Lawyer Skender Musa has described British Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s letter to Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti as unfair, in which respect is required for the full mandate of Kosovo’s Specialised Chambers with headquarters in The Hague. Even the ombudsman, Naim Celaj, has expressed concerns about the message conveyed through this letter, assessing that calls not to interfere with the work of the court can be turned into a limit to public debate and controversial voices against it.
Invited to Five on TV Dukajini, Musa has said the letter does not view it as direct pressure, but as a requirement that Kosovo not interfere with the work of the court.
However, he has deemed such a request unfair, since, according to him, Kosovo institutions have not intervened in special law work and have not had individual contacts with its judges or prosecutors.
First of all, the letter from the prime minister of Great Britain is not viewed as pressure. A request not to interfere with the court’s work. In fact, the Kosovo government is not interfering in the judicial aspect of the court’s work. There has been no tendency of the prime minister or of ministers to meet with any judge individually or prosecutors. I consider it unfair. Unfair pressure is being put on Kosovo, Musa has declared.
The lawyer has made a comparison with the actions of Serbian officials, claiming that representatives of Serbia’s institutions have contacted special prosecutors and investigators to prepare witnesses against former Kosovo Liberation Army leaders.
Because since Serbian officials and Minister of Internal Affairs, Justice, Police, chief prosecutor have contacted special prosecutors and investigators to prepare Albanian witnesses against KLA leaders. The Kosovo government, the Prosecution, police have implemented all the rules of a democratic procedure, but have not intervened and communicated with any prosecutor.
Meanwhile, the ombudsman, Naim Celaj, has said that when others are asked not to talk about court cases with the reasoning that they could violate the court’s independence, this could create a climate that prevents controversial voices against the Special and the enterprise of legal action against it.
In Five, Celay has estimated that the British prime minister’s address could be linked to approval, and then the withdrawal of changes to the Law for Specialised Chambers, as such an act could be seen as a risk of direct intervention in court.
However, he has criticised the lack of transparency and accountability, saying citizens and institutions should not remain silent in front of a court, whose standards, according to him, have not become clear enough.
I think that the lack of transparency and accountability, now the tendency to silence us, to shut us down in front of a court that we don’t know what standard it has set and what standards it is based on when it receives or implements judicial procedures, I think it’s contrary to the values of democracy and it’s not in the European values that Europeans promote, it declared Celay.
Their statements come after British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, in one congratulation Addressing Albin Kurti, he has encouraged Kosovo to respect the full mandate of Specialised Chambers, naming this evidence of democratic maturity and dedication to independent and impartial justice.
The letter comes after amendments to the Specialised Chambers Law approved in the Kosovo Assembly in early October, which have raised concerns among European representatives concerning respect for international obligations and the court’s independence.
Source Layer: Dukeagini