The Supreme Court of Cassation overturned the Government of Serbia’s decision to dismiss the former rector of the University of Pristina (with temporary headquarters in Kosovska Mitrovica). The second court proceeding before the Basic Court in Belgrade for compensation from the Government of Serbia is ongoing, Srecko Milacic confirmed the news for KoSSev.
In early 2021, the Supreme Court of Cassation accepted Srecko Milacic’s lawsuit, who claimed that his dismissal four years earlier was illegal.
The decision was sent back for reconsideration, which in practice, apart from the fact that Milacic received moral satisfaction from it, has practically no other significance today, given that his mandate as a rector has already expired.
According to the regulations, a dismissed rector cannot be re-elected, however, since the decision was declared as illegal, it in practice means that if his mandate was ongoing Milacic would return to his post.
Since this is now all in the past, Milacic stated that he views this has a moral victory.
Milacic is now leading proceedings for compensation for damages due to illegal dismissal. He has a hearing scheduled before the Basic Court in Belgrade on July 19th.
„I hope it is the last one because the legal issue was previously resolved by the decision of the Supreme Court of Cassation, all that remains is to determine the amount of damages to be paid due to the illegal decision,“ he told KoSSev.
When asked why he remained silent for two years since the Court of Cassation ruled in his favor not just in connection to what he went through with the dismissal, but also with the way the dismissal was carried out and the shocking pressures he reported, Milacic said that:
„I was waiting for the compensation procedure to be completed so that I could reveal everything. But since everything took too long, I made the decision to publish it now.“
He emphasizes that he believed that his decisions and behavior have always been right and proper.
„And this judgment is another proof of how proper my position was. Montesquieu said that injustice done to one person can be dangerous for everyone,“ Milacic said.
Masked persons, car arson, brake cables cut, egg-throwing…
Srecko Milacic served as a rector at the University of Pristina, with one re-election, from 2012 until his dismissal in 2017.
Several attempts were made to replace him, the first one in March 2016, then in 2017, when he was dismissed by the Government of Serbia on August 1st of that year.
The reasons for Milacic’s dismissal, as the then Minister of Education, Mladen Sarcevic, and the representative of the largest student organization in Serbia – SKONUS – Milan Savic, claimed were „numerous“.
They thus repeated the allegations, which, at this time 6 years ago, were submitted to the Kosovo Office by representatives of Kosovo and Serbian local governments and Kosovo ministers, top party officials and student representatives, including Milan Savic.
There are nine reasons to dismiss the head official of the Serbian state university in Kosovo and Metohija – read the letter that turned out to be the basis for the removal of Milacic, signed by a number of officials: Member of Parliament of Serbia, councilor of the North Mitrovica MA within the Kosovo system and director of the Institute for Public Health – Milovan Krivokapic, president of the Zvecan municipality PA and minister in the technical Kosovo government – Ivan Todosijevic, mayor of Zvecan – Vucina Jankovic, president of the Kosovska Mitrovica municipality PA – Aleksandar Spiric, mayor of North Mitrovica – Goran Rakic, president of Leposavic municipality PA and president of Leposavic MA in the Kosovo system – Zoran Todic, mayor of Strpce municipality – Bratislav Nikolic, minister in the Kosovo government Dalibor Jevtic, as well as the high-ranking SPS provincial official Zvonko Stevic, and two more MPs and three student leaders.
In the request for Milacic’s dismissal, they stated that there are „numerous problems“ at the University, caused by the rector’s „unprofessional, improper and arrogant“ behavior.
The document, which was forwarded to KoSSev by sources close to the signatories, and which they sent to the Kosovo Office and the then director Marko Djuric, essentially served to initiate the dismissal that took place a month later, in the summer of 2017.
The former Minister of Education claimed that the Government of Serbia’s decision on the dismissal does not violate the autonomy of the University.
In an interview for KoSSev this week, Srecko Milacic revealed that he has no doubt that these were untruths and orchestrated allegations by the local political strongmen, as he describes the structures of Srpska Lista at the time.
„After a harsh response from all faculties, in March 2016, such a proposal was withdrawn. But they did not give up their intention to replace me, so they just looked for an opportune moment, which was August 2017, during the holidays, when the faculties were empty,“ he says.
At that time, he addressed the public with a statement with shocking allegations, accusing the then director of the Kosovo Office and the current ambassador of Serbia to the US:
„I was attacked by a masked man on the street while I was walking with a colleague. It is no coincidence that one professor’s car was set on fire, another had his car shot at, a third professor had his brake cable cut, and a fourth was beaten. It was a demonstration for those who refused to get involved with such people. Unfortunately, people from the University are now under attack. Anyone who thinks he’s doing it because of a disobedient rector is seriously mistaken. It is in fact a shortcut to the breakdown of the University. It is a harsh reality that we do not have a problem with Albanians.“
Milacic recalled that after his dismissal, when he went to take an exam in September, at his home university, the Faculty of Economics, in North Mitrovica, – „retribution followed“.
Stones were thrown at him by people he recognized, and the footage from the security cameras was published by KoSSev and picked up by several media outlets.
Milacic says that at that time, during an interrogation by the Kosovo Police, he said that he was not afraid, even though he was threatened, noting that his friend, now deceased, Oliver Ivanovic, said something similar at that time:
„After this, they had nothing else to do but to shoot at me.
I think that lawlessness, chaos and the law of the jungle rule over Mitrovica. Not a day goes by without someone being beaten, someone’s car being set on fire, someone being threatened.“
It was Ivanovic who said in October, in an article for the weekly Vreme titled „Serbs fear of extreme Serbs“: „The Government of Serbia is replacing the rector of the University with a decree, which is not allowed anywhere in the world.“
In the aftermath of this dismissal at the time, NIN journalist Sandra Petrusic wrote for the then No. 3476 of this newspaper in the text „Stronger than the Constitution“: “After violating the autonomy of the university, the government may soon interfere in the election of the president of SANU or the patriarch.“
Professor Slobodan Antonic, in the text „Why did they replace the rector“, dedicated to the removal of rector Milacic, prophetically asks the question „Who will now elect deans, rectors, professors“ and replied; „Not even according to civilized laws that ensure basic academic autonomy. Will this be a University?“
„Unfortunately, this prediction came true,“ Milacic says now.
The situation at the University after the removal of Rector Milacic is best explained by the fact that in three years, three acting rectors were appointed, and three rectors were elected.
„The rector was elected a total of six times in just three years,“ he stresses.
Allegations of criminal intimidation did not get an epilogue, apart from what the media wrote, and Milacic himself did not address the European Association of Universities after his dismissal.
„Because, if I did, due to such a violation of autonomy, the University would be expelled as a member, which would call into question the diplomas, projects, rating and work of the university,“ he emphasized.
„The whole time I was under pressure and attacks, I had in mind the famous Serbian lawyer Valtazar Bogisic that violence is the worst enemy of justice. Now, after everything and the verdict of the Supreme Court, even though it is delayed justice, I am satisfied because the truth has won,“ Milacic told KoSSev.
Now he is suing the Government of Serbia before the regular court for damages.
„Since the Supreme Court of Cassation, and then the Administrative Court, concluded that I was illegally dismissed and that I suffered damages as a result, this created a basis for me to start proceedings for compensation for damages due to the illegal work of state authorities,“ Milacic emphasized.
He still teaches a Project Management course at the Faculty of Economics.
He refused to discuss the current situation at the University of Kosovska Mitrovica, but he shares gloomy impressions that have long been present in the north.
„Please let me complete this procedure. And then I’ll be ready to talk in more detail about what happened to us.“
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
