On Wednesday, the verdict is expected to be made public for former President Hashim Thaçi, former parliamentary speakers Kadri Veseli and Jakup Krasniqi, and former MP Rexhep Selimi, who are facing charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in The Hague. The indictment includes persecution, arbitrary imprisonment, torture, murder and enforced disappearance.
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Meanwhile, a rally in support of the accused was held in Pristina on Saturday. The event was organized by the “Freedom has a name” platform.
On Monday, the platform announced that, starting on September 15, it would move its activities to The Hague. There, in cooperation with the Albanian diaspora, the “Night of Waiting” event will be held.
The platform expressed hope that September 16, the date when the final verdict against the former KLA leaders is expected to be announced, would become a day of celebration for Kosovo.
Meanwhile, several deputies of the Democratic Party of Kosovo have called for people to arm themselves. Some of them have also said that, in the event of a conviction, NATO should also bear responsibility.
Fehim Cela, one of the founders of the “Black Eagles” unit, has proposed that attention also be focused on the victims of killings and crimes committed after the war in Kosovo.
In a statement to the newspaper “Bota sot,” Cela said that the victims’ families continue to await answers about the identities of the perpetrators, those who ordered and organized these crimes, as well as the people who helped cover them up.
“I propose organizing a protest in defense of the victims of post-war killings and crimes in Kosovo—all those who were killed, wounded or attacked and for whom, even after many years, the truth has not been uncovered and justice has not been served.
There are many cases that have still not received answers. Families continue to seek to know who killed their loved ones, who gave the orders, who organized the crimes and who helped ensure that they were not uncovered. The names and cases are known, and their stories have been covered over the years, but justice has been absent,” Cela declared.
According to him, the protests should also be dedicated to people who no longer have the ability to speak and seek justice for themselves.
“At a time when protests and mobilizations are being held in defense of people accused or suspected of crimes, the voice of those who can no longer speak for themselves—the victims—must also be heard.
We must demand justice for people who were unjustly killed, for those who were targeted in assassination attempts, for families who lost their loved ones and for all those who were attacked because of their political beliefs, their affiliation with another party or their courage to think differently,” he stressed.
Cela insisted that the rally should aim to secure justice rather than political gain, emphasizing that victims cannot be commemorated only when doing so serves certain interests.
“This should not be a protest against one party or in favor of another. It should be a protest for justice and for the principle that no killing should be forgotten, while no victim should be valued less because of their political beliefs.
If we demand justice for crimes, it must be demanded for everyone. There cannot be victims who are remembered only when it is politically convenient for us and other victims about whom we choose to remain silent.
Therefore, a protest should be organized for post-war victims: the dead, the wounded, those targeted in assassination attempts and the families still awaiting justice. Above all, it should be a protest for the truth that we still owe them.
Without justice for the victims, there can be no complete peace with the past,” Cela concluded.
The Specialist Chambers were established by Kosovo’s Assembly in 2015, following strong pressure from international allies. They operate in The Hague under Kosovo’s laws, while the trial panel and prosecution are made up of international officials. The four former KLA leaders have been held in detention in The Hague since November 2020.
