Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister, Besnik Bislimi, voiced serious concerns over the normalization of hate speech and discrimination against Albanians in Serbia. Bislimi’s remarks came after Serbia’s Supreme Court dismissed the case brought by Ragmi Mustafa, an Albanian politician from the Preševo Valley, against Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin. Mustafa had filed a lawsuit over derogatory language Vulin used to refer to Albanians.
Bislimi stated that Serbia’s decision to close the case without further action deepens Kosovo’s “concerns about the rights and safety of the Albanian minority” in Serbia. He described discriminatory and inflammatory language as increasingly commonplace and legally accepted in Serbia. Bislimi shared these thoughts on the social platform X, asserting, “It appears that under Serbian law, it is now permissible to use derogatory terms toward Albanians.”
In response, Mustafa indicated that he plans to escalate the case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, citing the Serbian judiciary’s failure to address what he sees as “flagrant discrimination and denigrating language.” He argued that by dismissing his case, Serbia’s judiciary reveals its alignment with divisive, hate-driven politics rather than protecting minority rights, highlighting the judiciary’s compromised position under political influence.
