Hundreds of citizens gathered in “Zahir Pajaziti” Square in Pristina in a solidarity march in support of the former leaders of the KLA, Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi, Rexhep Selimi, who were accused of war crimes in The Hague.

One day before the trial in The Hague against the former leaders of the KLA, the platform “Freedom has a name” organized a peaceful protest,
called the “March for Justice” joined by thousands of citizens, politicians and civil society, where they demanded that Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi, Rexhep Selimi be declared innocent of charges of war crimes during the war for the liberation of Kosovo.

Prime Minister Edi Rama has also expressed his support for the peaceful protest in Pristina, and published some photos from the gathering of citizens, next to which he writes “With the March of Justice”.

The call for participation in Sunday’s march was joined by the speaker of the Assembly, Glauk Konjufca, who distributed the notice for the march, as well as the head of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Memli Krasniqi, who invited all citizens to join this march, the mayor of Pristina, Përparim Rama, former prime minister Isa Mustafa, the Islamic Community of Kosovo, Monsignor Dodë Gjergji-Ipeshkev of Kosovo, the former Head of the OSCE Verification Mission in Kosovo, William Walker, etc.
This march was organized a day before the judicial process began in The Hague against former president Hashim Thaçi, former parliamentarians Kadri Veseli and Jakup Krasniqi and former deputy Rexhep Selimi, who are accused of war crimes.

The trial of the former Kosovo leader Hashim Thaçi and three others on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity highlights the ongoing need for justice 24 years after the Kosovo war, Human Rights Watch said today. The trial, taking place before the Kosovo Specialist Chamber in The Hague, begins on April 3, 2023.

Thaçi, Kosovo’s former president and prime minister, is charged along with three other senior members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), all senior politicians in Kosovo, for crimes during and just after the 1998-99 Kosovo conflict, including in northern Albania. The KLA fought Serbian and Yugoslav forces until a 78-day NATO air campaign forced those forces from Kosovo. Thaçi resigned as president after the charges were brought in November 2020 and was promptly transferred to The Hague.

/k.s/