IKD: Disgrace and Non-Proval Conduct at Framework session · Global Voices

In response, The IKD says that the country's <x0th spring session started with 54 points of the agenda, which in 2022 in the absence of quorum and the failure of dozens of sessions were not voted by the” Assembly.

Kosovo's “Assembly began the spring session in 2023 without discussing at the Parliament's Headship of the Labour Programme for session and without adopting it at the plenary session as well as not adopting the month-long work calendar, as required with the Assembly Rule of”, it is said among other things in the communique.

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The Parliament's spring session started with 54 points of the agenda, which in 2022 in the absence of quorum and the failure of dozens of sessions were not voted by the Assembly. Kosovo's Assembly began the spring session in 2023 without discussing at the Parliament's Headship on the Labor Programme for session and without adopting it at the plenary session, as well as not adopting the month-long work calendar, as required with the Framework Order.

The spring session was marked by a continuing lack of quorum at parliamentary sessions. Consequently, the Kosovo Assembly's work was delivered with unfinished sessions and numerous sessions continued. Of the total regular sessions, 41% of them were delivered with at least two continuations, and mostly four continuation. These sessions received final epilogue just two days before the end of the spring session, July 27, 2023.

In addition to lack of quorum in parliamentary sessions, there was a shortage of quorum in the Headship of the Assembly. It was largely triggered by the reported boycott by two deputy leaders of the two opposition parliamentary groups. Also, the Parliament's Headship continues to be incomplete because it does not propose Serbian List deputy chairmanship.

As for implementing Kosovo's Parliament Rule during the plenary session, Kosovo's Assembly conducted works without the agenda being adopted at the plenary session for reasons that this agenda was not voted in the Parliament's Headship in the absence of quorum. The session where such a practice of violating the Parliament's Order was distributed was the session of July 13, 2023, where the agenda was not initially voted and then entered the extraordinary session without receiving the formal approval of the plenary session as required according to the Parliament Rule.

The form of calling and holding this session, claiming in violation of the Constitution and Rules of the Parliament, the parliamentary group The PDK sent it for assessment on July 2023 at the Constitutional Court and on demand to cancel this session. At the same session, the Parliament's work was delivered with physical clashes between the cabinet of the Government, opposition deputies and the parliamentary majority. The Constitutional Prosecutor in Pristina invited for further interview. Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi, Finance, Labour and Transfers Minister Hekuran Murati, PDK deputies, Mergim Lushtaku, Bekim Haxhiu and Hajdar Beqa. The IKD considers that such a practice of bringing MPs is contrary to high professional and ethical standards, which are preconditions for building public confidence in the work of representatives and their integrity.

In this situation, following the creation of confusion and physical clashes between the government cabinet and some opposition deputies, the Speaker of the Parliament has called the police inside the hall and has continued to hold plenary hearings, despite that in these situations, the settlement requires suspension and continuation of the session on another day.

On the other hand, Government ministers have continued to ignore the Assembly during the preview of parliamentary questions. Contrary to the Parliament Rule, they have been absent during the preview of parliamentary questions. This is where Z. Prime Minister Donika Gervalla-Schharz, Minister of Internal Affairs, Xhelal Svechla, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports Hajrullah Ceku, Industry, Trade and Trade Minister Roseta Hajdari and Environment Minister Armend Mehaj. In addition to this violation, the Speaker of the Parliament has continued to fail to implement the Parliament's rule in terms of giving remarks to members of the government and the prime minister when they are absent and not reporting their absence during the submission of questions by MPs. At none of the plenary hearings, as required with the Assembly Order, the Speaker of the Parliament has drawn public remarks to the government cabinet for disregarding the Assembly and MPs.

On the other hand, in dozens of cases, the IKD has found that despite the fact that MPs have been announced it is their turn to submit parliamentary questions, the same has not been present in the Assembly Hall to submit questions.

In terms of legislative activity, the Parliament's work has been forwarded to the non-efficy. In each plenary session, the bills were carried from one session to another due to lack of quorum. During the spring session, more than 70% of the bills were followed by one session to another. Since the beginning of the legislature, 1,084 of the prosecuted bills have been bills in the form of international agreements, which more than 80% of them have been put to the polls more than three times and the final epilogue have taken only after the opposition's conflicts, but not as a result of a genuine dialogue and full consensus for their approval.

During the spring session, until the session of July 27, 2023, the Assembly adopted a total of 44 bills. But, in the absence of quorum, the last session of the spring session, scheduled to be held on July 28th, failed to begin. As a result, eight bills in principle -- five bills in the form of international agreements -- five second reading bills, which will remain for consideration at the annual Assembly session.

On the other hand, despite the fact that they have passed the first deadlines with the Assembly Order, six bills from 2021, 12 bills from 2022 and six bills have not been passed since 2023.

As far as transparency is concerned, parliamentary commission meetings continue not to be broadcast from the Parliament. On the other hand, despite IKD's remarks and demands, the Assembly has still not functional electronic voting, unable to inform citizens of the way MPs voted. It is noteworthy that despite the regulation of the Assembly, the publication of the results of “hand-vote” is not happening.

Work at parliamentary sessions has also been characterised by nonparliamentary language used by members of the Government and by Parliament deputies, creating polarised discussions between MPs and parliamentary groups, and also between deputees and the government cabinet. In some cases, members of the government used sexist language against MPs, then lying, hypocritical, deceitful, lying, lying words mentioned by members of the government and MPs, which do not apply to parliamentary language and minimum standards of parliamentary conduct.

In such a situation, the adoption of a code of conduct for MPs of the Parliament would have to be on the Parliament's agenda as a priority. Despite the fact that such a code is provided even with the Kosovo Assembly Rule, the same has not yet been adopted. This code would have to suffice to describe the general and unique nature of the non-parliamentarians' behaviour. Adopting such a code would express common values and key principles that would instruct and appreciate the conduct of MPs.

The IKD in one case has found that the Parliament has failed to implement a Kosovo Constitutional Court act without delay. On December 30, 2022, the Constitutional Court abolished a provision of the Law in force for Pensional Schemes unjustly paragraph 2 of Article 8 of that law. This provision, discriminated against, banned thousands of citizens who did not meet the performance experience criteria of 15 years before January 1999 to receive the contributing pension. They were allowed only retirement. The Constitutional Court's ruling came after the Supreme Court's request, where it raised doubts about the constitutionality of this provision. The Constitutional Court tasks the Parliament to pass the Law on Pension Scheme by July 15th 2023, but that the Parliament did so only on July 27, 2023. The Government of the Republic of Kosovo has contributed to this situation, which has not forwarded this bill to the Assembly until July 6th, 2023.

The Kosovo Assembly has also been contested by three laws adopted during this session. Parliamentary Group The PDK sent to the Constitutional Court the Law for the State Bureau for verification and confiscation of unwarranted property, the AAK parliamentary group sent to GK, the Law for Change and completion of laws specifying the amount of benefits at the height of minimum wage, the procedures of the minimum wage and tax rates on annual personal incomes, and the Law on Salaries in the public sector ended in GjK by the Ombudsman Institution. Under the Law for the Constitutional Court, these laws do not go into effect until the Constitutional Court's decision is due to the constitutionality of these laws.