Member of European Parliament: Serb Ticket’s Refusal to Run in Election Contravenes Feb. 27 Agreement

MEP Viola von Cramon (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV)

The European Parliament’s rapporteur for Kosovo, Viola von Cramon, and Dutch member of the European Parliament [MEP] Thijs Reuten voiced their “deep regret” over the Serb Ticket party’s refusal to take part in upcoming local elections in the north of Kosovo, warning that the refusal was in violation of the Agreement on the Path to Normalization of Relations between Kosovo and Serbia.

Viola von Cramon, a representative of the Greens, and Reuten, a member of the Socialists and Democrats [S&D] Group, said in a joint statement on March 24 that “the participation of all relevant actors in political life in north Kosovo and its institutions is critical to normalization between Kosovo and Serbia” and pleaded with the Serb Ticket to change its decision.

“Article 7 of the Agreement on the path to normalization between Kosovo and Serbia, agreed on Feb. 27, 2023, commits both parties to the agreement to ensure an appropriate level of self-management for the Serb community in Kosovo. Refusal to take part in local elections, necessitated by the Serb Ticket’s withdrawal from institutions, falls short of this commitment,” the two MEPs said, adding that the election scheduled for April 23 “is a critical opportunity for people in the north of Kosovo to exert self-management by exercising their democratic rights.”

“Withholding participation would deny people in the north of Kosovo their right to elect representatives who will work to build a better future for their communities. We call on the Serb Ticket to take part in the local elections as scheduled. While the deadline for submitting tickets for the local elections in the north of Kosovo has passed, we ask the authorities of Kosovo to exercise flexibility and urge the Serb Ticket to submit its list of candidates without delay,” Von Cramon and Reuten said in the release.