Kosovo Relocated Specialist Judicial Institution to open in the Hague

The Kosovo Relocated Specialist Judicial Institution, created by the government of Kosovo in agreement with the European Union, will open in the Hague sometime in 2016. The tribunal has been set up to try former Kosovo Liberation Army fighters for the killing, abduction, illegal detention, and persecution of those believed to be collaborators with Serbia or KLA political opponents. The Law on Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor's Office, passed by the Kosovo parliament on 3 August 2015, is a hybrid court, founded as a court of Kosovo, applying Kosovar and international law, with a bench of international judges, funded by the EU. Its ratione materiæ includes crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes under the laws of Kosovo. Ratione temporis is for crimes committed between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2000. Ratione loci is "consistent with the territorial jurisdiction of Kosovo courts." Ratione personæ extends to natural persons only, and they are claiming both active and passive personality jurisdiction over "persons of Kosovo/FRY citizenship or over persons who committed crimes within its subject matter jurisdiction against persons of Kosovo/FRY citizenship wherever those crimes were committed." [Article 9(2)]

The Balkan Transnational Justice blog has had several good articles on the new court:

• Kosovo’s New War Court: How Will it Work? (6 August 2015)
• Kosovo’s New War Court: Major Challenges Ahead (12 August 2015)
• The Hague to Host New Kosovo War Court (15 January 2016)