• COVID – 19: 206 new cases, 6 new deaths (media)
• CEC: Diaspora voters cannot register to vote if they don’t answer phone (media)
• Osmani calls on CEC to review decision on diaspora voters (media)
• Haradinaj-Stublla: Daka said decision on Diaspora voters was unanimous (media)
• VV's Haxhiu: CEC imposes unconstitutional criteria on Diaspora voters (media)
• Haradinaj says an AAK - Vetevendosje government is possible (Klan Kosova)
• Poll on political parties’ candidates for Prime Minister (Telegrafi)
• Kosovo FM reacts to Serbia’s anti-lobbying request to Qatar (media)
• Kosovo parties flout ban on gatherings ahead of election (Balkan Insight)
• Pristina municipality to fine any party that holds election rally (Klan)
• “We won’t pay any fines; political parties are not respecting the measures” (EO)
• Ismaili: Municipalities, government must shelter those affected by floods (media)
• “Mental disorders during pandemic very similar to those from the war” (Koha)
• Lushtaku: I will run for Skenderaj mayor (Kallxo)

COVID – 19: 206 new cases, 6 new deaths (media)

206 new cases of COVID – 19 and six deaths from the virus were recorded in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. 389 persons have recovered from the virus in this period. There are 6,515 active cases of COVID – 19 in Kosovo.

CEC: Diaspora voters cannot register to vote if they don’t answer phone (media)

The Central Election Commission has decided in its meeting yesterday steps for verification of voter registration application for members of the Kosovo Diaspora.

The head of CEC Valdete Daka explained that the applicants can submit registration forms for one self and immediate family circle bearing the same surname from one e-mail address. “In the application forms for registration the applicant should enter only his/her telephone number and not that of a family member. The CEC will verify the application process for registration by contacting all applicants by phone, this is important to note, if the applicant does not answer the phone, then their application will be rejected,” Daka said.

Osmani calls on CEC to review decision on Diaspora voters (media)

Kosovo’s Acting President Vjosa Osmani called on the Central Election Commission (CEC) on Monday to review its decision according to which diaspora voters cannot register to vote if they don’t answer their phones.

In a letter to the CEC, Osmani said the right to vote is unalienable and that it cannot be conditioned with a telephone call. “This decision, especially point IV of the decision, can create circumstances for flagrant violations of the right to vote,” she argued.

Osmani also posted on Twitter: “The right to vote cannot be conditional on a phone call. It is a sacred and fundamental right, which we shall protect at any cost.”

VV's Haxhiu: CEC imposes unconstitutional criteria on Diaspora voters (media)

Member of the Vetevendosje Movement (VV) chairmanship, Albulena Haxhiu, reacted to the Central Election Commission's decision on the criteria for verification of voter registration applications for members of the Kosovo Diaspora.

In a Facebook post, Haxhiu argued that the CEC decision is unconstitutional: "The Central Election Commission, instead of encouraging the Diaspora to register to vote in the February 14 elections, by easing the procedures, it does the opposite! It imposes unconstitutional and illegal criteria! The right to vote is inviolable; it cannot be denied just because someone 'does not answer the phone'! This decision is as absurd as it is illegal and unconstitutional, therefore it must be changed and opposed!"

Haradinaj-Stublla: Daka said decision on Diaspora voters was unanimous (media)

Kosovo's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Meliza Haradinaj-Stublla spoke to the head of the Central Election Commission Valdete Daka following the decision establishing the criteria for registration of voters living outside of Kosovo.

Haradinaj-Stublla said Daka told her that the decision is aimed at avoiding possible vote fraud and that it was voted unanimously by representatives of all political parties in the CEC. Haradinaj-Stublla said she was assured by the head of the CEC that the right to vote will not be denied to anyone. "The Diaspora is an added value of Kosovo and will forever have our constant support and attention," Haradinaj-Stublla wrote on Facebook.

