Montenegro DS Leader: Hague Verdict Against Former KLA Leaders “Unjust and Unacceptable”

The Democratic Union in Montenegro (DSuCG) called “unjust and unacceptable” the first-instance verdict of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague, under which the former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army were found guilty of war crimes. According to the party’s position, the aggressor and the victim cannot be placed on the same level regardless of the historical and political circumstances in which the war in Kosovo took place, says the letter sent to “Vijesti”, signed by leader Saubih Mehmeti.

The former KLA leaders were sentenced on Wednesday to a total of 81 years in prison — Thaçi and Krasniqi to 25 years each, Veseli to 18 and Selimi to 13; the charges of crimes against humanity were dismissed as unfounded.

DSuCG emphasizes that the KLA was born out of the Kosovo people’s need for self-defense and liberation, under conditions of systematic repression against Albanian civilians, and expresses the conviction that the trial must continue through all mechanisms provided by the legal system.

Mehmeti called on the institutions of Kosovo and Albania to, together and using all institutional and legal means, strongly support the appeal process and ensure the necessary resources for the defense of the convicts’ rights.

“Vijesti” writes that it also sought comment from the leaders of the Democratic Union of Albanians and Forca, Mehmet Zenka and Genci Nimanbegu, but they did not respond. In earlier reactions, deputy prime minister Nik Gjeloshaj had called the verdict “extraordinarily unjust”, Assembly vice-speaker Nikola Camaj a “painful moment” for Kosovo and the Albanian people, Ilir Çapuni of Forca sought legal support for the appeal, while the leader of the Democratic Party and minister for human and minority rights, Fatmir Gjeka, was more restrained and said the appeal must be awaited.

Source: Vijesti — https://vijesti.me/vijesti/politika/827208/nepravedna-i-neprihvatljiva-presuda-lider-dsucg-saubih-mehmeti-razocaran-presudom-vodjama-ovk