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UNMIK LOCAL MEDIA MONITORING: 24 Nov. 2001
Zëri on page one carried a report claiming that the first "informal" (quotes provided by the paper, our remark) meetings between the senior officials of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), the Kosovo Democratic Party (PDK) and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), have been confirmed. "Yesterday, Ardian Gjini, member of AAK's chairmanship, met with LDK Secretary General Nekibe Kelmendi, and Hajredin Kuçi, deputy leader of the PDK," noted the paper in the beginning. The paper added that the meetings were held separately and were informal, and according to the attendants there was nothing sensational about the meetings. Kelmendi, of the LDK, said she had an informal meeting with Gjini with whom she talked about the recent elections, without focusing on a debate regarding the future government. Kelmendi claimed that there could be no debates on the government, because the LDK has still not made its stance due to the lack of final results. On the other hand, PDK's deputy leader Kuçi also claimed that the meeting with Gjini was informal, but unlike Kelmendi, Kuçi said that the two men held talks on the government of possible coalitions. Kuçi also excluded the possibility of PDK putting forward preliminary conditions to another political entity. "Everything we have asked until now are talks and negotiations," he added. According to Kuçi, the future Kosovo Government should include the main political forces, so that they bear both competencies and responsibilities. Kuçi also excluded the possibility of a coalition of other parties with the Serb coalition Povratak, "because the rights of minorities should surely be respected, however the fate of the government of Kosovo shouldn't depend on the will of the minority." "We would enter a government of coalition with the LDK, only if there comes to an formal agreement," said Kuçi, underlining that a coalition is not built just for the sake of it, but that it is of utmost importance for the future of Kosovo. Ardian Gjini, a member of the Alliance's chairmanship and the initiator of the meetings, confirmed the informal character of the meetings and added that their intention was not to make hasty steps. On the other hand, Epoka e Re also carried a report on the matter on page one and eight. According to the paper, Gjini did meet with LDK's Kelmendi, however the Alliance's member refused any eventual coalition with the Democratic League of Kosovo if it doesn't include the Kosovo Democratic Party. Unlike the Zëri report, this paper claimed that Gjini did not meet with Hajredin Kuçi of the PDK. HARADINAJ SAYS HE INVITED RUGOVA AND THAÇI IN A MEETING During a meeting with the AAK leadership in the town of Lipjan, the Alliance's chairman Ramush Haradinaj told his colleagues that he had invited LDK leader Ibrahim Rugova and PDK leader Hashim Thaçi in a meeting, in order to talk about the possibilities of a genuine co-government. However, Haradinaj did not clarify whether the two leaders responded to his invitation, reported Zëri on page seven. SHALA: POLITICAL BARGAINING AFTER THE ELECTIONS Zëri on page carried a column by its publisher, Blerim Shala, in which he wrote: "After the first cycle of self-deceitfulness, it seems that the main Kosovar political parties are willing to enter another cycle of believing in illusions. As we all know, if it was not for the official results of the OSCE, which were made public on Monday, the Kosovars would still "believe" that the LDK, PDK and AAK have altogether won 150 percent of the votes. Now, when it is fully certain that there cannot be a strong Government of Kosovo without the cooperation of the LDK, PDK and AAK, versions similar to science fiction have started circulating. In one way or the other, they would try to reach a certain goal of creating a government of parliamentary majority by avoiding the abovementioned coalition." "There are efforts to defeat mathematics with alchemy. There are efforts to avoid the necessity of the LDK - PDK - AAK agreement through aged calculations and vicious speculations. This can all be a matter of bargaining, the negotiating price and the political game, but in our case, after these elections, the bargaining is almost worthless, having in mind the power of each of our main political parties. The votes of the citizens have turned the LDK, PDK and AAK into the most powerful Kosovar parties, but at the same time they have installed a powerlessness and political deflation in their eventual divisions. Thus, the government of Kosovo is awaiting news from the LDK, PDK and the AAK." NEW KOSOVO PARLIAMENT TO HAVE TWO SECRET VOTING BOOTHS "The two wooden booths in the corners of the Parliament of Kosovo, which will serve for secret voting on sensitive issues, reminded one of the wooden booths in the corners of catholic churches, where people make their confessions," noted Koha Ditore on page three, in a report that described the interior differences being made in the former KFOR press center, which will now serve as the hall of the Parliament of Kosovo. "The booths will serve for voting when it comes to sensitive issues. Whereas, the deputies will usually vote by raising their hands, and their votes will be counted by the people in charge of that," explained Robert McLeod, the manager of the Parliament project. According to McLeod, Haekkerup is going to have a special seat at the Parliament hall. The paper added saying that the members of parliament would most probably enter the booths and vote for the chairmanship of the Kosovo Parliament, and for the President, Prime Minister and the members of the Kosovo Government. The Kosovo Parliament will have neither an electronic system nor microphones for each member. Therefore, the members would have to take the podium in order to make their speech. The paper added that the first row of the seats has its advantages and
that they would be seated by the Kosovar leaders. "Our idea is that the
first row is reserved for the president, prime minister and the other
ministers of the Kosovar Government," said McLeod.
