The Kosovo government released a donation of €242,356 to the Hospital Centre in North Mitrovica for medical supplies today – the chief of Staff to the Kosovo Prime Minister, Avni Arifi announced, emphasizing that „there is no humanitarian crisis“ in Kosovo due to the introduction of a customs duty for products from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgrade-based news agency Beta reported, citing Arifi’s announcement on Facebook. The head of the Hospital Centre, Milan Ivanovic, however, denied Arifi’s claims, TV Most and Tanjug reported. In the original announcement on Facebook, however, Arifi wrote that the donation was „released“, followed by an explanation that the customs duty is directed toward the Serbian state, not to „our citizens“. The announcement, however, did not state whose donation it is.
„Kosovo has released a donation of €242,356 to the Hospital Centre in North Mitrovica today. The customs duty is directed toward Serbia and its policy, and not towards our citizens. The Government of Kosovo has never taken any measures that jeopardize the life and health of its citizens, regardless of ethnicity. Our acts show that Serbian propaganda – that a 100% tax is creating a humanitarian crisis – is futile. There is no crisis,“ Arifi posted on Facebook.
„They want us to write the Republic of Kosovo on these medicines, well, if we write the Republic of Kosovo and give the medicine to the patients, given that it is a quasi-state, given that it is a rotten state, we will poison our patients,” the head of North Mitrovica Hospital Center, Milan Ivanovic recently told his employees and the leaders of Srpska Lista during a protest held in front of the administration building of this Centre.
The head of this Hospital Centre, Milan Ivanovic, soon denied Arifi’s claims, emphasizing that no one had contacted him and his colleagues from the North Mitrovica Hospital Centre regarding „a donation of funds“.
„The information that the Kosovo government has donated anything is incorrect. We are part of the health care system of Serbia and we do not have any contacts with Pristina, nor were they interested in what the situation is with drugs and oxygen. By hindering and delaying giving consent for medicines and oxygen, Pristina has, in the past three years, practically hindered the treatment of our patients,“ he told Tanjug.
According to Kosovo Customs, equipment and medicines worth €180,000 were imported free of duty last week for medical purposes in the north of Kosovo.
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
