A group of civil society organizations from Kosovo’s Serb community has addressed an open letter to the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, urging him to visit Kosovo and assess what they describe as “serious and systemic violations” of the rights of non-majority communities.
In their letter, the organizations accuse the government in Pristina of pursuing “a systematic policy of discrimination and marginalization of the Serb community through police abuse, administrative and economic restrictions.”
They stressed that their intention was to draw O’Flaherty’s attention to “serious and systematic breaches of human and minority rights guaranteed by the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.”
“Despite formal constitutional guarantees, the rights of communities, particularly those of the Kosovo Serb community, are being routinely violated, disregarded, or selectively applied, creating deep mistrust toward institutions and a pervasive sense of insecurity among non-majority communities in Kosovo.”
The letter highlights reports by relevant institutions and organizations pointing to what they describe as “persistent pattern of non-compliance with the standards of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.”
Examples include:
• Suppression of cultural symbols: NGOs say Kosovo institutions have sought to prevent Serbs from displaying national symbols such as flags and other insignia, in violation of Article 5 of the Convention.
• Freedom of expression concerns: They cite cases of arrests and court rulings against Serbs for expressing political views publicly, which they argue contravene Article 7, guaranteeing freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and association.
• Political participation: The organizations accuse the government of actively preventing Serb political parties from participating in elections and governmental structures, in violation of Article 15.
• Electoral rolls: They point to changes in voter registries in Serb-majority municipalities, highlighting that they threaten to change the ethnic composition of non-majority communities, allegedly breaching Article 16.
• Language rights: Longstanding problems regarding the use of the Serbian language have reportedly worsened in recent years, with systematic exclusion of Serbian in public administration, lack of translation in official procedures, and omission of Cyrillic script from public signage. This, they say, violates Article 10 of the Convention.
According to the NGOs, these are only some of the violations occurring on the ground.
“Under the guise of the rule of law, the Government of Kosovo has pursued a systematic policy of discrimination and marginalisation against the Serb community, through police abuse, administrative and economic restrictions, the closure of Serbian institutions and services, and the Central Bank’s ban on the dinar, thereby forcing vulnerable citizens to seek basic rights in central Serbia, reducing daily life to mere survival, accelerating emigration, and ultimately threatening both the community’s very existence and the viability of a multiethnic Kosovo.”
The organizations called on O’Flaherty to ensure systematic documentation of these issues during a visit to Kosovo.
“Your direct engagement is indispensable for insisting on institutional accountability and for advancing the effective implementation of both domestic and international legal obligations. Civil society in Kosovo remains ready to engage with you and to contribute constructively to these efforts,” they underlined.
The open letter was signed by 18 NGOs: Youth Activity Partesh, Women’s Right, Women’s Inclusion Center, Network for Civic Activism, New Social Initiative – NSI, Institute for Territorial Economic Development – InTER, Institute for Public Research – IJI Gračanica, Human Center Mitrovica, Gračanica Online, Forum for Development and Multiethnic Collaboration – FDMC, Communication for Social Development – CSD, Center for Social Initiatives – CSI, Center for Peace and Tolerance Pristina – CPT, Center for Affirmative Social Action – CASA, Avenija, Alternativna, and Aktiv.
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