Decision of the CEC in Kosovo / Step towards reducing tensions

2024-03-09 08:47:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Decision of the CEC in Kosovo / Step towards reducing tensions

Illustrative photo

The Central Election Commission, CEC in Kosovo decided that on April 21, the votes for the dismissal of the Albanian mayors will be held in the four municipalities inhabited by Serbian majority in the north of Kosovo. Voting will take place in North Mitrovica, Zve?an, Zubin Potok and Leposaviq, after the petition that the CEC deemed successful, where 20% of eligible voters in each municipality signed the already verified petition. "Taking into account the time needed for the procedural preparation and technical organization of this process, the Secretariat of the Central Election Commission considers that the most suitable time for the organization of the voting process may be April 21, 2024", said the director of this secretariat of the CEC, Burim Ahmetaj.

According to the administrative instruction approved last year by the government, which enables the removal of mayors of municipalities, voting is considered successful when the 50 percent quota is reached, plus one vote of citizens with the right to vote. After this result, then, the president of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, has a legal term of 30 to 45 days to announce the holding of early elections in the four municipalities in the north of Kosovo.

Positive reactions from the EU and OSCE

The decision of the CEC to hold a vote on the removal of the Albanian mayors from the municipalities in the north inhabited by Serb majority was welcomed by the head of the European Union office in Pristina, Tomas Szunyog. He said that he "appreciates the decision to set the date of the vote for the dismissal of the presidents, adding that "it is now essential that the Central Election Commission makes the necessary preparations to ensure a smooth process and create conditions for free voting and honest".

Michael Davenport, Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, expressed himself in the same line. "The Electoral Commission's verification of the signatures in support of the votes for the withdrawal of the mayors in the four northern municipalities is a welcome step, as is the decision to schedule the votes. Now it is important that the process is developed in a fair, comprehensive manner and transparent", Davenport wrote on the social network "X".

Even the rapporteur for Kosovo in the European Parliament, Viola von Cramon, welcomed the CEC's decision to schedule the vote for the removal of the mayors of the municipalities, which, according to her, "will pave the way for further de-escalation". all participants in the process must have equal treatment and respect democratic procedures in order to have free and fair elections in the north," Von Cramon wrote on the X network.

The last elections were not accepted by the local Serbs

In April last year in the four municipalities in the north of Kosovo, in the north of Mitrovica, Zve?an, Leposaviq and Zubin Potok, early local elections were held, which were massively boycotted by the local Serbs. With a small percentage of about 3%, four Albanian presidents were elected, but that was never accepted by the local Serbs. The protests and riots started when the Albanian mayors, under the escort of special police units, were placed in the facilities of the municipal assemblies. The Serbs clashed with the police and peacekeeping forces, KFOR, where nearly 100 troops of the latter were injured. The international community demanded the reduction of tensions and the announcement of new elections in the four municipalities in the north of Kosovo, criticizing the government of Kosovo for unilateral actions. The government of Kosovo, which faced punitive measures from the European Union, finally agreed to hold new elections in the north of Kosovo./ DW