Dialogue law tomorrow sent to court, opposition calls unconstitutional

These two parties claim that the Law has provisions that clash with the highest judicial act in the country, particularly the article through which it breaks the law for international agreements, the law stemming from the country's Constitution.

In addition to these two parties, civil society feels that there are articles in the Law that conflict with the Constitution, even mentioning the first article of this Law.

Vetevendosje MP Albulen Haxhiu, who is also chairman of the Commission for Legislation, says the Law on Dialogue contains many articles that clash with the Constitution.

Besides sending him to the Constitutional, Haxhiu said they would also seek early measures, meaning that the law will not be implemented until a Constitutional Court ruling is reached.

“We as Vetevendosje along with the LDK on Friday will hand over this bill to the Constitutional Court, because we consider that there are numerous provisions that conflict with the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo. In that sense we will also ask the Constitutional Court for temporary measures, which means that the Constitutional Court must decide that the law on dialogue is not implemented until we have a Constitutional Court ruling. But of course, we are working intensively with working groups that we have in common between Vetevendosje and LDK, as well as experts who recognise this issue, so I believe that by tomorrow it will be finalised and then on Friday we have the final official deadline, because under the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo 8 days the MPs are available to contest the case at the Constitutional Court”, she says.

Opposition MPs, the Constitutional Court, do not view this Law as the only option to reject it, and protests and demonstrations are an option they are considering.

Haxhiu has said that if he continues with this approach and a tendency to bargain with Kosovo territory, he is obliged to call out protests to oppose, as she has said, people who are able to do anything only for political survival.

There's a lot of issues, we haven't finalised them yet because we're working on working groups, but the moment we send it to the Constitutional Court we're going to publicize the subject we've sent to the Constitutional Court. There are many issues, beginning with the issue of lex specialis trying to cloud the law on international agreements, but also Article 18 of the Constitution of Kosovo which until the law for international agreements that is organic law. They've said that the law on dialogue has a lex special power that is above all. So there is a constant tendency also to dim the 18th article of the Constitution but also the law on international agreements. On the other hand, they interfere in the competencies of the Government's Kosovo Assembly, so they create parallel institutions and there are other issues that we are finalising”, it declares.

Although they will address the Constitutional Court, Haxhiu says they have lost confidence in this institution, yet he claims he will exploit all means available to them to oppose this process.

On the other hand, LDK deputy Driton Selmanaj has indicated that the whole Law for Dialogue is unconstitutional, as according to him proves that certain constitutional competencies will be taken on the part of the law and transformed.

He claims he cannot legally determine the institutional hierarchy of who can handle dialogue.

“We are convinced that the Constitutional Court's decision will be such, it will be that this law cannot be implemented in Kosovo because it exceeds the frameworks of a law which would be in full accordance with the Constitution, but not violate the Constitution. Our assessment is that this law in its entirety is unconstitutional both in office and in how they have built a negotiating team, even for its mandate, as well as in that by special law it cannot be taken or could not be redefined additional tasks that are not even in the constitution. No one has the right to take authority over anyone, no one has the right to delegate authority to someone else unless this Constitution says... We strongly believe that the Constitutional Court will bring this law down”, he says.

As for what Vetevendosje can organise protests to counter this Law, Selmanaj says how the LDK is careful in the steps they take and that at this stage they have not thought about such a form of reaction.

Selmanaj declares that the LDK is a party that first takes over all institutional and constitutional means and then if it is put into a situation when institutional roads do not do work, then he said, they return to the legitimate right to protest.

That the Law for Dialogue is in conflict with the highest judicial act in the country and civil society say.

The Democratic Institute of Kosovo has consistently monitored the process of dialogue with Serbia, and after reviewing it to this Law, it says there are provisions that the Constitution can counter.

Violet Hajoli from this organisation, for Kosova Preis, claims the Law on Dialogue has many shortcomings.

Subtitles: Thus, the law shows that the state delegation will be the one to lead with the process of dialogue, while doing so in consultation with other constitutional institutions. But we know that in the constitution, foreign policy is led by the president of the country, while the Government proposes and implements foreign policy, while the Assembly oversees it. Therefore, we do not know how the state delegation will be found within the framework of the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo, what the country will have and it is clear as well that this delegation cannot counter the institutional hierarchy defined with the Constitution and cannot contest the roles each of the Republic's constitutional institutions have in terms of foreign policy, the dialogue process” entered into this section, it is stating.

It has shown several other shortcomings that have been recorded in their analysis in this Law.

“Law shows that consultations will be made between the state delegation and other constitutional institutions, but does not explain how these consultations will be made. Then, there are three members of the state delegation that have not yet joined the team, who are expected to be part of the team. It is not clear how they will join this team, should the entire delegation go to the Assembly once more to approve or as well. It means there is uncertainty about how the state delegation will be fulfilled with the new members. The other concerns we've encountered are also in the working commissions that this Law defines, what function they will perform, how experts will be engaged who will be in different fields in terms of the” dialogue process, she says.

The KP has also called for answers from the Kosovo government on opposition parties' claims that the Law falls contrary to the country's Constitution, but has not received answers.

The dialogue bill a week ago was voted in the Kosovo Assembly, and on the same day the green light was obtained even platforms drafted by the state team for dialogue. We remember that the ruling parties, with PSD backing, have hardly managed to secure votes to pass the bill and platform, while neither Vetevendosje nor the LDK participated in the vote.