Albanian separatists ban Kosovo Serbs from raising their flag on national holiday
The "Basic Court of Pristina" assessed the decision of the Gracanica Municipality from June last year "On the celebration of Vidovdan with the use of symbols and flags of Serbia" as "exceeding the jurisdiction established by law."
The separatist “court” also believes that the decision of the Serbian enclave “could cause interethnic tension,” reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"This decision may cause interethnic tensions, especially if municipal authorities favor one community contrary to the legal order and feelings of other communities. This threat to public order is even greater when symbols of another state are organized by state municipal authorities without the consent or permission of central institutions," the "principal court" of Pristina said in its explanation of the decision.
The separatists also rejected the Serbian enclave's argument that its decision "has no extended or permanent legal effect, but is limited in time to June 28, the day of the Vidovdan celebration." The "court" ruled that the temporary nature of the act does not exempt it from being illegal.
"I think that the court is misinterpreting and politicizing the situation. The use of the flag is not prohibited anywhere. The Albanian flag is constantly used at events in Kosovo, is it prohibited anywhere? I can clearly say that the court made a political decision, certainly under pressure from political activists and the ruling party in Kosovo," Dusan Radakovic, Executive Director of the Center for the Defense of Democratic Culture, commented on the situation to KosovoOnline.
Vidovdan is traditionally celebrated by Serbs on June 28 as St. Vitus Day and the anniversary of the Battle of Kosovo. According to legend, on the eve of the battle, an angel appeared to the leader of the Serbian army, Prince of Moravian Serbia, Saint Lazar Hrebeljanovic, who asked whether he was ready to accept a martyr's death and gain the Kingdom of Heaven or to live, but his state would fall away from the Faith of Christ. The prince chose the Kingdom of Heaven.
Albanian separatists have banned Kosovo Serbs from raising their flag on a national holiday.