Representatives of the ethnic Serb minority in Kosovo on Saturday resigned from their posts in protest over the dismissal of a police officer who did not follow the government’s decision on vehicle license plates.
Earlier this week Pristina authorities dismissed a senior Serb police officer in northern Kosovo, where most of the ethnic Serbs live, who refused to respect the decision to change vehicle license plates in Kosovo to ones issued by Kosovo. The shift has ignited volatile issues about Kosovo’s sovereignty, especially among its Serb minority, many of whom still want the former Serb province to be part of Serbia and not independent.
Serbia itself has never recognized the independence of Kosovo.
As the measure came into effect Tuesday, Kosovo authorities said enforcement would be gradual. In three weeks Pristina authorities will be issuing warnings to the ethnic Serbs who keep their old license number plates. For the next two months they will be fined, and for three other months until April 21, they can drive only with replaced temporary local plates.
[…]
