On March 17, the Kosovo Law Institute (KLI) in cooperation with KWN published the findings on the investigation of the murder of Sebahate Morina “State by inaction, deprives Sebahate Morina of her life.”

Adelina Berisha, the Program Manager on Gender Based Violence at KWN, said that women have been reporting violence for years, but relevant institutions are refusing to provide support, which is resulting in fatalities.

“Justice institutions must prevent violence against women, and where it occurs they must not tolerate it at all. We will demand the dismissal of prosecutors who are failing to meet their job obligations,” she said.

Ehat Miftaraj, KLI, stated that the constitutional right to life is elementary and should be guaranteed by the state. He also reiterated that Kosovo has adopted the Istanbul Convention on the treatment of domestic violence and has thus far failed to implement it.

“The Basic Prosecution in Pristina has failed to protect Sebahate Morina. Yesterday, this prosecution tried to evade responsibility and publicly lie that it has taken all necessary steps for protection,” said Miftaraj.

He added Morina was a double victim of her ex-husband and the state.

These findings show that the inaction of the Basic Prosecution of Prishtina violated Sebahate Morina’s right to life.

KLI and KWN request that the KPC and the Chief State Prosecutor:

• Form a working group to draft a report on the violations and actions taken in relation to this case. This working group should have access to all case files, in order to sufficiently cover this case. This working group should comprise five (5) representatives: One (1) prosecutor (not from the Basic Prosecution in Prishtina), one (1) victim advocate, one (1) family member or representative of the victim and two (2) representatives of civil society.
• Form a working group with experts in the field to review the Standard Operating Procedures in each Basic Prosecution regarding the procedure of receiving, treating and helping victims of domestic violence.

Watch HERE the full conference. Meanwhile HERE you can find the report “State by inaction, deprives Sebahate Morina of her life “.