Kosovo President signs decrees dismissing seven Serbian prosecutors

Acting President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani has signed decrees dismissing seven prosecutors from the Serbian community in Mitrovica. These prosecutors had originally submitted their resignations in 2022, a move that followed the dismissal of the police director for the northern region, Nenad Djurić, who refused to implement government decisions on Serbian license plates.

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After the decision of the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council on the dismissal of seven prosecutors from the Serbian community, who submitted their resignations in 2022, I signed the decrees on their dismissal from duty.

The Kosovo Prosecutorial Council recently rejected requests from these prosecutors and 15 support staff members to withdraw their resignations. This decision paved the way for Osmani to finalize their dismissal. In a Facebook post, Osmani stated that this action concludes a process that has lasted for years and implements the decisions of relevant institutions in accordance with Kosovo's constitution and laws.

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With this act, a process that has lasted for years is concluded and the decision of the competent institutions is implemented, in accordance with the Constitution and laws of Kosovo.

Osmani asserted that Kosovo operates on the principles of constitutional order and the rule of law, emphasizing that no one can hold institutions hostage or create legal uncertainty through unfinished processes. She affirmed Kosovo's commitment to acting decisively and in accordance with the law to protect the integrity of its institutions. The resignations, totaling 33 from the Prosecutorial Council including ten prosecutors, were part of a broader protest by 144 officials, including 25 judges, against government decisions in 2022. Recently, both the Prosecutorial and Judicial Councils had indicated that some Serbs from the Mitrovica judiciary had withdrawn their resignations, though specific numbers were not released.

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Kosovo functions on the principles of constitutional order and the rule of law, adding that no one can hold the functioning of institutions hostage nor create legal uncertainty through unfinished processes.