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03 12 2009 Life in Kosovo debated the public testimony of Nazim Bllaca on a number of murders in Kosovo and its impact upon the second round of Kosovo’s local elections.
To discuss this and other events surrounding the electoral process, the following guests joined host Jeta Xharra in the studio:
Tomë Gashi, legal adviser to Prime Minister ;
Ilir Deda, KIPRED ;
Betim Musliu, reporter ;
Kujtim Kërveshi, Kosovar Institute for Justice ;
Before Xharra began the panel debate, the satirical column Lamjet was broadcast, featuring an ‘authentic approach’ to Bllaca’s testimony.
Betim Musliu was the first to offer his opinion. He stressed that the relevant institutions’ reactions had been a “total disaster”, since they had failed to promptly arrest a self-declared killer.
Musliu ridiculed the decision for a home arrest of Bllaca, after a decision that came two days after his appearance in the media, since criminals are taken into custody for considerably less serious offences.
He added that it is very likely that citizens will feel less safe, having witnessed the slow and inappropriate police reaction.
In response to Xharra’s question about how the police and the Prosecutor’s Office reacted to the situation, Kujtim Kërveshi from the Kosovar Institute for Justice, said that this case provides an opportunity to test Kosovo’s credibility and functionality as a new state.
He went on to agree with Musliu that relevant domestic or international institutions should have reacted faster. Kërveshi stressed that, when EULEX uses executive powers in certain cases, there is not much local institutions can change. In this way, Kërveshi suggested that EULEX was in charge in the case surrounding Nazim Bllaca.
Tomë Gashi, a legal adviser to Prime Minister, added that politics should not influence the manner in which the case is solved. He was of the opinion that Kosovo’s police should have been the first to intervene.
Ilir Deda from KIPRED said that the Republic of Kosovo “appears to be a failure”, with its institutions arguing with each other about whose competence is which.
He added that an incompetent image of Kosovo and its institutions was broadcast worldwide due to the inappropriate response to this case.
Musliu continued the thread of conversation by claiming that he did not find the inability of Kosovo’s institutions to respond surprising, since there have been similar previous cases in which clear evidence was neglected. “But, this case is the peak of all cases,” he concluded.
On the topic of whether or not Nazim Bllaca’s claims will turn out to be credible, Musliu said he believed that some of the claims will turn out to be correct, because the details mentioned cannot be known without having been present when the alleged crimes were committed.
However, according to Musliu, the good thing about this entire situation is that some secrets are being revealed.
However, Gashi responded by claiming that the fact that Bllaca is able to stay in his home comfortably after his declaration suggests that even EULEX prosecutors don’t believe him.
Kërveshi stressed that it is evident that Kosovo is still in need of international assistance, because its own institutions are evidently not mature enough to handle such cases on their own. He added: “Without the rule of law, Kosovo cannot progress”.
When asked to define the role of Kosovo’s Intelligence Agency (SHIK), Deda said that SHIK belongs to the ruling party, the PDK, not Kosovo; and that the other major political parties have similar intelligence agencies.
Deda said that the biggest losers in the confusion surrounding the Bllaca case are Kosovo’s citizens. As for the biggest political losers, Deda was of the opinion that current perceptions suggest PDK will suffer most in the coming elections.
Finally, Gashi added that the media have exaggerated the situation. According to him, the media should have somehow “filtered” some of the stories broadcast, since news on topics such as Bllaca’s declarations create confusion and panic.
In the Culture in Kosovo section of the show, Arif Muharremi reflected on "Rita", an opera performed at the National Theater of Kosovo a few days earlier.
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.
At the beginning of 2010 BIRN network published Digging Deeper - A Guide for Investigative Journalists in the Balkans, written in cooperation with Sheila Coronel, Director of the Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism and professor of professional practice at Columbia University, New York.
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