According to Belgrade media, the Serbs in the North of Kosovo are planning to independently establish the Association of Serbian Municipalities, whose headquarters will be in Kosovska Mitrovica. Recently, during one of his televised addresses to the nation, President Aleksandar Vučić himself mentioned this possibility, saying that it will most likely be on Vidovdan, when everything can be seen.
On this occasion, the Institute for Politics and Economics of Southeast Europe (IPESE) analyzed "What will the community of Serbian municipalities in Kosovo look like". Here are some of their conclusions.
Ten years have passed since the signing of the Brussels Agreement, which, in addition to the principles governing the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina, foresees the formation of the Union of Serbian Municipalities (USO). This institution, in accordance with the Constitution and laws of the so-called of Kosovo, should respond to the needs of the Serbian population in Kosovo and give them a mechanism to organize their lives in the areas where they constitute the majority.
The ZSO has not yet been formed, and Belgrade and Pristina, as well as the international factor, have not found a model that would satisfy the interests of both parties.
IPESE further states that, even 10 years after the two parties agreed on the formation of the ZSO, it has not been constituted, the German Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Foundation presented its proposal for the draft Statute of the Union of Serbian Municipalities a few months ago.
According to that proposal, the statute of the Community would have to be approved by the so-called Government. of Kosovo, in accordance with the Constitution. Also, the Association could be dissolved by a decision of the Assembly, with a two-thirds majority. Strengthening local democracy, development of the local economy, supervision in the field of education, primary and secondary health care, which would also fall under the jurisdiction of the ZSO, are highlighted as the objectives of the formation of the Community, the analysis says.
The community of Serbian municipalities should, in terms of organization, have an Assembly, a president, a vice president, a council, a board and an appeals office. It would also have its own budget, which would be subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General of Kosovo.
In the continuation of the analysis, IPESE presents European models, examples that at first glance may remind of the current Kosovo problem, especially when it comes to the formation of the Community of Serbian Municipalities: South Tyrol, Eastern Belgium, Holland, Cyprus, Gagauzia.
At the end of the analysis, he asks if there are any European models that would be applicable in this case?
When European examples are analyzed, it can be seen that in terms of organization, it is an established practice that such territorial units have their own parliament, government (that is, council, board), president and administration. The statute appears as the highest legal act, which must be in accordance with the constitution and central laws. In the financial sense, the right to one's own budget and financial autonomy, that is, to collect one's own taxes, is almost usually implied.
The biggest difference between ZSO and other European models is the scope of competence.
Namely, as IPESE writes, in all the mentioned examples, the territories that were discussed have legislative and executive powers. Concretely, this means that they can pass laws in certain areas (culture, education, health, agriculture, ecology, tourism, etc.), while only supervisory powers are provided for ZSO, without the possibility of passing its own legislation.
When it comes to the judiciary, an indicative example is East Belgium and South Tyrol, which somewhat resemble the example of the ZSO, according to the analysis, but with a much wider range of powers. However, the majority opinion is that such territories do not have a separate legal system.
IPESE believes that one of the most sensitive issues is the preservation of ethnic identity and linguistic peculiarities, but also finding a balance between the majority and the minority.
Although the ZSO would resemble Gagauzia with its disconnected territory, it would have a far smaller scope of authority than any of the aforementioned autonomy.
Considering the historical context, the analysis concludes, hardly any of the examples could be applicable in the Kosovo case.
And while East Belgium and South Tyrol came under the current government as compensation for war reparations, Oland due to circumstances, Kosovo and Metohija unilaterally seceded from the mother country, which only somewhat resembles the example of Gagauzia, and much more the example of Northern Cyprus, whose status is still a controversial issue today.
Therefore, future proposals (such as that of the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Foundation) must, in addition to the existing framework, take into account both comparative European experiences and the local historical context.
Read daily news, analysis, commentary and interviews at www.vreme.com
