BRUSSEL/PRISTINA/BELGRADE, 04. AUG. 2015 – EU and US diplomats said the Pristina parliament’s vote to set up a special war crimes court to prosecute former Kosovo Liberation Army guerrillas was a step towards justice for victims.The now-disbanded Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), which counts among its former ranks much of Kosovo’s current political elite, has been dogged for years by allegations it removed organs from ethnic Serb captives, who were then killed and their organs sold on the black market. The EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini welcomed vote to adopt constitutional changes and new laws to establish the new special court despite opposition within Kosovo. “While recognising that this step by MPs of the Kosovo Assembly was not easy, it is a sign of responsibility and determination to establish the truth and make decisions compatible with Kosovo’s European path,” Mogherini said in a statement. The court is expected to address allegations that KLA fighters were involved in the killings, abductions, organ harvesting, illegal detentions and persecution of Serbs, Roma and Kosovo Albanians, accused to be collaborators with the Milosevic’s Serbian regime during and after the 1998-99 conflict. But the authorities in Belgrade remained sceptical, with the head of Serbian government office for Kosovo, Marko Djuric, said that his country will “only be satisfied once it sees the convictions”.The embassies of the US and EU member states in Pristina said the decision to back the court showed that the Kosovo government and parliament had “demonstrated their commitment to the rule of law and to honour international agreements”. “By dealing with its past and ensuring justice for the victims, Kosovo can achieve reconciliation and build a better future,” the embassies said in a joint statement. The allegations against KLA fighters surfaced in a report published in 2011 by Council of Europe rapporteur Dick Marty, who claimed that crimes against civilians such as kidnapping, torture and organ-harvesting were committed by members of the KLA during the conflict. The Council of Europe adopted the resolution, based on the report, implicating the current Foreign Minister Hashim Thaci, the former political head of the KLA. He strongly denied any wrongdoing. Kosovo’s President Atifete Jahjaga said that the establishment of special court demonstrated Kosovo’s dedication to the principle of justice for all, and was not an attack on the KLA’s wartime struggle. “The special tribunal will address the allegations raised by the Council of Europe report and will not pass judgment on our collective endeavours for liberation and freedom,” Jahjaga said. But the authorities in Belgrade remained sceptical, with the head of Serbian government office for Kosovo, Marko Djuric, said that his country will “only be satisfied once it sees the convictions”. “We still look with the certain amount of scepticism on the intentions of Pristina, but we remain ready to help those who want to convict [people who are guilty of] war crimes,” Djuric told Serbian public broadcaster RTS. New York-based campaign group Human Rights Watch said however that Kosovo had made “the right decision for justice and accountability”. “It’s an important step for the victims and for Kosovo to break from a pattern of impunity and to finally address allegations of serious post-conflict crimes,” said Lotte Leicht, EU director at Human Rights Watch. The government should now work with the EU to establish the court promptly, Leicht said. “For the court to be credible, a robust, international witness protection programme is required,” she added.
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