Assembly in the dark

Kosovo has not yet had a functioning Assembly. The eleventh legislature was not constituted in the session that began on Thursday, as it was interrupted at the request of the leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement, Albin Kurti, who requested additional time for discussions with party representatives, with the aim of reaching an agreement on the issue of the president.

The deputies of the 11th legislature took the oath in the constitutive session that began on Thursday and was interrupted at the point of electing the speaker of parliament.

The leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement, Albin Kurti, came to the parliament's rostrum with the request to submit a proposal for the speaker of parliament, but the speaker, Avni Dehari, proposed something else. He asked him to pause the proceedings of the session, with the aim of holding discussions with representatives of other parties that are part of the parliament, with the aim of finding a solution for the president.

"The constitution this time cannot once again lead to a dissolution of the Assembly and again premature and unreasonable elections, harmful to the economy. Therefore, the honorable chairman Avni Dehari, we request additional time to give a chance to political talks for an agreement for a new president or presidents," Kurti said.

Kurti's request was met with reactions from lawmakers from the Democratic Party, a political entity that has been determined to remain in opposition during this mandate.

Despite the reactions, the chairman Avni Dehari, who is a Vetëvendosje MP, interrupted the proceedings of the session.

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Before its adjournment, the first two items on the agenda were completed: the formation of the commission for verifying the mandates of female deputies and their swearing-in.

After the establishment of this committee, the session went into a break of over 30 minutes.

Upon returning to the hall, the chairman of the committee, Vetëvendosje MP Adnan Rrustemi, declared their verification.

"The Commission, based on the review of the documentation mentioned above, finds that in the 11th legislature of the Republic of Kosovo, 120 deputies from political entities and coalitions that participated in the early elections have been certified," said the deputy from the ranks of LVV, Adnan Rrustemi.

Upon ascertaining that everything was in order with the elected legislators, they took the oath.

This was also done by the deputies of the Serbian List, a party supported by official Belgrade.

The constitutive session is the second to be held within 6 months, after the one on February 11 of the same year, which was organized after the certification of the results of the December 28 elections.

Although the Assembly was constituted at that time, the legislature was dissolved due to its failure to elect a president. As a result, the third election was organized in less than a year and a half.

Kurti: Constituting the Assembly without an agreement on the president leads to elections

And after the session was adjourned, the leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement, Albin Kurti, expressed his belief that if the constitutive session were to conclude without a prior agreement on the president, early elections would be inevitable.

At a conference, Kurti said that he will make efforts to hold talks with PDK and the Alliance, in addition to LDK.

"Any constitution of the Assembly without an agreement on the issue of the president would practically be a preparation for the dissolution of the Assembly. In this way, providing the opportunity for political dialogue to reach an agreement is the only way and the right solution for the full constitution of our institutions, as order desires and as citizens voted for in the free and democratic elections, albeit premature and unnecessary, of June 7," Kurti said.

He said that additional time is needed for discussions and only when an agreement is reached on the issue of the president, can the constitution of the Assembly be proceeded with.

"It is necessary to return to discussions to resolve the issue of the president and when we have an agreement, we will call for the continuation of the constitutive session, that is, when we are assured that we have done everything to avoid going to yet another election that is unnecessary for the state, unreasonable for the citizens, and harmful to the budget and the economy," Kurti said.

After certifying the result, Kurti invited the PDK leader, Bedri Hamza, the LDK leader, Lumir Abdixhiku, and the Alliance leader, Ardian Gjini, to separate meetings.

After the first meeting, Hamza said that PDK will remain in opposition, while Gjini rejected the meeting, saying that Alliance MPs will participate in decision-making for institutions if the next government fulfills some of this party's demands - from an alliance with the US to a budget of one billion euros for the capital.

And, the meetings continued with Abdixhiku, which he suspended for a while, before the LDK Assembly meeting, in which he survived the dismissal.

Kurti also referred to this development, while justifying his request to interrupt the constitutive session.

"We had the next meeting only the day before yesterday, which was not enough time to reach a political agreement. In this case, it should be emphasized that, faced with this situation, which has experience and heritage, I consider it necessary to give the discussions a chance to continue before we move on with the constitution of the Assembly," Kurti said.

Kurti has insisted that Kosovo needs a non-partisan president and has said that he will continue his efforts to convince PDK, LDK, and the Alliance of this.

Abdixhiku: We are getting closer to VV, but there are still differences on the main issue

Meanwhile, the leader of the Democratic League, Lumir Abdixhiku, has warned before entering the constitutive session that talks will continue with the leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement, Albin Kurti, in order to reach an agreement on institutions.

He said that there are rapprochements on some topics, but no agreement has yet been reached on the main issue, that of the president. Kurti insists that the president be from a party, while Abdixhiku insists that the position should belong to the LDK.

Despite the differences, the LDK leader emphasized that the goal of both parties remains to avoid new elections.

