The Constitutional Court published its decision on Wednesday regarding the requests by the Democratic Party of Kosovo concerning the constitution of the Assembly and the formation of the government.
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According to the Constitutional Court, the institutions were established in accordance with the Constitution, while the deadline for electing the president was set for October 6.
Following the publication of the decision, the PDK called for the Assembly to convene as soon as possible and for the Draft Law on the Specialist Chambers to be placed as the first item on the agenda.
In its response, the party stated that the Assembly should convene immediately and begin its work by reviewing the Draft Law on the Specialist Chambers.
Political analysts say the request should be handled carefully, particularly because of the short time remaining for the institutions to become fully operational.
According to them, if the parties fail to separate the debate over the Specialist Chambers from the need for Kosovo’s institutions to function, disagreements over the draft law could trigger another political blockade.
Jakupi: The PDK’s initiative on the Specialist Chambers is late; the next 13 days will show readiness for compromise
Political analyst Zejnullah Jakupi told “Bota sot” that the PDK’s request should be viewed in light of the Constitutional Court’s latest decision and the limited time available to conclude the institutional processes.
He assessed that it is understandable for the PDK to seek a rapid review of its initiative, since it has presented this draft law as a priority issue. According to Jakupi, the proposal envisages important changes to the jurisdiction of the Specialist Chambers, the enforcement of sentences and other powers, meaning that this is not merely a technical or procedural matter.
However, he stressed that the fact that the PDK considers the draft law a priority does not automatically oblige the other parties to approve it in its current form.
According to him, the draft law should be assessed in relation to the Constitution, Kosovo’s international obligations and the legal basis on which the Specialist Chambers were established. Given the complex nature of these issues, legal experts have also expressed doubts about the limits of the changes that can be made.
Jakupi warned that the issue could become the cause of a new deadlock if it is made a condition for the functioning of the institutions.
He said the risk would arise if the debate over the Specialist Chambers became an absolute condition for the Assembly’s work. According to him, the parties must distinguish between the right to review the draft law and the obligation to guarantee the functioning of the institutions.
If these two processes are not separated, any disagreement over the content of the draft law could also affect other institutional procedures. Jakupi recalled that, according to the PDK, only 13 days remain to conclude several processes, including the election of the president and the prevention of snap elections.
According to him, the main concern is that this period could be consumed by political clashes instead of being used to reach the necessary institutional agreements.
Jakupi assessed that the most problematic scenario would not simply be the failure to approve a draft law, but the passage of the remaining 13 days without an agreement on fundamental institutional issues. Such a situation, he said, would return Kosovo to political uncertainty and jeopardize the completion of the constitutional processes within the deadline.
He called for the debate over the Specialist Chambers to take place in the Assembly, based on legal and political arguments, but without obstructing the functioning of the institutions.
Even if the parties do not agree with the text proposed by the PDK, Jakupi said that a political mechanism must be found to address the issue, while at the same time preventing the creation of a new institutional deadlock.
The analyst also criticized the timing of the PDK’s initiative, stressing that making the institutions operational should be the priority.
According to him, the next 13 days will test political actors’ ability to reach a compromise. The disputed issues, Jakupi said, can continue to be debated, but institutional functioning must be kept separate from the political conflict.
Jakupi described the PDK’s position and initiative on this issue as belated. He questioned the fact that this party, neither during the time when Hashim Thaçi led it and the establishment of the Specialist Chambers was approved, nor today through his political successors, has built a clear and consistent cause around this issue.
He said that at this stage the focus should be on making Kosovo’s institutions operational and consolidating them, as well as resolving the current political deadlock. Other initiatives, he added, can be addressed later through constitutional and legal institutions and procedures.
Jakupi concluded that it is not in the country’s interest for a belated initiative on the Specialist Chambers to become the source of a new confrontation at a time when Kosovo needs stability and functioning institutions.
Mehmeti: The PDK is making its request on the Specialist Chambers conditional; the Assembly must not be blocked
Political analyst Gani Mehmeti told “Bota sot” that the PDK’s request for the Draft Law on the Specialist Chambers to be the first item on the agenda is conditional.
According to him, following the Constitutional Court’s decision, it would be enough for the issue to be included on the Assembly’s agenda, without necessarily determining that it must be the first item.
Mehmeti assessed that the request should be reviewed and discussed, without predetermining whether the amendment to the law on the Specialist Chambers should be approved.
He said that submitting a request to the Assembly should not be seen as a reason to become angry with the party or the people who raised it. According to him, the request is submitted for discussion and, if approved, that is fine, but its rejection should not affect the handling of other issues or the functioning of the Assembly.
Mehmeti stressed that when it comes to important state issues and international demands, the interests of the state, the country, the homeland and the people must take precedence over the interests of individuals, regardless of their rank or position.
He underlined that even if the PDK’s request in support of the Draft Law is not approved, the party should continue cooperating with the Assembly’s bodies and must not allow repercussions on the country’s major issues.
However, based on his experience with the PDK, Mehmeti warned that Kosovo’s Assembly could face another deadlock, which would be very harmful to the country.
He said the coming days would be decisive for reaching a political agreement and making Kosovo’s institutions operational.
According to Mehmeti, the most worrying scenario would be for these days to pass without a political agreement on the election of the president and Kosovo’s other institutions.
Such a failure, he warned, would cause Kosovo major losses from the European Union, in addition to the other consequences that the absence of institutions would bring.
