17.07.2024. » 09:07 | ACDC

Civil Society Statement Regarding the Appointment of Notaries in Kosovo

We, the undersigned representatives of civil society organizations from the Serbian community in Kosovo, express serious concern and protest regarding the decision of the Kosovo Minister of Justice on the appointment of notaries, which did not include a single notary from the Serbian community among the 100 appointed notaries.

Regarding this decision, we emphasize that there are currently ten Serbian lawyers in Kosovo who have passed the notary exam in Kosovo, and five of them applied for notary positions in several municipalities in Kosovo. It is extremely worrying that none of them have been appointed to a notary position in any municipality in Kosovo. Particularly concerning is the fact that a candidate from the Serbian community who applied for positions in two municipalities in northern Kosovo was not appointed, despite meeting all the requirements and having significant legal experience. Additionally, it is inexplicable that, despite several candidates from the Serbian community with extensive legal experience, no one from this community was appointed to the notary position in Graçanicë/Gračanica, a municipality with a Serbian majority; instead, a candidate from the Albanian community was appointed. The situation is similar in other municipalities included in this vacancy announcement for notary positions. In this regard, we emphasize that at no point do we dispute the qualifications of candidates from the Albanian community, but we highlight the consequences that may arise from the exclusion of candidates from the Serbian community in the aforementioned decision and the negative message it sends to the Serbian community in Kosovo.

We warn that the mentioned decision by the Kosovo Minister of Justice will lead to new problems in terms of ensuring the rights of members of non-majority communities in Kosovo, considering that from personal experience, we know that Albanian notaries provide services in Albanian language even in cases where the parties are exclusively Serbian. Although this is allowed by the Law on Notaries (Article 32.1), such a practice limits the right of Serbs in Kosovo to receive services in the Serbian language, which is an official language in Kosovo according to the Constitution of Kosovo (Article 5.1). Additionally, the aforementioned decision can, unfortunately, be interpreted as a message that Serbs and members of other non-majority communities are not welcome in institutions and liberal professions in Kosovo, even those who, under existing circumstances, have shown a desire to provide services to all communities in Kosovo.

Given the above, we call on the Kosovo Minister of Justice to consider our request for revising the decision on the appointment of notaries in municipalities with a Serbian majority. We also urge all international missions and diplomatic representations in Kosovo, as well as civil society organizations from the majority community in Kosovo, to react to prevent further escalation of tensions and the growth of mistrust of non-majority communities towards Kosovo institutions and the Government of Kosovo. We expect all actors to act in good faith and demonstrate their proclaimed commitment to creating and maintaining a multi-ethnic society in Kosovo.

Signatories: