UNMIK/PR/28

PRESS RELEASE

18 August 1999

SPECIAL JOINT ADVISORY COUNCIL MEETS TO REVIEW LAWS

PRISTINA-A special Joint Advisory Council on Legislative Matters set up by UNMIK and Kosovar legal representatives to review existing legislation in Kosovo and to draft new laws, which would eliminate all elements of discrimination, will meet today for the first time.

The membership of the Council follows the recommendations of the Convention of Judges and Prosecutors on 15 August 1999 at UNMIK Headquarters in Pristina.

Under its terms of reference, the Council will include 20 Kosovar legal experts with extensive experience in the practice of the law, the administration of law, or a law faculty.

The terms of reference specify that the Council is to advise UNMIK on identifying areas with a need for legal reform; identifying discriminatory laws with a need for immediate suspension; and the drafting of new legislation in cooperation with international experts, as identified by UNMIK.

Convening in its entirety every three months, the Council will comprise five working groups: on criminal law matters; on property and housing law matters; on matters of administrative law and local administration; and on matters of civil law and related matters; and on other matters. The working groups will not comprise more than five international and Kosovar experts.

The council is to have an Executive Board of five Kosovar legal experts and two international experts, and will be co-chaired by an international member and a Kosovar member of the board.

 At today’s inaugural session, the Council is to elect the five Kosovar legal experts for the Executive Board and UNMIK will assign the two international experts. The Executive Board will meet weekly.