Mijacic: I believe enough signatures will be collected for the petition; it is good to show the desire for the removal of mayors

In North Mitrovica and Leposavic, the collection of citizens' signatures for the petition to remove the mayors in those municipalities begins today, and Dragisa Mijacic, the coordinator of the working group of the National Convention of the European Union for Chapter 35, tells Kosovo Online that he believes the organizers will collect enough signatures, but he is not sure that there won't be further procedural ambiguities or problems to prolong the removal process as much as possible. However, he assesses that acceleration is possible if Kosovo comes under pressure related to its request for membership in the Council of Europe.

"It is good that signatures are being collected and that enough will be gathered to show a desire to remove the mayors, but I believe that the process will not be so fast and efficient, and many factors will influence the entire process. At this moment, we cannot specify any deadline for the removal of the mayors," Mijacic says.

As a reminder, to submit the petition, it is necessary to collect at least 20% of the signatures from the total number of registered voters, and then a vote on the removal of the mayors can be organized.

Mijacic notes that the administrative instructions for the petitions for the removal of mayors prescribe clear steps on the one hand, while on the other hand, they are not precise in defining deadlines. He also points out that it is questionable whether the instructions comply with the Kosovo Constitution and that, at some point, there may be obstructions in the sense that the Constitutional Court may say that the administrative instructions are not in line with the Constitution.

"I believe that the Government of Kosovo will be under pressure regarding Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe, and it will influence speeding up these processes. This is part of political bargaining at a higher level, and it is a matter of the assessment of Kosovo institutions – whether they want quick elections or not. If they want them, they are certainly tied to the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities and all the obligations that are part of the normalization dialogue process. If the Kosovo side wants to delay this process, then we can expect it to last quite a long time, six months or more, counting from this moment," Mijacic says.

He explains that Kosovo, as part of the conditions for becoming a member of the Council of Europe, among other things, has the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities.

"To achieve its formation, there must be progress in bringing Serbs back into institutions and organizing new elections in northern Kosovo. All these processes are interconnected, and the first instance where the candidacy of Kosovo for admission to the Council of Europe will be considered is in March and April. So, if there is more conditioning related to Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe, then the processes related to the petition and the removal of mayors will be accelerated," Mijacic concludes.

Asked how much the EU and the US are currently interested in the removal of mayors and new elections in the four municipalities in northern Kosovo, Mijacic reminds that the EU set a condition for Kosovo on June 3 last year to organize elections in the north as soon as possible, as well as a condition for Serbs to participate in those elections.

"The EU is very interested in this process and the new elections, and therefore the US, as they have a coherent policy regarding the dialogue and the normalization process. Hence, I would conclude that the EU and the US are very interested in calming the situation in northern Kosovo, and this cannot be achieved without organizing new elections and returning Serbian mayors to the four northern municipalities, as well as without withdrawing special police forces from administrative buildings," Mijacic says.