BRUSSELS / PRISTINA – The European Union considers that the decision of the Kosovo authorities not to authorize the holding of Serbian elections in Kosovo is not in accordance with the spirit of dialogue, the principle of protection of the rights of non-majority communities and building trust between Kosovo and Serbia, Koha reported.
EU spokesperson Peter Stano said the EU recommends resuming practices allowing Kosovo Serbs to vote inside the country in the December 17 parliamentary elections.
“We regret that the established practice of allowing Kosovo Serbs to vote in Serbian parliamentary elections with the facilitation of the OSCE has not been permitted again by the Kosovo authorities,” Stano said. According to him, it is essential that Serbian voters residing in Kosovo can exercise their fundamental rights.
In response to the EU statement, Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi wrote on X that no elections were planned this year in Kosovo.
“If the authorities of other countries prefer to organize elections in Kosovo for their diaspora, they must ask our authorities for a positive decision and official support. Trying to organize such elections without prior request or positive decision is not in the spirit of dialogue and does not contribute to building trust. There can be no decision until there is a direct official request. Mr. Stano is supposed to know this,” Bismimi wrote.
1/2 No elections are planned this year in our country. If the authorities of other countries prefer to organize elections in Kosovo for their diaspora, they must officially ask our authorities for a positive decision and support.https://t.co/cdzlLWqq0l
– Besnik Bislimi (@BislimiBesnik) November 30, 2023
Following the decision of the Kosovo government, Serbian voters will have to travel to cities in southern Serbia to vote in the upcoming parliamentary elections on December 17.
The last parliamentary elections organized by Serbia for the Serbian community in Kosovo took place on June 21, 2020. These elections were held according to previous practice, where votes were collected by the OSCE mission in Kosovo. The ballots were then counted in Raška and Vranje, two towns bordering Serbia. The Kosovo authorities allowed it until Prime Minister Albin Kurti came to power.
For the first time, Kosovo authorities have banned voting in Kosovo in the referendum on constitutional changes held in Serbia in January 2022. As was the case last year, the Kosovo government insists that Serbia must send a direct request to the Kosovo authorities to authorize the holding. elections. However, Serbia rejected such a request, believing that it would constitute recognition of Kosovo’s independence. Efforts by the EU to bring the two sides together have failed.
Milica Andric Rakićprogram manager of Kosovo’s non-governmental organization New Social Initiative, told ISF that the decision by Pristina institutions was expected, as there had been no prior pressure to allow voting for Serbs in previous elections legislative.
“If there had been a change in the approach to this issue, it would have been a sign that something is moving in a positive direction in the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, but this clearly shows that the dialogue is stagnating,” Andric emphasized Rakic.
According to her, the direct consequence of Pristina’s decision will be reflected in electoral participation. She mentioned that last year, when voting was not allowed in Kosovo for the first time, turnout was significantly lower. Andrić Rakić noted that around 20,000 fewer people voted when elections were not allowed on the territory of Kosovo compared to previous cases.
“I had to vote in Tutin, a town in Serbia located about 20 kilometers from my place of residence in Kosovo. I spent five hours going to the polling station, voting and returning. People who have to organize and travel so far to vote must have strong motivation,” said Andrić Rakić.
She believes that the main participants in the legislative elections will be people working in institutions for which transportation will be organized. “Therefore, they will have to vote for parties whose members are part of these institutions and, in our case, exclusively candidates from the Serbian List or the Serbian Progressive Party,” concluded Andrić Rakić.