Jevtic: We, south of the Ibar, are not far from the decision to also leave the Institutions

The mayor of Strpce, Dalibor Jevtic, said that there was a possibility that the Serbs south of the Ibar would also leave the Kosovo institutions, stating that the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, interpreted the laws in a way that suited him and that the valid laws regarding the rights of the Serbian and other minority communities were not respected in Kosovo, RTV reports.

Jevtic told Tanjug that the situation in Kosovo since Kurti had come to power, was getting more difficult day by day when it came to the life and position of Serbs in that area and added that everything that had been happening lately was proof that the international the community was not doing its part of the work in the way it should, primarily with the aim of calming tensions and overcoming the entire situation.

He stated that "institutional violence at all levels" was present in Kosovo above all and that the Serbs were victims of what Kurti aimed for in the ultimate sense, which was to put the Serbs in Kosovo in the most difficult position and in this way made them leave that area.

"Our colleague's decision to leave the institutions in the north of Kosovo and Metohija was made at a time when we no longer had a way out under all the pressures that not only we, but also the state of Serbia and President Aleksandar Vucic suffered, and in that sense, it was a clear message that something needs to be done changed in that relationship and the entire situation that is happening in Kosovo and Metohija," Jevtic said.

He added that even then he had made it very clear that the Serbs south of the Ibar, if nothing changed, would follow the same path because, as he pointed out, there was no point in being in institutions if they were not able to ensure the realization of our basic, human rights in Kosovo.

Jevtic pointed out that the most problematic thing was that the current laws in Kosovo, which concerned the rights of Serbian and other minority communities, were not respected.

"The laws are treated like “a buffet” there. Kurti treats them in such a way that he only takes what he likes, everything that concerns the rights of Serbs is ignored, and on the other hand, he interprets the laws in a way that suits him, in a dictatorial way." Jevtic said.

When asked what the red lines were when it came to the position of the Serbs south of the Ibar for leaving the provisional institutions, Jevtic said:

"As far as we, south of the Ibar, are concerned, I think we are close to those red lines. The last decision, the complete ignoring of the constitutional right that guarantees the representation of Serbs in institutions at the central level of government, is something that has put us in a position where we are not far from the decision to leave Kosovo's institutions".

Jevtic said that the Serbs were disappointed because of the international community's silence on all that Kurti was doing.

"Silence is a sign of approval and in such a situation there is nothing left for us but to leave the institutions and not be a part of what Kurti is doing", Jevtic said and added that he would make the final decision on leaving the Kosovo institutions, taking into account all the circumstances, the facts and the main question posed by the President of Serbia - "And what are you going to do the day after?".

When asked whether the local authorities south of the Ibar, where the Serbs were the majority population, had communication with the central authorities in Pristina, especially when it came to the appointment of Rasic as the Minister for Communities and Returns to the government in Pristina, who had not been elected as a representative of the Serbs, Jevtic said that cooperation with the central authorities in Pristina did not exist and that they were not doing anything not even in terms of procedural and technical matters.

"They don't respond to our letters. For example, we in Štrpce a year after starting the procedure for obtaining a license to open a public company that will be in charge of waste removal, we still haven't received approval, which is a procedural and technical issue, not a political issue," Jevtic said and added that this spoke of the attitude of the government in Pristina towards the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities.

On the other hand, he stated that when it came to the procedure for electing ministers, the Kosovo constitution was very clear and that Article 96, paragraph 5 indicated how the representative of the Serbs in the government in Pristina was elected.

He reminded that Nenad Rasic, Rada Trajkovic, and Albin Kurti had said that the procedure had not been violated and added that Kurti now had to say that he had done it based on the second article of the constitution and the method of electing and appointing ministers, as well as that Rasic, was not a representative of the Serbs.

"If Kurti says that Rasic is a representative of the Serbs, then the constitution has been violated on that side, and if he says that he appointed him as a minister on other grounds, then the entire government is unconstitutional, and therefore the reaction of the international community must be different," Jevtic said.

Commenting on the fact that the Serb Lista had announced an appeal to the Constitutional Court of Kosovo and the question of whether it had expected any institutional response when it came to the appointment of Rasic as a minister, Jevtic said that he would use institutional mechanisms, but that the public had to know that the relationship of all institutions with the Serb List and everything related to them at that moment was very negative.

"I don't have any expectations, but that's why we are first of all addressing the representatives of the international community," Jevtic said.