Vlajic: The Court in Pristina had to acknowledge that the Kosovo Government's decision on expropriation was not in line with regulations

Lawyer Nebojsa Vlajic tells Kosovo Online that the court in Pristina had to acknowledge that the decision on expropriation by the Kosovo Government was not in order and was not in line with regulations, nor with basic human rights.

Vlajic points out that there is a decision from October in favor of four plaintiffs from the municipality of Leposavic.

"The court simply had to acknowledge that the expropriation carried out by the Kosovo Government was not right and not in accordance with regulations or basic human rights. The court could not ignore such serious procedure violations where the expropriation was carried out and buildings were constructed before the owners were informed. Public discussion was not held before, but only after the public and citizens protested. The court accepted these arguments and sent them back to the government for reconsideration," Vlajic said.

Vlajic explains that the "ball is now in the government's court," but that there is no public interest in expropriation.

"The government has to decide what to do with this case. What I would advise the government is to respect the law, and respecting the law will lead to them having to prove that such public interest exists for expropriation, which is difficult to prove. Such public interest does not exist. Simply, the buildings that the government intended to build, which are police and military facilities, are not necessary, people do not want them, and they are not in the public interest," Vlajic concluded.