Serbia violates Brussels agreements, MPJ warns reciprocity

Twice in a few days, Serbia banned entry into this state, former chairman of the Academy of Sciences, Hivzi Islami.

This is contrary to agreements reached in Brussels, during long-term dialogue between the two states.

To stop him, the Kosovo Ministry of Foreign Affairs has reacted.

This institution has called on Serbian authorities to interrupt such actions towards Kosovo citizens. He has also warned of reciprocity.

Jethlir Zyberaj, adviser to Foreign Affairs Minister Behgjet Pacolli, has told Kosovo Press that they are also discussing EU representatives regarding the issue in order to protect fundamental rights principles.

“We are carefully conveying this issue, and if Serbia repeats such cases over and over again, we will act on the principle of reciprocity”, he said.

Kosovoress has long ago reported similar cases where Serbia has banned and even filed charges for citizens of the Republic of Kosovo.

On 21 June this year, Belgrade's Public Prosecutor has filed charges against Serbian journalist Ivan Maksimovic, who lives in northern Mitrovica, under the jurisdiction of the Republic of Kosovo.

As you move farther than 5 days later, on June 26th, the citizen Fahri Jusuf was detained and arrested in Jarinje, while traveling with a relative.

For all of this, lawyer Azem Vlasi says Serbia is ignoring and implementing the agreements reached in Brussels. 

In a proposal for KosovoPress, Vlase says Kosovo should insist on reaching a binding agreement on both sides to determine the competencies of each state, not allowing anyone to flee criminal responsibility for the deeds committed.

He says Serbia has no right either to ban the citizen of Kosovo or to initiate judicial procedures, nor to pronounce sentences.

 The “in Brussels, ahead of this current final phase, should be a binding agreement signed by both sides that, for such cases, is competent only to Kosovo's judicial system and not Serbia's. This does not mean that a person who has performed works, no matter where he is, loses responsibility. But it is about the competencies of the judicial system that it has over the citizens of Kosovo and cannot be competent Serbia's judicial system for Kosovo citizens, whether they are Albanians, Serbs, or others, and whatever work it is in question, with such an agreement it should be regulated even what no one can escape criminal responsibility for a work that has committed”, he said.

These works of the Serbian side, Vlasi says they may arouse fear in Kosovo citizens, as there is evidence that Serbia is acting outside the rules.

Until Serbia behaves this way, Kosovo citizens have reason to fear because Serbia is outside these rules. It means granting the right to self that it does not, to prosecute the citizens of Kosovo, has also issued warrants to public personalities that are in state positions, related to the circumstances of war. Even for the circumstances of war, the Kosovo citizens have three legal competencies: one had The Hague tribunal for war crimes, where several of our people were prosecuted, Haradinaj case, Limaj and others with them for other circumstances; and it had to be reached an agreement, that Serbia has no right either to issue warrants for Kosovo persons, even if there is evidence that acts must be carried out in courts, but that Kosovo should do for its citizens. The second component is its own Kosovo courts”, he said.

This is not the first time that Serbia's jurisdiction poses a problem for Kosovo, even recalling the arrests, which still figure in Interpol database. While, Kosovo citizens' stops in Serbia have also become frequent.