Human Rights Review Panel - 19th Session

Press Release
Number              01-2014
Date                   28.02.2014
Contact              John J. Ryan

The Human Rights Review Panel (the Panel) held its 19th session in Pristina from 3 to 5 February 2014.  

The Panel found that EULEX Kosovo breached a complainant’s right to an effective remedy in the case of Zahiti v. EULEX. The complainant stated that she was attacked and injured by an EULEX Police Officer and, as a result, was unable to work for several months.

The Panel held that EULEX as a Rule of Law Mission with a limited executive mandate is expected to provide effective remedies in regard to arguable claims related to the actions of its staff. In the current case, the Panel found that EULEX, from the outset, denied any responsibility in this matter and failed to provide a procedural remedy whereby the complainant could have advanced her claim. The Panel invited the Head of Mission to address specified shortcomings with a series of remedial recommendations.

In a follow up decision to the so called “Vidovdan cases” (four cases relating to incidents of Vidovdan day on 28 June 2012) the Panel found that the EULEX Head of Mission had implemented its recommendations.

The Panel declared three more cases inadmissible. All of them concerned complaints over unfairness and length of civil proceedings before the Kosovo courts. The Panel found that the complaints did not fall within the ambit of its mandate, as it has no jurisdiction in respect of either administrative or judicial aspects of the work of Kosovo courts. One case was struck-out of the list of complaints.

All decisions will be published on the Panel’s website upon translation into the Albanian and Serbian languages.

There are currently 33 cases pending before the Panel, fourteen of which have been communicated to the parties, one have been declared admissible. The remaining cases are under review.

The next Panel session is scheduled to take place from 31 March to 2 April 2014 in Pristina.

Please see www.hrrp.eu for further information on the Panel and its case-law.

 Notes to the editor;
The Human Rights Review Panel (Panel) for EULEX Kosovo, as an independent accountability mechanism for alleged violations of human rights,  reviews complaints from any person claiming to be the victim of human rights violations by EULEX Kosovo in the conduct of its executive mandate. The Panel is not a judicial or disciplinary body. The mechanism will solely look into whether a violation of human rights occurred or not and formulate recommendations for remedial action. Such action does no include monetary compensation.  The Psnel is independent in the exercise of its functions which it performs with impartiality and integrity.