UNMIK Headlines 21 March
Tribunal based in Kosovo, with branch in The Hague (Koha Ditore)
International sources told Koha.net that it finally decided that the headquarters of the Tribunal for trying alleged war crimes in Kosovo will be established in Kosovo but would have a branch in The Hague. “The entire composition of judges will be international,” said the source. Only protected witnesses will be giving their testimonies in the branch of the Tribunal in The Hague.
Tribunal to be presented as a special court (Tribuna)
The paper on the front page reports that the legal mechanism that will tackle the possible indictments from the allegations in the Council of Europe’s report will be called a Special Court and not a Tribunal as previously thought. The name change, according to paper’s sources, came as a result of powerful countries insisting that setting up a tribunal in the form originally presented would seriously impair Kosovo’s image.
Sources further said that the Special Court is expected to be modeled on EULEX’s Special Investigative Task Force set up to investigate allegations of organ trafficking in Kosovo. Similarly, the Special Court is will not be based in Kosovo but could have an administrative office here.
Disbanding “Civil Protection” discussed in Brussels (Epoka e Re)
The Kosovo delegation led by the Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister, Edita Tahiri, took part in the regular meeting in Brussels that discussed disbanding the “Civil Protection” illegal security structure. The parties discussed all actions necessary for the complete and effective disbandment of the “Civil Protection” formation, according to the agreement reached between Kosovo and Serbia.
There was also talk in the meeting about the integration of Serb individuals who would like to integrate into Kosovo institutions. “Disbanding and integration should happen very soon and this will be a contribution for establishing rule of law and stability in this part of Kosovo. This process will put an end to the presence of Serb illegal security structures and together with fully disbanding illegal police structures, it ends the practice of interferences from Serbia in the security field of Kosovo,” reads a press release issued by the Kosovo Government.
Northerners threaten with referendum (Koha Ditore)
Mayors of the four municipalities in the north of Kosovo issued a joint statement whereby they threaten to organise a referendum if the EU fails to publicly condemn the idea for partitioning of Serbia. The reaction of the mayors in the north comes after Jonuz Musliu, mayor of Bujanovc, Presevo Valley, said that if Crimea joins Russia, it will make it easier for the predominantly-Albanian Presevo Valley to join Kosovo.
While Kosovo Government officials said Kosovo has already defined its internationally-recognised borders, mayors in the north said they are disappointed with the silence on the part of the EU regarding, as they said, ideas of Albanian terrorists in the south of Serbia.
Motion of no confidence conditioned with Shala’s recall (Zeri)
Kosovo opposition parties decided not to support the Alliance for Future of Kosovo’s (AAK) initiative to pass a motion of no confidence for the Government until Ramush Haradinaj’s party recalls its deputy leader Blerim Shala from the Kosovo delegation on the dialogue with Serbia. Officials from the leading opposition party, the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), said the most acceptable solution would be to head to general elections through an agreement between all political parties. The party’s deputy leader, Teuta Sahatqija, said AAK should first recall Shala from the Kosovo delegation and then think about options to bring down the Government.
Vetevendosje officials also stressed that AAK is seeking to win support for its motion of no confidence while Shala continues to be Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi’s closest associate in the talks with Serbia. “This is all hypocrisy,” said Vetevendosje’s Erzen Vraniqi.
Hoxhaj: Decision on visa liberalisation could be taken this year (Kosova Sot)
Kosovo’s Foreign Minister, Enver Hoxhaj, stated during an interview for Albania’s “Top Show” that the decision on visa liberalization for Kosovo citizens by the EU, could be made this year. Hoxhaj said that he was going to travel to Brussels to meet with EU Commissioner for enlargement, Stefan Füle, to discuss Stabilization Association Agreement. However, he added that he will also have several meetings related to visa liberalization. He reiterated that Kosovo citizens might be able to travel to the EU countries without visas, this year.
Cliff: Hoca e Madhe law does not create parallel municipality (Koha Ditore)
The British Ambassador to Kosovo, Ian Cliff, requested on Thursday in Rahovec/Orahovac from municipality officials to implement the law on Hoca e Madhe because, according to him, this does not imply the creation of a parallel municipality. “This is the last part that remained to be implemented from the Ahtisaari Package. It is important to have this part of the law implemented for my country, which is a big supporter of Kosovo,” said Cliff.