Politics of Kosovo
Politics of Kosovo Politika e Kosovës | |
|---|---|
Second Kurti cabinet | |
| Leader | Prime Minister |
| Deputy leader | Deputy Prime Ministers |
| Appointer | Prime Minister |
| Headquarters | Government Building |
| Ministries | 15 |
| Judicial branch | |
| Name | Judicial system |
| Constitutional Court | |
| Chief judge | Gresa Caka-Nimani |
| Supreme Court | |
| Chief judge | Mejreme Memaj (Acting) |
| The Court of Appeals | |
| Chief judge | Hasan Shala |
 |
|---|
| Constitution and law |
The politics of Kosovo takes place in a framework of a multi-party parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the President (Presidenti) is the head of state and the Prime Minister (Kryeministri) the head of government. Parliamentary elections are held every four years, the most recent in 2021.
The
Government
Executive
The Executive of Kosovo is the collection of Kosovo institutions that exercises executive authority in Kosovo. It is headed by the Prime Minister of Kosovo, and also includes the prime minister, the deputy prime ministers, and various ministers. The President of Kosovo also plays a role.
Albin Kurti is the Prime Minister of Kosovo and head of government. Vjosa Osmani is the acting President of Kosovo and head of state. The ruling parties in Kosovo are Vetëvendosje (LVV), Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) and Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK).
Legislative
The
The Assembly passes all laws in Kosovo, ratifies international treaties, appoints the President, Prime Minister, ministers, and justices of all courts, adopts the budget and performs other duties as established by the Constitution. The Parliament can pass a vote of no-confidence on the Government by a majority of the members.
Autonomy and independence
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The
On 5 July 1989 this extensive autonomy was largely revoked by Slobodan Milošević's administration and the amount of autonomy of Kosovo had been restored to its pre-1974 status. On 28 September 1990, the name of the province was reverted to Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija.
In 1990, Kosovo was declared independent by the ethnic Albanian politicians and was recognised by
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 placed Kosovo under transitional UN administration pending a determination of Kosovo's future status. This Resolution entrusted UNMIK with sweeping powers to govern Kosovo, but also directed UNMIK to establish interim institutions of self-governance. Resolution 1244 gave Yugoslavia no role in governing Kosovo and from 1999, national laws and institutions were not valid in Kosovo. The resolution recognised Yugoslav sovereignty of Kosovo. NATO has a separate mandate to provide for a safe and secure environment.
In May 2001, UNMIK promulgated the Constitutional Framework, which established Kosovo's Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG). After 2001, UNMIK gradually transferred increased governing competencies to the PISG, while reserving some powers such as foreign affairs. Kosovo also established municipal governments and an
The largest political party in Kosovo, the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), has its origins in the 1990s non-violent resistance movement against Milošević's rule. The party was led by Ibrahim Rugova until his death in 2006. The two next largest parties have their roots in the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA): the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) led by former KLA leader Hashim Thaçi and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) led by former KLA commander Ramush Haradinaj. Kosovo publisher Veton Surroi formed his own political party in 2004 named "Ora." Kosovo Serbs formed the Serb List for Kosovo and Metohija (SLKM) in 2004, but have boycotted Kosovo's institutions and never taken seats in the Kosovo Assembly.
In November 2001, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe supervised the first elections for the Kosovo Assembly. After that election, Kosovo's political parties formed an all-party unity coalition and elected Ibrahim Rugova as President and Bajram Rexhepi (PDK) as Prime Minister.
After Kosovo-wide elections in October 2004, the LDK and AAK formed a new governing coalition that did not include PDK and Ora. This coalition agreement resulted in Ramush Haradinaj (AAK) becoming Prime Minister, while Ibrahim Rugova retained the position of President. PDK and Ora were critical of the coalition agreement and have since frequently accused the current government of corruption.
Ramush Haradinaj resigned the post of Prime Minister after he was indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in March 2005. He was replaced by Bajram Kosumi (AAK). But in a political shake-up after the death of President Rugova in January 2006, Kosumi himself was replaced by former Kosovo Protection Corps commander Agim Çeku. Çeku won recognition for his outreach to minorities, but Serbia was critical of his wartime past as military leader of the KLA and claimed he was not doing enough for Kosovo Serbs. A Serbian court had indicted Çeku for war crimes he committed in Kosovo. The Kosovo Assembly elected Fatmir Sejdiu, a former LDK parliamentarian, president after Rugova's death. Slaviša Petković, Minister for Communities and Returns, was previously the only ethnic Serb in the government, but resigned in November 2006 amid allegations of corruption at his ministry.[1][2]
On 10 February 2007, nearly 3,000 people protested against the plan by United Nations chief negotiator
Elections were held in Kosovo on 17 November 2007. After early results on the morning of the 18th indicating opposition leader Hashim Thaçi was on course to gain 35 per cent of the vote, he claimed victory for PDK, the Albanian Democratic Party, and stated his intention to declare independence. President Fatmir Sejdiu's Democratic League was in second place with 22 percent of the vote. The turnout at the election was particularly low with most Serbs refusing to vote.[3]
On 25 December 2007 it was announced Thaçi's Democratic Party of Kosovo would form a coalition with President Fatmir Sejdiu's Democratic League forming a slight majority of 62 seats out of 120. Thaçi's government will include 7 ministers from his party, 5 ministers from LDK and 3 ministers from non-Albanian communities.[4]
Following years of
Parties
Elections
Political status
See also
Notes
References
- ^ "Kosovo: Serb minister resigns over misuse of funds[permanent dead link]", Adnkronos international (AKI), 27 November 2006
- ^ "Sole Kosovo Serb cabinet minister resigns: PM ", Agence France-Presse (AFP), 24 November 2006.
- ^ EuroNews: Ex-guerrilla chief claims victory in Kosovo election. Retrieved 18 November 2007.
- ^ "Two Kosovo Parties To Form Government". BalkanInsight.com. 2007-12-25. Archived from the original on 2007-12-28. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
External links
- United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo
- International Civilian Office
- European Union Special Representative
- Republic of Kosovo Portal
- OSCE Mission in Kosovo
- European Union in Kosovo
- Assembly of Kosovo
- Old rivalries behind Kosovo intelligence plan Jane's Intelligence Digest, 12 September 2006
