Policing in northern Kosovo has become a contentious issue since Kosovo Serb police officers collectively resigned in November 2022 in protest of the Kosovo government’s refusal to implement the Association/Community of Serb-Majority Municipalities.
In response, Kosovo authorities filled these vacancies primarily with Kosovo Albanian officers. In an emailed statement, the police stated that “anyone who has resigned cannot return to the force” and that “no exceptions will be made.”
Kosovo is currently in violation of Article 128, Paragraph 2 of its Constitution, which states: “Ethnic composition of the police within a municipality shall reflect the ethnic composition of the population within the respective municipality to the highest extent possible.”
Allegations of police misconduct and abuse are increasingly surfacing, further widening the gap between the Kosovo Serb community and the Kosovo Police. To address concerns regarding human rights violations and build public trust, the Kosovo Police should require the use of body cameras.
Rising Incidents of Police Abuse in the North of Kosovo
Numerous allegations of police abuse have emerged over the past three years in the north. One police officer was sentenced to three years in prison for shooting an ethnic Serb driver at a checkpoint.
Other ethnic Serbs have reported instances of police beatings. Lawyer Milos Subotic stated that he was beaten after an arrest for allegedly damaging property in the main square, a charge he denies.
Miodrag Milicevic, the executive director of NGO Aktiv, has reported being beaten by members of the Kosovo Police near the Jarinje border.
Jovana Radosavljevic, the Executive Director of New Social Initiative, was detained in November 2024 for disobeying police orders when she was caught video recording at the Bistrica checkpoint. She used her phone as a dashboard camera to record the stop because she did not feel safe during previous stops.
Aleksandar Arsenijevic, a politician running for election, said he was beaten by police in Zvecan during protests. He also noted that his arrests for whistle-blowing protests have become increasingly violent.
Other incidents of violence involve teenage boys. The Ombudsman confirmed that four teenage boys were arrested and had signs of abuse in October 2024.
Body Cameras: A Tool for Accountability and Improved Policing
One tool that could significantly benefit both police and civilians is the use of body cameras. In many countries, body cameras are a mandatory part of police equipment.
These devices not only promote professional conduct among officers but also protect the Police from false accusations. For civilians, it adds a layer of trust knowing that all interactions by the police are fully monitored.
The US Embassy in Kosovo donated 250 body cameras to the Kosovo Police in 2023 but fewer than 10% of border and traffic police wear them, according to a report by the Police Inspectorate of Kosovo where it specifies that the police now have 522 body cameras available.
According to an emailed statement from the Kosovo police,“Based on the legal interpretation provided by the Agency for the Protection of Privacy and the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kosovo, the use of body-worn cameras is currently allowed only for traffic and border officers.”
The statement did not clarify why body cameras were not worn by all traffic and border police officers.
The police are meant to serve and protect communities, as the well-known phrase suggests, but this mission is impossible without public trust. The responsibility to build that trust lies with the police. However, trust cannot be built if communities believe that officers act with impunity.
The adoption of body cameras is a straightforward and effective tool to initiate trust-building in the north of Kosovo and promote reconciliation across all communities.
