Srpska Lista, the largest party of Serbs in Kosovo, which has the support of Belgrade, announced that members of the Serbian community will not participate in the population census that begins on Friday, April 5.
The population census in Kosovo will last until May 17 this year. In a press release, this party explains its position on non-participation in the census by the "repression" of Prime Minister Aljbin Kurti's regime.
"We want to send a clear message to Aljbina Kurti and those who support him that the Serbian people will not participate in the upcoming fake census in his organization, which he wants to confirm his shameful success in expelling the Serbs," it was announced.
As a form of "repression", Srpska lista, among other things, mentions the decree of the Central Bank of Kosovo, which made it difficult to pay incomes in dinars that are paid from the Serbian budget. This regulation entered into force on February 1 and stipulates that the only means of payment will be the euro.
"In addition, Kurti wants to additionally attack Serbia with this census with some kind of demands for war reparations, which further deters every Serb from being part of this process," the Serbian list says, adding that the Serbs in Kosovo are still waiting for the formation of the Union of Municipalities with a Serbian majority. , which was agreed within the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia.
On April 2, Kosovo Prime Minister Aljbin Kurti called on citizens to respond to the census, and said that for the first time, the damage caused during the war will be documented with a questionnaire.
He added that as part of the census process, the questionnaire will allow citizens to testify about the murder of family members, injured or missing in the period from February 28, 1998 to June 12, 1999.
The last population census in Kosovo in 2011 was not held in four municipalities in the north where the majority Serb population lives, while in the municipalities in the south this process was mostly boycotted at the invitation of Belgrade.
According to that census, the total number of inhabitants in Kosovo is about 1,8 million, of which about 25.000 are Serbs. However, according to civil sector estimates, around 100.000 members of the Serbian community live in Kosovo.
The new population census was supposed to be held in 2021, but it was postponed due to the corona virus pandemic. Meanwhile, it was postponed two more times last year.
According to the Law on the Census of Population, Households and Dwellings, any person can be fined from 30 to 2.000 euros if he refuses to provide the information requested by the enumerator. Fines are even higher for businessmen and go up to 20.000 euros.
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