"It takes time, it takes effort. We are trying to keep everyone we represent around a common solution. These processes are not easy. While we are trying, it means that we want to avoid new elections. Going to elections is the greatest damage that can be done to the Republic," Abdixhiku said.

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This week, two meetings were held between the presidents of LVV and LDK, while another was held after the certification of the results.

Abdixhiku warned that meetings will continue in the coming days, and assessed that the very fact that the dialogue is continuing is a positive signal.

"I will be in continuous meetings. There are many rapprochements on many issues, but we still have distance on the main issue, which is democratic balance. The Assembly must be constituted, there is no reason not to constitute it. Since we are meeting, it is a good sign," he said.

And, after the adjournment of the constitutive session, LDK MP Armend Zemaj left open the possibility of rapid progress in the talks between the two parties.

"I hope and believe that there may be some positive movement today, but it remains to be seen whether there is or not," Zemaj said on Thursday.

The day before, Abdixhiku held a meeting with the elected MPs. After the meeting, many of them, including Zemaj, stated that the agreement should be accepted only on the condition that the LDK gets the post of president.

PDK and Aleanca call the decision to postpone the session irresponsible

Representatives of the Democratic Party and those of the Alliance have judged the decision to postpone the constitutive session as irresponsible.

PDK Chairman Bedri Hamza said that this constitutes abuse of office, the decision taken by the Speaker of the Assembly, Avni Dehari, who is an MP from the Vetëvendosje Movement.

"The session is called almost on the last day in accordance with the Constitution to have the constitution, and in the end they come out and give political speeches, abuse the position of the chairman and instead of proposing a name, they postpone the proposal of the name of the chairman and the Assembly is not constituted. Kosovo continues with an institutional vacuum. These irresponsible behaviors must end," said Hamza.

Hamza had responded positively to the first invitation from the leader of the LVV, Albin Kurti, but rejected the second one, which was made to him this week.

He said that he does not see another meeting as necessary, although he did not rule out the possibility of one taking place.

"We don't have a meeting without content, without a product, without a result, we don't need to meet. We have our position, in the absence of a vision, of a serious project that would give the country institutions, the absence of a responsible offer, the absence of seriousness with this whole process, we have declared our role that we will be a party in the opposition", he said.

Of the leaders of the major parties, the Alliance's is the only one who has rejected Kurti's invitation for a meeting.

The MP of this party, Besnik Tahiri, said that by not constituting the Assembly, Kurti aims to gain time.

"If the goal was to get out of this two-year vicious circle, why didn't he talk to the political parties about the president of Kosovo, because the issue is with the president, but he has neglected it until today. Does Kurti want to create another case in the Constitutional Court to further postpone the constitution. This is a tactic to get some political bargain, to gain time and take over all the institutions that in fact do not belong to a political entity," said Tahiri.

The PDK and the Alliance together have 29 MPs. Meanwhile, the LVV, LDK and the communities, not including the Serb List legislators, together have enough MPs to elect the president.

Civil society demands that the constitution of the Assembly be carried out without delay

The interruption of the constitutive session of the Kosovo Assembly, on the eve of the end of the constitutional deadline for its constitution, has prompted reactions from civil society.

The Kosovo Law Institute assesses that at a time when the Assembly was supposed to continue with the election of its bodies, the constitutive procedure turned into a space for political declarations and negotiations regarding the election of the president.

"According to Article 9, paragraph 3, of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly, no debate is held in the constitutive session. Consequently, this session cannot be used for political discussions, requests outside the established order or conditioning the constitution with agreements on other issues. The election of the president is an issue of extraordinary constitutional importance, but it constitutes a separate process and cannot be established as a precondition for the constitution of the Assembly," the Kosovo Law Institute said in a response.

IKL has requested that the constitution of the Assembly be completed within the constitutional deadline.

"IKD demands the immediate continuation of the session and the completion of the constitution of the Assembly within the constitutional deadline, without debates, without procedural improvisations and without political conditions. Every minute lost on the last day brings the country closer to a new constitutional violation. The deputies did not swear today to serve party calculations, but to respect the Constitution and the law," the reaction states.

And researcher at the Democratic Institute of Kosovo, Eugen Cakolli, said that it is pointless to request "additional time for the president", delaying the very process that activates that deadline.

"The only deadline that is running out is the one for the constitution of the Assembly, which ends tomorrow, at 23:59. Although the request for additional time and the interruption of the session do not constitute a procedural violation, they do not suspend or extend the constitutional deadline within which the Assembly must be constituted. Without the constitution being concluded, the procedure for electing the president does not begin at all. After the constitution, the parties will have a full 60 days for discussions, agreements and the election of the president," Cakolli said.

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The constitutive session of the Assembly was interrupted at the third item on the agenda, which foresees the election of the speaker. The fourth and final item is the election of the five vice-speakers.

The first two items that have passed are the verification of the quorum of mandates and the oath of deputies.