Dejona Mihali, coordinator of the Committees within the Vetëvendosje Movement, has shared excerpts from a 2015 speech by Rexhep Selimi in the Kosovo Assembly, in which he strongly opposed the establishment of the Specialist Court.
Selimi delivered the speech on June 26, 2015, during parliamentary discussions over the creation of the court.
At the time, Selimi argued that opposing the Specialist Court did not mean rejecting justice, but rather objecting to what he viewed as an injustice toward the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and Kosovo.
He warned that establishing the court could have broader consequences for how the KLA war and Kosovo itself were perceived, particularly because of allegations contained in the Dick Marty report and subsequent investigations.
Selimi also challenged claims that the alleged crimes were the responsibility of isolated individuals, arguing that the accusations were being presented in a way that could place broader responsibility on the KLA and Kosovo Albanian society.
“The KLA cannot be tarnished; at most, we may tarnish ourselves,” Selimi said during the parliamentary debate.
In his address, he urged lawmakers to vote against the establishment of the court, saying they had a responsibility to consider not only the immediate political consequences of their decision but also its impact on Kosovo’s future generations.
Selimi argued that the accusations surrounding the court could affect the historical interpretation of the KLA’s war and potentially damage Kosovo’s image as a state.
He also appealed to lawmakers to have the courage to oppose what they considered harmful decisions, even when those decisions came with the support of international allies.
According to Selimi, Kosovo’s relations with its international partners should be based on dignity and mutual respect rather than submission.
Toward the end of his speech, Selimi emphasized that lawmakers would ultimately have to answer to their families, fellow fighters and future generations for the decision they made in the Assembly.
He concluded by calling on MPs to vote against the court, framing his position as an objection to what he described as injustice rather than opposition to justice itself.
Selimi delivered the address on June 26, 2015, during the parliamentary debate on the establishment of the Specialist Court.
