The constitution of the Kosovo Assembly fails for the 40th time

Kosovo Assembly members failed for the 40th time in a row, on Tuesday, to constitute the parliamentary composition resulting from the February 9 elections.

July 1 marked the third time that MPs failed to make any progress in constituting the Assembly since the announcement of a judgment by the Constitutional Court of Kosovo, which on June 26 obliged MPs to constitute the Assembly within 30 days - a deadline that expires on July 26.

The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) and the Social Democratic Initiative, as well as the Serbian List, have been refusing since May 1 to propose members for a commission that would oversee a secret ballot for the new parliament speaker.

These parties say that changing the voting from open to secret is unconstitutional, and have argued that this was also stated in a Constitutional Court ruling.

On Tuesday, instead of proposing a member for the commission, PDK and LDK asked the chairman of the constitutive session, Avni Dehari, to respect the Constitutional Court's decision.

However, representatives of these parties were not allowed to speak any longer, after Dehari asked the director to turn off their microphones.

Dehar's party, the Vetevendosje Movement (LVV), insists that secret voting is permitted.

Following the Constitutional Court's ruling, the leader of the LVV, Albin Kurti, invited the leaders of the political parties to a meeting. But, even after two hours of meeting, they failed to reach an agreement to break the deadlock.

Kurti said he has offered compromises, but the parties that were in opposition last term said the meeting he invited was a "farce," adding that the leader of the winning party is insisting on the previous positions.

To offer a possible solution, the President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, said on June 30 that in the coming days she would invite the leaders of political parties for consultations regarding the issue of the constitution of the Assembly.

Osmani called on MPs to respect the Constitutional Court's verdict.

"If the need arises, the president remains ready to address the Constitutional Court for additional clarifications," said Osmani's media advisor, Bekim Kupina.

The LVV, as the winning party, has the exclusive right to propose the candidate for speaker of parliament.

So far, this entity has proposed Albulena Haxhiu for this position - whom the PDK and AAK have described as a divisive figure.

Following the Constitutional Court's ruling, Haxhiu has declared that he will withdraw from the candidacy if he does not receive the necessary 61 votes in a secret ballot.

For the Assembly to be considered constituted, the President and five Vice-Presidents must be elected.

Only after this, the deadlines for the formation of the new Government of Kosovo begin./ REL