Haradinaj says an AAK - Vetevendosje government is possible (Klan Kosova)

Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) leader and candidate for Kosovo President, Ramush Haradinaj, said in an interview with the TV station on Monday that a government of the AAK and the Vetevendosje Movement (VV) is possible after the February parliamentary elections.

“The AAK is aware what awaits us after the elections. As far as we’re concerned, a government of the AAK and the Vetevendosje Movement is possible. It depends on the will of the VV; they need to decide whether or not they need this, if they win the elections, but is possible and it is an option,” Haradinaj said.

Poll on political parties’ candidates for Prime Minister (Telegrafi)

In a poll conducted by Pyper, a specialised platform for measuring public opinion, and aired on Dukagjini TV on Monday evening, respondents were asked about the political parties’ candidates for the new Prime Minister of Kosovo.

68 percent of respondents said they don’t believe the candidacy of LDK’s Avdullah Hoti for Prime Minister is good. Only 14 percent believe Hoti is the right candidate for the post, while around 18 percent said they don’t have an opinion.

Around 69 percent of respondents said they don’t think that Enver Hoxhaj can mobilise the PDK electorate for the February parliamentary elections. Over 16 percent said they believe Hoxhaj will be able to mobilise the PDK voters.

Around 67 percent of respondents said they believe the Central Election Commission will allow Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti to run in the February elections. 19 percent said they don’t think the CEC will allow Kurti to run, while 14 percent said they don’t have an opinion on the matter.

Around 50 percent of respondents said they believe Vjosa Osmani should run in a joint ticket with the Vetevendosje Movement. 38 percent of respondents said she should have her own ticket in the elections, while 12 percent said they don’t have an opinion on the matter.

If Albin Kurti is not allowed to run for Prime Minister and if Vjosa Osmani is part of a coalition with the Vetevendosje Movement, 49 percent of respondents said they believe that Glauk Konjufca should be Vetevendosje’s candidate for Prime Minister. 32 percent of respondents said they would like Vjosa Osmani to be Vetevendosje’s candidate for PM if Kurti is not allowed to run for the post, 6 percent said they would prefer different candidates, and 12 percent said they don’t have an opinion on the matter.

Kosovo FM reacts to Serbia’s anti-lobbying request to Qatar (media)

Serbia's Foreign Minister Nikola Selakovic urged Qatar's Ambassador Sheikh Mubarak bin Fahad Al-Thani and asked the country not to lobby in support of Kosovo's international recognition.

Kosovo's Foreign Minister Meliza Haradinaj-Stublla reacted to the move saying it violates the Washington agreement for normalisation of economic ties. "Serbia continues to violate Washington Agreement - refraining from formally or informally requesting nations not to recognize Kosovo as an independent state. Its MFA doing the opposite of what Vucic signed in DC," she wrote on Twitter.

Kosovo parties flout ban on gatherings ahead of election (Balkan Insight)

Kosovo authorities have been accused of double standards for allowing parties competing in the February elections to continue holding big gatherings – while police issue thousands of fines to ordinary people for breaking COVID-19 rules.

Kosovo Police fined over 1,300 citizens in the last three days for not respecting government measures against COVID-19 – as political parties continue holding mass gatherings, preparing for the February 14 elections.

A government decision of December 22 prohibited gatherings of more than four people in public squares, parks, public places and recreational centres. The decision prohibited “gatherings in public spaces of all forms”.

While the food sector is among sectors most affected by the government measures, with all shops and eating places closed by 8pm, the head of the Kosovo Association of Gastronomy, Petrit Kllokoqi, on Sunday accused the authorities of “double standards”.

“More than 5,000 fines for gastronomy, no fine for politicians,” Kllokoqi said on social media, about the fines.

“Our association is informed about many fines that have been imposed for tables [in restaurants] of more than five people while we see pictures of hundreds of people side by side in the election campaign, not five but 500,” Kllokoqi added.

He announced that his association would hold an urgent meeting on Tuesday to decide future steps.

