The Special Court in The Hague and the Albanians in the region: Who is rewriting history, and who refuses to face the past?

Since politics cannot, the work of the Specialist Chambers in The Hague has united Albanians in the Western Balkans. At the latest protest in Pristina, it was declared that former members of the KLA would not allow a “rewriting of history,” while political leaders from North Macedonia and Albania argued that a revision of the Council of Europe’s Resolution is needed, or at least that the Kosovo parliament should adopt a similar document. Interviewees for Kosovo Online note that views differ from Tirana to Belgrade. While some insist it is unacceptable for the fate of former KLA leaders to be decided based on evidence from Serbia, others warn of an ongoing attempt at “abolishing the KLA,” suggesting that Albanians lack the will to confront their past.

Written by: Djordje Barovic

A large protest against the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, based in The Hague, was organized on August 7 in Pristina.

Just a few months earlier, on May 13, KLA veterans prevented Specialist Chambers President Ekaterina Trendafilova from holding a press conference in Pristina.

She later explained in an interview for Kosovo Online that these demonstrations showed why Pristina and Brussels agreed to conduct proceedings outside Kosovo.

She could now likely add: “outside the territory of the Western Balkans.”

Albanian Assembly Speaker Elisa Spiropali stated that the recent protests confirmed “pan-Albanian discontent.”

“The mass protests in Pristina once again confirmed deep pan-Albanian indignation over historical injustice, as well as support for former KLA leaders, who, contrary to all legal, international, moral, logical, and human standards, are being held in detention in The Hague,” Spiropali wrote on Facebook.

A similar message came from one of the protest speakers.

The President of the Organization of KLA War Veterans, Hisni Gucati, claimed that the Special Court was attempting to “reverse history.”

“This court, through its unilateral actions and selective choice of individuals, is trying to rewrite history in Serbia’s favor,” said Gucati, who himself had “stayed” in The Hague.

Three years ago, he was sentenced to four and a half years for “obstructing the administration of justice.” In 2023, the sentence was converted into conditional release, with the condition it would be revoked if violated.

“Pan-Albanian” discontent with the Specialist Chambers was also expressed by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, who called for the Kosovo parliament to adopt a resolution on violations of the rights of the accused former KLA leaders, with Albania’s Assembly set to follow suit.
The furthest went Ali Ahmeti, leader of one of North Macedonia’s largest parties, DUI, who urged representatives of North Macedonia and Albania to seek revision of the 2011 Council of Europe Resolution, under which this court was established.

“Moreover, the court in The Hague cooperates with the state structures of occupying Serbia, accepting as incriminating evidence materials provided by those who themselves committed crimes,” said Ahmeti.

Confronting the Past

For lawyer and former military prosecutor Dragan Pasic, there is no doubt that protests and statements against the Special Court clearly point to attempts to absolve the former KLA of any criminal responsibility.

For him, however, the core issue is that Albanians lack the will to confront the past.

“After wars and armed conflicts, the question of guilt arises for all parties, and this is a very complex issue. It is clear that politicians who steer public opinion are not guiding it in the right direction, because the question of accountability should be present. Clearly, there is no political will for that. The Albanian people must understand that they are not collectively guilty, but rather the individuals who committed war crimes are guilty, and that must be kept in mind. They should not identify with the leaders of the so-called KLA, regardless of their possible merits,” Pasic told Kosovo Online.

Commenting on the initiatives of Edi Rama and DUI leader Ali Ahmeti from North Macedonia, this lawyer noted that it should be clear to them they are “advocating something impossible.”

“The Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor’s Office were established on the basis of the Council of Europe Resolution, and that resolution later received its legal framework through constitutional amendments and the adoption of the Law on Specialist Chambers and Specialist

Prosecutor’s Office of Kosovo. The law does not provide for abolition or revision,” Pasic said.

He also rejected the thesis of “judicial rewriting of history” as inaccurate.

“The court does not rewrite history, the court determines individual criminal responsibility of those accused of the gravest crimes: crimes against humanity, war crimes, and there is reasonable suspicion they also violated other laws valid in the territory of so-called Kosovo,” explained Pasic.
Asked how far the campaign to “absolve” the KLA of crimes committed during the war had gone, Pasic pointed to the conviction of Igor Popovic, Deputy Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, for “deliberately and intentionally inciting and publicly spreading hatred and intolerance between ethnic groups,” merely for speaking about the killing of Serbs in Orahovac. He stressed that existing court rulings had already established that KLA members committed war crimes.

“There are final verdicts on this. Several cases have concluded where it was unambiguously proven that crimes were committed against civilians, prisoners of war, and other persons involved in armed actions on the territory of Kosovo and Metohija. Therefore, guilt cannot be absolved. This is about criminal liability. But politicians must also bear in mind political and moral responsibility, and ultimately even metaphysical guilt,” Pasic emphasized.

“Distorting History”

A very different view comes from Pristina lawyer Tom Gashi.

He believes that protests against the Special Court are “the reaction of Kosovo citizens” to an attempt to “distort history” of the KLA struggle.

His key argument is the acceptance of evidence from Serbia.

“Everyone has the right to protest, and the protest of Kosovo citizens against the Special Court is because it is clear that this court distorts history. I think the worst thing that happened is that this court accepted documentation from Serbia,” Gashi told Kosovo Online.

