Jevtic: The CSM is an essential and vital issue for us

The vice-president of the Serb List and the mayor of Strpce, Dalibor Jevtic, assessed that it was important to continue the discussions and dialogue, adding that this was the only way to maintain peace in Kosovo, but that the formation of the CSM was a prerequisite for the further implementation of any plan, Jedinstvo writes.

The continuation of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina in Ohrid under the auspices of the European Union is scheduled for March 18. The Franco-German plan for Kosovo will be on the table, and the EU Special Envoy, Miroslav Lajcak, before the agreed meeting, is hastily holding meetings with political representatives of the Serbs and Albanians, trying to bring the distant parties closer.

In an interview for Jedinstvo, Jevtic emphasized that the representatives of the Serbs from Kosovo had made it clear at the meeting with Lajcak that their position had not changed, and that without the formation of the CSM, the Serbs would not return to the institutions and participate in the elections in the north.

Currently, in the political life of both Belgrade and Pristina, there is a Franco-German, i.e. European Plan regarding the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina. How do you rate the mentioned plan?

The plan itself is quite politically challenging and difficult. It is certainly important to talk and continue the dialogue as the only way to maintain peace. The prerequisite for further implementation is certainly the formation of the CSM. Believing in the wisdom and politics of Aleksandar Vuciccc, we are sure that the final outcome will be in the interest of the Serbs and the state of Serbia. The Community of Serb-majority Municipalities is an essential and vital issue for us. On the other hand, the free flow of people and capital is something that, I'm sure, will reduce tensions among ordinary citizens, tensions that were created by Pristina with its unilateral moves. 

Representatives of the Serb List, including you, met on Friday with the EU Special Envoy for dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, Miroslav Lajcak. What did you present to him on that occasion?

Using specific examples, we pointed out the difficult position of the Serbs and the presence of total distrust in the current government in Pristina. We also received confirmation that everything we presented was confirmed by EU representatives on the ground. Therefore, the problems of the Serbs are not a matter of politics, but a matter of survival. Institutional violence carried out by the Government of Kosovo, rhetoric that marks the Serbs as criminals, led to Serbs leaving the institutions in the north of Kosovo and Metohija, interruption of even the smallest communication of the Serbs at all levels, and incidents like the one on January 6 in Strpce. In addition to those topics, we talked mostly about the formation of the CSM and heard unequivocally from Mr. Lajcak that without the implementation of the previous agreements, that is, without the formation of the CSM, the implementation of the new European plan could not be started. In this context, we also discussed the topic of local elections in the north of Kosovo and Metohija and the return of the Serbs to the institutions, where it was clearly stated that our position on the matter had not changed and that without the beginning of the formation of the CSM, there would be no participation in the local elections or the return of the Serbs to the institutions.

How do you see the political security situation since all the incidents and attacks on the Serbs are mainly the result of the rhetoric coming from Pristina from Prime Minister Albin Kurti?

The political and security situation in Kosovo is very fragile and tense. When you just look at the daily level that we almost always have an incident, it is clear what the situation is. Well, just look at the way Kurti and others talk about the Serbs, the way the Serbs are arrested, how their basic human rights are violated, they are convicted in advance without evidence, it is clear that the result of the policy of the current government in Pristina is disastrous on all levels. It is clear to us what the goal of the current government in Pristina is, which has led to a situation where there is no safety and security for the Serbs, and the goal is for the Serbs to leave the area of Kosovo and Metohija. Investigations, attacks, indictments, all this is not accidental. The question here is what the international community will do about this issue and whether they will remain silent observers of what Kurti is doing or will finally stand in the way of his actions because this is not only a threat to security in Kosovo and Metohija but also regionally.

The municipality you lead is facing numerous problems and attacks by the central authorities in Pristina. One of those attacks was a few days ago when the Kosovo Prosecutor's Office filed charges against several residents who were at protests due to illegal construction by Albanians. Actually, instead of punishing the usurper, the Kosovo judicial authorities want to punish the Serbs who protect the rights and the law?

Since the moment when Albin Kurti came to power, the municipality of Strpce, next to the north of Kosovo and Metohija, has been a political target of the current government. Intrusions by special police forces, arrests, detentions, sending the police to the very institution of the Municipality, ignoring procedural and technical issues by the Government of Kosovo through the administrative procedures of the Municipality of Strpce, ignoring our legal and legitimate requests and letters, labeling the citizens of Strpce in different ways, increased presence and the work of the Kosovo intelligence service and the recruitment of some of our fellow citizens with criminal records to work against the Municipality of Strpce and its citizens are just some of the many problems and challenges we are facing today. The example of an attempt of illegal construction in the village of Sevce, the protest of the locals and the institutional reaction of the municipality I lead, and as a result of our legal and democratic struggle the indictment against our fellow citizens, who protested, is a clear picture of the circumstances in which we live and work and the injustice, which we fight. You know, our colleagues and friends have been in custody for more than 15 months because of the alleged fight against corruption and illegal construction in Brezovica. When we fight against illegal construction, they again threaten us with lawsuits and detentions. Instead of prosecuting the person who violates the law, lawsuits arrive at the address of ordinary people who are only defending their existence and right to life. And this process is just one in a series of our oppression, but regardless of everything, we do not give up our democratic struggle, and in that struggle, the truth is our strongest and only weapon.

The Pristina judicial authorities qualified the wounding and attempted murder of a Serbian boy and a young man on Christmas Day by a member of the KSF as "causing general danger", an act subject to a symbolic punishment. Isn't that an open message and pressure on the Serbs to leave their homes?

These days, in addition to all the pressures, especially since the moment when I publicly criticized the requalification of the crime against the person who shot and wounded Stefan and Milos on that occasion, I have been exposed to attacks and various insults and threats by certain Albanians just because I told the truth, which is that it is about attempted murder, not "causing general danger". The suspect's lawyer is threatening me with a lawsuit, others are telling me that we should "educate children how to behave when they go to cut the Serbian Christmas tree", others are calling me a criminal and a terrorist, and a servant of Aleksandar Vucic, while there are also those who tell me that I don't belong in Kosovo and Metohija. My answer to all of them is clear; you have not and will not frighten or sway me. I am proud of the fact that I have the opportunity to work with and follow the politics of Aleksandar Vucic because it is a policy of peace; it is a policy of coexistence, and it is all contrary to what those who justify shooting Stefan and Milos are telling us these days. By sheer luck, Stefan survived. Centimeters decided. And then someone tells me it's nothing? Someone expects me to keep quiet about it? In the end, it will turn out that Stefan and Milos shot themselves. They tell us to keep quiet because if we don't keep quiet they will prosecute us or I don't know what they will do. Well, I clearly tell them that we will not be silent, nor my colleagues nor I, nor the citizens. With the protest on January 8, we clearly showed what we all think about that and all other attacks on Serbian children, and on the Serbs as a people. And I would have a lot to say about these last as well as all other challenges and attacks that the Serbs and we as legitimate representatives of the Serbs are facing. On the other hand, the support of Belgrade, President Aleksandar Vucic, the Government of Serbia, the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, and the Director of the Office Petar Petkovic is something that gives us strength and sends a message that we are not alone in our, by no means easy, fight for justice and truth. This is exactly why we will win no matter what, the truth will win.