The Socialist Party’s proposal for a new territorial reform has met with opposition from many cities and residents, including Cërrik. It has emerged that residents have also begun signing a petition against the proposal.

According to the organizers and residents who launched the initiative, merging the city with Elbasan would move services and decision-making farther away from the people of Cërrik. They say that retaining the municipality would guarantee more direct representation and administration closer to the community.

Signatures for the petition are expected to continue being collected in the coming days, while according to the organizers, the document will be sent not only to domestic institutions but also to international ones.

Administrative boundaries are not the only concern for the residents of Cërrik, who have said that the biggest problem is how public services will be provided. Cërrik has staged repeated protests in recent days.

Meanwhile, it should be recalled that public hearings have now also begun on this issue, which has become the most discussed matter of the past few weeks. This comes after the Socialist Party submitted to Parliament a draft proposing the merger of 15 municipalities.

The post Cërrik Opposes Merger with Elbasan, Residents Begin Signing Petition: We Will Take It to International Institutions Too appeared first on Albeu.com.

The Kosovo Law Institute is continuing to collect signatures for a petition seeking amendments to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kosovo. The initiative calls for the use of public funds for electoral gain and the deliberate failure to implement Constitutional Court decisions to be defined as criminal offenses.

Naim Jakaj, a senior researcher at KLI, told KosovaPress that citizens have shown strong interest in supporting the petition with their signatures since it was launched.

According to Jakaj, interest has been high since the 23rd, when the tent was set up. He said that citizens were first informed about the initiative and then signed it. KLI representatives spent two days each in Prizren and Gjakova, while they are now in Pristina for the fourth day. Signature collection will continue tomorrow in Peja and on Thursday in Gjilan, in the main squares of those cities.

Hundreds of citizens have signed the petition so far, while civil society organizations, media outlets, members of parliament, and representatives of political parties have also expressed their support.

Jakaj said that the number of signatures has reached triple digits and that KLI is very pleased with the result. He emphasized that the initiative is also being supported by other civil society organizations and local media outlets, as well as by members of parliament and local representatives of political parties.

According to him, the signatories include the mayor, Mr. Totaj, and the mayor of the Municipality of Gjilan, Mr. Alban Hyseni. Jakaj added that, at the very moment he was speaking, officials from other political parties in Pristina were also signing the petition, while other stakeholders are expected to join the initiative.

In the coming days, KLI plans to hold meetings with trade unions, other social groups, war veterans’ associations, chambers of commerce, local producers, and other trade organizations, with the aim of making the initiative more inclusive and more robust.

The petition, which was launched on July 23, aims to submit a draft law to the Assembly of Kosovo to amend these two provisions of the Criminal Code.

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