Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN) condemns the insulting language and denigrating behaviour used during last night’s session of the Assembly against Speaker of the Assembly, Vjosa Osmani.  

The Assembly of Kosovo is a public institution where the rules and functions of each of its members must be respected. In this institution, all citizens expect their political will to be represented in the most dignified way. Actions like last night contradict the parliamentary and democratic culture of an equal society.  

KWN believes that Speaker Osmani was obstructed in the performance of her official duties in accordance with the Assembly Regulation. According to this Regulation she bears responsibility for the conduct of parliamentary sessions, including warning MPs who do not respect the rules. 

KWN once again calls for disagreements in the political sphere to be resolved through discourse and debates, never through threatening words and actions. KWN also calls for the punishment of those responsible, in accordance with the Assembly’s rules of procedure and applicable laws.  

Such attitudes towards women in politics and decision-making processes are completely unacceptable and severely undermine our aspiration for an equal society between women and men. Such treatment of women in public spaces is a worrying indicator of the treatment of women in our society, and as such should not go unpunished.