Acting Minister for Communities and Returns, Nenad Rashiq, told Ekonomia Online that the election campaign in northern Kosovo is taking place under pressure, with brutal methods and blackmail by representatives of the Serbian List and Serbian institutions, directly affecting citizens and candidates of other parties.
Rashiq explained that the situation in the north remains tense, with Serbian List officials reportedly visiting homes personally to pressure citizens for political support.
“The situation is as harsh as usual. They promote themselves directly to citizens rather than through mass campaigns. All methods used by local Serbian List authorities are brutal. The President of Serbia publicly offends opponents of the Serbian List. In the field, the Serbian List uses blackmail and threats against anyone who thinks differently. Activists of other parties are removed from payrolls, social assistance lists, or offered employment in exchange for votes. Recently, 400 jobs were offered as leverage,” Rashiq said.
He added that the Serbian List also exerts influence through direct job offers in the healthcare sector and other institutions, requiring votes in return. Citizens are sometimes instructed to have their families vote as well and even to photograph their ballots.
Rashiq noted that these coercive practices have been ongoing since 2013, after the Brussels Agreement, which allowed the Serbian List to control Kosovo institutions in certain areas.
He further highlighted similar pressures in regions such as Anamorava, where citizens who received subsidies or social assistance were reportedly removed from state lists, and that threats extend to family members residing in Serbia.
Finally, Rashiq reported that mechanisms are also in place to mobilize Kosovo citizens living in Serbia, organizing transport, meals, and guidance so they can vote for the Serbian List.
“Such harsh mechanisms exhaust me as an individual and a politician, facing such a powerful and brutal instrument,” Rashiq concluded.
