Iljasa Fazliu – the untouchable speech therapist

"Watch the suffocating scoundrel", how speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu behaves with children according to interns

In the hands of a speech therapist often lies a child's first word, a parent's hope, and the future of a voice that still cannot speak.

In a therapy room, where children fight for every sound, for every small progress, where every voice, every effort is a step towards normal life, there are complaints, disappointments, but also silence.

Iljasa Fazliu is a speech therapist at the Speech Therapy Clinic, but for many others he is a symbol of inviolability.

Complaint after complaint about poor approach to children, inappropriate behavior with interns, threats, and constant absences from work.

All of this has been addressed officially, but despite everything, almost nothing has happened, no real investigation. Only silence every time his name is mentioned.

Even when the case hit the courthouse doors, dilemmas arose that the system did not handle the case properly and they were not treated properly.

This wasn't just a single case. It's a story that shows how an entire system can become complicit in protecting an individual.

Iljasa Fazliu's name became known when the media published an audio recording of him insulting a three-year-old girl with autism at his private clinic.

"Go away, go away….Hey, uh, my nerves are getting the better of me, who can stand these people for an hour,. Give it to me, give it to me, mother, because they're… Nalu, nalu, fuck that mother. Go away, go away, go away, mmmm, go away, you big fool, what do you want, what?… Where are you, mother, you can't stand them", Fazliu could be heard saying in this audio recording.

But, it seems that this is not the only case. "The Oath for Justice" has received dozens of complaints from parents and interns about him and his constant absences from work.

But, in the face of these complaints and alleged violations by Fazliu, it appears that the entire hierarchy of the University Clinical Hospital Service of Kosovo (ShSKUK) has turned a blind eye.

According to the interns' accounts, Fazliu misbehaved with the children in the few minutes he was in session with them, because according to them, he was not at work most of the time.

In order to protect their identities, the Oath for Justice has assigned them fictitious names, such as Hana, Diella, Vera, and Ylleza.

According to intern Diella, there were cases when Fazliu threatened children with work tools.

"The next case immediately after that was a case of articulation, I think the sound 'and'. After practicing, the child couldn't say it very well, and he took the black cigarette and said, 'say it well or look at it.' Now, you have to tell them so that they don't understand otherwise," she said.

"I don't understand exactly, because it happened a few months ago, 'look at the black smoker', 'Tell him or look at the black smoker', something like that. I wrote it down. It's on paper too," she added.

Vera also says she is a witness to these words.

"Journalist: Do you remember specifically what his words were that day?"

Vera: I know that a witch doctor has been there and has told the child to kill the witch doctor.

Journalist: So he threatened her with words?

Vera: Yes, yes.”

Regarding Fazliu's behavior, the two interns, fearing retaliation, say that they had sent written complaints to the head of the speech therapy service, but requested to remain anonymous.

But speech therapist Fazliu himself denies that anything like this happened.

"This has absolutely nothing to do with it, never. It is impossible for something like this to happen to me. Do you know what is totally impossible? I am very friendly with children," said Fazliu.

In another case, Diella says that during the session, instead of dealing with the child, he made noise by arranging the closet.

"The first case was with a cigarette. Well, there was another case before that, where he knocked on the closet, tried to fix it, made a lot of noise, and the child was crying, and you didn't stop him at all, because you were in the hearing," she said.

This is how Fazliu reasons.

"If this fell, it fell, this one down, I took it, so I practically fixed it in a minute with a Basque, and that's it," he said.

Intern: Fazliu acts with children at the Speech Therapy Clinic just as he did in his clinic

Iljasa Fazliu is a speech therapist/defectologist at the Speech Therapy Clinic, but for many others he is a symbol of inviolability.

Complaints about poor approach to children, inappropriate behavior with interns, threats, and constant absences from work have been addressed to Fazliu, who became known after insulting a 3-year-old with autism at his private clinic.

According to intern Vera* (a fictitious name chosen by the editorial team to protect her identity), Fazliu, just as he had operated in his private clinic, now operates every day in the speech therapy clinic.

"He was a little bit like that case that happened in his clinic, I don't even know how it happened that they say he cursed the child and insulted him, he uses the same words, the same expressions with other children. And something I can say is that he doesn't work with children at all, every two months the interns change, the child has to have another speech therapist every two months to deal with them," she said.

The fact that Fazliu does not stay in sessions with children most of the time is confirmed by other interns. According to Hana*, although they were not allowed to work alone with children, the speech therapist has entrusted this responsibility to them.

