Von der Leyen on amending the Specialist Chambers law: It is up to Kosovo to decide, but the judiciary must remain independent

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday in Pristina that it is up to Kosovo itself to decide whether to make changes to the Law on the Specialist Chambers, but stressed that in any case the independence of the judiciary must be preserved. Von der Leyen gave this answer, as KosovaPress reports, after being asked by journalists during the joint press conference with Prime Minister Albin Kurti at the Government building.

“It belongs to Kosovo to decide. It is important that the independence of the judiciary is guaranteed and, within this framework of independence, it belongs to Kosovo to decide what is necessary or not. It is important that the judiciary remains independent,” she stressed.

The issue was raised because of the initiative of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, which has submitted to the Assembly and the Government proposals to amend the Law on the Kosovo Specialist Chambers. According to KosovaPress reporting, the PDK aims for cases not related to the organ-trafficking charges to be transferred for review to Kosovo, in the further stages of the judicial procedure.

Von der Leyen is in Kosovo today as part of her Western Balkans tour, where before meeting Kurti she was also received by acting President Albulena Haxhiu at the Presidency. The debate over the fate of the Specialist Chambers law comes two weeks after the Specialist Chambers’ 16 September verdict, which sentenced the former KLA leaders to a total of 81 years in prison, and has sparked daily protests in Pristina.