Translation provided by KoSSev (RTV Kim)
Elizabeth Gowing tendered her resignation from the Office for Community Affairs, which operates within the Cabinet of the Prime Minister of Kosovo. According to Radio Kim’s findings, Gowing made the decision following the allocation of half a million euros within the last competition of the Office for Community Affairs.
On May 31st, the Office for Community Affairs announced a public call for financial support totaling 500,000 euros for NGOs and media from non-majority communities, i.e. „financial support to NGO projects/programs to raise the level of employment of members of non-majority communities, media that contribute to the protection and improvement rights and interests of non-majority communities, as well as NGOs that contribute to cultural activities that promote culture, tradition, language, cultural heritage and identity of community members, including the celebration of holidays of communities living in Kosovo“.
On Monday, July 10th, the website of the Prime Minister of Kosovo published a preliminary list of the media and organizations that will receive funds from that competition.
Of the 42 NGOs included in the preliminary list, only three are actually from minority communities, according to the names on the list and the public register of NGOs. More than 90% of the media and NGOs to which funds have been allocated come from the majority Albanian community. Some of the fund winners are not even included in the public register of NGOs.
KoSSev: RTV Puls and RTV Mir are the only Serb organizations In the preliminary list published by the Kosovo government, this time bilingually, signed by commission members Besart Tasholi, Qerim Berisha, Ekrem Ahmeti, Alutrim Dermaku and Arben Elshani, only two television stations come from the Serbian community – RTV Puls (Most) and RTV Mir.
Elizabeth Gowing expressed disappointment by the fact that only a small number of NGOs and media selected for financial support actually represent organizations based in some of the non-majority communities.
Despite her objections, the Appeals Commission did not cancel the competition, after which Gowing announced that she „can no longer work with the Office for Community Affairs“ because the decision to award half a million euros to the listed beneficiaries „is not something she can defend in front of the communities“.
She informed the Kosovo Government spokesman Perparim Krueziu and Petar Miletic, the external consultant of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, about her stance via email (which Radio Kim had insight into).
Elizabeth Gowing emphasized that she will „carry on with her second job as advisor to the prime minister for community affairs in coordinating the work of institutions for the implementation of policies that protect and promote the rights and interests of non-majority communities in Kosovo with pleasure and pride.“
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
