Ramush Haradinaj

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Ramush Haradinaj (2013)

Ramush Haradinaj  [ ɾamuʃ ˌhaɾaˈdiːnaj ] (born July 3, 1968 in Gllogjan near Dečani , SFR Yugoslavia ) is a Kosovar politician ( AAK ). During the Kosovo war , Haradinaj was sub-commandant of the paramilitary organization UÇK . Please click to listen!Play

From September 9, 2017 to July 19, 2019, he was the 3rd Prime Minister of Kosovo .

Life

youth

Haradinaj grew up in the countryside as the son of farmers. He comes from a Muslim family, but leads a secular life. In a lecture he gave on September 23, 2013 at Columbia University , he said that the members of his family had been Catholics for generations and that he basically did not know why he was actually a Muslim. He has never been to a mosque , either for prayer or anything else. He traces his religious affiliation back to the time of the Ottoman rule in Albania .

After primary school he attended secondary schools in Deçan and Gjakova , where he also learned Serbo-Croatian . After graduating from high school in 1987, he served in 1988 as a volunteer in the Yugoslav People's Army at the Pirot and Dimitrovgrad locations in eastern Serbia . There he made it to a non-commissioned officer and specialist in chemical warfare agents within three months.

Emigration and exile

After completing his military service, Haradinaj moved to Lucerne ( Switzerland ) in 1989 , where an uncle ran a construction company. During the nine years there, he changed residence several times, worked in various jobs, including as a doorman for a disco and as a security guard at sporting events and pop concerts.

During a visit to Kosovo in March 1991, he was temporarily arrested and interrogated by the Yugoslav police for participating in demonstrations. After his release, he returned to Switzerland, where he was granted political asylum .

Family and personal

In December 2002, Haradinaj's brother Daut Haradinaj was sentenced to five years in prison by a UN court in Kosovo for his involvement in the kidnapping and murder of four Kosovar Albanians belonging to the FARK - an armed formation of Kosovar Albanians rivaling the KLA sentenced. At that time, Daut Haradinaj held a high post in the Kosovo Protection Corps. Another brother of Haradinaj was murdered in Kosovo in April 2005, according to UN security forces, during a clash between rival clans.

Ramush Haradinaj has been married to TV presenter Anita Muçaj-Haradinaj since 2003. Both relationships resulted in a total of three children.

In addition to Albanian and Serbo-Croatian, he also speaks English , French and German .

Military and political career

Membership in the UÇK

In Switzerland, Haradinaj joined the Lëvizja Popullore e Kosovës (People's Movement of Kosovo, LPK for short) , an organization that wanted to use armed means to fight for Kosovo's independence. The LPK is considered a forerunner organization of the UÇK . During this time he visited his home illegally several times; he entered from Albania via mountain trails. When army stocks were plundered during the lottery uprising in Albania in March 1997 and millions of weapons were put on the free market, he flew to Albania and began systematically buying up weapons for the future KLA.

In the summer of 1997 he returned to Serbia and from there built up the regional UÇK group. In March 1998, his KLA group became involved in fighting with Serbian forces in his native Gllogjan, in which two of his brothers died. Haradinaj was said to have good relations with US officials with whom he was alleged to have worked in military and intelligence matters during the Kosovo war .

Political career in post-war Kosovo

After the war he became deputy commander of the Kosovo Protection Corps (TMK), a national guard established by the United Nations as a reception organization for former UÇK members . During the same period, he began studying law at the University of Prishtina , which he graduated with a degree in law.

He began his political career in the Democratic Party of Kosovo of the former KLA commander Hashim Thaçi . He left this in March 2000; the following month he resigned from his position as commandant of the TMK. On April 29th, he founded the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) as an alliance of five nationalist parties. In June 2002 the alliance became a regular political party and has been chairman since then.

The AAK subsequently became the third largest party of the Kosovar Albanians - behind the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) founded by Ibrahim Rugova and Hashim Thaçis PDK, another successor party to the UÇK.

After the parliamentary elections on October 24, 2004, the AAK formed a coalition with the election winner LDK and Haradinaj was elected Prime Minister on December 3, 2004 with a two-thirds majority. According to a report by the news magazine Der Spiegel , the coalition between the two parties was also about pacifying the rivalry between the LDK and AAK: In the region of Deçan , Klina and Peć there were over 70 murders from the end of the war to the formation of a government between the LDK and AAK came; the majority of the victims were members of both parties.

In office, he implemented controversial projects such as limited autonomy for an area near Pristina inhabited by a majority of Serbs . After the charges became known before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), he resigned on March 8, 2005. His successor in the office of Prime Minister was Bajram Kosumi (AAK).

