UNMIK Headlines 6 July
US calls for a dialogue between Government and Serbs in the north (dailies)
During his two-day visit to Kosovo, US Deputy Assistant Secretary Phillip Reeker said his country wants to see the Government of Kosovo reaching out to Serbs in the north and talking to them. He said trust can be established only through dialogue. “Communication with all citizens, including those in the north and I think they will better understand what agreement means,” said Reeker.
He commended Kosovo for the progress in opening negotiations for Stabilisation and Association Agreement and said this to be result of the progress made in the political dialogue with Serbia. “The dialogue process includes very detailed negotiations and is a process that takes into account the needs of all citizens to have representation, to be safe in their community,” said the US official.
Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi stressed that Kosovo institutions will continue to work on implementation of agreement with Serbia by respecting in entirety the agenda and set timeframes.
Reeker refers to Vetëvendosje activists as “clowns” and “nihilists” (dailies)
While in Kosovo, US Deputy Assistant Secretary Phillip Reeker Reeker commented on recent actions of Vetëvendosje at the Assembly by saying that clowns should know those actions are not good for the country. “Clowns that want to play and be violent, should think twice about what they are doing to the other part of the country,” Reeker is quoted as saying. He also said that he will be prepared to meet Vetëvendosje officials but only after they become “normal people”.
Vetëvendosje Movement reacted to Reeker’s statements saying his language is undemocratic and does not belong to that of a diplomat. It announced it plans to send a letter to the US Secretary of State John Kerry complaining over Reeker’s statements.
Government drops article 3, retains article 5 of amnesty law (dailies)
Government of Kosovo has decided to remove article 3 of the amnesty draft law which provides pardoning for crimes such as unpremeditated murder, manslaughter and theft. Instead the Government has introduced a paragraph saying that criminal acts that have resulted in body harm and death will not benefit from the amnesty. The Government however retained article 5 of the draft law as the majority of the parties agreed to its content. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Hajredin Kuçi said the changes to the law were made following consultations with opposition parties LDK and AAK and have decided to send the draft law to the Assembly for voting next week.
EU says amnesty law should be in accordance to EU standards (Koha Ditore)
Unnamed EU officials told the paper that it seems the Government of Kosovo has gone too far in efforts to grant a very broad amnesty for crimes committed in Kosovo and also expressed shock at the statement of the Deputy Prime Minister Hajredin Kuçi that he regrets the law will not be able to include war crimes as acts that will benefit from the amnesty. They said Kuçi’s statement is “scandalous”. “Dialogue is our priority but Kosovo and Serbia should not understand this as permission to do whatever they want in other fields,” said an EU diplomat.
Zbogar stresses the need for amnesty law’s approval (Tribuna, Zëri)
EU Special Representative to Kosovo Samuel Zbogar said that he understands concerned expressed at the debate of the Kosovo Assembly regarding the draft law on amnesty but added that it is important the law is passed so that implementation of agreement between Kosovo and Serbia can proceed. “We expect all relevant parties to be able to agree on necessary changes so as a just and transparent amnesty law is passed as soon as possible,” said Zbogar in a statement.