Acting Minister of Internal Affairs, Xhelal Sveçla, has stated that the provision of the Law on Citizenship of the Republic of Kosovo, which has sparked debate and reactions in recent days, is not an innovation brought by the current government, but stems from the Ahtisaari Package and has been part of Kosovo's constitutional order since 2008.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Sveçla said that Article 31 of the 2026 Law on Citizenship is the same as the provision provided for in Article 155 of the Constitution of Kosovo and that the opposition is criticizing a norm that, according to him, it itself made a permanent part of the Constitution through the constitutional amendments of 2012.
"In recent days, numerous statements have been made regarding the Law on Citizenship of the Republic of Kosovo. Due to public interest, it is important to clarify some basic facts, especially regarding Article 31 of this law. First, Article 31 of the Law on Citizenship of 2026 is not a new provision. This article is part of the basic constitutional provisions of the Republic of Kosovo, namely Article 155 that derives from the Ahtisaari Package. This right has not been created or recognized by this government and has not been introduced for the first time with the new law, as opposition exponents are proclaiming," said Sveçla.
He emphasized that the right to citizenship for citizens of the former Yugoslavia who were permanent residents of Kosovo on 1 January 1998 and their direct descendants was initially foreseen in the Ahtisaari Package, later included in the Constitution and has remained unchanged in the citizenship legislation since the declaration of independence.
Sveçla accused previous governments of having, in 2012, instead of removing this provision from the Constitution, transferred it to the fundamental provisions, making it a permanent part of the country's constitutional order.
"While in 2012, instead of this provision being removed from the Constitution and having the same fate as other transitional provisions, the current opposition, which was in power at the time, through constitutional amendments decided to transfer this provision to the fundamental provisions of the Constitution in order to make it a permanent part of the constitutional order of the Republic of Kosovo. So essentially, what the opposition is criticizing today has its source precisely here. Which means that they were either not at all aware of what they did and voted for, or they had exactly the intention for which they are accusing us today," he added.
also
Svečla: In 2012, today's opposition made citizenship for Serbs part of the Constitution
Meanwhile, the director of the Legal Department at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Qendrim Bytyqi, stated that the wording of Article 31 in the new law is fully harmonized with the Constitution and does not imply automatic acquisition of citizenship, but recognition of the right to acquire it, according to the criteria set by law.
He added that the previous laws of 2008 and 2013 used the wording "are considered citizens of the Republic of Kosovo", while the current law speaks of the recognition of the right to citizenship, in accordance with the constitutional provision.
The Citizenship Law entered into force on May 22. Days earlier, Sveçla said that hundreds of people had applied for it.