War crimes charges

In March 2005 the International Criminal Court brought charges against Haradinaj. Before and during the war in Kosovo, he committed, ordered or tolerated serious crimes against the people of Kosovo (Serbs, Albanians and Roma ).

Haradinaj surrendered to the court and pleaded "not guilty". He was taken into custody, but was released after three months before the trial began. He returned to Kosovo, where the UN tribunal allowed him to return to political activity. However, according to the court's requirement, Haradinaj had to obtain approval for his activities from UNMIK . At the end of February 2007, Haradinaj returned to The Hague Prison. The trial of Haradinaj began on March 5 in the tribunal.

The indictment against Haradinaj and his co-defendants, the head of the Black Eagle special unit, Idriz Balaj , and UÇK sub-commander Lahi Brahimaj , comprised 37 items, including crimes against humanity and violations of martial law . It concerned acts of violence that were committed between March 1 and September 30, 1998. The defendants were charged with involvement in a criminal organization. Their aim was to bring the Metohija region in western Kosovo under their control. The means they used were the "unlawful expulsion and mistreatment of Serbs", as well as the mistreatment of other civilians whom they suspected of cooperating with the Serbian police, of being friendly to Serbs or of not supporting the UÇK. The criminal offenses listed on the indictment in which Haradinaj was involved included, among others, the forcible abdication of civilians, kidnapping, deprivation of liberty, torture, murder and rape.

When the trial was opened, Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte pointed out the problems facing the prosecutors. The intimidation of witnesses was a major problem in the investigation. Haradinaj's attorney, Ben Emmerson , said the charges were inadequate; the accusation of participating in a criminal organization was an attempt to hold Haradinaj responsible "for the crimes of all armed Albanians in western Kosovo".

On April 3, 2008, Ramush Haradinaj and Idriz Balaj were acquitted by The Hague Court . There was no evidence in the trial, as only one of the original ten witnesses who were supposed to testify against Haradinaj was still alive. He withdrew his testimony after barely surviving an assassination attempt. The other witnesses were Kujtim Berisha, who was run over by a jeep in Podgorica , Montenegro on February 16, 2007 , Ilir Selimaj, who was stabbed to death after a provoked bar fight, Sadik, Sinan and Xheladin (Gjeladin) Musaj, who all died in 2005 (Sadik was shot dead in an attack on February 1, 2005 in the street in the Peja area, Sinan and Xheladin Musaj were killed in June 2005 in the village of Raushiq near Pela), Sebahate Tolaj and Isuf Haklaj, two officers of the Kosovo police, who wanted to testify against Haradinaj and died in November 2003 after being lured into an ambush near Pela, Bekim Mustafa and Avni Elezaj, who had already been shot in 2002, and Sadik Muriçi and Vesel Muriçi, who initially escaped could. These "heavily protected witnesses" died in 2002 in professionally organized attacks in the Peja area .

Co-defendant Lahi Brahimaj was sentenced to six years in prison. In Serbia, Haradinaj's acquittal was met with incomprehension. Long-time chief prosecutor of the Hague Tribunal, Carla Del Ponte, also wrote in her autobiography from 2008 that the Hague Tribunal had unilaterally focused on crimes committed by the Serbian side, while it did not pursue crimes in which Kosovar Albanians were involved, despite sufficient evidence have. Haradinaj was involved in the sale of organs in Kosovo that were taken from executed prisoners in Kosovo.

The trials against Haradinaj, Lahi Brahimaj and Idriz Balaj resumed on July 21, 2010, and the trial began on August 18, 2011. The U bo boll (Enough) campaign was launched in favor of Haradinaj's release . In the new trial, the prosecutor of the UN tribunal demanded a minimum of 20 years' imprisonment, but on November 29, 2012 the UN war crimes tribunal acquitted Haradinaj, Balaj and even Brahimaj on all counts.

Although the court found many of the crimes against Serbs, Roma and Albanians portrayed in the indictment as proven, the indictment had "no direct evidence" on the central count, the "joint criminal enterprise" of persecuting and evicting Serbs and Roma can, just as little for a direct involvement of the accused or even his knowledge of the crimes. The verdict met with divided, sometimes sharply negative reactions; for example, former UN war crimes tribunal spokeswoman Florence Hartmann condemned the decision, saying that the court had suffered defeat for turning away from the truth; this is a total collapse of the international justice system.

Organized crime and scandals

The name Haradinaj was mentioned very often when it comes to the intertwining of organized crime and politics . The Swiss weekly newspaper Weltwoche (number 43, 2005) quoted from an analysis of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) on organized crime in Kosovo from February 22, 2005. It says about Haradinaj:

“The family-clan-based structure around Ramush Haradinaj in the Deçan area deals with the entire spectrum of criminal, political and military activities that have a significant impact on the security situation in the whole of Kosovo. The group has around 100 members and is active in drug and weapons smuggling and in the illegal trade in goods subject to duty. It also controls local government bodies. "

The KFOR , according to Weltwoche, described this group in a secret report of March 10, 2004 as “the most powerful criminal organization” in the region and wrote that Haradinaj also controlled the distribution of humanitarian aid and misused it as an instrument of power .

