Chairman of the Government Commission on Missing Persons of the Republic of Kosovo, Prenkë Gjetaj, received today the Chairman of the Commission on Missing Persons in Montenegro, Dragan Gjukanovic.
During the meeting, it was discussed the existing cooperation between the two commissions, in a joint effort to clarify the fate of allmissing persons during the wars in former Yugoslavia. Also during the meeting, the two delegations discussed the possibilities of intensifying this cooperation, as well as further coordination within regional initiatives, through which to address common challenges in the process of resolving the fate of missing persons.
On this occasion, the Chairman of the Government Commission on Missing Persons of the Republic of Kosovo, Prenkë Gjetaj, and Chairman of the Commission on Missing Persons in Montenegro, Dragan Gjukanovic, signed the Cooperation Agreement to resolve the fate of missing persons.
After signing the agreement, the Head of the Government Commission on Missing Persons of the Republic of Kosovo, Prenk Gjetaj, in a press conference he said that “It is important that this is a first step towards regional cooperation, cooperation on resolving the fate of missing persons. We are interested with other countries that have been at war in the period of the ’90s, of the last century to sign a cooperation agreement. In this regard, the first contacts we have already made with Croatia and will be interested to do so with all countries which were involved directly or indirectly in this process where there are missing persons. At the level of the former Yugoslavia, according to information that we have there are over 10 thousand persons missing, only Kosovo has identified more than 1,650 persons missing as a result of war. “
According Gjetaj this cooperation will help to have an institutional approach to the exchange of information, identification of missing persons, information about the possible location of individual and mass graves and finding, namely excavation, evaluation, exhumation and cooperation with families, because rights to seek and to know the fate of their loved ones are guaranteed by international conventions – stressed Gjetaj.
Gjetaj further praised the readiness of counterpart Commission from Montenegro, in the context of regional cooperation which according to him, “this step will positively affect the provision of cooperation with other countries, even with Serbia we are interested to have a intergovernmental cooperation agreement on the issue of resolving the fate of missing persons. “
On this occasion, he said that the main goal will remain resolving the fate of all missing persons in the former Yugoslavia “.
On his part, Chairman of the Commission on Missing Persons in Montenegro, Dragan Gjukanovic, has estimated that the agreement will affect that through regional cooperation to make possible the resolution of this issue.
“What is very important, and I would like to note specifically, is that with the Commission of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo we have had very good cooperation even before the signing of this agreement, and I can say on behalf of the Commission of the Government of the Republic of Montenegro that in this way will continue in the future, and we will all commit to the ultimate and humane goal, but at the same time is very sensitive political issue, resolving the fate of missing persons in the premises all former Yugoslavia where there was armed conflict, “said Gjukanovic.
Both estimated that the number of missing persons in the region is over 10 thousand persons, so the commiissions will make efforts to issue a joint list at the regional level. After signing the agreement and press conference, the two Chairpersons of the Commission placed flower wreaths at the “Memorial to the Missing Persons”.
During the day, the two heads of government commissions on missing persons, had a joint meeting with representatives of local and international institutions, engaged in the process of resolving the fate of missing persons during the war in Kosovo.
Last modified: July 31, 2022