The Italian Embassy in Kosovo has expressed regret for the boycott by Serb List and other Serbian political actors of the April 21 vote in the four municipalities in the north of Kosovo.
The voting for the removal or not of the Albanian mayors was considered unsuccessful due to the insufficient participation of citizens in the voting.
In order to dismiss the presidents, 50 percent plus one voter was required to vote, but only 253 people participated in the election.
In the question of whether they support the position expressed by France that the Albanian mayors in the four municipalities in the north of Kosovo, inhabited by a majority of Serbs, resign, as the fastest way for new elections, The Italian embassy in Pristina said that Sunday’s boycott does not contribute to the de-escalation of the situation, nor does it pave the way for the Serbs to return to Kosovo’s institutions, which, according to Rome, is the “key problem”.
“Representative governance in the north of Kosovo will be restored when the elections for the president are held with the active participation of all communities. Having said that, we acknowledge that Sunday’s voting took place peacefully and in accordance with the law, despite a number of difficulties,” said the Italian Embassy’s response to Radio Free Europe.
After the failure of Sunday’s votes, France demanded that local elections be immediately organized in North Mitrovica, Zveçan, Leposavic and Zubin Potok.
“France recalls that the withdrawal of the presidents elected with only 3 percent of the votes, would be the fastest way to restore representative democracy in the four municipalities in the north, and will be a sign of the de-escalation of the situation”, declared the French ambassador to the United Nations, Nicolas de Riviere, writes REL.
Meanwhile, the United States has expressed regret for the decision of the Serb List and other Serbian political actors in Kosovo who did not participate in the vote for the removal or not of the Albanian presidents.
The American Embassy in Pristina declared on Sunday that through the voting, the Serbs were able to “advance in effective and representative democracy”.
The European Union has also expressed regret for the decision of the Serb List.
Albanian leaders in the north were elected in April, in elections boycotted by Serb List and the Serbian population.
The taking of the mandate by them was accompanied by protests of local residents, which culminated in violence on May 29 in Zveçan, when protesters and KFOR members clashed. As a result, there were injuries on both sides.
The international factor asked Kosovo to draft legislation for the removal of the presidents. In September, the Government issued an administrative instruction, which provides for the collection of signatures of 20 percent of the voting body, in order to hold a vote on whether or not the citizens want to remove the mayor of the municipality.
If Sunday’s vote were successful, then the president of Kosovo would have 30 or 45 days to announce new elections.
According to the administrative instruction, such an initiative in the north for the removal of the mayors can be undertaken by the citizens after 12 months.
