Kosovars don't want to legalise weapons, German ambassador reacts

Alarming for the German ambassador to Kosovo is the failure to find the origin of the weapon, with which police officer Izet Demaj was killed in Istog, KTV reports.

Under the campaign for the country's legalisation process of arms without permission, Ambassador Christian Heldt said that illegal weapons are a threat to security.

There are over 60 million suspicious weapons in this region and that are a threat to security, even though this is geographically part of Europe. I want to recall the tragic death of the police official a few weeks ago that happened in Kosovo that he took office and I have no details of the origin of the weapon he was killed with. But I think that's an alarming sign here in the country or in the entire region”.

More than 200,000 illegal weapons still remain in the hands of the country's citizens, but very few have expressed interest in legalising them.

Within the first month of the campaign, only 208 people have applied for legalisation.

Kosovo has improved significantly in the fight against firearms trafficking and not only through investigation. The “campaign, with letters”, which will now have complete extensions, through information materials, supports implementation of the law on legalisation of weapons and helps to help in six months of this campaign continue to provide information on what any citizen should know about legalisation and encourage them to take this step...0305”.

The important thing is to say that whatever results have been achieved, whatever things have been done are done according to the International Convention that is established and which Kosovo is fulfilling and the work we are doing and all. We are accounting with the same standards we are working with the rest of Europe”.

Kosovo Police Operations Department Director Africa Ahmeti said the interest of persons to legalise arms without permission is low.

The Prizren Directorate 22 cases, 7 for generation weapons and 5 for hunting rifles. The Gjakova regional directorate 40 cases, 11 cases for generation weapons and 29 cases for hunting rifles. The Pec Regional Directorate 36 cases 18 are generation weapons, 4 are hunting weapons, 14 other weapons. The South Mitrovica Regional Directorate is 7 applicants, of them 5 are for guns and 2 for hunting rifles. The North Mitrovica regional directorate is unfortunately no application requiring a commitment of partners as well and all of us to make a greater sensationalisation that even citizens in the north legalise illegal weapons.

The process for legalisation of weapons has been launched on 17 December 2018 and will last until 17 June this year, while this campaign is backed by the mission The UNDP in Kosovo, in partnership with the German government.