Headlines - 21.12.2012

PDK’s powerful officials elected through acclamation (Koha Ditore)

In municipalities where “powerful” people from PDK have been running for heads of branches, there were no counter-candidates and they were elected through acclamation. However, this seems not to be the case with the party’s branch in Pristina where three are running: Lirak Çelaj, Shemsi Veseli, and Memli Krasniqi.

Sources told the paper that Krasniqi enjoys the support of party leader Hashim Thaçi and added that delegates will be easily influenced to vote in favour of Thaçi’s preferred candidate.

Mustafa: No to involvement in negotiations (Express)

The largest opposition party, LDK, rejected the Kosovo Government’s request to get directly involved in talks with Serbia. The party insists it will support the process only through the Assembly of Kosovo. LDK’s Sabri Hamiti said the party will not take part in any mechanism outside the Assembly and even added that it should be the Assembly to debate on what should be discussed in the upcoming round of talks in Brussels. 

Kurti: Talks with Dacic solidify partition of Mitrovica (dailies)

Vetëvendosje leader Albin Kurti in a debate held in Malisheva said that talks with Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic will not lead to the unification of Mitrovica but with only further solidify its partition. “When you tell them to unify Mitrovica, they say it cannot be done but if you tell them you have an uncle that has been left aside, they say all you had to do was tell them,” said Kurti referring to the recent tapping affair where the head of the PDK asks the Prime Minister to find a job for his uncle.

Serwer: Serbia did not soften view towards Kosovo (dailies)

US Balkans analyst Daniel Serwer reported in an analysis on the Serb platform for talks with Kosovo and said that those who believed that Belgrade softened its stance on Kosovo and the EU were mistaken. According to Serwer, Serbia’s plan is a giant step backwards in the EU’s demands to disband parallel structures in Kosovo. He noted that Kosovo authorities should get ready to encounter a lengthy period of Serbia’s territorial claims over Kosovo.

Haradinaj: I know that Kosovo has its Prime Minister (dailies)

On Thursday, the leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, Ramush Haradinaj, in response to statements made by the Democratic Party of Kosovo that Kosovo already has a Prime Minister said, “I also know that Kosovo has its Prime Minister and I do not doubt this. You are aware of the offer that we have made, I believe that according to our point of view, this offer is good and it is not related to how we are going to condition a certain development. We have an offer and that offer has a certain intention, which is to start working,” stated Haradinaj after the meeting with the leader of the Movement for Unification, Avni Klinaku.

“You know the saying I speak once. I have said several times what my offer is and if an agreement doesn’t happen, we do not consider that something extraordinary has happened,” stated Haradinaj.

Express reports that Haradinaj admitted that he had a dinner with PM Hashim Thaçi, where they discussed the issue of coalition. However, nothing was said if the parties have found a common language for co-governance.

Platform keeps Serbia’s territorial integrity in Kosovo  (Kosova Sot)

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic, during his discussions with leaders of the opposition parties, said that the platform on the continuance of dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina is based on keeping Serbia’s territorial integrity, on the Serb population living in Kosovo, and on Serb churches and monasteries. During these meetings, Nikolic stated that the issue of Kosovo is considered historical, which requires a wide consensus of the entire political factor. Representatives of the opposition parties informed Nikolic that they will present this platform to their party members.

Shala: We will not talk about Serb platform (Koha Ditore)

When Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi and Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic will meet in mid January, Kosovo could withdraw from the dialogue facilitated from Baroness Catherine Ashton. The Kosovar side will not speak with Belgrade if Dacic says that the platform is solution they are looking for on the problem of Kosovo. The announcement was made by Kosovar political coordinator Blerim Shala.

In an interview for Koha Ditore, Shala analyzed in detail the platform published by Pristina media one day after the Serb Government distributed it as a ‘non-paper’ to Western diplomacies. According to him Shala, Belgrade again provoked Kosovo, while indicating that it has not change since 1998 and has placed itself again in a hostile position to the west. The platform, according to Shala, is a failed attempt to change the direction of the dialogue started in Brussels. “This document is a slap in the face of Lady Ashton, slap to Washington, Brussels, and Berlin,” said Shala.

KDI: Assembly, Government bad examples of rule of law (Koha Ditore)

The Kosovo Democratic Institute (KDI) said that the Kosovo Assembly and Kosovo Government are providing bad examples for the rule of law. In a press conference  Thursday, KDI presented the monthly report of monitoring work by the Kosovo Assembly for November 2012. KDI analyst Isuf Zejna emphasized that the Assembly faced with a circle of problems for this reporting period, which are influencing this institution not to perform responsibilities that derive from the constitutional mandate. “The approval of the law for budget in the Assembly has transformed deputies into spokespersons of narrow political interests, of certain neighborhoods and municipalities, neglecting proper planning, which derive economic development,” said Zejna.