"But the moment I started, he simply said that this is the case, you do this exercise and he didn't give you any instructions. He left the session and didn't come back for an hour, an hour and a half, two. Now, in a way, not in a way, but he gave me the responsibility as if I had finished his work," said Hana.

According to her, she had also officially raised this concern.

"Yes, yes, most of the time yes, yes even when they were late he stayed in the classroom for a minute and left immediately. He left this responsibility to me even though the contracts we sign as interns do not mention this thing. Normally we have understood that after doing an internship for example a week normally we will start trying to work with the child, but always in the presence of the mentor", she said.

According to her, at the moment Fazliu was tasked with dealing with the child, he was not present.

"He was not there to see what work I was doing with that child. I did not even have a history of the child. I did not even know what kind of disorder or delay he might have had and I did not know if I was doing that child any good or if I was just causing more problems for him. That is one of my concerns that I have been trying to express to the head of the speech therapy department at UCCK. However, as long as the director does not take into account the requests that we made as interns, she has not been able to do anything more," she continued.

Parent: For four years, speech therapist Fazliu did not personally treat the child, leaving it to interns

Over the years, dozens of complaints have been filed by interns and parents against defectologist and speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu, for poor approach to children, threats, and constant absences from work.

The mother of a 10-year-old boy says that her son had been treated by Speech Therapist Fazliu for four years, but that he had not treated him personally, always leaving it to the interns.

"I've been treating my son for four years. My complaints are that he hasn't treated my son properly, always with interns and interns and I wanted to tell him, why aren't you dealing with my son, you said "you don't report me, I know my business, I report this matter to them, I report it to the interns, they do this" I'm not the only parent who complains about him. He never stops talking about the child. He's good and he leaves. He never, never comes in with my son to sit in the session that is his duty, for four years I've been treating my son, he never once stopped to ask my son what his problem is and how, no, he never asks anything," she said.

She says she understands that her child had specific problems for treatment, which may have affected the success, however, she says she would like speech therapist Fazliu to deal with him directly.

"But in every case, other children would know how to do it, become independent faster. I was four years old, he is not my child, I understand that my child has more serious problems than a child who stutters or who cannot say every letter. I understand this, but he, because he never dealt with my child," the mother of the 10-year-old continued.

"Yes, he went on vacation, he didn't show anything, many times. Just this last year, they haven't prepared anything except for vacation, vacation. For example, I went to speech therapy, no it's not, no it's not, no it's not. I've seen him in cafes, I've seen him in other hospitals," she added.

Fazliu denies that anything like this happened.

"I don't know what the case is, but it's impossible. Not for four years. But three days would pass without me dealing with it. It's impossible. That possibility doesn't exist. Absolutely, that possibility never exists," he said.

But, she wasn't the only parent with complaints.

The claims of this parent and the interns are supported by another complaint.

On May 19, 2024, this complaint was filed by a parent.

"I am B's mother... I have a request for you to change my daughter's speech therapist. I don't like that he has a history of not having good behavior with a child with autism. I don't like his approach since the first class I was with the girl. 3. He only stayed in class for 5 minutes and then we continued with the students. I don't try to calm the girl down at all, she behaved normally for a child with developmental delays in the first class, she cried and refused to cooperate," the parent's complaint read.

In another case, the parent also complained about Fazliu.

"...for his own personal reasons, he did not hold regular sessions with our son. In many cases, the sessions were held by interns and not by the speech therapist himself...", the complaint stated.

Another parent had also filed a complaint, saying that he had not seen any improvement in his child.

"As a mother, I am not seeing my son's success. The reason is that the therapists are changing there. This is negatively affecting H," the parent expressed concern.

"He forcibly grabbed the child from the table," the intern said, shocked by speech therapist Fazliu's behavior.

Over the years, dozens of complaints have been addressed to defectologist and speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu from parents and interns about his behavior and his failure to stay at work most of the time.

In one of the complaints made in April 2023, addressed directly to the head of the ENT department, at the time Arsim Behramaj, the intern expressed shock at Fazliu's behavior. 

"I am writing this letter shocked by the situation that happened to me on Thursday, 06.04.2023, where speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu behaved terribly with me. At that time, when I returned from my colleague's office after the end of the session, the gentleman immediately addressed me with a request for an account and in a very loud voice using sentences I quote "I am the boss here, I control you, no speech therapist here knows how to handle cases, they don't know for themselves and are teaching others", this complaint provided by "Oath for Justice" stated.

