In photos: Activists and family members gather in Prishtina to urge for more efforts to uncover the fates of the more than 1,600 missing persons in Kosovo.
Citizens gathered in Prishtina on Wednesday to mark the International Day of the Disappeared, established to draw attention to missing persons, forced disappearances, and abductions.
Family members and representatives from the Association for Missing Persons laid wreaths at the monument for the missing and demanded greater efforts to uncover the fates of more than 1,600 missing persons in Kosovo.
Bajram Qerkinaj, head of Coordinating Council of the Association for Missing Persons, said that if Kosovo institutions were more insistent on pressuring Serbia for information, it would bring relief to the families of the missing.
During the events organized by the Governmental Commission on Missing Persons, outgoing Prime Minister Isa Mustafa said that the EU will be urged to increase pressure on Serbia to solve the missing persons issue.
European Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, EULEX, Head of Mission Alexandra Papadopoulou emphasized that missing persons remain a top priority for the mission.
“While the nature of the identification process is sensitive, complicated and time consuming, it is vital that it continues in order to find answers on the fate of the missing,” she said in a press statement. She added that EULEX’s efforts include training a local field team to conduct examinations, contributing a team of forensic experts, and efforts to strengthen local capacities to search for missing persons.
