The Chairman of the Albanian National Council, Enkel Rexhepi, stated on A2 CNN that after the strong reaction in the U.S. Congress, concrete steps are expected to stop discrimination against Albanians in the Presheva Valley, beginning with the reinstatement of deactivated addresses.
Rexhepi emphasized that the current situation is extremely dangerous, especially due to discrimination within security institutions. According to him, if this trend continues, in ten years there will be no Albanians left within Serbia’s police force in the Valley.
“This is alarming. The 2001 conflict emerged precisely from institutional oppression and police behavior. If the police force becomes entirely ethnically Serbian, discrimination and repression will be inevitable, and Albanians will be forced to defend themselves. This could bring us back to situations similar to 2001, and this must not be allowed,” Rexhepi declared.
He added that he has personally raised this concern with international partners:
“We have said openly, both in Berlin and in Washington: this issue is extremely delicate and could escalate into very dangerous scenarios if action is not taken now.”
Rexhepi expressed optimism that following the strong signal from the U.S. Congress, Serbian politics will come under pressure to correct the violations:
“The first step must be the reinstatement of all deactivated addresses and the real integration of Albanians into institutions.”
