Concerns over elections for four municipalities in the north

The mayors' posts remained empty in November last year when Serb representatives in the area resigned from their jobs amid tensions due to disagreements over a government decision in Pristina to reregister Serbian license plates in those of the Republic of Kosovo.

The Serbian list, the main political subject of Kosovo Serbs, refuses to participate in the elections, claiming that their demands for establishing the Association of Serb majority municipalities and the removal of special police units from the north of Kosovo have not been met.

Representatives of this subject met yesterday in Belgrade with Serbia's president, Aleksandar Vucic, to discuss the security situation, car plates, Serb arrests and holding elections in northern Kosovo.

Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic said discussions will continue over the next seven days to draft a joint paltform, while elections organised by Pristina said they are being held for two percent of the population, referring to the percentage of Albanians living in northern Mitrovica.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said the country's institutions have been put in service by the Central Election Commission to organise elections in four municipalities in Kosovo's north.

Political “Pulralism and, above all, free and unhindered voting rights in the Serb community are necessary. Anyone who follows to violate this fundamental right has nothing else to expect but that the response of our institutions by law force”, he said.

The embassies of the United States, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom in Pristina earlier expressed regret over the Serbian List's decision not to participate in the elections, while stressing that it is essential to ensure that elections are held peacefully and fairly and that parties exercise restraint and avoid violence, which could undermine the elections.

The group of election monitoring organisations “Democracy in Action” said current circumstances cannot hold free and fair elections in the country's north. This organisation said through a communique “that the security situation in the four northern municipalities continues to be fragile. The resignations of Serbian police officials in those municipalities pose a major obstacle to ensuring security, especially during the election process, which is the essential precondition for free and fair elections”.

The elections for the mayors of northern municipalities, northern Mitrovica, Zvecan, Leposaviq and Zubin Potok were initially scheduled for December 18th last year, but they were postponed at the request of Western diplomats who were involved in an effort for a normalisation agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, which the parties agreed on March 18th in Ohrid. /Vosa