The United States expressed regret on Monday over the decision of the Serb List – the main entity of Serbs in Kosovo, not to participate in the vote for the removal of Albanian mayors in four municipalities with a Serbian majority in the north of Kosovo.
The American embassy in Pristina said in a response to Voice of America that it is important for Kosovo’s citizens to have the opportunity to exercise their right to remove mayors in accordance with Kosovo law.
“We appreciate the efforts of Kosovo officials to allow all citizens of the country to participate in this democratic process. All registered citizens in the north of Kosovo have the opportunity to participate. We regret the statement of the Serb List that they will withdraw from participating in the vote to remove the current mayors,” said the response, which emphasized that “democratic participation ensures that leaders are representatives of the population they serve and voting is a fundamental right of democratic societies.”
“We expect the Government of Kosovo to sensitively address the concerns of citizens in the north during this process. The stance of the United States remains clear and unchanged – we support an inclusive and multi-ethnic democracy in Kosovo and the free, fair, and lawful elections that support this democracy,” said the response.
The leader of the Serb List, Zlatan Elek, accused Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti on Sunday of making continuous efforts for this vote to fail, while he highlighted that one of the reasons for non-participation is the inflation of voter lists.
The Central Election Commission in Kosovo confirmed on Monday the resignations of four members of the Municipal Election Commissions for the municipalities of North Mitrovica, Zvecan, Zubin Potok, and Leposavic, who were previously appointed as representatives of the Serb List.
A response from this institution states that after these resignations, 23 members from political entities remain in the Municipal Election Commissions, who according to the law will administer the voting process under the supervision of the Central Election Commission.
Currently, North Mitrovica, Zubin Potok, Leposavic, and Zvecan are led by Albanian mayors from the April 23 elections last year, which were boycotted by Serbian political parties.
The sending of mayors to their offices at the end of May last year was strongly opposed by groups of Serbian citizens who clashed with the Kosovo police and NATO peacekeeping forces.
The decision to hold votes on April 21 for the removal of mayors in four municipalities in the north of Kosovo followed the signing of a petition in January by over 20 percent of voters with voting rights in each municipality.
For the removal of a mayor, 50 percent plus one of the voters with voting rights must vote. If it fails, another petition cannot be organized before 12 months have passed.
