Expropriation in the north of Kosovo - property rights do not apply to the Serbs

The last decision of the Government in Pristina on the expropriation of land in the north of Kosovo owned by the Serbs, this time in the municipality of Leposavic, caused general indignation among the locals. Not only because no one informed them that they could lose their possessions for the sake of "public interest", but also because that "interest" turned out to be the border police base.

Stunned by the behind-the-scenes actions of the Kosovo government, the inhabitants of the village of Dren and surrounding hamlets have been protesting for two weeks. They also seek justice in court.

Igor Popovic, assistant director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija for legal issues, tells us that in this case, first of all, the right to property as a universal human right was violated.

"According to the European Convention on Human Rights, the property right is universal and it cannot be alienated or disabled. It is possible, only in the public interest, and there is no public interest here. There is talk of some infrastructure. What kind? The infrastructure is the construction of roads, water pipes, and embankments for flood defense... However, some kind of base is being built here, which is certainly not in the public interest of the population living in the municipalities of Leposavic and Zubin Potok. Buildings are being built in which there will be some kind of alleged policemen, special forces who will harass these people and that is not in the public interest at all," Popovic says.

As indicated, when making the decision on expropriation, not even the regulations of the temporary institutions of self-government had been followed, but all formalities had been violated.

"The local self-government bodies, which should be informed about the spatial plan and land use, were not informed. The owners were not informed either, and only when they went to their properties, did they find machinery, policemen, and armored vehicles. They were prevented from entering their property and only then were they informed that something was happening and that some kind of base was being built on their land," Popovic says.

Regarding this case, the Office of the European Union in Pristina expressed concern and appealed to the government of Kosovo to respect the rights of property owners. A group of ten non-governmental organizations from Kosovo also announced their request to immediately stop the process of expropriation of land owned by the Serbs in the municipalities of Zubin Potok and Leposavic.

Dren, Lesak, Kosutovo, and Bistrica are the "targets" of expropriation in the municipality of Leposavic, and in Zubin Potok Brnjak, the village of Banje, Gornji Jasenovik, and Veliki Breg.

Popovic does not expect too much from the public discussion on expropriation, which will be organized tomorrow in Leposavic, and on February 21 in Zubin Potok, for the simple reason that the regulations were not followed from the beginning.

"It is purely a formality to comply with the EU, from which there was mild criticism that in this case it was not acted in accordance with the regulations," our interlocutor says.

Popovic points out that this is also a political issue and that the international community must be involved.

"The Office for Kosovo and Metohija will fight for all illegal measures to be withdrawn, as well as machinery, and for people to be able to dispose of their property. The Office for Kosovo and Metohija, in cooperation with local self-governments, has organized legal teams that will ensure that people are legally protected. They will write appeals and lawsuits, lawyer Nebojsa Vlajic was hired, professors of the Faculty of Law, the judges who worked in the local self-government judiciary, and other excellent lawyers were involved," Popovic says and reminds that the decision on expropriation in the municipalities of Leposavic and Zubin Potok was also made in 2022. year, when the land near the administrative crossings was confiscated.

"The office for Kosovo and Metohija reacted immediately, sending letters and protests to international missions, stating exactly what had been violated, both in terms of restrictions on property rights and in terms of mistreatment of the Serbs in the north of Kosovo and Metohija, and the violation of international documents that prevent the forced entry of alleged special forces with rifles to the north of Kosovo and Metohija," Popovic says.

Zoran Todic, the resigned mayor of Leposavic Municipality, tells Kosovo Online that the people are determined not to allow expropriation. He states that work is currently not being carried out on the road that leads to the land plots that the government from Pristina intended to take away from the owners.

"We are talking about 13 land plots that are privately owned and six land plots that are socially owned. Their owners and residents of the village of Dren and the hamlets of Zaselje, Mekiniqe, and Kratina are protesting because they do not agree with the decisions of the Pristina government to seize their land, as they say, for the sake of building some kind of facility of public interest. Unfortunately, we only found out a few days ago what the government's intentions were and what they planned to build. This further disturbed the owners of the mentioned land plots and not only them but also the inhabitants of many villages on the territory of Leposavic municipality. The law clearly defines what public interest is. It does not necessarily mean that what is in the interest of the central level of government is also the interest of the local community, the people living in the territory of this municipality. This decision does not bring anything good to the people here," Todic says.

He reminds that the citizens, in cooperation with the municipality, gave a power of attorney to lawyer Nebojsa Vlajic, who filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court.

"If Pristina succeeds in these intentions, it will cause additional unrest among the Serbs who live in the immediate vicinity and in general on the territory of our municipality, because we have all witnessed that for a year and more special units of the Kosovo Police patrol here. They create anxiety among our people because there is no trust. No one has worked to build trust, so they have nothing to do here," Todic points out.

However, he says, he hopes that Pristina will make a reasonable decision regarding the land usurpation.

"These people are resolved and determined to continue living on their centuries-old hearths; these people are not a threat to anyone; these people just want to live in peace, to live, create and build a secure future for themselves and their families, so I believe that In the end, the government from Pristina will make a reasonable decision to stop this. Because the people are determined to defend and not allow their land to be usurped and any police station to be built on their land," Todic added.

Regarding the decision of the government in Pristina on the determination of public interest, lawyer Mladen Ciprijanovic says that it is unclear who proposed the determination of public interest, who is the initiator, on what basis, and in what procedure that public interest was determined.

"The Government of Kosovo decided without reasoning, saying only that it was about infrastructural facilities of public importance, very curtly and without reasoning. Construction machines were brought, some works were started, the expansion of the access road to the land plots that are subject to expropriation, however, the overall behavior on the ground was not accompanied by legal acts," Ciprijanovic points out for Kosovo Online.

From a legal point of view, he adds, private property cannot be usurped just like that.

"Only if there is a well-reasoned public interest is it possible to limit the right to private property, after a long procedure. The entire expropriation procedure is accompanied by certain legal means and legal remedies that citizens can use during the procedure. However, regarding the decision from August last year and expropriation in the cadastral zone of Bistrica, where the built base is already located, we have a de facto expropriation where the citizens were deprived of any legal means," Ciprijanovic points out.

He points out that the works cannot be carried out while the court case is ongoing.

"The execution of works is not possible until the final decision on expropriation is made. The period between the preliminary and final decision is 12 months when nothing will happen on the ground except possibly preparatory works. Also, that deadline is extended for the duration of the court case," Ciprijanovic concludes.

Lawyer Nebojsa Vlajic, who represents the injured parties from Leposavic and Zubin Potok, told Kosovo Online that 83 hectares had been taken in Leposavic by the decision of the Kosovo Government, and about 50 hectares in the municipality of Zubin Potok. Vlajic believes that in this case, the court has all the conditions to accept the lawsuit because the demands of the citizens are well founded.