PRISTINA (Kosovo), April 11 (SeeNews) – The fight against high level corruption in Kosovo has stalled in 2017 due to a lack of political will, independent watchdog organisation Freedom House said on Wednesday.
“Kosovo had a convulsive year in 2017. There were some improvements in electoral processes and civil society,” Freedom House said in its Nations in Transit 2018 report.
Despite ever present semi-authoritarian temptations and the cooption of the administration by external interests, the existing constitutional and legal framework continued to provide safeguards against an outright concentration of power, the report reads.
The new government coalition that emerged from the snap general election on June 11 has failed to provide more stability than the previous one and instead it has relied on ruling by decree, sidelining the parliament and often acting without due consideration to processes and legal requirements.
“The framework for local institutions has only seen some small incremental improvements in 2017, and municipalities are still missing sufficient funds and resources to fulfill their otherwise extensive role in the political system of Kosovo,” Freedom House said.
No progress took place in the formation of the Association of Serb Majority Municipalities, due to the stalling of the dialogue with Serbia and the intense political cycle, according to the report.
“The greatest progress in 2017 regarding the judiciary was the launching of the Specialist Chambers in The Hague under the legal umbrella of Kosovar legislation, despite intense opposition from different actors across the political spectrum and within the new government.”
According to Freedom House, in 2018 the new government of Kosovo will continue to struggle to implement its programme.
“Internal contradictions, a weak coalition that is dependent on minority parties, and a unilateral approach will mark the following year, as the government will continue to sideline the Assembly to avoid due parliamentary control,” the report reads.
Details from the Nations in Transit 2018 report follow, with the scores on a scale from 1 to 7, where 1 represents the highest level of democratic progress and 7 the lowest:
Kosovo |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
National Democratic Governance |
5.5 |
5.5 |
5.5 |
Electoral Process |
4.75 |
4.75 |
4.5 |
Civil Society |
3.75 |
3.75 |
3.75 |
Independent Media |
5.25 |
5 |
5 |
Local Democratic Governance |
4.5 |
4.5 |
4.5 |
Judicial Framework and Independence |
5.75 |
5.5 |
5.5 |
Corruption |
6 |
5.75 |
5.75 |
Democracy Score |
5.07 |
4.96 |
4.93 |
Source: Freedom House