Serbian politician briefly places community flags in front of government building

Arsinijevic initially attempted to set up flags within the courts of the Government, but the police refused and he placed them a few feet less.

“In the midst of crisis and interethnic tensions in Kosovo, I wanted to show that, since all central institutions have the Albanian flag, I wanted us living here because my grandfather, my great grandfather, was born in Kosovo, whoever was born here and lives in Kosovo, I wanted to have the right to display our characters”, Arseniviq said.

Kosovo is all of us, the communities we know in the Constitution, so Serbs, Gorani, Ashkali Roma, Egyptians, we are all equal before this law. I referred to the Constitution and its articles and I don't want to incite hatred”, Arsenijevic, who heads the Serbian Civic Initiative “

The Arsenijevic action comes at a time of increasing tensions in northern Kosovo, inhabited by Serb majority. Serbs have been holding protests since May 26th, rejecting the entry of new Albanian mayors into municipal buildings in the north. They're also seeking the withdrawal of special units from the north.

Despite Serbs being majority in ten municipalities in Kosovo, the exact number of members of this community is unknown, as they have refused to participate in the latest population census in 2011. But an estimated 100,000 members of the Serb community live in Kosovo. Under the Constitution, communities enjoy special rights and the way they use their national symbols is regulated by law.

Also, in terms of language use, official language at the state level are Albanian and Serbian. Meanwhile, other communities' languages enjoy official language status in municipalities where a community makes up the majority, Rel reports.