The Serbian List’s allegations that police officers used violence against a Serbian citizen in the north of the country have been denied by Kosovo Police Lieutenant Erduan Baliqi. He said that the Police Inspectorate of Kosovo is already investigating the claims.

A Serbian citizen from northern Kosovo, identified in some reports as Nenad Raskoviq, has stated that he was assaulted and physically mistreated by members of the Kosovo Police. His claims have been circulated by media outlets in Belgrade and on the social media accounts of Serbian political figures, while the Serbian List has responded by accusing the police of using violence against him.

In a statement to KosovaPress, Baliqi said that the Kosovo Police had no information supporting the claims made by the person in question or by the Serbian List.

According to him, the police have no information indicating that force was used against anyone. However, at around 21:00 last night, the authorities received information that a person had sought medical treatment at Mitrovica Regional Hospital. The relevant police units went to the scene, and after the person’s claim that he had been beaten by the police was published in the media, the Police Inspectorate was immediately notified. PIK officials went to the scene and are handling the case, while the institution will investigate the claims made by the party, Baliqi stated.

The lieutenant also confirmed that the police had carried out operations in the northern part of the country during the evening. He explained that the Kosovo Police continually receive information about the possible presence of weapons at various locations.

Baliqi stressed to KosovaPress that the police had operated in the area, but had no information that police officers had used force against anyone. According to him, information about possible weapons cannot be disregarded, and the police are obliged to verify it.

In recent days, the Kosovo Police have conducted operations in the Zubin Potok region. Based on published information, weapons were discovered and seized at various locations during these operations.

Serbian media have reported that Raskoviq claims the police wrongfully demanded that he hand over a weapon. The police searches, meanwhile, were conducted on the basis of information about weapons that may have been hidden.

It has also been claimed that there was information about weapons possession in Raskoviq’s case and that there were suspicions of undeclared weapons dating back to the wartime period. Several other claims, which have yet to be officially confirmed, also link the matter to suspicions about weapons that may be connected to war crimes committed in the region.

These developments come at a time when excavations have been carried out in the Kalludra area of Zubin Potok as part of the search for the remains of people killed during the 1998–1999 war. It is suspected that a mass grave may be located in the area.

The Kosovo Police operations in the Zubin Potok region in recent days have included searches and actions based on information about possible weapons hidden in various areas.

In several public statements, the claims concerning Raskoviq’s case have also been linked to recent security developments in the north, as well as to the operations the police are conducting in this part of the country.

So far, there has been no official conclusion confirming or disproving the claim that members of the Kosovo Police used violence against the citizen.

The Police Inspectorate’s investigation is expected to determine the circumstances of the incident and clarify whether force was used against the person in question during the police operation.

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In a response to Radio Free Europe (RFE), PIK said that, although it has not received any complaints, investigative procedures will begin ex officio.

During the Vidovdan event in Gazimestan, Kosovo Police detained 37 people. For 36 of them, the Basic Court in Prishtina has filed charges for “causing unrest and endangering public order and peace”, while the decision is expected to be announced on July 1. Meanwhile, one other person has been fined.

Lawyer Nikolla Todoroviq said the accused are mostly Serbs from Serbia and countries in the region, adding that their personal documents have been confiscated until the ruling is announced.

Every June 28, Serbs from Kosovo, Serbia and countries in the region traditionally gather in Gazimestan, near Prishtina, to commemorate the battle against the Ottoman Empire in 1389.

Following this case, allegations circulated publicly that some of those detained were subjected to physical and psychological mistreatment by some police officers, who, according to these claims, slapped them, beat them, insulted and humiliated them, and forced them to chant “Kosova Republikë”.

Radio Free Europe has not been able to independently verify these allegations.

The Ombudsperson Institution in Kosovo has also launched an ex officio investigation into this issue, requesting information from the responsible institutions to clarify all the circumstances of the case related to the detention of several dozen people in Gazimestan.

Likewise, Serbia’s Ombudsman, Zoran Pashaliq, has addressed Kosovo’s Ombudsperson, Naim Qelaj, requesting that, within his authority, he urgently conduct an investigation into all the circumstances surrounding the detention of a larger number of citizens of Serbian ethnicity after the Vidovdan commemoration in Gazimestan.

“The Ombudsman has asked Mr. Qelaj to determine whether, during the deprivation of liberty, detention and the initiation of misdemeanor proceedings, international standards for the protection of human rights were respected, including the right to liberty and security, the right to be informed of the reasons for deprivation of liberty, the right of access to counsel, the right to a fair trial, as well as the prohibition of discrimination on any grounds,” the statement said.

The same statement notes that, in relation to this case, Serbia’s Ombudsman has also contacted European Union institutions in Brussels, the embassies of the Quint countries, as well as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Mission in Prishtina.

There was also a reaction from the Diocese of Raška and Prizren of the Serbian Orthodox Church, which stressed that the allegations of physical and psychological mistreatment of the detained persons must be investigated.

“We call on the Ombudsperson, the Police Inspectorate, the competent judicial and prosecutorial authorities, as well as the international missions, especially the OSCE and EULEX [the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo], to ensure, in line with their mandates, a full, independent and professional verification of all the circumstances,” the Diocese said in its statement.

Serbia’s Government Office for Kosovo condemned the detentions carried out during the Vidovdan commemoration in Gazimestan, describing them as a “shameful and unacceptable act of repression”.

Gazimestan in Kosovo is also known for the speech delivered there in 1989 by then-Serbian leader Slobodan Milošević. This speech is often mentioned as a prelude to the armed conflicts that followed the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. / RFE

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