Kosovo Assembly Resolution provides for penalties for denial of Serbian crimes and “Serbian propaganda”

The resolution “on the truth and dignity of war victims,” adopted today by the Assembly of Kosovo, calls on judicial institutions to continue their work on investigations and trials concerning war crimes allegedly committed by Serbia in Kosovo. The document also envisages an obligation to undertake the necessary legislative measures to amend Kosovo’s Criminal Code in order to introduce penalties for individuals who deny or diminish crimes attributed to Serbia during the 1998–1999 war.

Article 1 of the document states that it is the responsibility of Kosovo’s institutions to carry out the research and documentation of crimes attributed to Serbia during the Kosovo war.

“The only verified data on Serbian crimes in Kosovo are the official data of the Institute for War Crimes in Kosovo,” it adds, as reported by Lajmi.

The resolution encourages judicial institutions to continue their ongoing work with even greater dedication in investigating and prosecuting, as stated, war crimes allegedly committed by Serbia in Kosovo, including increased use of recent legal amendments enabling investigations and trials in absentia for such crimes.

The document further envisages an obligation to adopt the necessary legal amendments to Kosovo’s Criminal Code in order to introduce penalties for individuals who “deny or diminish crimes committed by Serbia during the 1998–1999 war, as well as for those who commit acts that violate the dignity of victims, approve, glorify, or justify the tyranny and arbitrary rule of Serbia, as well as crimes committed in Kosovo, or disseminate Serbian propaganda.”

The document pays tribute to the “sublime sacrifice of the Albanian people, all martyrs of the nation, those who fell, and all those who in any way contributed and sacrificed for freedom and independence.”

“It condemns any official or other effort, as well as any statement by public officials, aimed at or implying the amnesty of Serbia from responsibility for crimes committed during the Kosovo war. It condemns any form of distortion, relativization, or inaccurate presentation of historical facts related to the 1998–1999 Kosovo war. It also condemns initiatives such as the recent exhibition organized in public spaces in Pristina which, due to inaccurate data on Serbian massacres in Kosovo, have provoked widespread reactions and risk reopening wounds, thereby endangering the integrity of truth and historical facts,” the document states, calling on competent institutions to document the truth about the war.

The resolution also calls on society as a whole—including the media, citizens, and institutions—to engage in collecting evidence in order to support indictments against Serbia.

The Institute for War Crimes in Kosovo is called upon to urgently investigate and document accurate data on massacres attributed to Serbia in Kosovo and to reflect historical truth in an accurate and comprehensive manner. All institutions, academic bodies, research institutes, media, non-governmental organizations, associations, experts in the field, citizens, and victims’ families are also invited to contribute by submitting materials, facts, testimonies, evidence, and arguments to the Institute.

Judicial authorities are called upon to conduct a full, independent, and impartial investigation into the possible presence of criminal elements in cases involving the presentation of inaccurate data and to fully clarify any such cases.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Presidency are tasked with responding in real time and proportionately in instances where the narrative of the last war in Kosovo is challenged in international forums or public statements.

“The competent institutions are obliged to ensure that every public activity, exhibition, or publication dealing with the war period is based on sources verified and confirmed by the Institute for War Crimes in Kosovo, as a scientifically credible research institution, as well as on final decisions of judicial authorities, in order to avoid any interpretation that undermines the dignity of victims and the truth about the liberation war,” the resolution states.

It is required that the Assembly and all other central or local institutions in Kosovo, prior to providing financial or any other form of support to activities presenting the war period or containing elements thereof, ensure the accuracy of the materials, data, and historical truth.

The financing or support of organizations that implement or promote projects distorting historical truth or insulting victims is prohibited.

The resolution reaffirms the full and continuous commitment of the Kosovo Assembly to protect and preserve historical truth.