17.04.2025. » 14:54 | ACDC

Conference on the Presentation of Research Analysis – “Voice of Language: Monitoring the Use of the Serbian Language in Local Institutions”

North Mitrovica, April 17, 2025 – The non-governmental organization Advocacy Center for Democratic Culture (ACDC) organized a conference to present the research analysis conducted within the project “Voice of Language: Monitoring the Use of the Serbian Language in Local Institutions.” The aim of the event was to present key research findings regarding the use of the Serbian language in local-level institutions and to initiate a broader discussion on the implementation of language rights in Kosovo.

Panelists included: Slaviša Mladenović – former Language Commissioner, Skender Sadiku – representative of the North Mitrovica local government and Andrea Todić – Project Manager, NGO ACDC.

At the opening of the event, Andrea Todić presented the results of the research conducted in North Mitrovica and Leposavić, using three methodological tools: Online survey, Five interviews with municipal officials, Focus groups with a total of 40 participants.

Key findings of the research:

The online survey highlighted numerous obstacles in using the Serbian language, including the lack of official documents in Serbian in municipal institutions, courts, and with notaries. Incomplete translations on municipal websites were noted, and in the case of Leposavić, a municipal website does not exist at all.
Focus groups identified the behavior of police officers as one of the biggest issues – they often refuse to communicate in Serbian and issue fines exclusively in Albanian.
Interviews with municipal officials revealed that language proficiency is not a requirement for employment, there are no trainings on language rights, and Google Translate is used as the main translation tool. Issues are resolved on an ad hoc basis, without a systematic approach.

Research recommendations:

Consistent implementation of the Law on the Use of Languages,
Employment of bilingual staff in accordance with the ethnic composition of the population,
Mandatory Serbian and Albanian language courses for all public sector employees,
Establishment of an IT support team for translation and automation,
Inclusion of both official languages as mandatory subjects in the education system,
Strengthening translation support and ensuring digital accessibility of public services.

The full research analysis is available on ACDC’s website in Serbian, Albanian, and English.

Councilor Skender Sadiku emphasized that there are also positive examples, where individual civil servants use both languages and assist citizens and colleagues, with personal motivation and experience playing a key role in effective communication.

Former Language Commissioner Slaviša Mladenović highlighted the deterioration of the situation in northern Kosovo compared to previous years, pointing to the retirement of bilingual staff and the lack of systematic training for new employees.

During the discussion, it was concluded that, despite the existing legal framework, language rights of non-majority communities are often not respected in practice. Institutions are not systematically adapted to bilingualism, which creates a sense of exclusion and discrimination. Nevertheless, the commitment of individuals and positive examples demonstrate that change is possible with concrete institutional support.