Kosovo Parliament voices concern over verdict against KLA leaders — Balkan Insight
On September 28, Kosovo’s Parliament adopted a statement expressing “deep concern” over the verdict against four former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA): Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi. The document was supported by 99 MPs, Balkan Insight reports.
In the statement, Parliament called on state institutions to take measures to protect the “truth and purity of the Kosovo people’s liberation war.” MPs also proposed developing a joint state strategy that would coordinate actions to defend and affirm the full historical truth about Kosovo’s war for freedom and liberation.
Assessment of the verdict
Kosovo’s Parliament called unacceptable the verdict’s finding that a common criminal purpose existed. Representatives of the Belgrade-backed Serb List party, which represents ethnic Serbs, were not present during the vote.
On September 16, Hashim Thaçi and Kadri Veseli were each sentenced to 25 years in prison, Jakup Krasniqi to 18 years, and Rexhep Selimi to 13 years. All four were found responsible for crimes committed while they held leadership positions in the KLA during the 1998–1999 war with Serbian forces.
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At the same time, they were acquitted of charges of crimes against humanity, persecution, imprisonment, other inhumane acts, torture, murder and enforced disappearances. All four pleaded not guilty and plan to appeal the verdict.
Protests and amendments to the law
After the court decision was announced, protests took place in Pristina, other cities in Kosovo and abroad. Some Kosovo Albanians consider the verdict in The Hague an attack on the KLA’s liberation struggle.
At the same time, the opposition Democratic Party of Kosovo is calling on Parliament to support amendments to the law on the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, adopted in 2015. According to the head of the party’s parliamentary group, Arian Tahiri, the government must urgently consider the bill and submit it to Parliament. The proposed amendments are intended to limit the scope of the Specialist Chambers’ authority.
