The Chairman of the Albanian National Council in Serbia, Enkel Rexhepi, has described the lawsuit filed against Serbia at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg as an important step in defending the rights of Albanians living in the Presheva Valley.
“The registration of the lawsuit against Serbia at the Strasbourg Court regarding the passive deregistration of addresses constitutes an important step in protecting the rights of Albanian citizens in the Presheva Valley,” Rexhepi stated.
He added that this initiative comes as a continuation of the institutional engagement of the Council.
“The case was initiated and supported by the office of the Albanian National Council, with the professional preparation of lawyer Drin Grazhdani and the legal representation of Teuta Fazliu. We remain committed to pursuing this issue to the end in defense of equality before the law and the prohibition of discriminatory practices occurring in Serbia,” he said.
The Case of Teuta Fazliu
Teuta Fazliu, a resident of the Presheva Valley, has filed the lawsuit against Serbia at the European Court of Human Rights, claiming discrimination through the deletion (passivization) of her residential address.
She stated that this is the first time the Strasbourg Court will examine such a case.
“I have followed all legal procedures and exhausted all legal mechanisms in Serbia up to the highest instance, the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court ruled that there was no violation of human rights. As a result of this passivization, I was also removed from the voter list and have been unable to vote in local or parliamentary elections since 2020. After a lengthy five-year delay — in June it will be six years in Serbian courts — I received the final response and proceeded to the Strasbourg Court,” she told RTK.
