Healthcare workers in North Mitrovica: No matter how explicit they are in refusing to give us the dinar, we have no intention of leaving Kosovo

In front of the branch of the Postal Savings Bank in North Mitrovica, a large number of citizens gathered today, including healthcare workers - doctors, nurses, technicians, and sanitation workers who are trying to withdraw their earned money.

A technical service worker at the Health Center, Rade Ilic, says for Kosovo Online that he hasn't been able to withdraw his salary for over a week.

"I am one of the oldest workers in my collective. It has never been worse or harder in my working life. My personal income was due on the 19th of this month, and today is the 27th, and I haven't been able to withdraw it yet. I am married, I have three children and five grandchildren, and they are all waiting for me. This leads to nothing good, there is great pressure on us," Ilic says.

Vesna Bozovic, who has been working at the Clinical Hospital Center in Kosovska Mitrovica for 43 years, says she is worried about the situation regarding money.

"We cannot withdraw our salary; we have to go to central Serbia. Since I am a future pensioner, I live in panic because I live alone, and I have to go to Serbia, but I have accompanying illnesses, so I need to buy medicine. It's not just me; there are even more severe social cases who cannot afford to go and withdraw their income. The situation is terribly alarming, and I don't know where this is leading. Despite all the measures they take against us, we refuse to give up. No matter how strict and explicit they are in not giving us the dinar, we do not intend to leave Kosovo," Bozovic stated.

Sladjana Pantovic, the head nurse of the Internal Department at the Clinical Hospital Center in Kosovska Mitrovica, believes that the decision of the CBK leads to nothing and that their livelihood is endangered.

"Throughout all my years of work, there hasn't been a situation where we couldn't withdraw our earnings, what we have earned. Everyone knows how difficult the situation is here; we are limited in terms of medication, resources for work, and life. The decision of Pristina leads to nothing; we are in an undesirable situation, for our children and families. Many of us are the sole earners, and much depends on us, for staying, surviving, and working in these areas," she said.

The Central Bank of Kosovo issued a regulation prohibiting transactions in dinars on February 1st. This regulation initially affected the Serbs, but also other minorities dependent on income from Serbia – pensioners, the disabled, the socially vulnerable, and fellow citizens who receive other sources of income.