Gashi: Citizens see the Specialized Court is twisting history, evidence from Serbia unacceptable

Lawyer Tome Gashi stated that protests against the Specialized Chambers for war crimes in Kosovo, based in The Hague, are a reaction by citizens to the work of this court and an attempt to “twist history” regarding the participation of the former KLA in the 1999 war.

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

He emphasized that the Specialized Chambers try cases for events that occurred during the war in Kosovo, in which there were “two sides.”

“If the Specialized Court takes evidence from the side that the KLA was at war with and accepts Serbia’s documentation as credible, it means that we effectively cannot trust this court and do not believe that this court will deliver justice for anyone. That was the main reason for this protest,” Gashi explained.

Commenting on the protests that brought together Albanians from the region, Gashi said that such demonstrations are “normal in democratic countries,” even though they are protesting a court that Kosovo itself effectively authorized.

“However, it has become evident over these five years that there is no justice there. Worst of all, more than 80 percent of the trials are ones that no one can follow because the public is excluded. These are trials involving protected or anonymous witnesses. No institution in Kosovo can have knowledge of what is happening there,” warned the lawyer.

Asked how the opinion of Kosovo Albanians regarding the work of the Specialized Chambers could be changed, Gashi said that the main trial against “Thaci and others” has entered its final phase, and citizens are stressed about how much the court will consider evidence from Serbia.

“By the end of this year or the beginning of next year, the court will announce the verdict in the case against Thaci and others. Most Albanians are stressed because of this evidence from Serbia that the court accepted. I don’t think that is justice. When you have two sides in a conflict, and there was a war in Kosovo, you cannot take evidence from one side to supposedly deliver justice for the other side,” Gashi stressed.

Despite the dissatisfaction, he believes it is impossible to change anything in the work of the Specialized Chambers because the court’s operation was confirmed by parliament in 2015.

“However, everyone has the right to be dissatisfied with the work of this court,” he added.

For this reason, he is convinced that organizations formed by former KLA members will continue such forms of protest.