According to her, she responded briefly, saying that she was not there to evaluate the professionals, emphasizing that Fazliu is almost never present at the sessions and does not know the children.

"...Even those 20 minutes that he decided to be present, he intervened in the middle of the session by asking me about my personal life. I decided not to answer, a decision of mine which aggravated the situation even more. After I refused to answer, Iljasa Fazliu started harassing me by asking me questions about my profession and principles that he does not personally apply," she wrote.

In addition, in this complaint, the intern says that Fazliu had stood up screaming and was so close to her face that she was afraid he would hit her, but there was another person in the room.

In this complaint, she says that when the child refused to cooperate with him because he was a new face to the child, Fazliu forcibly grabbed the child from the table.

"On the same date, around 12:00-12:30, when the child refused to cooperate with me, since I was a new face to the child, the gentleman in question forcibly grabbed the child from the table. There was also a witness in the office. That day I was emotionally charged, when I left the office I had difficulty breathing and suffered a panic attack," she continued.

"Hold accountable, those who should at least be accountable," the intern concluded in her letter.

The Oath for Justice also spoke with this intern, who said she did not want to talk about this story.

"I have nothing to say about the complaint addressed to the director. This complaint is two and a half years old. We have already passed it over as history and I did not want to bring it up again."

But was her complaint addressed and taken into account?

"If you want to give me information, maybe it would be better if I went and talked to the director. I don't want to because it was quite a difficult experience for me and I didn't want to relive it again, presenting it as an experience," she said.

In the fifth complaint in a row that "Oath for Justice" has secured, another intern, in the complaint filed in June 2025, had expressed concerns regarding the trapist Fazliu.

"On the first day of the internship, the therapist told us interns to start the session without giving us any prior information about the case, which created great uncertainty for us, as we were unable to clearly understand the needs and condition of the patients we would be working with. Despite this, the therapist asked us to complete the registration and carry out the therapeutic work without having the opportunity to be supervised and guided by a responsible person, as required by the regulations," she said.

A complaint against Fazliu was also filed in September 2025, the sixth complaint in a row. In this complaint, the intern requested a change of speech therapist during her internship.

"I request that you change your location during speech therapy practice due to the unethical and unprofessional violations committed by speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu during speech therapy sessions," the complaint stated.

Interns: Speech therapist Fazliu demanded that we compile reports and threatened to revoke our licenses

Dozens of complaints have been filed against defectologist and speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu, among other things, that he only gave birth to interns in sessions with children, even though he was obligated to supervise them at all times.

Intern Hana (a fictitious name chosen by the editorial staff) says that she considers it a mistake to have initially agreed to hold the sessions without the presence of the supervisor, in this case speech therapist Fazliu.

"When I started practicing with him, the first week I made a lot of mistakes because even though he came out, I did what he told me and stayed in the room. However, after I complained to the director, she told me exactly what my responsibilities and rights were. I also feel very guilty that in that first week, despite not being well informed, I continued and kept him for two or three specific cases because I hope I didn't do anything to harm that child. However, now I always have to worry that I made a mistake or something, and a child or any person who was present there at the session could not have done anything more than feel guilty that I was not a proper professional in treating him," she said.

According to her, Fazliu even asked them to issue reports.

"I remember a case where she was present after I told her that I would not hold the case without her being present and she got very angry and irritated with what I said, because I was one of the few interns who went against my word, which she said she was used to from previous interns who had done all the work, and then they issued her reports that an intern would never dare to issue, and she came to the case, started to hold it, but always raising her voice and in a way shouting at the children, which is not permissible during the sessions at all," she said.

"Journalist: When you say that he asked you to report on other cases, he asked you to report on this matter on his behalf?"

"Hana: Yes, he asked, but I always refused," she added.

Fazliu denies leaving the interns alone.

"Look, first of all, I never left the interns alone, I need to know the names of these interns, because I also have extraordinary thanks, as I had the opportunity to do now that I have these, I did not write these myself, that is, practically, it is slander because they come here, spend 2 months and days and then leave," he said.

The interns say that Iljasa was also threatening them with licensing, telling them that he was on the commission.

"Yes, there were threats during the first two weeks of my internship because I refused to hold the case without him being present, as was written in the intern contract before I started. Some of his threats were that you wouldn't be able to achieve anything. As speech therapists, you should know what you have to do, I don't need to teach you. He also said that I am responsible for the signatures I give him for the licensing process. I will not give you the signatures. I can also destroy the career you can have in the future," said Hana.

