Kosovo courts have taken over the war crimes cases from EULEX, therefore, in addition to the crimes committed by KLA members against Serbs, they will also deal with crimes against Albanians for which Serbs are suspected of committing.
Lawyer Nebojsa Vlajic told RTS that the trials against Serbs are “very agonizing and torturous”. In his words, someone’s innocence must be proven to people “who do not want to hear it, who will not objectively review the evidence” and to those whom “you do not trust while they are incapable of making a fair decision.”
EULEX plays an unimportant role
He also recalled that the EULEX mandate changed in June of last year, and that since then EULEX has no executive function – „they have no right to directly participate and adjudicate cases“.
„They say they have kept the role of an observer, but I can freely say that this is an unimportant role, which has no impact on judges,“ Vlajic stressed.
“If any hope existed while the EULEX judiciary operated in Kosovo, when there were some acquittals, such hopes are now diminishing,” he added.
According to Vlajic, such cases will be judged exclusively by local judges without any influence and participation of EULEX or foreign judges.
This new situation is the result of an amendment of the Law on Courts, by which the jurisdiction for war crimes trials was exclusively given to the Basic Court in Pristina. Vlajic expressed dissatisfaction over this amendment. He believes that there is no possibility that a trial can be held in North Mitrovica, where, he explained – most judges are ethnic Serbs.
“Trials will have to be held in Pristina where all the judges are Albanians,” argues this lawyer. Vlajic also shared his belief that even if Serbian judges are involved in these trials, their number will be negligible.
Kosovo introducing trial in absentia
Vlajic also warned that the discussions on the new Criminal Procedure Code are underway and that this represents a way to introduce trial in absentia.
„This is a kind of institute of a trial in absentia, which once existed in our law, and it was long since abolished for being undemocratic. They want to introduce it again in Kosovo… if it passes as a legal draft, it will mean that the judiciary in Kosovo will be able to judge anyone without his presence,“ Vlajic concluded during his guest appearance on the RTS Dnevnik.
“Secret indictment for the purpose of intimidation”
EULEX has forwarded eleven indictments against Serbian citizens to the Kosovo judiciary, the competent prosecutor’s office and courts, and Vlajic claims that the number of indictments will be higher in the future.
“There have been lists on the Internet containing the names of several hundred Serbs for several years now” – he claimed.
Also, he claimed that indictments against Serbs are secret, allegedly, out of political reasoning.
“This is to intimidate members of one community because no one will come to Kosovo if he expects or believes that he can be arrested or punished” – Vlajic said in Belgrade.
Finally, he is convinced that the Kosovo authorities, since they do not have the right to issue INTERPOL’s warrants, will do so via EULEX.
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
