Boycott of Local Elections in Kosovo

Serbs in northern Kosovo boycotted local elections on Sunday in protest against the failure to meet their demands for greater autonomy, marking another sign of the failure of the peace agreement reached between Kosovo and Serbia last month. The Serbian List, the main political party in northern Kosovo controlled by Serbs, called on Serbian citizens to abstain from voting on Friday. Fearing the possibility of violence today, the Central Election Commission abandoned plans to set up polling stations in schools and instead established mobile booths at 13 locations. Serbia and the Serbs of Kosovo are demanding the formation of a Union of Municipalities of Kosovo Serbs before they participate in the voting, in line with an agreement brokered by the European Union with the government of Kosovo in Pristina a decade ago.