These are really nonsensical things, especially bearing in mind that Kosovo Government itself accepted, in the Ohrid Agreement as well as the Serbs, mutual recognition of passports, so these are really completely perverted interpretations that unfortunately spilled over onto a large part of the public and in accordance with that, terrible reactions", she concluded.

Jelena Petkovic on IMC law: Attack on media freedoms (KoSSev)

Journalist and member of Press Council, Jelena Petkovic said she perceives the recently adopted Law on Independent Media Commission (IMC) by Kosovo Assembly as an attack on media freedoms, adding its implementation would allow those in power to discipline and control the media, KoSSev portal reported.

The Kosovo Assembly passed this law in a session on July 11, without the presence of opposition MPs. The EU Office in Kosovo, OSCE Mission, Council of Europe, journalists’ associations and civil society voiced a number of concerns in relation to the law, arguing that the law is not in line with European standards.

“Essential attempt of censorship and control”

“The Law is adopted contrary to the advice of the Council of Europe, European Union, OSCE and European Federation of Journalists and demonstrates, beyond any doubt, how the ruling majority perceives media freedoms and democracy”, Petkovic told UNS (Association of Journalists of Serbia).

She added this law runs contrary to the European standards and in essence represents an attempt of censorship and control, of which, as she said, speaks to the fact that it was drafted without active involvement or consultations with journalists, media activists or other civil society organizations.

“Particularly it is important to underline that it has been drafted without involvement and far from the sight of Serbian journalists, and they can expect to be particularly targeted if the law starts to be implemented”, she warned.

She added this law enables IMC to practically control online media through the system of licensing, and can easily be misused against any media outlet, in particular those dealing with investigative and critical reporting. She also said implementation of this law would represent a serious, existential, threat to independent media because of high fines. She said adoption of this law is yet another evidence that Kosovo authorities “kidnaped media freedoms”.

Sljuka: Insistence on Kosovo and Serbia peace agreement is distraction from problems (Kosovo Online)

Aleksandar Sljuka from Mitrovica North-based New Social Initiative said the emphasis placed on the topic of reaching a peace agreement in which Serbia and Kosovo would commit not to attack each other is just another attempt by Pristina authorities to distract attention from current problems, Kosovo Online portal reported.

This issue was raised last week by Kosovo defense minister, Ejup Maqedonci, who believes that such an agreement should become one of the points to be discussed before decisions on other issues within the dialogue are made. Sljuka termed this request as imposition of yet another topic by Pristina authorities, a topic not essentially in focus and not mentioned by international actors.

He also argued that such agreement is partially included in the Agreement on the Path to Normalization where the parties commit to resolve their disputes peacefully and without use of force. He added messages about Kosovo lawsuit against Serbia for genocide and demand to sign the Ohrid Agreement can be read in a similar manner.

“We always have some additional demand that was not mentioned before, which essentially does not change things and is aimed at delaying the implementation of what Kosovo needs to fulfill, so I wouldn't give this issue much significance. It is not fundamentally significant, but it is enough to divert attention from important problems {…}”, Sljuka said.

EULEX on Hajrizi case: We received request from Serbian police, processed it in line with our mandate (Kosovo Online)

In line with the current mandate of the Mission, EULEX supports Kosovo police in areas of international cooperation, enabling exchange of information between Kosovo police and Interpol, Europol or Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs. In this concrete case, in reference to Faton Hajrizi, an Albanian from Kosovo, who shot and killed one Serbian police officer near border with Bosnia and Herzegovina and wounded another one, and got killed in exchange of gunfire with Serbian police, EULEX received request and processed it in line with its mandate, the Mission told Kosovo Online portal in response to the question if they cooperate with Serbian Interior Ministry regarding Hajrizi’s case.

The Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic previously criticized EULEX and German police for, as he said, not responding to the questions of Serbian colleagues in relation to this case.   

EC Report: Political pressure on Serbian judiciary still high, concern over safety of journalists (N1)

Political pressure on the judiciary and the prosecution service in Serbia remains high, says the European Commission (EC) 2024 Rule of Law Report, and expresses concern about the safety of journalists in Serbia and about the independence of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) and public broadcasters, N1 reported.

The report notes that the Serbian justice system has been undergoing substantial reform in recent years. The implementation of the constitutional reform to strengthen judicial independence is ongoing with further implementing laws to be amended, says the EC. The report finds that political pressure on the judiciary and the prosecution service in Serbia remains high.

It adds that Serbia still lacks a comprehensive court management system that interlinks cases across courts and prosecutor offices. While efficiency shows a positive trend for civil, commercial, and criminal cases, there are serious challenges in the handling of administrative cases and constitutional complaints, the report also said.

Read the full report at: https://shorturl.at/dy06H

International 

Kosovo’s media law enables political capture of regulatory body (IPI)

The undersigned Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) consortium partners express deep alarm over the passage of a new media law by the Kosovo Parliament this month. We share local and international concerns that this law does not meet international standards on free expression and threatens media freedom, including by granting the authorities greater control over media regulation.

The MFRR has previously joined civil society organizations in Kosovo in raising alarms over the law for the Independent Media Commission (IMC). Critics have seen the proposed legislation as an attack on the media, expressing worries that the ruling party may use this law to censor them. Now, this risks becoming a reality, with potentially dire consequences for media freedom and independence.

In December last year, the draft law was first adopted by the Kosovo government, led by the party Lëvizja Vetëvendosje (LVV). Ignoring local and international criticism, on 7 March 2024 the Vetëvendosje-run Assembly approved the legislative proposal in its first reading. On 11 July, the Kosovo Parliament passed the media law despite contrary advice from the Council of Europe, European Union, OSCE, and other organizations. 

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/AjxPg