Kosovo police clash with protesters over plans to curb Hague war crimes court

Police clashed with protesters outside Kosovo’s Parliament in Pristina after lawmakers ended a session without holding a second vote on a bill to curb the powers of the Hague-based war crimes court.

Officers used tear gas and water cannons. Some protesters, including supporters and veterans of the Kosovo Liberation Army, threw flares and firecrackers, while others tried to prevent lawmakers from leaving the building.

Twelve people were injured, including 11 civilians, Naser Syla, director of emergency services at a Pristina hospital, told the Associated Press.

Proposed limits on the court

The bill passed its first reading on Monday. It would cap prison sentences at 15 years, allow convicted people to serve terms in Kosovo and permit appeals to Kosovo’s Supreme Court.

The Kosovo Specialist Chambers were established in 2015 as an independent part of Kosovo’s judicial system. Based in The Hague and staffed internationally, the court was created with pressure from Western allies to prosecute alleged crimes by members of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

Convictions of former commanders

The legislation followed the September 16 convictions of former President Hashim Thaci and three other former KLA commanders. Thaci received a 25-year sentence, while his co-defendants were sentenced to between 13 and 25 years. All four have denied the charges.

The verdicts triggered weeks of protests, and Kosovo’s Parliament unanimously condemned them in late September.

Court reform linked to presidency vote

The dispute over the court has become tied to negotiations over another presidential election. Kosovo’s Constitutional Court has set October 6 as the deadline for lawmakers to elect a president. Failure would dissolve Parliament and trigger another early election.

The Democratic Party of Kosovo, the largest opposition party and sponsor of the bill, has tied its support for electing a president to the passage of the amendments. Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s Vetevendosje, or Self-Determination Movement, wants the presidential vote to come first.

Kurti supported allowing the bill to proceed but told Parliament it had been rushed. He has also said the appeals process should be used to challenge the September convictions.

The court remains deeply contentious in Kosovo, where many people view the KLA as the force that fought Serbian repression and led the territory towards independence. The 1998–99 war killed about 13,000 people and displaced about one million Kosovo Albanians.