Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has given the ministries of Internal Affairs and Justice until Thursday to submit reports on the handling of the domestic violence complaint of Arlinda Zekaj, who was murdered on Sunday evening in Peje, minutes after returning home from the police station where she had reported domestic violence.

Three days prior, the victim had also submitted a letter to the chief prosecutor of Peje requesting urgent intervention, warning that “her life was at risk.”

“The Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Justice have 54 hours to bring forward the case report and shed light on this case in its entirety, including where each link in the institutional chain failed, as well as what is happening with similar cases,” Kurti declared on Tuesday, adding that measures in accordance with applicable laws and regulations will be taken.

Kurti’s statement came amidst growing demands from activists, civil society organisations, and opposition groups that have called for accountability, resignations, and an investigation into institutional failures after Arlinda Zekaj, 49, was killed shortly after reporting domestic violence to the police. 

Her husband, Jeton Sylaj, was taken into custody, while police returned Zekaj to her home. Minutes later, police were notified that she had been killed with an axe. Her brother-in-law, Albert Sylaj, is suspected of the murder and remains at large. 

In a symbolic protest at the Ministry of Justice on Tuesday, QIKA feminist NGO placed inscriptions at the entrance reading “Arlinda did what was needed, but you, Donika, did not. Step down.” The activists, referring to the minister of justice, Donika Gërvalla, who in her speech in an extraordinary parliamentary session on Monday noted that, “unfortunately, Arlinda did not turn to the government” for help, adding that perhaps there would have been greater intervention had she done so. 

Her remarks caused outrage from feminist organisations and citizens that accused her of shifting responsibility from state institutions to the victim.

NGO QIKA called on Gërvalla to resign after her declaration in the parliament.

“After almost 24 hours of silence on Arlinda Zekaj’s case, she came out with scandalous statements, shifting responsibility from the institutions to the victim herself,” the NGO stated, demanding the minister’s resignation. 

During Monday’s extraordinary session of Kosovo’s Parliament, a resolution was approved for a parliamentary investigation into the situation and the procedures that led to Zekaj’s death. On Tuesday, Arbërie Nagavci, head of the Vetëvendosje Movement’s Parliamentary Group, proposed the establishment of a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission to investigate institutional actions and inactions regarding the case of Arlinda Zekaj, as well as the handling of domestic violence against women and children. It is proposed that the parliamentary investigative committee consist of 11 members and have a six-month mandate.

On Monday, opposition MPs also called for ‘moral’ resignations of Justice Minister Gërvalla and Interior Minister Xhelal Sveçla.

Sveçla said the suspect “had a serious police record” and that he had requested the involvement of the Special Prosecution Office to “prevent potential interference in the investigation.”

Liridona Sijarina, from the activist group the Collective for Feminist Thought and Action, also criticised the minister’s statement, describing it as, “an insult to Zekaj and to women who may need state protection in the future.”

PDK MP Blerta Deliu-Kodra also reacted during the session, saying it was “unfair to suggest that Zeka had knocked on the wrong door because she had not approached the government.”

Gërvalla added that dismissals might be necessary, but the Justice Ministry does not “have the authority to dismiss prosecutors or judges.”

Parliament Speaker Albulena Haxhiu,  former minister of justice and member of ruling party Vetëvendosje, said that ministers are not to blame as legal mechanisms are in place but not being implemented by police officers, prosecutors, and judges. Their failures “could not be attributed to the government’s political leadership,” she said, also growing much criticism.

Haxhiu said measures to tackle violence against women and femicide had begun in 2021.

Arian Tahiri, head of the Democratic Party of Kosovo’s parliamentary group, called on Gërvalla to resign “as an act of moral responsibility.”

He cited figures presented during the debate indicating that 47 women had been killed between the period covered up to 2022 and that a further 20 had been killed from 2022 through 2026.

“It is scandalous when translated into annual figures. It is everyone’s responsibility, and Gërvalla should resign as an act of moral responsibility,” Tahiri said.

Lutfi Haziri of the Democratic League of Kosovo accused Haxhiu of absolving the two ministers of responsibility.

Besnik Tahiri, head of the Alliance’s  parliamentary group, said the case should prompt “reflection, resignations and dismissals.”

The biggest women’s right NGO, Kosovo Women’s Network, KWN,  has also called for an investigation into the handling of Zekaj’s case and measures to address any institutional failures.

Meanwhile, the Collective for Feminist Thought and Action has called for everyone to join a protest on Wednesday. “This week, we are calling for Arlinda’s killing to spark sustained collective outrage that confronts all the institutions that contributed to her death,” the group said.