Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Councilors reiterate stance against Brussels agreement

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA -- The Brussels agreement is unacceptable to Kosovo Serbs, councilors of four northern Kosovo municipalities reiterated at a joint session in Zvečan on Wednesday.
(Tanjug, file)
(Tanjug, file)
They added that it should not be implemented until the Constitutional Court gives its opinion.
The councilors of the four northern Kosovo municipalities conferred in Zvečan on Wednesday to discuss the implementation of the Brussels agreement.

Their representatives earlier discussed the issue in Belgrade.

In a conclusion, the councilors noted once again that the agreement was unacceptable because it meant withdrawal of Serbian state institutions from Kosovo and introduction of the legal order of the self-proclaimed state of Kosovo.

They believed it is a “political, forced agreement that is not based on Serbia’s constitutional and legal order and that it is as such non-binding and detrimental to Serbia and should not be implemented, especially not until the Constitutional Court gives its opinion on it”.

“Anyone who decides to implement the Brussels agreement at all costs in such a short period of time takes full responsibility for harmful consequences for the Serbian people in the province, the country’s constitutional order, national interests of Serbia and its history and culture,” reads the conclusion of the councilors of the northern Kosovo municipalities.

They pointed out that there was no conflict between the northern Kosovo municipalities, its representatives and the state and that they did not campaign against the current government, individuals or parties because of their differences regarding the Brussels agreement.

The councilors also supported the initiative to organize a rally dubbed “We are staying in Serbia” on May 10 in Belgrade.

At the joint session, that started a little after 12:00 CET, Kosovska Mitrovica District Head Radenko Nedeljković first informed 92 councilors about yesterday’s talks between heads of five Kosovo districts and Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dačič and First Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić.

Nedeljković said that he had informed Belgrade that the Brussels agreement was unacceptable to Kosovo Serbs because it “implies abolition of institutions of the Republic of Serbia in the province”. He stressed that the top state officials did not think so and that they claimed that the agreement guaranteed citizens’ prosperity in the future.

Nedeljković reiterated his opinion that the agreement was harmful for Kosovo Serbs, that it did not even guarantee minimal preconditions for the survival of the Serbian people in the province and that it was not based on the Serbian Constitution, which was why the Constitutional Court of Serbia needed to give its opinion on all agreements.

He called on the councilors to remain dignified during Vučić’s visit to Kosovo on Sunday and noted that it was an opportunity for councilors to request explanation for disputable issues.

“I believe that we should be civilized and keep the dignity of the municipal assemblies on that occasion and we must not destroy the reputation of our municipalities,” Nedeljković added.

He said that Kosovo Serbs did not have a “spare” state and the government but pointed out that the state of Serbia needed to know that it did not have “spare” Serbs in Kosovo either.

“We are in favor of compromise solutions but we cannot accept the agreement which detrimental to the people and aimed at closing Serbia’s institutions in Kosovo and Metohija that guarantee Serbs’ survival here,” he explained.

Representatives of Serb municipalities from other parts of Kosovo and representatives of the Serbian government’s Office for Kosovo also attended the session.

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