Serbs abandon Kosovo institutions over police violence

BELGRADE, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Serbian List, a political party representing Serbian population in Kosovo, decided on Tuesday to leave Kosovo institutions due to Monday's violent operation of Kosovo Police special forces in the northern part of the province.

The decision came after the special units of Kosovo police on Monday detained the director of the Kosovo office in the Serbian government, Marko Djuric, for alleged illegal entry into Kosovo earlier that day.

"We are witnesses after yesterday's not only brutal, but terrorist attack on unarmed Serbian people in Mitrovica and representatives of the Serbian government. We as the legitimate representatives of the Serbian people on Kosovo and Metohija cannot remain silent," said Goran Rakic, president of the Serbian List.

Djuric was detained in Mitrovica North as he was in a meeting with local Serbs on Monday afternoon. Shock bombs and tear gas were used in the operation to disperse citizens who had gathered around the building in which the meeting was taking place.

After the detention, Djuric was transferred to Pristina by a specialized operational unit of Kosovo police, and then deported to the administrative border where Serbian police took him over.

"We will be united, and will not be afraid, we will defend our homes and no ROSU (special Kosovo police) forces nor international community nor EULEX (EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo) will scare us away from this territory," he stressed.

However, representatives of Serbia List entered the Kosovo institutions after last elections won by current Kosovo prime minister Ramush Haradinaj, and became a part of the ruling coalition.

Besides the decision to leave the government, Rakic also said that Serbian List would discuss unilateral establishment of the Association of Serbian Municipalities that was envisaged by the Brussels dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, but never realized in practice due to obstructions coming from Pristina.

He also invited Serbs in Kosovo not to be part of the so-called Kosovo Army whose formation was announced by Kosovo officials and supported by the United States.

Kosovo is a southern province of Serbia, which unilaterally declared independence in 2008. Serbia rejects it and considers Kosovo its own province. Enditem