"I didn't have the courage until then to tell you that I had the license exam and it scared us. I was very quickly put on the committee and then I realized that he only did it so that we wouldn't complain about them because he would be on the committee and we wouldn't be able to get a license," said another intern, Vera*.

But speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu denies this too.

"That's not true, I'm not a licensing commissioner. I've been the Chairman of the licensing commission for 5 years, I'm not anymore, I haven't been involved in that work for four years. I haven't threatened anyone, nor am I threatened by anyone," he said.

Speech therapist Fazliu, even though he should be in session to treat the child, shows a motorcycle to the parent.

Although defectologist and speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu denies that he leaves his interns alone in sessions, the Betimi për Drejtësi journalist, on October 31, 2025, stayed for several hours in the speech therapy premises to see if Fazliu was staying in sessions with the children, as he is required to.

But, as soon as one of the children enters the session, the speech therapist comes out, invites the parent to come out into the yard, to show them a motorcycle.

Fazliu, throughout the session, although he returns to the therapy room for a few minutes, he leaves again.

This is how he justifies the fact that that day, he had gone out to show his parent a motorcycle and had not personally treated the child.

"-Yes, that's right, bravo. That child has been coming for 10-15 times, and these (the interns) know their job, I smoke, go out and move, go to that office of mine, does he need anything to help me or to someone else, and I went out, that is, because these have received those instructions, what is necessary, what is necessary, I stay calm, when something is done I say no, break it into syllables", he reasoned.

"Journalist: But you didn't stay that day."

Fazliu: Yes, but not that day, but I have held 10 hearings.

Journalist: Well, each case has its own uniqueness...

"Fazliu: What about the peculiarity that has been coming for two months, even with the same parent," he continues.

The team has a conversation with the parent, who says this is what usually happens.

Journalist: Ilyas, do you have a child?

Parent: Yes.

Journalist: How is the treatment going with him?

Parent: Okay, okay.

Journalist: How long have you had this?

Parent: Wow, what a weather

Journalist: Kogja weather a.

Parent: Yes, they are on the phone a lot (referring to the child).

Journalist: Was that the one outside, or is it the doctor?

Parent: Yes, yes. There were more of them interns.

Journalist: The interns deal with the child, right?

Parent: More interns. So the main work was done by this... I don't know.

Journalist: Yes, I told you how the procedure goes.

Parent: This guy did the recording…for some other reason…

Journalist: I saw you showing me a motorcycle and I said, "Is the child in the session?"

Parent: Yes…

The two interns who are currently completing their internship under Fazliu's supervision also speak about this situation.

"He gives us instructions, and follows them up, because he has the cases, when we arrived there were cases, he worked on those cases himself and with interns, and now we just continue the cases that are there and follow them up through the professor's instructions," says one of them, also approved by the other intern.

However, interns do not have the right to treat the child alone, without being under the supervision of a speech therapist.

Fazliu also asks a parent to talk about the Oath for Justice, if they were satisfied with its services.

"The doctor is really good, this boy has been on treatment for a month, but the difference is like night and day. I couldn't even get my child to sit in a chair at home, the doctor took two sessions to get him to sit down," says this parent.

Fazliu asks the parent if he has ever left his child alone with the students.

"No, no. It's the doctor who came to Kosovo, and he's making changes for the child, for the child I am. I'm very grateful for the doctor," the parent continued.

But the mother of the ten-year-old boy did not have the same experience, and after four years she says she was forced to request a change of speech therapist.

"While I'm treating the child with you, you have a duty to stay here. As long as it's 30 minutes, he doesn't have to stay with the child all day, 30 minutes, and they don't even stay inside for two minutes, you can't tell me whether I stay here or not. Yes, the last time I made a written complaint and sent it to the principal, she sent it to the principal and I've now changed the speech therapist," he says no.

Intern Vera* says she is surprised why parents treat their children to speech therapist Iljasa.  

"I also don't know how parents know what the problem is and continue to bring their children to that one. Maybe the conditions are taking their toll and now they don't have the opportunity to go anywhere else and they definitely have to go there, they have no other choice," she said.

Acting Head of Speech Therapy: I have addressed the complaints to the hierarchy, Fazliu says he was never invited to the complaints

Dozens of complaints have been addressed to defectologist and speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu. But, apart from changing the speech therapist, which was made possible for some parents, and for six interns whose complaints were provided by the "Oath for Justice", no investigation, not even a single measure, was taken against him.

