Baraliu: Self-Determination believes it has succeeded in improving the situation of all citizens in the north

University professor Mazllum Baraliu says that after its victory in the previous elections, Self-Determination continually emphasized that it would be engaged in northern Kosovo and that it would, whenever possible, have direct contact with citizens of the Serbian and other communities both in the north and in other parts of Kosovo, and that it has succeeded in this to some extent.

According to him, reliable data show that the situation in the north has improved for all citizens, including citizens of the Serbian and other minority communities.

“Self-Determination believes that in this respect it has succeeded there, that it has invested, that it is in contact, although it faces certain continuous obstructions from Serb List and, in their view, from Belgrade as well, in terms of citizen integration and the development of the country in that area”, Baraliu notes.

How all this will be reflected in the upcoming elections, he adds, will also depend on whether citizens are more angry with the opposition parties or with all parties equally because of everything that has happened in recent months, since the delay in forming institutions has caused immeasurable damage.

“We will see whom they will trust more and to whom they will give their confidence in terms of percentage”, he stresses.

When it comes to what kind of relationship can be expected from the caretaker government toward the newly elected Serbian mayors in the north, Baraliu points out that the results of the local elections have been recognized by everyone, including Self-Determination, and that there is nothing there that can be contested.

“The mayors and all institutions will be there exactly as prescribed by the Constitution and the law of this country. The democratic will of the citizens will be respected, and I think that no one has either the possibility or the intention to stand in anyone’s way in assuming responsibility in those municipalities at the local level. There will be no obstacles, nor can there be any, because all of us in the Balkans, and especially Kosovo, are under the scrutiny of the international community”, Baraliu says.