The ethnic Albanian parties from the Presevo Valley, Medvedja and Bujanovac will participate with a common list in the early parliamentary elections in Serbia on October 25, reports the newspaper “Koha Ditore“, referring to a statement by Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, BTA reported.
Kurti said that the Albanian parties from the Valley will participate with a common list “Albanian Coalition“. According to him, this was achieved after talks and efforts to unite goals and will.
“After talks and efforts to converge positions, the will to cooperate took the form of a common commitment. "I thank the leaders of the political formations: Shaip Kamberi (Party for Democratic Action), Visar Memeti (Alliance for Progress of Albanians), Nagip Arif (Democratic Party), Agim Sabedini (Albanian Democratic Party), Shkiprim Musliu (Movement for Democratic Progress), Sami Salihu (Movement for Reforms), Armend Aliu (Albanian Alternative) and Naser Aziri (Albanian Democratic Union) for their commitment and readiness, beyond differences, to find an interlocutor in each other and share responsibility towards citizens," Kurti said, quoted by “Koha Ditore“.
The Kosovo Prime Minister recalled that Serbs in Kosovo are guaranteed 10 seats in the 120-seat parliament. According to him, Albanians in Serbia should have at least five seats in the 250-seat Serbian parliament.
Currently, Shaip Kamberi is the only ethnic Albanian MP in the Serbian Assembly.
“Political unity in the “Albanian coalition“ is certainly not enough. The asymmetry of rights is also an injustice“, Kurti pointed out and gave the example of the number of seats for ethnic Serbs in the Kosovo parliament.
“(…) With this approach, Albanians from Preševo, Bujanovac and Medvedja should be guaranteed at least 5 seats in the Serbian parliament, which has 250 seats. Guaranteed representation is a principle that should be applied both in Kosovo and in our northern neighbor, with equal respect for their equality and rights,“, the Kosovo Prime Minister noted.
Kurti expressed confidence that the unification of the Albanian parties in the Presevo Valley, Medvedja and Bujanovac can lead to useful work for the benefit of citizens.
“The Republic of Kosovo will continue to stand behind the Albanians of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja - for their rights, identity and well-being. Our commitment remains constant - for equality, for dignity and for the opportunity for each of us to build our future in our homeland,“, Kurti concluded.
Kosovo, which is a former Serbian province, declared independence in 2008, which Belgrade does not recognize. The dispute is a source of tension in the volatile Balkans, which went through a series of wars in the 1990s, including the Kosovo conflict in 1998-99.
According to the latest census in Serbia in 2022, the municipalities of Preševo, Medvedja and Bujanovac had a total of 80,877 inhabitants, of whom 57,710 identified themselves as Albanians, 17,001 as Serbs and 3,900 as Roma. The rest are from other ethnic groups or individuals who have not declared/had an established ethnicity.