The stage of violence in Zvecan turns into promenade

That is how the leader of the Civic Initiative “Serbian Monetary” describes Aleksandar Arseniyevic, the protest atmosphere in this majority Serb municipality in northern Kosovo.

Local Serbs' protests are already in the third week, while Arseniyev takes part almost every day in them.

He says that citizens don't inform anyone of anything, that they are informed through the media and that there is no way out Crisis developing.

Similarly, Millija Bisevac, chairman of the Civic Initiative “for Zubin Potok”, who also appears in protests in his municipality, says of Radio Free Europe.

“We still see no indication that there are solutions. We expect Belgrade and official Pristina to sit at the table and find solutions”, Bisevac says.

Groups of Serbs in Zvecan, Zubin Potok and Leposaviq northern Kosovo protest since May 29th against Albanian mayors, against their entry into municipal facilities, respectively.

From archive REL:

In three of these local self-government municipalities, operating according to the Kosovo system, it is located in the same objects where the provisional municipal authorities under Serbia's system work. In northern Mitrovica alone, as well as in the north, the Kosovo municipality is physically separated from the Serb community, and there citizens do not protest.

Residents of these three municipalities do not want to talk publicly about their positions or demands, due to, as they say, fears they could be arrested for “violation of Kosovo's constitutional order”.

On June 2nd, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has read the names of people suspected to have been involved in clashes between Serb protesters and NATO mission soldiers, KFOR, in Zvecan, May 29th.

When will the first steps towards extending the situation be taken?

Radio Free Europe addressed the Government of Kosovo with questions about further steps towards extending the situation to municipalities in northern Kosovo, but until publishing this article, there was no response.

With the same questions REL addressed the Serbian List, the largest party of Kosovo Serbs, as well as the Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia, but received no answer.

Similarly, they did not respond by the European Union, which brokers dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia for normalising relations.

Arsenijevic says it is Pristina that should take the first step towards lowering tensions, respectively, attracting special forces from northern Kosovo.

The [most] Serbian municipal association, which Serbs want and for which they believe can protect their collective rights, must then be formed. With the formation of association, people will return to the institutions [Kosovare] and elections [will come] as cherry on cake”, Arsenijevic says.

Members of the Serb community, through the Association of Serb-run municipalities, seek more autonomy and forming it is one of their requests to return to Kosovo institutions, which they left last November.

Bisevac estimates that the situation in northern Kosovo is “alarmate” and that the withdrawal of the special Kosovo Police Unit is now necessary for the crisis not to deepen.

“ [City solution] must be returned to the political arena, whether to be discussed among the power politicians in Pristina and representatives of Serbs living here, to find a solution. Because this crisis can take a long time and we have a system that doesn't work”, Bisevac says.

He adds that part of the responsibility for the recent crisis in the north carries the international community, because “did not understand the seriousness of the situation when Serbs left Kosovo institutions”.

Reregistering Serbian license plates in Kosovo's license plates in mid-2022 became a trigger for the start of tensions in northern Kosovo. Several months later, Serbs there, including mayors, left Kosovo institutions.

For this reason, extraordinary local elections were organised in the north, which the Serb population boycotted. She now does not accept the results, Albanian mayors respectively.

Are crises in northern Kosovo motivated?

Politologist Ognjen Gogic from Northern Mitrovica estimates that Pristina and Belgrade knowingly spark crisis in northern Kosovo, for the sake of political goals. According to him, Kosovo wants to secure recognition from Serbia, while the latter wants the “dialog to last indefinitely”.

“Pristina, with the crisis it created, has prompted international mediators to initiate agreements from Brussels and Ohrid, the road to normalisation. But Belgrade, then, has made them [the agreement] meaningless, respectively, has been unable to implement them”, Gogic says.

At the end of March, Kosovo and Serbia agreed to an agreement towards normalising relations on the basis of an EU proposal, while annexes for its implementation agreed in mid-April. This agreement and this annex came after the crisis in northern Kosovo that triggered reregistering cars with Serbian license plates.

Gogic says that Kosovo and Serbia are currently developing “Ilog out”. According to him, protests in the north could last long, given that the “Serbs are well organised”.

For employees in Serbian institutions, the appearance of protests is a kind of job obligation. For example, workers of Zvecan's interim municipal authority are signed every day in the book before the building because they have “built” on the job. In recent days, health and education workers operating according to the Serbian system also participated in the protests.

“So they can actually stay in that situation first of all in the Zvecan protests, but also in other municipalities”, Gogic says, and adds that KFOR and Kosovo Police have also strengthened their positions in and around municipal objects.

Messages from the International Community

Western countries have strongly condemned the Kosovo authorities' decision to forcibly send Albanian mayors to municipal facilities.

In Kosovo last week were European and US envoy Miroslav Lajcak and Gabriel EscobarWho called for immediate calming of tensions.

They asked the Kosovo government to declare new elections in municipalities in the north, withdraw special forces from municipal buildings and return to dialogue with Serbia. The official Belgrade was asked to ensure Serb participation in possible new elections.

The European Union's special envoy for dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak, said on June 12th that he and his American colleague, Gabriel Escobar, hope in results, but that “tensions are still high”.

“We continue our efforts to enable and support a sustainable political solution”, Lajcak wrote in his Facebook account.

Serbian List Meeting With Vucinqi

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti expressed readiness to approve Western mediators' proposals, but under certain conditions, which sparked great criticism from the international community.

Kurti said he is willing to work for the extension of the situation, but only when the <x0 ... criminal groups” leave the north, whether to be arrested or “return to Serbia”.

Kosovo authorities blame official Belgrade for most of the riots in northern Kosovo.

On the other hand, the Serbian president, Aleksandar VuciqHe met with representatives of the Serbian List on June 12th, as he warned after meeting with Lajcak and Escobar.

Goran Rakiq, the chairman of this party, which was formed in 2013 with Belgrade's help, said that support has been sought from Vuciqi in the fight against “implementation” of Serbs from Kosovo authorities.

When I say persecution, I have in mind the persecution of people who participated in the barricades last year and who participated in protests this year”, Rakic said.

Arsenijevic and Bisevac: Citizens Fear Arrest

Arsenijevic and Bisevac say Serbs in the north are afraid they may be on a list of arrests because they participate in protests against Kosovo Government decisions.

They add that Kosovo's own prime minister “tifies” individuals, publicly citing the names of persons suspected of being part of criminal groups.

The competent justice institutions were not declared so far on this issue.

“They think that, this way, anyone can be on a list and anyone can be targeted. So families think it's a personal attack on them”, says Arsenijevic.

The government in Pristina must be aware that it should speak to people, both political representatives and ordinary citizens, because not all are criminals. These people standing in front of the municipality do not represent criminals”, Bisevac says.

Politologist Gogic sees public appointment of suspected criminals from the north as a way of Kosovo authorities deliberately raising tensions.

With those individual lists and arrests, they want to keep Serbs in that state of insecurity and nervousness... it's a tactical tool,” he believes.

KFOR spokesman Colonel Andrea Gallien said last week that after violent protests in Zvecan on May 29th, they remain some criminal groups.

He added it is up to the Kosovo Police to identify those individuals.

According to him, responsibility for tensions in northern Kosovo should be kept on both sides.

During the incidents in Zvecan, five people were arrested, but the Constitutional Court in Pristina placed a month-long detention for only two of them.