According to a report in the Berliner Zeitung , which also refers to an analysis by the BND, the family clan led by Haradinaj controls one of the three areas of interest for organized crime in Kosovo. In his capacity as regional district commander, Haradinaj himself was "particularly involved in cigarette smuggling, fuel trading and extortion". His clan is involved in drug smuggling to Europe and conducts its criminal business through front companies in western countries. According to a classified analysis by KFOR, he was also involved in the smuggling of weapons and stolen cars and in human trafficking in prostitutes. Together with his brother, he controls the distribution of aid supplies in Kosovo. Among other things, he suppressed, tortured, abused and murdered numerous Serbs in Kosovo. He also instigated brutal rape of young Serbian women, as well as torture and displacement of the poor, the weak and the elderly. His aim was not only to get rid of the Serbian soldiers, but also the Serbian residents in Kosovo. Even civilians and the Kosovar Serbs fell victim to him and his clan. As a result, many Serbs had to flee or were expelled.

In May 2000, Ramush Haradinaj engaged in a fist fight with Russian soldiers at a KFOR checkpoint. The soldiers had discovered a Swiss assault rifle in Haradinaj's trunk and wanted to arrest him.

On July 7, 2000, he drove with some supporters to the property of a rival Kosovar Albanian family. There was a shooting and hand grenades were thrown. There are various statements about the cause of the dispute. According to a version circulated by the London Institute for War and Peace Reporting , the opposing clan wanted to know from the Haradinajs where the bodies of their missing relatives were; Ramush Haradinaj was enraged by this. According to a confidential report dated December 29, 2003 by the UN Intelligence Unit (CIU), it was drug dealing . Haradinaj attacked the house because the clan was apparently a competitor. According to the CIU, he wanted to steal 60 kilograms of cocaine from the family, which they allegedly kept in the house. So reported the already quoted Swiss newspaper Weltwoche .

In any case, Haradinaj was wounded in the shooting and had to flee. A helicopter flew him into an American camp; from there he was taken to the US military hospital in Landstuhl for further treatment. As a result, US officials were accused of interfering in the UN investigation into the incident.

International political stage

In February 2009, Ramush Haradinaj was asked to act as a mediator for peace talks between the Ugandan government and the Muslim rebels from the ranks of the Alliance of Democratic Forces ADF, which he agreed to do. Haradinaj is said to have mediated unofficially for months.

After the acquittal in November 2012

After Ramush Haradinaj and two of his comrades-in-arms were acquitted by The Hague Criminal Court, the three were solemnly welcomed back home as heroes. Haradinaj and Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi quickly started friendly talks. Haradinaj intended to start talks about a possible government coalition between Thaçi's party, the PDK, and his party, the AAK. He also wanted to become the new Prime Minister of Kosovo. After the meeting on December 7, 2012, however, both agreed mainly on formal issues such as EU integration, reforms and the like. However, the coalition was not a topic of conversation by its own account. While his acquittal was celebrated by the majority in Kosovo, it met with great indignation in neighboring Serbia.

New arrests in 2015 and 2017

In June 2015, Haradinaj was briefly arrested in Slovenia on the basis of a Serbian arrest warrant .

On January 4, 2017, he was arrested by the French police at Basel-Mulhouse Airport . According to the Serbian public prosecutor's office, new evidence was available that would justify a transfer of Haradinaj to Belgrade.

On April 27, 2017, a French court in Colmar rejected an extradition request from the Serbian judiciary. Ramush Haradinaj has been released after being banned from leaving the country since January.

resignation

After he had been summoned for a hearing by the Kosovar Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor's Office based in The Hague, Netherlands , he announced his resignation on July 19, 2019. He wanted to obey the summons, but as a private individual, not as Prime Minister. Until the appointment of a successor, he remains in office.

