Hundreds of residents of Reçak and citizens from the municipality of Shtime gathered at the Reçak Memorial Complex on Wednesday evening to protest the first-instance verdict against former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) leaders by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers.
Among those attending were family members of victims and fallen fighters, KLA veterans and war invalids, as well as other citizens.
Speaking to the crowd, Bajram Hajrizi described the verdict as unjust and highlighted what he characterized as a contrast between the prison sentences imposed on the four former KLA leaders and the continuing wait for justice for the victims of the 1999 Reçak massacre.
“For four former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army, today we have a verdict totaling 81 years in prison, while for the 45 civilians of Reçak, their families are still waiting for justice,” Hajrizi said.
He called for justice to be applied according to the same standards to all victims of the Kosovo war and urged the Kosovo Assembly to take institutional and constitutional steps concerning the future of the Specialist Chambers.
During the gathering, protesters chanted in support of the KLA and the four convicted former leaders — Hashim Thaçi, Jakup Krasniqi, Kadri Veseli and Rexhep Selimi.
The protest concluded with participants emphasizing that Reçak would not forget the victims and that the families of the 45 civilians killed on January 15, 1999, continue to seek justice.
“Glory to all the martyrs and fallen heroes of Kosovo, and we hope that the liberators will return to their families, to the place they liberated and built,” participants said at the conclusion of the gathering.
The four former KLA leaders were convicted at first instance of several war crimes by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and sentenced to a combined 81 years in prison. The verdicts can be appealed.