Only in one case, in August 2023, was Fazliu given a written reprimand by the acting Head of Speech Therapy, Zahide Uka-Rraci, for not respecting work hours and failing to fulfill duties.

"This is because, as you know, the cases of children that you should be treating, together with interns, are being treated only by interns, who are not allowed to work independently, according to the law. Your failure to stay at work for more than 10 minutes a day, during working hours, is also creating dissatisfaction among the parents of the children being treated, since treating cases with interns is preventing progress and is yielding little results for the children," the written warning issued to Fazliu stated.

"Due to your daily absence from work, as Acting Head of the Speech Therapy Service, I am obliged to act in accordance with the law, therefore, I kindly ask you to reflect and assume the responsibilities that belong to you and for which you are paid. Otherwise, I will be forced to initiate disciplinary proceedings before the Disciplinary Committee of SHSKUK," the complaint further stated.

The Oath for Justice, to clarify the entire situation, has requested an interview with the head of the service, Zahide Raci, the Head of the ENT Clinic, Arsim Elezaj, the Director of the UCCK, Mentor Zejnullahu, and the director of the ShSKUK, Elvir Azizi.

Also, an interview was requested with the former director of the ENT, Arsim Behramaj, and the former director of the UCCK, Osman Hajdari, who were aware of all the complaints addressed via e-mail.

However, despite repeated requests for weeks, neither the Head of the ShSKUk nor the Head of the QKUK have agreed to speak, nor have they given permission for other requested interviews.

So, this time too, the entire hierarchy is silent in the face of the complaints raised.

Iljasa Fazliu himself says that he has never been summoned for these complaints.

"Where are those complaints and who have they officially addressed to you, who, who addressed them, who have they addressed to and who, the director of the clinic has no complaints. The directorate has no complaints. Did you address the ENT clinic, was I called once to say we have never had this complaint," he said.

Oath for Justice interviewed the Acting Head of the Speech Therapy Service, who says that she had always notified the hierarchy about all complaints.

"I can only tell you that I have addressed every complaint, whether from interns or other persons, to the ENT directorate and the UCCK," she said, stating that for further details we must obtain permission from the media office.

Former ENT director admits he did not address complaints about speech therapist Fazliu: The entire hierarchy was informed

"Oath for Justice" also called the former director of the ENT, Arsim Behramaj, who admits that the acting Head of Speech Therapy Zahide Uka-Rraci had continuously sent official emails regarding complaints against the defectologist and speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu, but that according to him, he personally did not take any action, under the pretext that the entire hierarchy was involved in these emails.

"They are all addressed to our directorates. These complaints went to the QKUK directorate, they were all filed there. She brought every item to me, now I told her to take it to the directorate because I had nothing to do with it, in fact I am not the one who either fires her or hires her," he said.

But did he supervise this service, since it is part of the ENT, where he was director.

"They haven't taken any specific steps. As far as I know, they've never taken anything concrete, never, ever," he said.

But he says he has never complained about not taking action.

"No, no, no. That's right, we didn't go that way. We were waiting for her to process it, the head of speech therapy, she's responsible for it. Not me," he said.

"Journalist: Yes, but in reality the hierarchy higher than the head of the service in this case was the director of the ENT."

Behramaj: Oh, you absolutely did nothing, all the complaints went straight to the directorate, what did they do there?

Journalist: Have you personally filed these complaints with the directorate?

Behramaj: No, no, they went through the head of speech therapy. I myself didn't write anything."

According to the ENT director, they had only supervised the Speech Therapy Service as a back and forth.

"They only supervise the comings and goings, they don't have any more powers, nor did they interfere with their powers."

Journalist: And in cases where he hasn't come to work, what have you done since you say you have this authority?

Behramaj: Her boss, her boss has taken action there, I don't mind, her boss has informed me when she was absent, when she was absent, she has addressed all of them.

Journalist: Yes, but the boss reported this case to the director, which was you.

Behramaj: Okay, okay.

Journalist: As director, did you also notify the higher hierarchy in this case, which was the director of UCCK?

Behramaj: No, I haven't specifically gone there, to be honest, I don't know that I've ever addressed them.

Journalist: Why?

Behramaj: I knew they weren't the ones taking any action.

The former director of the ENT, Betimi for Justice, has also sent several official emails, in which the head of the speech therapy service had informed the UCCK hierarchy about the constant absences from work.

Electronic communications prove that the entire hierarchy was aware of speech therapist Fazliu's behavior.

