Headlines - 11.06.2014

Ban Ki-moon welcomes successful conduct of elections in Kosovo (Epoka e Re)

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the successful conduct of elections for the Assembly of Kosovo and called on the Kosovo authorities to remain committed to strengthening democracy, the rule of law and the protection of human rights of all in Kosovo. According to the statement issued by the Spokesman for the Secretary-General, the Secretary-General is encouraged by the preliminary positive reports from local and international observers as well as the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) of the smooth and orderly conduct of the elections and broad public participation throughout Kosovo. The Secretary General “looks forward to a renewed high-level engagement by Belgrade and Pristina in the European Union-facilitated dialogue, once the new leadership is in place in Pristina. The United Nations and UNMIK will continue to support this important engagement”, the statement from the United Nations in New York says.

Contradictory interpretations over candidate for prime minister (Koha)

The paper reports on the front page that the Constitution of Kosovo fails to specify who shall be the candidate for prime minister in the event that none of the parties receives more than 50 percent of the votes. There are currently three interpretations about the way President Atifete Jahjaga ought to propose the candidate for prime minister. The first, supported by the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), claims that the President should propose the candidate from the party that won the majority of Assembly seats, and if this party fails to gather the necessary votes, the President should propose a second candidate from the same party. The second interpretation argues that the President should propose a candidate who can prove that they possess the necessary numbers to form a government. The third maintains that the President should first give the opportunity to the party that won the majority of seats to form the government, and if it fails to get the Assembly’s endorsement, then a candidate from the second largest party should be proposed. President Jahjaga is expected to reach out to the Constitutional Court for assistance with the interpretation. One of the Court’s judges, Enver Hasani, said yesterday that the article specifying the way the government is formed refers to the candidate for prime minister coming from a political party or coalition that has won the majority of Assembly seats, and whilst this applies to the pre-election coalitions, it cannot apply to post-election ones.

EU: Govt should be formed without outside intervention (Koha Ditore)

Sources told the paper that the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security, Catherine Ashton, had a telephone conversation yesterday with the acting Prime Minister of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, but no details as to what was discussed were provided. However, other European officials in Brussels expressed surprise over the recent developments in Kosovo, namely the forming of the coalition between the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) and Initiative for Kosovo because they were under the impression that the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) would enter into a coalition with Ramush Haradinaj’s AAK. Nevertheless, they said the EU should work with whoever forms the government with a sustainable majority and is committed to carry out reforms, fight crime and continue dialogue with Serbia. EU officials also stressed that it is time for the people of Kosovo, without outside intervention, to prove that they are capable of forming a government on their own.

US supports any democratic government (Zeri)

The United States will cooperate with any government that comes out of free, fair and transparent elections, said the US Embassy in Pristina regarding the decision of opposition leaders to come together in a coalition and prevent the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) from forming a government. According to US Embassy officials, internal political strategies and discussions on possible coalitions are issues that should be decided by Kosovo leaders. They also noted that the US expects the new government to be formed in accordance with the Kosovo constitution and laws.

Bajrami: We are forming the government or going into elections (Epoka e Re)

The Deputy Head of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Arsim Bajrami, said the opposition’s agreement on forming the government is unconstitutional and a disappointing act by the opposition, which lost the parliamentary elections. In Kosovo, the government is always formed by the party that won the elections in the first and second round. Points 1 and 4 of article 95 of the Constitution give the mandate for the formation of the government to the party or the pre-election coalition that won the elections, said Bajrami.

Mustafa: No turning back, we are a bloc against Thaci (Zeri, Lajm)

The leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), Isa Mustafa, said in an interview for the paper that even if it is decided that opposition parties cannot form a government and new elections are scheduled, the main opposition parties – the LDK, Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Initiative for Kosovo and Vetevendosje – will run together as a bloc against Hashim Thaci’s Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK). He said that for the sake of a coalition agreement, he gave up the post of prime minister but that the party will have the post of Assembly speaker and that of the president when the current mandate of Atifete Jahjaga expires. “There is no turning back, this is a done deal and we will stand united as an opposition to the end”, said Mustafa. In another interview for Gazeta Express, Mustafa said that he will be Assembly speaker and warned Hashim Thaçi that if he tried to manipulate the Constitutional Court, the opposition will go into elections as a united front, on one list, and they will easily beat him. Mustafa said that all opposition actors have noticed that the opposition has the majority of votes.

Vetevendosje will not take part in the government, but has conditions (Lajm)
The head of the Vetevendosje movement, Albin Kurti, says the so-called “future emergency government,” established by the opposition parties, will suspend talks with Serbia, the implementation of the Association of Serb Municipalities, and privatization of enterprises. In a press conference, he said that Vetevendosje is not worried about posts in this government. “The future emergency government should suspend talks with Serbia; not implement the Association of Serb Municipalities; and stop the privatization of the Kosovo Electricity Company (KEK), Kosovo Post and Telecom (PTK) and Trepca mines,” said Kurti, adding, “Vetevendosje did not enter into the talks to discuss the division of posts. It is the governing program and concept that is important. We have agreed that no one will enter into a coalition with Hashim Thaci. The good news is that there won’t be a Thaci government. This was the first phase of the talks,” said Kurti.

Rasic: I will join the LDK-AAK-NISMA coalition (Bota Sot)

The Acting Minister of Labor and Social Welfare and Head of the Democratic Progress Party, Nenad Rasic, said that he is ready to join the opposition in the formation of a new government. “We are ready to cooperate with the whole political spectrum in Kosovo. We don’t reject anyone. We will cooperate with anyone who aims to improve the lives of the people,” said Rasic.