Statement from the Quint embassies, January 26, 2015

“The Ambassadors of France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States to Kosovo stress the democratic right of all citizens to protest in a non-violent manner. The right of peaceful assembly and to join freely with fellow citizens to demonstrate is critical to a functioning democracy. However, violence during protests is illegal and unacceptable. We therefore condemn the acts of vandalism by a group of protesters on 24 January against public and private property and the intimidation of TV crews which is also contrary to the principles of media freedom. We call on all citizens of Kosovo to exercise their democratic rights responsibly.”