He stressed that the Specialist Chambers deal with events that occurred during the Kosovo war, where there were “two sides.”

“If the Special Court takes evidence from the side the KLA fought against, and treats Serbia’s documentation as credible, that means we practically cannot trust that court and do not believe it will bring justice to anyone. That was the main reason for this protest,” Gashi explained.

Commenting on protests that gathered Albanians from across the region, Gashi said that such protests are “normal in democratic countries,” regardless of being directed against a court that Kosovo itself authorized.

“But it is evident over these five years that there has been no justice there. Worst of all, more than 80 percent of trials are closed to the public. These are trials involving protected or anonymous witnesses. A Kosovo institution cannot have insight into what is happening there,” warned the lawyer.
Asked how Albanian views of the Specialist Chambers’ work could change, Gashi said the main case against “Thaçi and others” has entered its final stage, and citizens are stressed over how much weight the court will give to evidence from Serbia.

“By the end of this year or early next year, the court will announce the verdict in the case against Thaçi and others. Most Albanians are under stress because of this Serbian evidence the court has accepted. I don’t think that is justice. When you have two sides in a conflict, as there was in Kosovo, you cannot take evidence from one side to supposedly deliver justice to the other,” Gashi emphasized.

Despite the discontent, he considers it impossible to change the work of the Specialist Chambers, since the Kosovo parliament confirmed its establishment back in 2015.
“But everyone has the right to be dissatisfied with the work of this court,” he added.
That is why he is convinced that organizations formed by former KLA members will continue such protests.

“Political Confusion”

Amidst the atmosphere of “pan-Albanian discontent” with the Specialist Chambers, Tirana and Skopje interpret this dissatisfaction differently.

Political analyst from Tirana Ben Andoni believes these protests reflect a “confused reaction” of political parties in Pristina, giving the impression that the Self-Determination Movement opposes revision of the case against Hashim Thaçi.

“The situation in Kosovo, particularly regarding Thaçi’s trial, has become significantly complicated, especially due to very confused reactions across the political spectrum. It seems that compared with other parties (LDK, AAK, and PDK), Self-Determination opposes revision of the case against KLA leaders in The Hague,” Andoni told Kosovo Online.

What worries him most is the attitude of Kosovo institutions toward a court established by constitutional amendment and corresponding law adopted by parliament.

“The biggest problem is how to interpret this stance, Kosovo’s resistance, and the way the government should behave toward the KLA and toward the Special Court authorized by Kosovo institutions themselves,” Andoni stressed.

Another problem, he said, is the fact that not even the families of those being tried in The Hague, belonging to the leading Self-Determination party, participated in the protest.

“For example, the wife of Rexhep Selimi, one of the four accused in The Hague and herself a Self-Determination MP, did not attend the protest. This situation is the result of major political conflicts in Kosovo, but the fact remains that Kosovo is now confronted with a court it itself created,” Andoni said.

Political Dimension

In North Macedonia, the protests by KLA veterans immediately evoke memories of 2001 and the armed uprising of the National Liberation Army (NLA).
Former ambassador and analyst from Skopje, Risto Nikovski, said that many war crimes from that period remain unresolved.

He views the Pristina protests, supported by Albanians from the region, as a reaction to the fact that

“Kosovo has forgotten its prisoners in The Hague.”

“The impression is that Kosovo forgot its prisoners in The Hague, and obviously someone motivated them to take action because their war leaders from 1999 have been in The Hague for a long time. I think veterans mobilized as a result, aware they made a kind of ‘mistake’ in not reacting in time, doing nothing for their leaders who brought about secession, the illegal secession of Kosovo,” Nikovski told Kosovo Online.

Asked about claims that the Specialist Chambers in The Hague are “distorting history” regarding the KLA’s role, this analyst said such claims are “nonsense.”

“But it must be said that all special courts for the former Yugoslavia have had a political dimension. That is a fact. The best proof is our case, Macedonia’s, when we had an incursion, a military intervention from Kosovo. None of them have been held accountable; I hope they will be,” Nikovski stressed.

He recalled that the ICTY convicted two citizens of North Macedonia, which he said demonstrated both “manipulation and political bias in decisions.”

“None of those who started the war, who sought to secede the so-called Albanian territories from Macedonia, have ever been held accountable. I believe such a case will also emerge, yet Macedonians have been convicted. To this day, not a single Albanian ‘insurgent’ or those who caused unrest has been held responsible,” said Nikovski.

He also reminded of the absurdity that former NATO Secretary General George Robertson once called members of the NLA “terrorists,” yet none of them have ever been prosecuted.

“Those who defended the homeland were the ones convicted. So, there is a political dimension,” he explained.

Commenting on initiatives by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and DUI leader Ali Ahmeti to adopt resolutions against the Special Court, Nikovski called it “a waste of time.”

“Those resolutions won’t help anything. I think the reason no such step has been taken in Kosovo so far is directly due to their strategic friends, who advise them that such a move would be a step in the wrong direction,” Nikovski said.

He is convinced that despite pressure from KLA veterans, there will be no abolition for those KLA members who committed war crimes.

“That won’t happen. Everyone already in The Hague will be held accountable. There may be others as well, that cannot be ruled out, though this is nearing its end. All these trials are concluding. But everyone will be held accountable, and I believe that even those who caused turmoil in Macedonia and set the country back ten years will also face justice,” Nikovski concluded.