Yesterday the Ombudsperson Institution in Kosovo (OIK) released a report on two cases regarding 112 individuals from Vushtrri/Vucitrn who are still owed salaries by two Socially Owned Enterprises administered by the Kosovo Trust Agency. The Municipa

Yesterday the Ombudsperson Institution in Kosovo (OIK) released a report on two cases regarding 112 individuals from Vushtrri/Vucitrn who are still owed salaries by two Socially Owned Enterprises administered by the Kosovo Trust Agency. The Municipal Court of Vushtrri/Vucitrn (MCV) had ordered the two companies, Kosova Enterprise and Vushtex Enterprise, to pay the complainants, but conflicts with existing policies of the Kosovo Trust Agency (KTA) prevented the payments from proceeding.
The complainants, one a former employee of Kosova Enterprise and 111 former employees of Vushtex Enterprise, alleged that their employers had not paid them for lengths of time ranging from months to years in the period 2000-2004. They brought their case to the MCV, which ruled in their favor and ordered the relevant banks to pay the complainants from their employers’ accounts. When the employees did not receive the court-ordered payments, they filed complaints with the OIK, which launched a formal investigation after a preliminary fact-finding period.
The OIK found that the problem was a conflict of laws. On the one hand, the banks were required by law to follow the MCV’s orders; on the other, the banks were told by the KTA that they could not take action until the cases were reviewed by a Special Chamber of the Supreme Court of Kosovo on Kosovo Trust Agency Related Matters. The OIK concluded that while the Special Chamber had clarified certain matters of jurisdiction, it had not provided enough guidance in how to proceed with executing such judgments and that this breakdown in the judicial system violated the complainants’ rights of access to courts. The OIK recommended that the Special Chamber advise local courts on how to go about executing these and similar cases as soon as possible.
The Acting Ombudsperson, Mr. Hilmi Jashari, signed the report, which was formally submitted to the Assembly of Kosovo. Copies of the report were also sent to Special Representative of the Secretary General Mr. Soren Jessen-Petersen, UNMIK Standards Coordinator for UNMIK Mr. Brian Hopkinson, President of the Municipal court of Vushtrri/Vucitrn Mr. Sabit Beqiri, and the President of the Special Chamber of the Supreme Court of Kosovo on Kosovo Trust Agency Related Matters, Mr. Tudor Pantiru.

For more information please contact:
Joshua Wright
International Media Advisor
Ombudsperson Institution in Kosovo
038/501-401
[email protected]