Calls for political unity

While the stance of the Vetevendosje Movement is that the country must go to early parliamentary elections, the Democratic Party of Kosovo considers it ready for such unity of the political spectrum, but the executive leadership's calls for such a thing as insincere.

Kosovo's Specialised Chambers Acts in The Hague, also known as the Special Court, have completely destabilised the political scene and now imposes a change in the conduct and actions of political actors in the country, estimates the connoisseur of political developments, Artan Muhhajari.

The Specialised Chambers have filed charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity against Hashim Thaci, now former president of Kosovo, Kadri Veselin, former head of the Kosovo Parliamentary Movement, and the acting leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Jakup Krasniqi, former head of the Kosovo Assembly, Rexhep Selimi, former head of the Parliamentary Group of the Vetevendosje, as well as Salih Musta, former member of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

To confront the situation created in the country, Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani's task officer, has raised the need for institutional co-ordination. Meanwhile, Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti has expressed the need for political unity in the situation the country is going through.

According to Hoti, “despite political developments and processes in which the country passes, as a result of the country's president's resignation, political forces must now come together to deliver the message of the maturity of Kosovo institutions...”.

Non-unique opposition over unity of political spectrum

Victory Pacolli, deputy of the Kosovo Parliament by the Vetevendosje Movement, this largest opposition party, tells Radio Free Europe that the country now needs a democratic and legitimate government. According to her, you cannot go towards what is supposedly creating the unity of the political spectrum by building governing structures, which she says do not have the trust of citizens.

“Calls are about asking those in power to increase their shopping and try to legitimise themselves in this form. We're still saying we can't go on like this, creating political unity, but we have to go to new elections. Let citizens decide, let citizens choose the government which represents the majority and leads the people. We cannot create governments, if unified, by rehabilitated persons who were not voted by citizens. This is dangerous, this should not happen”, Pacolli said.

Kosovo's Democratic Party of Kosovo MP Valdete Idrizi, speaking to Radio Free Europe, stresses that the unity of the political spectrum of Kosovo has had to happen much earlier and not only now, after Prime Minister Hoti's calls. According to her, the Democratic Party of Kosovo itself had earlier sought unity of the political spectrum for issues related to state integrity and dialogue with Serbia, to move more safely towards a lasting peace.

Even now, in the situation in which Kosovo is in, of course any call for unity, we as a party as well as an individual, and in all possible qualities, would, of course, say yes. This is because we are not talking here about certain individuals, but we are talking about the interests of our state and the future of our state and of all the citizens living in Kosovo. I would like to believe that words are followed by actions. But so far we have seen them as completely different because the works have been completely different and the words are quite different. I think the best example for anyone to convince the citizen that he really does, is concrete action, and not just empty words”, Idriz points out.

Muhariri: Bids for political unity must be sincere

Analyst Artan Mujaziri, speaking of Radio Free Europe, expresses the opinion that political party leaders would make a mistake if they behaved as if nothing happened and that the situation within the country is normal. According to him, the establishment of the indictment by the Specialised Chambers to the president of the state and some politicians of great importance in parliamentary life have caused an abnormal situation in the country.

Calls for unity of the political spectrum in this period, according to Mujahyri, should be sincere, while opposition parties should also change their approach to the political struggle.

It is not fair to continue the political struggle, as it has been so far. These calls for political unity often appear to be moralistic and abstract. However, in the current political period, such invitations are realistic because the state of Kosovo, Kosovo politics, cannot function without a change of course and without a change of general approach, in search of a much greater constructiveity than it has been so far”, Muhramiri said.

He added that general political mobilization in search of unity is the responsibility of all political, power and opposition actors.

Hashim Thaci during the media conference in Pristina on November 5th, where he announced his resignation from the presidential post after confirming the indictment for war crimes.

All the most important political actors have responsibilities, because it will be their merit if this unity is achieved and it will be their fault if the opposite occurs. However, even bids for unity should not be made superficially and formally, but they must be sincere and well planned so that all actors can be considered meritive, if such is achieved”, Muhaxhiri noted.

According to him, any of the political scene actors or even political parties intended to secure common political benefits -- in this delicate period for the country -- would be mistaken because the situation in the country, as he said, is extraordinary.

Calls for unity of the political spectrum by executive leaders have had even earlier, especially to approach dialogue with Serbia. But, so far, the government has not had a formal offer to clarify what it offers for achieving political unity in the country.

Recently, Isa Mustafa, the leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo, from which is Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti, has written on the social Facebook network that for the election of the country's new president, there must be an agreement that ensures broad support and 80 votes of Kosovo Assembly deputies.

Hashim Thaci has resigned from the country's presidential position on November 5th, due to confirmation of the war crimes indictment by Kosovo's Specialised Chambers in The Hague.