Haxhiu after The Hague verdict: The final legal word has not been said

The acting president of Kosovo, Albulena Haxhiu, has reacted after the verdict of the Specialist Chambers in The Hague against Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi.

Haxhiu called the sentences a “heavy blow” for their families and a difficult moment for Kosovo and Albanians.

“Today’s verdict and the sentences handed down to Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi are a heavy blow for their families, deeply shocking news for the Republic of Kosovo and a difficult moment for the Albanian nation wherever it lives,” Haxhiu wrote.

She said her thoughts are with the families of the four former KLA leaders, who, according to her, have for years endured absence, waiting and uncertainty.

“My thoughts are, first and foremost, with the families of Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi. For years they have carried the burden of absence, waiting and uncertainty. Today’s sentences make this burden even heavier,” she stated.

Haxhiu called on the families to stay strong, stressing that the judicial process has not ended with the first-instance decision.

“I send them from Kosovo a message: stay strong, Kosovo is with you. The final legal word has not been said. The right to appeal is part of the process and must be exercised fully,” she wrote.

In her reaction, Haxhiu also spoke about the KLA war, saying it was a liberation war and that the verdict cannot change, in her view, its nature.

“The war of the Kosovo Liberation Army was a liberation war. It was born in the face of oppression, violence and the crimes of the Serbian regime against the people of Kosovo. No verdict can change the nature of that war nor undo the right of a people to fight for its freedom,” Haxhiu stated.

She said that respect for justice must not imply silence in the face of what she described as attempts to distort history.

“Respect for justice does not imply silence in the face of every attempt to distort history. It must not be allowed for today’s sentences to be used to relativize the crimes of the Serbian regime, to diminish responsibility for them or to create a false narrative,” she wrote.

Haxhiu called for a clear stance from Kosovo’s friends and allies as well.

“We expect this clarity also from our friends and allies,” she said.

In the end, the acting president called for calm and unity.

“Today we need calm, dignity and unity. The pain of this day must not divide us,” Haxhiu wrote.

“The Republic of Kosovo will overcome this trial too by staying true to its justice, freedom and truth. Because verdicts cannot judge the history of a people nor rewrite it,” she concluded. /Telegrafi/