The former director of the ENT, Arsim Behramaj, has sent several official emails to the "Oath for Justice", in which the acting Head of the Speech Therapy Service, Zahide Uka-Rraci, had informed the UCCK hierarchy about the complaints and continuous absences from work of speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu.

These emails stated, among other things:

"Hello director, I would like to inform you that my colleague Ilijsa Fazliu, for the umpteenth time today (Fridays) in the morning, left work and went home without informing me as the head of the department, but only informed you as the director."

The email of March 18, 2025 stated:

"As you are officially informed, we have started providing speech therapy services since yesterday, but today since morning as usual, Ilijsa Fazliu has not reported to work, consequently we have no information, nor notification about the reason for his absence today. Therefore, I kindly ask you to inform me whether the colleague is at work or has he agreed with you, the director, as on other occasions."

In these official communications, the former director Osman Hajdaraj was also present. Behramaj said that all other electronic communications are owned by the head of the speech therapy department. The Oath for Justice has requested access to these internal communications from the ShSKUK, which, according to the Law on Access to Public Documents, are considered official documents accessible to the public. However, the ShSKUK has remained silent in the face of this request. Due to the lack of approval, the Speech Therapy Service has not provided access either.

However, the Oath for Justice has also secured some of these official communications.

In February 2023, this complaint was addressed:

"...I inform you that the negligence of our colleague Iljasa Fazliu continues, not staying at his workplace and continuing like this, with formal signatures on the arrival and departure list. As we have informed you in our previous official communications, interns continue to work alone in his office, without supervision and without his presence..."

In the May 2024 email, it was stated that Fazliu was still absent from work...

"As you know, my colleague Iljas Fazliu, by agreement only with you (without any prior notice to us), has gone on annual leave 2023 until 02.09.2024. Even then, I had called the new cases, but since I learned unofficially that he had gone on leave, I was forced to call him again to cancel them."

"Your colleague asked for the day off today for family reasons, that's all I know," Behramaj replied.

In December 2024, the Director of ENT is again notified of Iljasa Fazliu's absence from work.

Persistent absences from work were addressed almost every month of this year.

Fazliu, who once said he had good relations with the former director, now criticizes him.

"Now you have one thing in mind, the former director has never once violated anything here, it's very easy to get someone's email and write them a complaint, whatever complaints they have, when a complaint is made, they have to come and address me... They used to give you a report, what did you ask them four months ago when they were the director, I guarantee they wouldn't have said those things," he said.

But, he admits that he had never informed the head of speech therapy about his comings and goings, but always the director.

"Fazliu: No, I have never addressed the head of Speech Therapy and I never will."

Journalist: Why, because she's your supervisor.

"Fazliu: No, no, she's not a supervisor, we have the directorate there," he said.

Former ENT director: Iljasa Fazliu's violations were covered up by medical director Ardian Shefkiu

The former director of the ENT Clinic, Arsim Behramaj, says that for not taking action for all the violations reported against defectologist and speech therapist Iljasa Fazliu, there is one person who has stood behind him and defended him.

"The medical director is Ardian Shefkiu, and he has covered up the time, and he has concealed it as a case, and what he did that put them in the files and how does he know. Check the emails, he has filed the complaints of the parties, the complaints of the parties, that have come to him from the speech therapy service," he said.

"They have some kind of family connection, as far as I know," he added, when asked what their relationship is.

Fazliu himself denies having any social or family relationship with Shefki.

"I don't even have a family connection with Mr. Shefkiu, I have absolutely no family connection whatsoever. I'm from Prelepnica, he has an uncle in Prelepnica, I'm from the Zubak neighborhood, he has an uncle in the Shabanovic neighborhood, I have absolutely no family connection with him," he said.

"Oath for Justice" has also contacted Ardian Shefkiu.

"I am the medical director of the ShSKUK, I do not even deal with this issue, there are the bodies of the QKUK where he is employed. There is an administration, there are directorates, there is a personnel office, there are committees that need to be dealt with, it is not up to me to deal with this issue. No one addresses the medical director with complaints or other problems," he said.

Behramaj says that the entire ShSKUK hierarchy has been informed of all complaints.

"It's not that they didn't know, it's just that they don't want to know, that's another thing, it's not true that they didn't know," he said.

Asked if the Director of the ShSKUK, Elvir Azizi, was also informed, he says that everyone was informed.

"It was all right. It's normal that this is what the CC called it," he said.