Outgoing Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti, who is running for the same position as candidate for his Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK, took part in several meetings over the weekend. But on Monday, he said that the “measures in force should be respected”.

“I personally held some meetings – but we tried to respect the measures to the maximum by making sure they are held in halls that meet [health] criteria, and with masks and [people] trying to keep a distance,” Hoti said.

Asked why ordinary citizens are being fined while parties keep holding campaign meetings, Hoti replied: “The law is the same for everyone, without exception. I don’t know if any party has been fined, but the law is the same for everyone.”

The head of the municipal inspectorate in the capital, Pristina, Adonis Tahiri, called the government measures “hypocrisy” and pledged to impose fines up to 2,000 euro on parties holding election meetings during the pandemic.

“Gatherings of people are prohibited under a decision approved by those who are gathering. There is a law on prevention of pandemic, with concrete fines, which was voted on by those who are making speeches at those political gatherings,” Tahiri said on Facebook on Sunday.

Over the weekend, authorities in Kosovo registered 512 new coronavirus cases, 1,259 recoveries and nine COVID-19 related deaths. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 53,776 people have tested positive for the disease, 46,295 have recovered and 1,377 patients have died while 6,140 cases are still active.

Pristina municipality to fine any party that holds election rally (Klan)

Adonis Tahiri from the Pristina municipality said that any political party that holds an election rally in violation to the anti-Covid measures will be fined.

Tahiri said that the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) has already been fined for failing to respect the measures based on the law for preventing the Covid-19 pandemic which in fact has been voted by the Avdullah Hoti-led government. "It is the peak of hypocrisy that inspectorates and police officers hand out fines to citizens and businesses based on those decisions while at the same time the entities that introduced these measures and laws are amnestied. We will not allow for such a thing," he said.

“We won’t pay any fines; political parties are not respecting the measures” (EO)

The news website reported on Monday that the Kosovo’s Association of Gastronomy is opposing rallies organised by political parties on the eve of the election campaign for the February parliamentary elections. The association’s head, Petrit Kllokoqi, said in an interview for Ekonomia Online that it is intolerable that hundreds of people are gathering in political rallies in a pandemic while the gastronomy sector has been damaged with very strict measures. Kllokoqi argued that they won’t pay any fines imposed during this time for failure to respect the anti-Covid measures, “because the political parties have violated every decision made by the institutions.”

Ismaili: Municipalities, government must shelter those affected by floods (media)

Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Secretary Uran Ismaili took to Facebook on Monday to call on municipalities and the central government to provide shelter for all families affected by the floods.

“The floods of the last couple of hours have caused major damages to many families and businesses all over Kosovo. I went to Gjilan today where I saw upclose the situation created by the floods. I call on the municipalities and the government of Kosovo to react urgently in providing shelter and food and hygienic packages to the affected families,” he said.

“Mental disorders during pandemic very similar to those from war” (Koha)

Sami Rexhepi, Director of the Mental Health Center, said in an interview for the TV station on Monday that mental disorders that people have experienced during the COVID – 19 pandemic are very similar to disorders from the period of the war in Kosovo. “In an aspect, during the war in 1999, we saw the police and the army, we saw the enemy. This pandemic too has been very similar to a war in the sense that it threatened the biological existence, it attacked mental health, but it was an invisible enemy,” he said. Rexhepi also said that after the pandemic the biggest work will fall on mental health experts “and there will be a large number of persons that will face such problems”.

Lushtaku: I will run for Skenderaj mayor (Kallxo)

Sami Lushtaku, senior member of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), said in an interview with Kallxo on Monday that he will run for the post of Skenderaj mayor in the new local elections. “I will run for mayor of Skenderaj and I will surely have the support of the PDK. [PDK] Leader Veseli too supported my candidacy while he was here,” he said. “The party has decided that I need to run for the post of mayor.”

Lushtaku said he will not be on the PDK ticket in the upcoming parliamentary elections in February and that he has no ambitions to become leader of the PDK.