On Sunday 23rd, Lëvizja VETËVENDOSJE! sent the following manual on how to become independent, to the institutitions of Kosovo, together with a set of teeth, because our insitututions lack teeth.

“The Kosovo Government is toothless. Its actions in response to the current political situation show it to be a sham government. In order for it to become a real government, it needs to carry out 10 steps, which have been laid down below. Only then can we say that we are dealing with a true government, not a toothless government like the previous ones.

The declaration of independence has not made us independent. Even though it is an important development, recognition by various countries of the world does not make us independent. It is the radical change of the situation on the ground -- the exercise of power by whom, toward whom, and to what extent -- that would make us independent. Below are 10 initial steps that the Kosovo institutions should make in order to establish a strong foundation for independent political, economic, and social development of Kosovo. These steps should be carried out by the institutions: institutions by the people, of the people, and for the people.
 

Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo

1. It must renounce its pledge to implement the Ahtisaari plan. This plan was meant to be an agreement between Serbia and Kosovo (as a price paid in exchange for the independence of Kosovo recognized by Serbia and Russia). Serbia and Russia have rejected it. Why should Kosovo accept it?

2. It should reject the proposed draft of the Constitution and demand that the Constitutional Commission draft a Constitution that will vest the Kosovo institutions with sovereignty and make them, as well as itself as a document, the supreme authority in the territory of Kosovo.

Teaching us democracy!

Under UN and EU tutelage, all the laws of the Ahtisaari Plan have been passed according to a special procedure, allowing NO DEBATE. It looks like the constitution will also be passed in April in the same way – with NO DEBATE. Only the ICR, Pieter Fieth, has the right to make fundamental changes to it – not the people of Kosovo or our deputies.

President of the Republic of Kosovo

3. He should declare the TMK the Army of Kosovo. At the same time, he should authorize the beginning of the process of transformation of the TMK into an army (in cooperation with the Ministry of Defence, which would be established in accordance with this decision). What kind of independence do we have if we are not allowed to create our army ourselves? He would then become the Supreme Commander of this army. He must never agree to its disbandment or to the creation of the Security Force of Kosovo [SFK]. Until this transformation has been completed, the President should seek to reach special defence agreements with the states that have recognized Kosovo as an independent and sovereign state (Albania, United States, United Kingdom, and so on). In the meantime, he should seek a SOFA [Status of Forces Agreement] agreement with NATO.

4. He should demand that UNMIK leave Kosovo because, by its very nature, it symbolizes the denial of the independence of Kosovo. The same thing should apply to the EU mission (EULEX and ICO). Kosovo cannot have two sovereign governments. The EU and the UN can stay in Kosovo with assistance, advisory, and even monitoring missions, but never with administration missions vested with any authority. Any governing authority not elected by us violates our sovereignty and our rights.

5. He should withdraw the credentials and permission to stay for all diplomatic offices whose countries have opposed the independence of Kosovo. Their envoys in Kosovo, be they diplomats or in another capacity, must be ordered to leave. Police and military forces of the countries that do not recognize Kosovo should also be asked to leave. These countries should be asked to recognize Kosovo and establish diplomatic relations. Kosovo cannot recognize countries that do not recognize it.

Government of the Republic of Kosovo

6. Through its Ministry of Interior, it should take control over the Kosovo Police Service and make it the Police of Kosovo. Its officers should be equipped with all the necessary equipment necessary to enforce law and order in the whole territory of Kosovo. These actions should be coordinated with the Kosovo president as the supreme commander of the Army of Kosovo. The protection of territorial integrity and exercise of sovereignty in the entire territory of Kosovo are pressing and crucial issues in Kosovo today.

7. It should take the necessary measures to prevent the holding of Serbian elections in the territory of Kosovo. Preventing such elections from taking place in Kosovo will be the best short-term indicator of the independence of Kosovo. Sovereign countries do not allow the holding of elections of other countries within their territory. Likewise, Serbian politicians should be denied entry to Kosovo. Serbian ministers cannot make private visits to Kosovo and then use them for undermining its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Bilateral relations with it can be established only after Serbia has recognized Kosovo.

8. It must establish the Foreign Ministry immediately and without waiting for anybody's permission. What is the point of independence if we have to wait for somebody's permission to establish the Foreign Ministry? This ministry should then begin to open embassies across the world. Albania has offered to put its embassies at our disposal. The only thing we need to do is send our representatives to those countries or delegate the power of representation to the Albanian ambassadors abroad. For example, the Swiss ambassador to Iran has been representing the US interests in that country since 1981, a year after the breaking off of diplomatic relations between the United States and Iran. Albanian ambassadors should lobby on a daily basis for the recognition of Kosovo in the countries that have not recognized it.

9. It should take control over the KTA privatization agency and all of its assets. The money collected from the privatization process so far should be used for capital investments of strategic importance for Kosovo. Meanwhile, further privatization should be suspended until Kosovo has achieved true sovereignty and is able to decide independently which company should be sold and how. The government should decide independently about how to spend and fund the budget -- of course taking into consideration the interests and needs of the Kosovo citizens. It should put under its control all border crossings and introduce fiscal policies to protect domestic produce.

State and Independent Agencies

10. They should immediately refuse orders from any authorities other than those of Kosovo. They should remain independent and work for the interests of the people of Kosovo. The Central Bank should begin to act as such: exercise its authority in planning monetary policies. At the same time, the Central Bank should issue Treasury Bonds so that the Kosovo citizens can invest in the development of their country. The independent media commissioner should free the media of the UNMIK and OSCE claws in order to allow them to inform the citizens accurately about the reality in Kosovo. Independence also entails independence from UNMIK and the ICO.”

A window into UNMIK

UN administrator for Mitrovica, Gerard Gallucci, wrote a letter of criticism to UN Headquarters, which he copied to local Serb leaders, regarding UNMIK’s response to armed Serbs on March 17th. In this letter he makes it clear that he supports Serbia’s right to govern local Serbs through parallel structures autonomous from Prishtina. He wrote, according to Koha Ditore, that the only reason UNMIK did not obstruct the declaration of independence, was that it was not possible to prevent it. He argues neither UNMIK nor the Kosovo Government (which he defines as Albanian) have any moral or legal right to coerce Serbs in Kosovo to recognize Prishtina. Instead, he says, “It must be made clear to Kosovo Albanians that the north belongs to us [UNMIK].” Since then, there have been calls for his resignation. Yes, Gallucci should go. But not just Gallucci. His actions reflect the political objectives of the entire institution of UNMIK, which is based on Resolution 1244: The entire institution should pack its bags and leave.

 

Outside Links:

• Vetevendosje movement