Albanian MP Šaip Kamberi questioned Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić in the Serbian Parliament on Tuesday over his alleged failure to condemn anti-Albanian hate speech at public gatherings where the president was present.
During the parliamentary session for MPs’ questions, Kamberi asked Vučić whether insults and hatred directed at Albanians had become a condition for gaining employment or privileges in Serbian state institutions.
“Are insults, verbal abuse and hatred toward Albanians a prerequisite for employment in state institutions, Mr. President?” Kamberi asked.
He referred to gatherings in Ljopardince and Strezovce where, according to him, offensive statements against Albanians were made in Vučić’s presence.
Kamberi also cited an incident in which a citizen used the derogatory term “Šiptar” and, according to Kamberi, received a promise from Vučić that he would be employed by Serbia’s Security Intelligence Agency, BIA, within 48 hours.
The Albanian MP questioned whether it was acceptable for a person publicly expressing hatred and contempt toward Albanians to be rewarded with a presidential promise of employment in a Serbian intelligence institution, allegedly outside standard recruitment procedures.
Kamberi also challenged Vučić over his public response to the statements, asking why the Serbian president had not explicitly condemned the anti-Albanian rhetoric used at the gatherings.
He further questioned whether chants such as “Aco, Šiptare” represented a parody of the slogan “Aco, Srbine” or reflected what he described as a revival of older nationalist political rhetoric.
Kamberi’s intervention comes amid continued debate in Serbia over political rhetoric toward ethnic minorities and the treatment of Albanians in public and political discourse.
