Activities of Jozo RADOŠ related to 2016/2314(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
2016 Report on Kosovo (debate) HR
Amendments (22)
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
D a. whereas 51 percent of the Kosovars distrust their domestic courts and an increase is noted of cases where citizens take justice in own hands;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
D b. whereas more than 90 % of the Kosovars fears unemployment and more than 30 % receives between 0 and 120 € per month;
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Notes how free, fair and transparent municipal elections in 2017 are crucial for democratic future of Kosovo as well as future of its EU integration process; urges authorities to adopt electoral reform guided by advices from the Venice Commission; is concerned that independent audits of political party financing and party electoral campaigns have not been conducted for the last three years;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Notes that a non-authorized train, covered with Serbian political and religious symbols, scheduled to travel from Belgrade to North Mitrovica on 14 January 2017, and launched by the director of Serbia's 'Office for Kosovo and Metohija,' has been stopped by Kosovo authorities; condemns these Serbian provocations;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Condemns in the strongest terms the violent disruption of activities which occurred in the first half of the year and welcomes the return of the opposition to participate in Assembly proceedings on most issues; stresses the importance of the active and constructive participation of the opposition in the decision-making processes within the democratic institutions; underlines the importance of orderly arrangements of decision-making processes, time adequate and open parliamentary debates by ruling coalition who should avoid fast-track procedures of adoption of sensitive laws; calls for upgrading of the capacity of the EU Integration Committee given its important role in advancing EU-related reforms;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Welcomes the proposal by the Commission to grant visa liberalisation, which would be a very positive step for Kosovo on the path to European integration; is concerned by the stalemate in the Assembly with regard to the ratification of the demarcation agreement with Montenegro, and stresses that visa liberalisation can only be granted once Kosovo has fulfilled all criteria, including with regard to building up a track record of high-level convictions for corruption and organised crime; is of opinion that designating Kosovo as a safe country of origin on the EU common list of safe countries of origin would be most welcoming in combating irregular migration;
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Welcomes the proposal by the Commission to grant visa liberalisation, which would be a very positive step for Kosovo on the path to European integration; is concerned by the stalemate in the Assembly with regard to the ratification of the demarcation agreement with Montenegro, and stresses that visa liberalisation can only be granted once Kosovo has fulfilled all criteria, including with regard to building up a track record of high-level convictions for corruption and organised crime; as Kosovo is a safe country of origin visa liberalisation won't pose too much problems;
Amendment 121 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Welcomes the progress made in implementing the various agreements signed since August 2016 in the normalisation process with Serbia, after months of little to no progress; calls on both Kosovo and Serbia to show more engagement and sustained political will as regards the normalisation of relations and recalls that this is a condition for accession to the EU; takes note of some progress on other technical issues such as cadastre, university diplomas and licence plates and on the implementation of the agreement on the Mitrovica Bridge; welcomes the allocation of an independent international telephone code to Kosovo; reiterates its call on the European External Action Service to carry out an evaluation of the performance of the sides in fulfilling their obligations on a regular basis with reporting to the European Parliament;
Amendment 156 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Notes that Ombudsperson began implementing the 2015 law on the Ombudsperson with increased and improved reporting and urges adoption of related secondary legislation; calls on assembly and government to ensure the financial, functional and organisational independence of the Ombudsperson, in line with international standards on national human rights institutions; urges government to follow up reports and recommendations of the Office of the Auditor General and Ombudsperson;
Amendment 176 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Expresses serious concerns at the lack of progress with regard to the protection of freedom of expression and media freedom, and at the increased political interference and pressure and intimidation exerted on the media; urges the Kosovo authorities to fully recognise and protect freedom of expression in line with EU standards and to end impunity for attacks against journalists; urges authorities to find a solution for the sustainable funding of the public broadcaster and to adopt legislations and regulations on media ownership and transparency;
Amendment 178 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Expresses serious concerns at the lack of progress with regard to the protection of freedom of expression and media freedom, and at the increased political interference and pressure and intimidation exerted on the media; urges the Kosovo authorities to fully recognise and protect freedom of expression in line with EU standards and, to end impunity for attacks against journalists and bring those responsible to justice;
