After significant political progress in Kosovo in 2013, it will consolidate these gains in 2014 by the dialogue in the hope of securing reconciliation, regional stability and prosperity, recommended by the Secretary -General in his latest report on the Acting United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), which was discussed 10th Feb 2014, in the presence of the Prime Minister of Serbia, Ivica Dačić and Hashim Thaci of Kosovo.
In presenting this report, the Special Representative of the Secretary -General for Kosovo, Farid Zarif M. stressed that after the signing of the historic agreement of 19 April 2013 on the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristine, the mutual trust between the parties was strengthened.
In this regard, the Council welcomed the direct dialogue initiated between the two parties and the mediation efforts undertaken by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton.
While debating on UNMIK, the Rwanda’s Deputy Permanent Representative at the UN, Olivier Nduhungirehe, praised the role played by the Prime Minister of Serbia, Ivica Dacic , and Mr. Hashim Thaci , Kosovo, for the implementation of the Agreement of 19 April 2013.
With regard to the security situation, he condemned the assassination of an elected council member of northern Mitrovica.
“While we note that Kosovo remained generally calm, we strongly condemn the murder of an elected member of the North Mitrovica Municipal Council, near his residence on 16 January. We are aware that the Kosovo authorities, the local Kosovo Serb representatives and the Serbian Government condemned this murder, but we stress that it is very imperative that all concerned parties work together in order to bring the perpetrators to justice.” Nduhungirehe urged.
Furthermore, Nduhungirehe called on the authorities to pay particular attention to the protection of minorities.
“We took note of the lack of progress in the implementation of the Ombudsman’s recommendations, in particular those related to culture, education, access and representation in the media for minority communities. We call on the Kosovo authorities to especially pay attention to issues facing minorities”
While concluding the remarks, Nduhungirehe said that Rwanda believes that the Kosovo authorities, together with other stakeholders including donors, should work together to address the identified challenges to voluntary and safe return of displaced persons.
“There is need for concerted efforts to tackle discrimination, high unemployment rates, poor access to education, and repossession of illegally occupied properties. We believe that solutions sought for the identified issues will lead to increased voluntary and safe return of displaced persons to their homes” He said.
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