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Life in Kosovo reviews second 100 days of Thaci Government

31 07 2008  Thursday’s Life in Kosovo show reviewed the performance of the Republic of Kosovo government in its second 100 days.

Have the problems in the health sector been reduced or have they worsened? What is happening in the northern region of Kosovo? What are the main challenges facing the government? Where has the new cabinet succeeded and where has it failed?

Panellists who discussed these and related issues during the show were:

From the government:

Alush Gashi – Minister of Health ;
Zenun Pajaziti – Minister of Internal Affairs ;
Bedri Hamza – Vice-Minister of Economy ;

From the opposition:

Besa Gaxherri – Democratic League of Dardania, LDD ;
Naim Maloku – Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, AAK ;
Fatmire Kollqaku – Reformist Party ORA, former leader of Parliamentary Commission on Health.


Following presentation of the panellists, the show began with a report by BIRN Kosovo Journalist Jeta Abazi focusing on deficiencies in the provision of basic medicines, surgical instruments, lab facilities, and hospital wards, especially in the University Clinical Centre of Kosovo (UCCK).

The report showed the miserable conditions at the UCCK Gynaecology Department, where beds have to be shared by patients after giving birth.

Following the report, Gashi started the debate by arguing that a great deal of progress has been made in health institutions. “During these 100 days we have managed to increase the budget for basic medicines by 100 percent,” he said.

However, he acknowledged that even with this increase the budget could meet only around 70 percent of patient needs.

He promised that “by the end of year health institutions will be furnished with 100 percent of basic medicines.”

Kollqaku said that Kosovo has health policies and strategies in theory, but that these are not being implemented.

She said the ministry was too slow in solving many problems. “We are still at the stage of identifying problems,” she said.

Gaxherri said that the unsatisfactory situation in the health sector arose from the fact that “health is not a priority of this government.”

She criticized the minister because the government has not yet finalised a law on health insurance.

When he was asked by the moderator if a health insurance law would come into force in the next 100 days, Minister Gashi answered that “this law was approved years ago, but it has to be reviewed.”

He said that although the provisions of the law were good it could not be put into force because it was not covered by the budget.

When asked why he allowed individuals to continue working at the Health Ministry even after they came under investigation for conflict of interest or corruption, Gashi said that “the moment charges are confirmed by the competent organs we will act according to the law.”

Pajaziti pointed out that the Ministry of Internal Affairs has started issuing passports, and he noted that it takes just one week from the date of application for citizens to receive a passport.

“Citizens who have the UNMIK travel document need only to give it back in order to get the new passport,” he said.

This was followed by a report by Muhamet Hajrullahu on corruption and smuggling in north Kosovo.

The report noted that two customs points have not been operating for the last five months, leading to an upsurge in smuggling.

The report estimated that this was costing the Kosovo budget around €1.5 million every month.

The report showed that north Kosovo is not under the control of the Kosovar institutions and that the constitution is not respected throughout Kosovo.

Following the report, Maloku from the opposition said that the security situation in north Kosovo “is much worse than 200 days ago.”

He acknowledged that the government was not the only one to blame but he said that more could be done if the government took a more active role and implemented concrete plans.

Pajaziti said the government had exercised tolerance in an effort to avoid post-independence ethnic conflict.

He said that, with the cooperation of all security-related institutions, the situation is improving and that in a short time all the territory of Kosovo will be under control.

Gaxherri accused the government of not putting enough pressure on international security mechanisms to regain control of the northern border.

Pajaziti replied that “during this period we have insisted to UNMIK, KFOR, and the European mission to have more presence there.”

“The government of Kosovo, the customs, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the local institutions have been mobilized and now have mobile units which control all entry to the territory of Kosovo,” Hamza added.

Maloku said the customs services had been unable to close some fuel crossing points in the north.

Hamza also highlighted the importance of the Donors Conference, where Kosovo secured a commitment of more than €1.2 billion, which will be disbursed over the next two to three years.

He said these funds would be invested according to the government’s priorities, such as “energy, road infrastructure, health, education, the private sector, agribusiness, and other fields.”

He cited law and order as the government’s highest priority.

Gaxherri criticized the government for not reporting to parliament about this conference and the funding that had been secured.

She also accused the government of nominating corrupt and unsuccessful individuals to serve on the boards of public enterprises such as the Kosovo Privatization Agency.

Hamza, however, insisted that only the best and the most experienced people had been proposed as board members.

The Forum for Civic Initiatives (FIQ) and Saferworld have assisted BIRN with the research for this TV debate.


Life in Kosovo is a co-production between Kosovo Public Television, RTK and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN. It is broadcast every Thursday, starting at 20:20.