Serbian representatives in Kosovo: Education and health issues to be discussed in Brussels

Representatives of Serb-majority municipalities in Kosovo have adopted a statement rejecting and condemning any action or intervention that could jeopardize the work and provision of services in health and education institutions. They called for these issues to be resolved through the dialogue for the normalization of relations, which is being mediated by the European Union.

In North Mitrovica on February 12, at the invitation of the Serbian List, a joint session of municipalities with a Serb majority was held, which was also attended by representatives of health and educational institutions in Serb-populated areas in Kosovo, which operate according to the Serbian system.

"In our assessment, all open issues, including the status of these institutions, should be resolved exclusively through dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina on the establishment of the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities, and we absolutely oppose violent, unilateral actions, as well as any other action that would jeopardize the functioning of these two sectors," the statement adopted at this meeting states.

The statement also welcomes the efforts of the QUINT countries to find a "sustainable solution based on principles of justice."

The statement also states that "unilateral actions against educational and health institutions, taken outside the dialogue in Brussels and the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities", as well as the implementation of the Law on Foreigners and the Law on Vehicles, "constitute administrative ethnic cleansing of the Serbian people".

The Serbian List, the main Serb party in Kosovo that enjoys the support of Belgrade, said earlier that the meeting would discuss the political and security situation following the announcement of the full implementation of the laws on foreigners and vehicles.

Simic says Law on Foreigners “endangers Serbian students and employees”

At the beginning of the meeting, Serbian List official and MP in the Kosovo Assembly, Igor Simić, said that the Law on Foreigners will endanger students, employees in Serbian institutions, businessmen, displaced Serbs who have property in Kosovo, as well as the clergy of the Serbian Orthodox Church, adding that the international community has been notified of all of this.

"The foundations of our existence are at stake and we must do everything in our power to protect our people. The regime in Pristina has brought us to this situation with unilateral actions over the past few years, with the aim of making it impossible for the Serbian people to survive," he said.

Simić stressed that the Serbian List has not participated in any negotiations, as some other political entities are accusing it of.

The meeting then took place behind closed doors, and after the meeting, the conclusions are expected to be read.

The meeting is opposed by several parties

The civic initiative "North for All" of Marko Jakšić, the civic initiative "Roots" of Ivan Vučković, and the Serbian People's Movement of Milija Bišević, through a joint announcement, said that their assembly members will not participate in the "consultative session" organized by the Serbian List.

The joint statement said that such rallies do not represent a real fight for the interests of the Serbian people, but "a simulation of resistance and an attempt to cover up years of silence and political responsibility after the fact."

These three political entities had previously proposed the adoption of a declaration regarding the Law on Foreigners and Vehicles, but this was rejected by the Serbian List.

"Therefore, we ask the question that citizens have the right to hear: are the harmful processes and laws, the destructive consequences of which are following, part of the agreements that the Serbian List has accepted and implemented earlier, and that were concluded and agreed to to the detriment of the people by their ideological and political creator, Aleksandar Vučić?", it was said in the reaction.

Earlier, the Party "For Freedom, Justice and Survival" of Nenad Rašić, who is also the Minister for Communities and Returns in the Government of Kosovo, called on the Serbian List to declare and show what has been specifically agreed regarding the integration of educational and health institutions in Kosovo that operate in the Serbian system, as well as who conducted the negotiations and on whose behalf.

"If there is no agreement, then it is extremely irresponsible, even deceptive, to present yourself as the political defender of the Serbian people, while no concrete solution is offered," the statement said, assessing that the silence of the Serbian List "is not accidental."

Earlier, the Minister of Local Government Administration in the Government of Kosovo, Elbert Krasniqi, invited the mayors of municipalities with a Serb majority to a meeting on Friday, in order to discuss the integration of Serbian health and education institutions.

The ten Serb-majority municipalities in Kosovo – North Mitrovica, Leposavic, Zvecan, Zubin Potok, Gracanica, Shtërpcë, Kllokot, Ranilug, Partesh and Novo Brdo – are led by mayors from the Serb List, and it is currently unknown whether they will respond to this invitation.

The announcement of the start of the integration of educational and health institutions coincides with the start of the implementation of the first phase of the full application of the Law on Foreigners, which will last until March 15 and provides for an information period.

The full implementation of this law could affect the functioning of Serbian health and education institutions, as those who do not possess Kosovo documents must have a work permit or work license, for which the application is submitted to the Kosovo Employment Agency.

Also, employees and students of the University of North Mitrovica, who come from Serbia or other countries in the region, would need to have a temporary residence permit and meet other conditions set out by law, depending on the purpose of their stay.

In practice, obtaining a work or study permit can be problematic, as Kosovo does not recognize Serbia's institutions, which it considers parallel and illegal.

The Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia has also reacted to this issue, assessing that Serbian education and health institutions are "the very core" of the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities, which Kosovo and Serbia agreed to form during negotiations in Brussels.

The parties agreed on the Association in 2013 and it is also mentioned in the Agreement on the Path to Normalization of Relations, which Kosovo and Serbia accepted in 2023. According to a draft statute drafted by the European Union, the Association would also have to regulate the issue of revenues, namely financing from the Serbian budget.