Serbian Democracy (SD) has sharply criticized a new decision by the Kosovo authorities requiring all citizens without Kosovo-issued documents to report to police stations within three days of entering Kosovo.
“If Kosovo’s law is the Bible, then why do we even have a dialogue?” the party asked in a statement reacting to the move.
According to the new rule, everyone without Kosovo documents – including a significant number of Serbs who live, study, or work in Kosovo while coming from central Serbia – will have to register with the police and obtain a confirmation or permit from the Kosovo Interior Ministry. In practice, this amounts to issuing a form of “temporary residence.” The authorities have not yet specified when the decision will be fully implemented.
Students and Professors Affected
In its reaction, SD described the decision as “the most damaging yet – on par with the dinar ban” and warned of serious consequences for education and employment.
“This decision will require all students without Kosovo documents to apply for temporary residence in order to continue their studies. One of the mandatory documents is ‘proof of enrollment in an accredited higher education institution in the Republic of Kosovo,’” the party stated.
It stressed that such proof is impossible to obtain for students at the University of Mitrovica North until the long-promised Association/Community of Serb-Majority Municipalities (ASM) is established, which would regulate the university’s status.
Professors would face similar hurdles, SD added, as they would need to submit employment contracts with entities registered in Kosovo in order to obtain work permits – something they also called impossible under the current circumstances.
The party argued that the decision places a series of additional administrative barriers on the University of Pristina.
“North Mitrovica is our educational, health, and cultural hub. The university keeps the city alive. By dismantling the university, Self-Determination (Vetëvendosje) wants to erode education, drive our youth away, threaten our biological survival, and leave only the elderly behind,” SD claimed.
Call for Urgent Action
SD urged an immediate response to what it described as unilateral measures aimed at undermining the dialogue process and “driving Serbs out.”
“All the while they pretend to invoke ‘the law.’ Which law? Is Kosovo’s law the Bible? If everything must be by the law, why do we have a dialogue?” the party said, reiterating its criticism.
Finally, the party noted that the brochure explaining the new rules was funded by Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, adding with irony: “The great champions of Kosovo’s ‘multiethnicity.’”
Four Kosovo Serb NGOs Urge International Action over New Government Measures
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