Serbian Media Distort Demolition of Illegal Villas at Ujman Lake, Portraying It as an Attack on Serbs

The operation to remove structures built without permits on land owned by the “Ibër-Lepenc” Public Hydro-Economic Enterprise near Ujman Lake has been accompanied by disinformation from Serbian media.

Although the villa owners had been notified to remove their belongings by July 17, the operation was portrayed as ethnically motivated and as a measure taken “exclusively against Serbs.”

In articles and reports published on Tuesday, “Novosti,” “RT Balkan,” “Sputnik Serbia,” and “RTS” used wording and headlines that created the impression that Kosovo’s institutions were acting against Serbs. These reports omitted the fact that the operation involved enforcing decisions to remove unauthorized structures from public property.

“They Are Driving Out Serbs With Heavy Machinery and Long Pipes: Kurti’s Men Are Demolishing Our People’s Vacation Homes at Gazivoda,” read a headline published by the newspaper “Novosti,” which linked the operation to claims of a campaign against Serbs.

“RTS” took a similar approach, reporting under the headline: “Demolition of Serb-Owned Vacation Homes at Gazivoda Begins, Assisted by the So-Called Kosovo Police.” In another report, the outlet wrote: “Demolition of Vacation Homes on the Shore of Gazivoda Begins, Large Police Forces Present.”

Through such framing, “RTS” attempted to distort the reality of the operation while also stoking panic with the claim that “large police forces” were at the scene.

“Sputnik Serbia” and “RT Balkan” followed the same line, describing the operation as the demolition of “Serbs’ vacation homes” without explaining the legal basis on which it was being carried out.

The facts, however, show that the measures are not limited to the Ujman area and do not depend on the owners’ ethnicity. Media outlets in Kosovo reported throughout the day on the demolition of illegal villas. Some published footage showed people removing belongings from the structures even today, although the deadline set for their removal was July 17.

“Ibër-Lepenc” has clarified that the operation covers structures built on plots owned by the enterprise.

The enterprise’s chief executive, Faruk Mujka, announced that 11 people had been formally ordered to vacate structures erected on “Ibër-Lepenc” property because they were deemed to have been built without permits.

“The decisions are being enforced by the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure, with the assistance of the Kosovo Police,” he said.

Mujka had previously emphasized that the process of verifying properties and removing unauthorized structures would not focus solely on the municipality of Zubin Potok. According to him, the measures would extend to all municipalities where “Ibër-Lepenc” infrastructure is located.

Kosovo’s institutions have carried out similar operations in the past to remove illegal structures in other tourist and protected areas. This shows that the measures are not applied solely to properties belonging to members of a particular community.

This is precisely the context that was omitted from Serbian media reports. Through phrases such as “driving out Serbs,” “demolition of Serbs’ homes,” and “Kurti’s men,” the operation was portrayed as an ethnically motivated intervention. At the same time, the reports failed to mention that the authorities based the action on claims of the usurpation of public property and had announced that procedures would be enforced in every area where unauthorized structures are identified.

As a result, the reporting is selective and creates the false narrative that the operation is aimed exclusively at Serbs. The authorities, meanwhile, have stated that they are enforcing the law against structures built on public property, regardless of the owners’ identity./TheGeoPost.