Inmate from Hajvali Correctional Center: “Voting Should Be Used — One Day We’ll Leave Prison”

RksNews
RksNews 2 Min Read
2 Min Read

An inmate serving his sentence at the Hajvali Correctional Center has emphasized the importance of voting, even for those deprived of liberty. He stated that prisoners should exercise their right to vote because, “one day we will complete our sentence and return to society.”

KALLXO.com reporters visited the Hajvali Correctional Center today to observe the voting process for the local elections held on October 12, 2025.

This facility mainly houses individuals in pretrial detention. Those who have been placed in detention during the past seven days may not appear on the voter list of the Central Election Commission (CEC), as the final lists were completed ten days ago.

The Director of the Hajvali Correctional Center, Salih Ademi, told KALLXO.com that the CEC teams arrived around 9:00 a.m. and the process began without major issues.

However, Ademi expressed concern that detainees admitted in the last 10 days could not vote since they were not included in the final CEC list.

“Every inmate, whether convicted or in pretrial detention, has been identified through cooperation between the Kosovo Correctional Service and the Central Election Commission, based on where they are held, where they come from, and which municipality they belong to,” Ademi explained.

This coordination ensures that prisoners can vote in their respective municipalities without losing their right to political participation.

Although complex and time-consuming, the CEC and the Kosovo Correctional Service have spent the past three weeks identifying and categorizing all individuals under their supervision to determine where they are eligible to vote.

Voting inside correctional institutions began early in the morning, once the CEC teams arrived.

One inmate told KALLXO.com:

“I used my right to vote. We must vote because one day we’ll finish our sentences and return outside these prison walls.”