Vetevendosje Movement stated on Thursday that the decision of the Constitutional Court which overthrew the government led by Avdullah Hoti has nothing to do with its leader Albin Kurti.
Vetevendosje’s reaction comes after there were statements that said that aspects of the Constitutional Court’s decision may prohibit Kurti from running for MP, due to a sentence by a final decision on 2018.
The decision reads that no person convicted with a final decision by a Kosovo court in the last three years may be sworn into the parliament and serve as an MP.
Kurti was convicted in 2018 for his role in throwing tear gas in the Parliament as a protest against the border demarcation with Montenegro, claiming that Kosovo lost territory and protesting against the establishment of the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities.
Vetevendosje’s spokesperson Perparim Kryeziu said that Kurti will be part of the list, as the issue has not been subject to review.
“Vetevendosje Movement, Albin Kurti and Albulena Haxhiu [convicted with Kurti] were not subject to review. Moreover, they are not sentenced to imprisonment. Therefore, in this judgment they are not prohibited from being part of the list and the election race,” Kryeziu wrote.
The Central Election Commission of Kosovo has still to decide in Kurti’s case.
“The Central Election Commission will send the list of candidates of all political entities to the Kosovo Judicial Council to have the answer if they are in accordance with Article 29 of the Law on General Elections, respectively letter Q of this article,” the spokesperson of CEC, Valmir Elezi told Exit News.
Article 29 of the Law on General Elections, letter Q says “any person whose name appears on the Voters List is eligible to be certified as a candidate, except if he or she is: found guilty of a criminal offence by a final court decision in the past three years”.
“We will also communicate with the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel, to see if any of the candidates have been deprived of the right to be a candidate in elections by decision of this institution,” Elezi added.
Kurti himself said on Thursday that February 14 is the people’s time to judge bad politics, calling elections “a referendum”.
Parliamentary snap elections in Kosovo will take place on February 14, 2021.
It comes after the Constitutional Court found the voting in of the Hoti government unconstitutional due to a decisive vote of MP Etem Arifi who was sentenced to prison at that time.