The former director of the UCCK, Osman Hajdari, said that in order to share details on this topic, he needs permission from the ShSKUK directorate, however, the latter have not given this permission. However, Osman said during the telephone conversation that the speech therapist Fazliu was covered by the former director of the ENT.

"The biggest misfortune they have is that they have a director of the ENT department who is not good in terms of health and not good in terms of management, he usually acts as a cover. Then you can't help but say that he has surpassed him while he has been quiet. For example, I have not received a single letter from the Education Department, not a single complaint, not anything, not even a report, nothing," he said.

According to him, the official reporting line was not followed.

"However, they have not been addressed officially, the boss should take action and call me to the disciplinary committee, and Zahidja gave me information, and I asked the Director who reported directly to me, he told me he was covered, I gave him permission," Osmani continued.

Meanwhile, the director of SHSKUK, Elvir Azizi, contacted by "Oath for Justice", requests that we conduct communication only through the media office.

"I'm sorry, this is a matter for the media office, my dear. It's the organization's policy. Thank you for your understanding, continue to work with them and get all the information from them," he said, although he did not respond to the e-mail he requested.

Even the new director of UCCK, Mentor Zejnullahu, has refused to speak, saying that all requests should be sent by email.

Apart from a written warning, no investigation against Iljasa Fazliu, who continues to defend himself today and is unwilling to talk about his alleged violations, as the SHSKUK refuses to investigate and handle these cases, just as it refuses to respond to the requests of the Oath for Justice to provide answers to the public.

Complaints about Fazliu have also been addressed to the new director of the ENT, Arsim Elezaj, who, for Betimi për Drejtësi, gives a controversial response, once saying that there were no complaints, and then that they have handled two complaints.

"Regarding complaints from parents and interns, we as the director of the ENT Clinic have not received any complaints. Regarding the complaint of a parent and an intern, they have also been handled by the Acting Head of Speech Therapy. Regarding the intern's complaint, we have clarified it and we have many thanks and gratitude from the interns who are in the internship as well as colleagues in the service for the professionalism of the aforementioned person," he said.

How was Iljasa Fazliu treated in the case of the accusation of mistreatment of the 3-year-old girl?

Speech therapist and defectologist Iljasa Fazliu was arrested on November 27, 2022, after an audio recording from his private practice in Gjilan was published in the media, where he was heard insulting and cursing a 3-year-old patient with autism.

"Go away, go away….Hey, uh, my nerves are getting the better of me, who can stand these people for an hour,. Give it to me, give it to me, mother, because they're… Nalu, nalu, fuck that mother. Go away, go away, go away, mmmm, go away, you big fool, what do you want, what?… Where are you, mother, you can't stand them", Fazliu could be heard saying in this audio recording.

After the case was published in the media, Fazliu was dismissed from his position as acting head of Speech Therapy on November 29, 2022. However, with another decision on the same date, he was returned to work only as a defectologist at this clinic.

But, no disciplinary proceedings were conducted against him.

The Basic Prosecution Office in Gjilan had filed an indictment against Fazliu for the criminal offense of “Unconscious Medical Treatment.” According to the Prosecution, Fazliu openly used inappropriate treatment methods and did not follow the rules of the speech therapist profession.

A psychiatric examination was also conducted during Fazliu's trial, but the child was never examined, according to them, because the child's mother refused.

In this trial, the Psychiatry Expert of the Kosovo Institute of Forensic Psychiatry, Dr. Blerina Hoxha-Gjuraj, testified.

According to her, the speech therapist's intervention in this session could not have caused emotional harm to the child.

"With the words 'go away, you idiot', he certainly addressed the child. I do not consider that on the part of the speech therapist that it was a shout at the child, it was a comment on the child's behavior, that he is a difficult child, that he is not understanding, and the child continued to cooperate with the speech therapist, to play around, to make inarticulate sounds, which is characteristic of these children. If there had been emotional trauma, the child would have interrupted the cooperation with the speech therapist, would have asked to run away and leave the session," she said.

The Oath for Justice has also requested a response from expert Hoxha-Gjuraj, but she said that she does not have this case since it has been concluded at the Court of Appeals.

Iljasa Fazliu himself gives his version of this case, saying that he had been busy with other matters.

