The facts
Police clashed with protesters outside Kosovo’s Parliament on Monday evening after the session ended without passing proposed changes to the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, a Hague-based court handling crimes from the 1998-2000 war. The amendments, which passed a first reading, aimed to limit sentences to 15 years, allow sentences to be served in Kosovo, and permit appeals to the republic’s Supreme Court. Hundreds of protesters, including KLA veterans, gathered outside the building, with some attempting to block lawmakers. Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowd, and 12 people, including 11 civilians, were injured, according to Naser Syla, emergency director at a Pristina hospital. The legislative push follows the September 16 convictions of former President Hashim Thaci and three other former KLA commanders for war crimes, with Thaci receiving a 25-year sentence. These rulings were condemned by Kosovo’s Parliament. The court’s reform has become entangled with the political battle over electing a new president, with the Democratic Party of Kosovo linking its support for a president to the passage of the amendments, while Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s party wants the presidential vote first. Kosovo established the Specialist Chambers under pressure from Western allies, with its location in The Hague intended to mitigate political pressure and witness threats.
Our take
Well, fuck. The Parliament of Kosovo, a stable and serious government that definitely doesn’t look like a clown car driving into a tear gas cloud, decided the best way to handle a war crimes conviction for its former president was to try and neuter the fucking court. Their brilliant legislative package? Cap sentences at a cozy 15 years - basically a timeout for ethnic cleansing - let convicts serve their hard time at home, and give the final say to their own Supreme Court. It’s like responding to a murder charge by demanding the trial be moved to your mom’s basement and judged by your Xbox friends. Absolute genius statesmanship. This masterstroke of institutional dickheadery was, of course, a transparent grift to appease the old KLA guard who are pissy their boss got 25 years. So hundreds of these veterans showed up to thank their brave lawmakers by trying to block them from leaving. The police, in a stunning display of coherent planning, then turned the water cannons and gas on the very people the law was designed to suck up to. You can’t make this shit up. The whole pathetic circus is now held hostage by a separate pissing contest over who gets to be the next president, because why solve one constitutional crisis when you can have two? The court itself exists in The Hague specifically because Kosovo’s political environment is as safe and impartial as a shiv in a shower. And now these assholes want to drag it all back into their own sandbox. It’s a world-class demonstration of how to take a giant, steaming shit on the concept of justice while also getting your own supporters gassed for their trouble. Bravo, you pompous, self-sabotaging cunts. A standing ovation from the international community you’re trying to bullshit. Bravo indeed, you fucking clowns. Now enjoy the tear gas bouquet. It’s on the house. A house you are currently burning the fuck down. What a pack of useless bastards. They couldn’t organize a piss-up in a brewery, but they can sure organize a riot at their own doorstep. Pathetic. Utterly, completely, shit-for-brains pathetic. The only thing they’ve successfully limited is their own credibility, and the sentence for that is eternal, fucking hilarious ridicule.
