2017, lost year of degradation

Even the year we left behind, and Kosovo citizens continue to live in the ghetto, as there is neither visa liberalisation nor any transformation of KSF into the military.

Kosovo this year has not experienced any success or achievement, in political terms with which it can boast. On the contrary, analysts say this has been a year of impasse and stalemate, in all respects.

Analyst Imer Mushkolaj tells Kosovo, that 2017 was the year of impasse and the year of stalemate, for all processes in Kosovo, starting with political processes, to continue with economic development processes, but other issues. While it says that, instead of making progress, at least in one of these areas, there has been a regress, there has been a setback, not moving ahead with the processes.

Now in late 2017 and early 2018, if we do a balance, what has been achieved in Kosovo, or what has gone ahead in Kosovo, unfortunately nothing has gone, not in a political sense, nor in the sense of developments in other areas. Economic development is where it was. Unemployment is where it's been. And in terms of European integrations, no small step has been taken. The visa liberalisation issue remains where it has been, and so on. We have no developments in other important areas such as education and health. So it's a lost year for which politicians are responsible. Where more than six months have been lost by choice, with the idea that the Prosecution Government, or political representatives, who have been part of that government have not been able to make big decisions. While these very big decisions are blocking this government and causing problems, which Kosovo's citizens have now been fed up to see”, Mushkolaj said.

Mosskolaj even says the way this coalition government was formed is not that it has promised any new approach to government, since their sole purpose has been to come to power.

“The main purpose of these people has been to come to power. Those who have been to continue to be in power, regardless of the price Kosovo citizens have to pay. And that price is being paid to Kosovo citizens. We have seen some of the prime minister's actions, which have been in my opinion most of them, well-informed. There have been ad-hoc actions, population actions, which have complicated the situation rather than resolved any issues. And now we're still in a jam situation. Because Kosovo has not taken steps forward. And those big decisions, which are mentioned to be made, and they're not being made, we're not seeing them being made now”, he said.

Political analyst Behlul Beqaj also stresses that this was not a year of stagnation, but also degradation.

I don't think we can say it was a year of stagnation. Because we've had some degrading and retarding processes. I think that in some segments, however, we have probably had positive changes. But in many other segments it was of degrading nature. Especially at the stage when institutions were created, which have not been in the function of improving the overall political climate of making. But it was that stage of building bad governing institutions. .. We just have general degradation, in our daily lives. We have in education, in health, and if there are outstanding failures on these pillars, we can't say it's been stagnation. Instead, I think it was a degradation”, he said.

Beqaj says the coalitions were made for mutual interests, which connect with the party, which at any cost has wanted to remain in power and that we cannot hope that they will be in the function of the citizens' genuine interests.

Beqaj says the stones can be moved, only the activism of the Special Court.

Perhaps the stones will be moved a little activism of the International Court. But in itself the fact that segments of justice within Kosovo, within the eulex, is creating an impression that and the international court will follow the path to failing certain segments of justice. If, eventually, certain changes occur in the sense of leaving people who are relatively key factors, why Kosovo is held hostage by their political actions. Then we can hope that gradually we will start a flame of politics making real in Kosovo. But that also implies the imidia, of raising civic activity that is also held hostage by non-political activity, at their expense and civic activism I believe will be in the function of positive changes”, he says.

On the day the Parliament went on vacation, I was tempted to set up an extraordinary session where the agenda would be the abolition of the Special Court Law. This request by MPs was sharply criticised by ambassadors of the world's powerful accredited states in Kosovo, saying this decision would turn Kosovo back in 1999. However, the application signed by 43 MPs still remains in force and is expected to be considered at any of the headship meetings after the winter break.