Summary of the Week 24

We knew that elections were approaching even in the past weeks. Both from the calendar and from the actions of politicians. Now that we know the date, we also know what's being prepared. In the coming weeks, we'll see who wants to choose and what they will be able to choose.

Many would say that the campaign never really stopped. However, now it's official, we know when the elections will be. And right from the start, this week with the new desecration of the church near Strpce, we can anticipate what to expect before the elections.

“When Kurti is more isolated, he becomes more extreme,” says analyst Ognjen Gogic. “And this first and foremost affects the position of Serbs in Kosovo,” he adds.

Despite the elections, as we've seen, some have no right to choose, only to endure. The dialogue will also suffer, fear those who remember it.

Stefan Vladisavljev, program director of the BFPE Foundation, however, believes that there is little left to spoil.

“I don't think the campaign will significantly affect the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue because, to be honest, there's not much left to affect,” summarizes Vladisavljev regarding the achievements of the meetings in Brussels so far.

The elections will not affect ongoing processes, searches for culprits and the missing. All of that was stopped long ago, independently of the elections. The executive director of the Resource Center for Missing Persons in Pristina, Bajram Qerkinaj, reminds us: a quarter of a century in uncertainty, years in silence.

“I can say that it has already been three years since the situation has been completely blocked,” explains Qerkinaj.

The choice for those who remember and mourn is not to give up. We heard this week, on another anniversary of the abduction of journalists and the anniversary of the reminder that there has been no progress.

“We know and we promise that we will search for them as long as we exist,” said UNS president Zivojin Rakocevic.

And before the elections, there will be choices. The kind that makes the whole world worry and fear. That’s why now is the right moment to choose a side and send a message. To your voters. Is Prime Minister Kurti's selfie in a full hall of high-ranking officials in Chicago a clear enough message to his followers in Pristina?

“It's hard to see anything useful coming out of that selfie, which is the most significant result of that visit to Chicago,” assesses Marko Miskeljin from the Center for Social Stability.

Meanwhile, in Pristina... Both the agreement, the financial support, and the selfie. And above all, the message from Ambassador Hovenier. To the voters and those preparing to be elected.

“The commitment to the people of Kosovo is unquestionable. It does not depend on any particular government or the political choices of that government,” emphasized U.S. Ambassador to Kosovo Jeffrey Hovenier.

Some choices are difficult, but there is no doubt about others. The Paralympians have departed for Paris. It's time to choose favorites and support everyone.