Serb representatives return to Kosovo institutions

24/03/2008

Two Serb ministers attended a government meeting Thursday, and a party leader pledged that lawmakers will resume their work in parliament. Many Kosovo Serbs, however, say the representatives have no real mandate to represent their community.

By Blerta Foniqi-Kabashi and Igor Jovanovic for Southeast European Times – 24/03/08

"The aim is for Kosovo and Serbia as two states to integrate in the EU," said Kosovo Serb lawmaker Dragisha Miric. [Getty Images]

Two Serb ministers attended a Kosovo government meeting Thursday (March 20th) for the first time in weeks, and a small Serb party said its members would return to parliament and government institutions. The significance of their move, however, was called into question by other Serb leaders, who said the politicians have no mandate.

Social Welfare and Labour Minister Nenad Rasic and Returns and Communities Minister Boban Stankovic had walked off the job after Kosovo's declaration of independence on February 17th. Returning to work Thursday, they supported most of the decisions taken by the cabinet.

Meanwhile, Serb Liberal Party leader Slobodan Petrovic said MPs and civil servants from his party would end their month-long boycott.

"This is normal work and a good step for Serbs," Deputy Prime Minister Hajredin Kuqi said after Thursday's session. The same day, President Fatmir Sejdiu met with Petrovic and hailed him as an "important voice for our co-operation".

For many Kosovo Serbs, however, none of their representatives in the institutions have any real legitimacy, since the vast majority of voters in the community boycotted the last set of general elections, on November 17th, 2007.

By law, Serbs are guaranteed ten out of the 120 seats in parliament, regardless of turnout. Election data showed that only around 1% of the approximately 120,000 eligible Kosovo Serb voters went to the polls.

Goran Bogdanovic, an official with the Kosovo chapter of Serbian President Boris Tadic's Democratic Party, said that the return of Serb representatives to Kosovo institutions was a bad message for Serbs living in Kosovo.

"I think that only demonstrates our lack of unity in Kosovo and Metohija. That is why we are in a situation that a small number of Serbs, who have no credibility, are representing the entire Serb community in those institutions," Bogdanovic said.

The head of the Serb National Council of Central Kosovo, Dragan Velic, dismissed the return, saying it was simply an attempt by the international community and Pristina to find Serbs ready to betray national interests for the sake of their own.

The representatives, however, say their presence is needed in order to ensure their community has a voice. "We will work for the interests of Serbs, because this is the best way," Petrovic said, adding that Serbs do not intend to leave Kosovo.

"We will live here and we will work for our rights," he said.

Dragisha Miric, a member of parliament, said the future depends on co-operation."We will go to every Serb house in the enclaves to tell them that they should live and work together with Albanians," he said.

"The aim is for Kosovo and Serbia as two states to integrate in the EU," Miric added.