Amendment 197 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16 a. Is concerned that Kosovo continues to be a storage and transit country for hard drugs; notes with concern the lack of secure storage for seized drugs prior to destruction; expresses serious concerns about the low rate of convictions in cases against human trafficking, despite Kosovo being a source, transit and destination for trafficked women and children; notes with concern the existence of armed groups and their involvement in organised criminal activities such as arms smuggling and the apparent impunity with which they are able to operate across borders;
Amendment 228 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Welcomes the increased efforts to counter violent extremism and radicalisation and recognises the important work carried out by Kosovo in this area; including adoption of comprehensive legal framework; is of opinion that authorities should set up mechanisms to link central institutions with local actors to enable the early detection of radicalisation; calls for further identification, prevention and disruption of flow of foreign fighters and untraceable money intended for further radicalization; notes that many foreign fighters have returned to Kosovo and calls on the authorities to establish effective policies for prevention, de-radicalisation and reintegration; as criminalisation of the returned foreign fighters is not the sole solution; calls on the authorities to defend country's secular Constitution;
Amendment 237 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Welcomes the improvement of the economic situation and the increase in tax revenues which are making more resources available for the government to carry out its policies; expresses, however, its concerns about the sustainability of Kosovo’s budget with regard, in particular, to the amount of the benefits allocated to war veterans, and calls, in this connection, for the reform of the relevant law as agreed with the International Monetary Fund; is concerned that migrant remittances constitute an important driver of domestic demand; expresses concern about discrimination of women on labour market, especially in hiring process;
Amendment 241 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
20 a. Notes with concern high youth unemployment (57.7 %); calls for set up of an action plan for tackling youth unemployment focussing on improving education outcomes, including through improved teacher training and supporting school-to-work transitions; welcomes the conclusion of 2016 Paris summit and the establishing of first Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO); calls on government to fully support its activities and projects aimed at providing the European perspective for youth on WB;
Amendment 245 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 b (new)
Paragraph 20 b (new)
20 b. Regrets that there is no progress on improving the quality of education; is concerned that 75 % of overall spending on education was for salaries, only 0.2 % of education spending was earmarked for training of teachers and total spending on research and innovation amounted to just 0.05 %;
Amendment 254 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21 a. Notes that tendering specifications for application for all forms of contracts under IPA fund are so demanding that Kosovar or regional companies often cannot even apply for them and to that end calls for special attention to be given to guide and instruct interested stakeholders; urges authorities to direct the remaining assistance, which has not yet been programmed, towards projects with more direct impact on economy of Kosovo;
Amendment 283 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
26. Urges the Kosovo authorities to adopt a credible long-term energy strategy based on energy efficiency, the diversification of energy sources and the development of renewables; expressed concern that almost no progress was made in making the energy sector more sustainable, in terms of both security of supply and environmental situation; Calls on the authorities to sign the Western Balkans 6 Memorandum of understanding on regional electricity market development and on establishing a framework for future collaboration with other countries; underlines that it is necessary to urgently take steps to increase the share of renewables in the country's energy mix as well as to adopt legislative framework on energy efficiency in order to mitigate further disruption of security of supply; calls on the government to respect the agreement to close down Kosovo A power plant and make use of the EUR 60 million allocated for this purpose by the EU within the framework of IPA funds; calls for a hydropower strategy for the Western Balkans as a whole; in this regard calls on government to make progress on building the Zhur hydropower plant, which is instrumental in reaching the 2020 mandatory climate targets;
Amendment 287 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)
Paragraph 26 a (new)
26 a. Welcomes the launch of new railway connectivity project on the Orient/East-Med Corridor with the new railway track and stations in Kosovo that constitutes Kosovo's sole connection to the wider region; calls on government to fully support the implementation of the project;
Amendment 288 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)
Paragraph 26 a (new)
26 a. Takes note of the demographical structure of Kosovo and urges the Commission, with International Organisations, to focus on education in Kosovo to fight poverty and unemployment; calls for further efforts to increase joint education of all components of Kosovo's society;
Amendment 291 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 b (new)
Paragraph 26 b (new)
26 b. Calls on the Commission to increase the focus on assistance towards SME's in order to support a viable economy in the country;
Amendment 292 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 c (new)
Paragraph 26 c (new)
26 c. Calls on the European Commission to continue the work on migration related issues with all the countries of the Western Balkans, in order to make sure that European and international norms and standards are followed; welcomes the work done so far and underlines that adequate IPA funding should be set aside to this end;