Effective imprisonment in only two verdicts for inciting hatred, out of 14 that were issued in 2021

In addition to the two people arrested this month for language inciting hatred on national or religious grounds, three indictments were filed in April and May. And the verdicts so far indicate lenient sentences. In four years, only two sentences have been handed down with effective imprisonment.

Only two of the 14 verdicts announced since 2021 for criminal offenses related to incitement to hatred, which are accessible, provide for effective imprisonment.

In one, a Serbian citizen was sentenced to 8 months in prison by the Pristina Municipal Court for holding Serbian flags with a map of Kosovo, with the inscription "no surrender" and for shouting "kill, kill the Albanian!". In the other verdict, another Serbian citizen was sentenced to 5 months in prison for anti-Albanian slogans he shared on TikTok.

For language that incites hatred on national or religious grounds, three indictments were filed in April, while two people were arrested this month.

Journalism professor Alban Zeneli says that the spread of hate speech has reached enormous proportions, especially in online spaces.

"Physical evidence, whether printed or in other forms, is more easily available to the justice system and more easily arguable - I believe this should be the explanation for why there are more court cases that are tried 'offline' than for the language used on online platforms," ​​said Zeneli.

Most sentences are suspended or fined. However, there are also cases of amnesty.

Despite being convicted in a preliminary court case, the Supreme Court acquitted former Serbian List MP and minister Ivan Todosijević, who had denied the Recak massacre. The court justified the decision on the grounds of freedom of expression, and found that the possibility of public order being disrupted by Todosijević's statements was not proven.

Retired judge Musa Konxheli, who presided over the panel that convicted Todosijević, says the Supreme Court's decision is meaningless.

"If this standard is set, I consider it to be a very high standard that will make it difficult not only for the prosecution and the court, but perhaps even impossible. It is rare for these conditions to be met, especially the possibility of disruption of order or riots and protests to file an indictment and then be found guilty...", said lawyer Konxheli.

Adelina Hasani is a security and foreign policy researcher, and she also criticizes security authorities for inaction in cases of incitement to hatred. She argues for the need to work separately in schools.

"Unfortunately, we are noticing that hate speech is growing, especially among young people, both in schools and in the discussions we have had with teachers and psychologists, hate speech is being normalized, and especially this hate speech that is linked to anti-gender narratives is being normalized," she said.

Despite the decisions of the justice bodies to punish those who incite hatred and division in Kosovo, the cases handled show an unequal and often lenient approach.