DEDAJ ACCUSES OSCE AND UNMIK FOR ELECTION MANIPULATION During a press briefing held Friday in Prishtina, the leaders of the Kosovo Liberal Party (PLK) accused the United Nations Mission in Kosovo and OSCE for manipulating the 17th November general elections in Kosovo and at the same time demanded premature elections next year, reported Zëri on page seven. Referring to information broadcast by Kosovalive news agency, the paper added that PLK leader Gjergj Dedaj said that he would try to unable the gathering of the Kosovo Parliament, because according to him, the Kosovar Albanians have been discriminated, whereas the minorities were favored. Dedaj also said that the OSCE mission in Kosovo, which organized the general elections, discriminated the so-called smaller parties, by limiting their monitoring possibilities of the elections and by designing the overall election results. "The Kosovo Liberal Party was denied the right to be active in the counting of votes and it has the impression that a number of votes were "vaporized" by the vote-counters of various parties that won a considerable majority," Dedaj added. Providing additional segments in which his party was allegedly
discriminated, Dedaj pointed the reserved 20 seats for the minorities in
the parliament. "We would agree with this if the minorities had not
participated in the elections, but otherwise the minorities should have
seats in the parliament in accordance with the votes they have won from
the electorate. There is no country in the world in which a population of
five percent has twenty percent of the seats in parliament," he
noted. Ivo Santz, the new Prishtina Municipal Administrator, in his first meeting with journalists announced that the municipal assembly would resume its work by next week despite the difficulties it has had with the Serb adviser suspected of war crimes, reported Zëri on page three. "The adviser Slavko Trajkovic will not participate in the meetings of the assembly, until the court decides on the accusations made on his address," said Santz. He added that he personally supports the request to investigate war crimes committed in Kosovo, but also said that there should be a clear difference between the guilty and the innocent. During the press briefing, Santz said he is fully aware of the problems of the city he is going to administrate. "I know I have a lot of challenges ahead," said Santz, pointing out the illegal constructions, the infrastructure problems. "I am willing to work closely with the local staff, with whom I have met several times since my arrival. My goal is for the Municipal Assembly to make the decisions, whereas the certain directorates will put them into motion," he added. Commenting on the illegal constructions, the most sensitive problem of the Kosovo's capitol, Santz said that he doesn't intend to undertake any specific steps on the matter. SERB ELDERLY COUPLE UNDER ATTACK IN OBILIQ All daily papers carried reports on the attack against a Serb elderly couple near Obiliq. Based on the reports, an old Serb woman was killed and her husband had suffered grave bodily injuries during an attack by unknown perpetrators in the village of Plemetin near Obiliq. The elderly couple came under attack after they got off the train and started walking toward their village. Quoting their official sources, the papers reported that the couple was attacked with firearms and explosive. VJ ENTER KOSOVO TERRITORY AND ARREST KPS OFFICER Zëri on page nine reported that Yugoslav soldiers have entered the territory of Kosovo and have arrested an officer of the Kosovo Police Service. Unlike a month ago, when the Yugoslav forces arrested four KPS members in the troublesome area of the border, this time the Yugoslav soldiers entered Kosovo's territory and kidnapped the Kosovar police officer in front of the eyes of his international colleague, reported the paper. Noting that though the regional police in Peja tried to keep the entire
matter a secret, the paper also added that the release of the police
officer was made possible only after the intervention of the commander of
regional police in Peja. The news for another mass grave with Albanian corpses in Serbia was
carried by all local daily papers. Quoting confirmed sources, Bota Sot on
page one reported that the Nis Forensics Institute has verified that there
is a mass grave in Petrovo, Serbia, and that it contains 77 corpses of
Kosovar Albanians. The paper, which was the only one to cover the story on
its front page, also added that according to expertise of abovementioned
Institute, 60 of the corpses were executed with firearms, while the others
were tortured to death. |