Web links

Commons : Ramush Haradinaj  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ ZEIT ONLINE: Ramush Haradinaj: Prime Minister of Kosovo resigns . In: The time . July 19, 2019, ISSN  0044-2070 ( zeit.de [accessed July 19, 2019]).
  2. ^ "Like most Albanian families, his was nominally Muslim, but secular in fact." William Langewiesche: House of War , Vanity Fair , December 2008
  3. Kosovë, videoja e Ramush Haradinaj: Unë nuk e di pse jam musliman , shqiptarja.com, November 25, 2013 (in Albanian)
  4. ^ I don't know why I am Muslim - Ramush Haradinaj , video with Haradinaj's statement at Columbia University from September 2013.
  5. Anita Muçaj: Ramush duart t'i lidhin, por vullnetin s'mund ta lidhë askush ( Memento from September 11, 2017 in the Internet Archive ), epokaere.com, Jan. 12, 2017 (in Albanian)
  6. Ramush , balkanupdate.com, October 21, 2005
  7. HARADINAJ et al. The Prosecutor v. Ramush Haradinaj, Idriz Balaj and Lahi Brahimaj. (PDF) Case Information Sheet of the ICTY on the case of Haradinaj and others, April 3, 2008, accessed on December 8, 2012 (English, 1.99 MB).
  8. ^ Caroline Tosh: Former KLA Commanders Go on Trial. Institute for War & Peace Reporting, March 9, 2007, accessed December 8, 2012 .
  9. A list of Witnesses killed by Leotrime Osaj even contains more than 10 victims: O Ramush familja Osaj po e pret rrëfimin tënd për Rexhën e vrarë! , botasot.info, May 21, 2017
  10. Haradinaj case witness dead , b92.net, February 17, 2007. Archived on February 19, 2007.
  11. a b Dëshmitarët kundër Haradinajve u vranë në prita ( Memento from September 11, 2017 in the Internet Archive ), shqiptari.eu, Jan. 27, 2017 (in Albanian)
  12. Flet Sadik Musaj: Ramushi erdhi me 'ushtri' dhe na sulmoj , botasot.info, February 15, 2016 (in Albanian)
  13. Si filloj konflikti Haradinaj - Musaj? , botasot.info, January 29, 2016
  14. Vrasësi i policëve Tolaj e Haklaj radikalizohet brenda burgut të Gërdovcit , lajmpress.com, November 4, 2016
  15. Un euro para Ramush. (No longer available online.) Público April 6, 2008, archived from the original on June 11, 2008 ; Retrieved December 8, 2012 (Spanish).
  16. Reactions in Serbia to the acquittal of Ramush Haradinaj. (No longer available online.) Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung , April 7, 2008, archived from the original on July 31, 2009 ; Retrieved December 8, 2012 .
  17. Russia ups pressure on ex-war crimes prosecutor Del Ponte ( Memento from January 13, 2013 on WebCite ) (English). RIA Novosti, April 14, 2008, archived from the original on January 13, 2013.
  18. ^ Resumption of the proceedings against three UÇK members in 2010. ICTY, July 21, 2010, accessed on December 8, 2012 (English).
  19. ^ Former Kosovar prime minister in court. Neue Zürcher Zeitung , August 18, 2011, accessed December 8, 2012 .
  20. website of U bo boll. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on August 28, 2012 ; Retrieved December 8, 2012 .
  21. UN tribunal demands 20 years imprisonment for ex-head of government of Kosovo. (No longer available online.) Der Stern , June 25, 2012, archived from the original on May 23, 2013 ; Retrieved December 8, 2012 .
  22. ^ UN war crimes tribunal: Former KLA leader Haradinaj acquitted. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , November 29, 2012, accessed on November 29, 2012 .
  23. "The fact that 10 witnesses were killed in car accidents and murders leaves plenty of room for speculation.": It remains a taste , taz.de, November 29, 2012
  24. ^ Artman: Sud u Hagu odustao od istine. Blic , November 29, 2012, accessed December 8, 2012 (Serbian).
  25. Andreas Förster: BND: Kosovo politician Haradinaj is mafia godfather. In: Berliner Zeitung . March 5, 2007, accessed March 5, 2007 .
  26. God's fist . In: Der Spiegel . No. 51 , 2004, p. 120 ( Online - Dec. 13, 2004 ).
  27. http://derstandard.at/?url=/?id=1234507793181%26sap=2%26_pid=12154972
  28. Thaçi-Haradinaj shkëmbejnë kredencialet. Top Channel , December 7, 2012, accessed December 8, 2012 (Albanian).
  29. ^ Former Kosovo PM Haradinaj arrested on war crimes warrant. BBC News, January 5, 2017, accessed January 5, 2017 .
  30. zeit.de: Ex-UÇK boss Haradinaj arrested in France
  31. Andreas Ernst: France causes red heads in Kosovo. NZZ, January 5, 2017, accessed on the same day.
  32. France does not extradite Haradinaj. In: nzz.ch. Neue Zürcher Zeitung , April 27, 2017, accessed on April 28, 2017 .
  33. https://www.nzz.ch/international/kosovos-regierungschef-tritt-vor-befragung-in-den-haag-zurueck-ld.1497131
predecessor Office successor
Bajram Rexhepi Prime Minister of Kosovo
2004–2005
Bajram Kosumi
Isa Mustafa Prime Minister of Kosovo
2017-2019
vacant