Marsenic: Kosovo Police not serving the Serbian Community

Sociologist Marija Marsenic from the Institute for European Studies believes that numerous complaints from the Serbian community about the work of the Kosovo Police demonstrate that this institution is not serving them, and there are many reasons for this, including the perception of Serbs as "guilty of everything."

"It cannot be said that the Kosovo Police serves the Serbian community in Kosovo and Metohija, nor do they perceive it as an institution that acts in their interest. Instead, they view it as an extension of the so-called Kosovo regime," Marsenic stated for Kosovo Online.

One of the main obstacles identified is the inability to communicate, followed by the perception that "Serbs are always to blame".

"Senior officers of the Kosovo Police who know Serbian often refuse to speak it, and the younger members of the Kosovo Police do not want to speak Serbian, so there is primarily a language barrier in communication. Additionally, there is an indoctrination among the Kosovo Police that Serbs should not be trusted and that Serbs are always guilty. It would be redundant to list how many times Serbs have been subjected to harassment at checkpoints, excessive searches, verbal and physical violence, arrests, and beatings. Unfortunately, this police brutality is still present," says Marsenic.

She believes that the Serbian community's distrust of the Kosovo Police has grown further when their representatives left the institution.

"It is simply impossible to trust an institution that perceives all Serbs as terrorists," emphasizes Marsenic.

She adds that a series of factors, including repressive measures, contribute to this situation and distrust.

"The composition of the police in Serbian areas often does not match the ethnic structure of the local population, which is one of the main conditions of all signed agreements. This leads to a feeling among the Serbs that the police simply do not act in their interest. Also, the use of repressive methods by the Kosovo Police is another reason for this distrust, for the eroded trust, because every time they leave their homes, Serbs risk being arrested, beaten, exposed to insults and verbal violence," stresses Marsenic.

She also points out the lack of legal protection.

"Serbs often feel that they do not have access to justice through Kosovo institutions because the judiciary and police favor the Albanian majority. In many cases, complaints against members of the Kosovo Police have gone unpunished or even unconsidered, so Serbs feel that these legal mechanisms operate inefficiently and selectively," Marsenic believes.

This can only change if Serbs realize that this police force is "theirs."