"I didn't deal with it at all, she said she wasn't sitting, she was crying, I said take it, give me a toy, some object, and that child was looking at the balloon. I went up to get the balloon. When I went down, that is, I talked to her on the phone, I didn't deal with it, nor did I deal with it at all in those two sessions. I absolutely didn't deal with it, the fourth session was when I fell down, my feet were almost trampling her and the words "go there, you're going to trample her, in that sense" came out. I'm not saying it was good, such expressions shouldn't be used, but the court confirmed them. That is, practically it had nothing to do with it," he said.

IKL: There were elements of mistreatment during the exercise of official duty by speech therapist Fazliu

Speech therapist and speech pathologist Iljasa Fazliu was charged with "unconscionable medical treatment" after insulting a 3-year-old girl with autism at his private clinic.

According to the Court's assessment, it was not disputed that the accused had used these words, but it was disputed whether the child had suffered emotional or other harm from these words. Thus, based on the expertise, the Basic Court in Gjilan acquitted the accused, a decision that was also confirmed by the Appeal Court.

But, according to researcher from the Kosovo Law Institute, Zamira Krasniqi, even if the child did not suffer harm, in this case there were elements of "mistreatment during the exercise of official duty or public authorizations."

"Unreasonable medical treatment also requires the element of damage, which in this case, it is said, has not been proven. But, in the specific case, there are suspicions that there may have been elements of the criminal offense of "ill-treatment during the exercise of official duty or authorizations. An official person, who, by abusing his duty or authorizations, ill-treats, intimidates or seriously insults the dignity of another person, is punished with imprisonment of up to three (3) years. 2. When the criminal offense from paragraph 1. of this article is committed against a child, the perpetrator is punished with imprisonment of six (6) months to five (5) years," she said.

However, she says that apparently, this case has not been addressed in this regard.

The Oath for Justice has requested responses from both the Prosecution and the Court. The Court has said that they cannot comment on their decisions, while the Prosecution has not responded.

But, apart from the Court, not even the UCCK had initiated any proceedings against him for disciplinary and ethical violations, with the reasoning that he had already been declared innocent and the case had not occurred at UCCK.

Krasniqi from IKL says that in this specific case, disciplinary liability should be treated separately from criminal liability.

"Criminal liability is not related to disciplinary liability. If in a case there is no criminal liability, a person is not automatically exempted from disciplinary liability. Disciplinary sanctions are imposed for disciplinary violations, which require a much lower standard than criminal violations. For this reason, no institution should exclude disciplinary liability due to the lack of evidence of criminal liability," she said.

Then, in a letter that Betimi për Drejtësi has obtained, dated November 19, 2024, the former Director of the ENT Clinic, Arsim Behramaj, requested that Fazliu be returned as acting head of the speech therapy service. According to him, this was for the good of this service, as it was said that Fazliu had extensive experience and with him the Speech Therapy Service and the patients would benefit.

At the time of the incident, Fazliu was unlicensed by the Chamber of Nurses and had an expired license from the Ministry of Health. However, even though he was unlicensed in the private clinic, the Prosecution has not addressed the aspect of the elements of the criminal offense of "illegal medical practice".

The Oath for Justice has asked the Prosecutor's Office about this as well, but has not received a response.

The paradox lies in the fact that while Fazliu did not have a license of his own, he was on the commission for issuing licenses.

"Look, I had a license, but I didn't have a license. I, I had a license, but the deadline has passed, practically speaking, and also a work license, because I have worked for someone else, it's not like I didn't have a license. I am the chairman of the licensing commission and I am without a license. The deadline has passed, and I have been in the summer, today, tomorrow, tomorrow, I will have to apply for a license in a month or two because I haven't looked into it," he said.

This has also been confirmed by the Chamber of Nurses, Midwives and other Health Professionals.

At the moment that Mr. Fazliu's case became public, OIK revoked the authorizations of the relevant committee, which means his dismissal. Meanwhile, OIK has addressed the University Clinical Center of Kosovo (UCCK) to verify whether any punitive measure has been imposed on Mr. Fazliu for violation of work obligations, or whether he has committed any ethical violation. UCCK has confirmed that the relevant UCCK Committee has released Mr. Fazliu from liability. After that, according to the request submitted by him, OIK has made Mr. Fazliu a member and licensed him," their response states.

According to the Chamber of Nurses, they are unable to take action or measures against any professional who is not a member and does not possess a license issued by the Chamber. It is also stated that no case has been initiated against Mr. Fazliu by the injured party or by the responsible institutions, be they investigative or judicial.

So far, it seems that Fazliu has been amnestied from any violation by any instance of the University Clinical Service, while it remains to be seen whether they will turn a blind eye again to these public denunciations.