Police appeals attorneys: Act by Law, Use of Unnecessary Force

There have been mixed reactions to their behavior. Kosovo police are obliged by law to respect citizens' rights, assess lawyers in the country.

Lawyer Fehmije Gashi-Bytyqi, in an interview for Online Economy, said police are the ones who maintain public order and create security, but also need to be more flexible.

“According to citizens I think they'll have a more special attention. In particular, from the beginning of the pandemic because citizens of Kosovo and the world are facing this evil for the first time and are also concerned and the economic downturn has begun. Despite the fact that the police consider that every citizen of Kosovo knows that the Law for pandemic has entered into force. Maybe it's part of the citizens who don't understand the importance of law enforcement”.

When faced with law enforcement, I think they should be more flexible, have more training on how to talk. Within the police are standard professional unit and have commissions within the police, such as the disciplinary commission and the complaint commission”.

Lawyer Burim Halili says, however, that no person should be punished for not wearing a mask.

“Pronounced traffic fines, I think there's a confusing basis. So far the fines have been pronounced under the Article 24 paragraph 5, which says the person who does not respect the decision of the competent mask-holding bodies is fined with a fine of 35 euros”.

Such a decision has been taken hastily and without thought and consultation with those in health as to which cases and where not to wear masks because such a decision I personally think is unfair. I think it's better to limit masks all the time or release them at the entire time, not at”.

According to Halil, the decisions of police officials should be respected in any case, but that police should be careful in dealing with citizens, EO reports.

The citizens are obliged to respect any decision and any officer's request. I don't think even the police have to use enough measures to cuff a citizen because so far they've been calculated to be punishments against evil. There's no need for anyone to be arrested for not wearing a mask because he didn't commit a criminal offense”.

As far as influence goes on without the pandemic in their work Gashi-Bytyqi says the court remains the most fragile segment of Kosovo society.

The pandemic has certainly damaged us because the lawyer's job is private business. We too have our own expenses, because the court since March 13th only in prison cases or in domestic violence cases has worked. And in other labs in regular procedures they haven't worked”.

“We have been raising voice from time to time, and now the leaders of the Oda of Kosovo lawyers have had a meeting with the chairman of the Judiciary Council, which has pledged that since September it will begin because the tribunal's functioning is first in the interest of Kosovo citizens, where despite the work Kosovo courts did, however, the most fragile segment of Kosovo society remains because if a subject cannot realise it for 4 to 5 years then that justice does not have the effect because you do not have legal security. In general, pandemic has damaged lawyers”.

And lawyer Halili stressed that the lawyer's committee in Kosovo has been economically damaged by the situation that was created with Coronavirus.

In addition, he said 80% of their work has been suspended and has only been worked on emergency cases.

“It seems that even citizens have begun to realize that now they have to live together with this situation created with Covid-19”.