Muharrem Shabani

Muharrem Shabani (born 1949) is a politician in Kosovo.[lower-alpha 1] He was a member of the Assembly of the Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo in 1989-90 and served as deputy speaker. In 1990, he was prominent among a group of Albanian delegates that supported Kosovo becoming a republic within Yugoslavia, and he played a key role in establishing a parallel assembly when the official parliament was shut down in July 1990. Shabani later served as the mayor of Vushtrri after the 1998-99 Kosovo War.

Early life and career

Shabani was born in Vučitrn (Albanian: Vushtrri) in what was then the Autonomous Region of Kosovo and Metohija in the People's Republic of Serbia, Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia. He graduated from the University of Pristina Faculty of Law and was president of the municipal court in Vushtrri in the 1980s.[1]

Politician

Shabani became an appointed member of the Kosovo assembly in June 1989, shortly after Serbia introduced a new constitution that restricted the province's autonomy. He served as the assembly's deputy speaker.[2] In 1990, Albanian representatives in the assembly planned to introduce a motion to declare Kosovo as having the status of a republic within Yugoslavia. When the assembly was pre-emptively shut down, 114 Albanian delegates met separately to establish a parallel institution and declare Kosovo a republic. Shabani read the declaration of Kosovo's republic status; he later recounted that concerns were raised about the possibility of sniper fire from surrounding buildings.[3] Because of worsening political conditions, he left Kosovo and lived in exile for most of the 1990s.

Mayor of Vushtrri and after

Shabani became politically active again in Vushtrri as a member of the Democratic League of Kosovo (Lidhja Demokratike e Kosovës, LDK) following the Kosovo War. He appeared in the seventh position on the party's electoral list in the 2000 Kosovan local elections and received a mandate in the municipal assembly when the list won twenty out of thirty-one mandates.[4][5] He became mayor in late 2001 and was confirmed in office after the LDK won another local majority victory in the 2002 local elections.[6][7]

In 2004, Shabani promised representatives of the Vushtrri's Serb community that his government would reconstruct homes and religious sites destroyed in the 2004 unrest in Kosovo as soon as possible.[8]

The LDK experienced a number of splits after the death of its founder Ibrahim Rugova in 2006; Shabani was among those who left the party. Kosovo introduced the direct election of mayors in the 2007 local elections, and Shabani sought re-election as the leader of his own "Democratic Union" group. He was defeated in the second round of voting by Bajram Mulaku of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (Partia Demokratike e Kosovës, PDK).[9] He later joined the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (Aleanca për Ardhmërinë e Kosovës, AAK) and ran for mayor under its banner in the 2009 local elections.[10] He was again defeated by Mulaku in the second round.[11]

Shabani appeared on the AAK's list for the Assembly of Kosovo in the 2010 parliamentary election but was not elected.[12] In the 2013 local elections, he ran for mayor of Vushtrri with a dual endorsement from the AAK and the Democratic League of Dardania (Lidhja Demokratike e Dardanisë, LDD).[13] Once again, he was defeated by Mulaku in the second round.[14][15]

Shortly before the 2014 Kosovan parliamentary election, Shabani unexpectedly joined the PDK.[16] He appeared in the seventieth position on the party's coalition list and was not elected as the list won thirty-seven seats.[17] He was later a spokesperson for Kosovo's finance ministry.[18]

Electoral record

Local
2013 Municipality of Vushtrri local election
Mayor of Vushtrri (first and second round results)[19][20]
Candidate Party Votes  % Votes  %
Bajram Mulaku (incumbent) Democratic Party of Kosovo 11,838 38.99 10,329 55.20
Muharrem Shabani Alliance for the Future of Kosovo–Democratic League of Dardania 6,801 22.40 8,384 44.80
Refik Ramaj Democratic League of Kosovo 6,722 22.14
Xhemajl Pllana Levizja Vetëvendosje! 3,383 11.14
Avdullah Klinaku Justice Party 1,241 4.09
Remzi Selimi Movement for Unification 373 1.23
Total valid votes 30,358 100 18,713 100
2009 Municipality of Vushtrri local election
Mayor of Vushtrri (first and second round results)[21][22]
Candidate Party Votes  % Votes  %
Bajram Mulaku (incumbent) Democratic Party of Kosovo 12,552 48.96 12,331 62.78
Muharrem Shabani Alliance for the Future of Kosovo 6,777 26.43 7,312 37.22
Ibush Jonuzi Democratic League of Kosovo 5,020 19.58
Halil Kuqi Democratic League of Dardania 1,141 4.45
Emine Qerkezi Social Democratic Party of Kosovo 147 0.57
Total valid votes 25,637 100 19,643 100
2007 Municipality of Vushtrri local election
Mayor of Vushtrri (first and second round results)[23][24]
Candidate Party Votes  % Votes  %
Bajram Mulaku Democratic Party of Kosovo 7,471 34.70 7,697 56.99
Muharrem Shabani Civic Initiative: "Democratic Union" 4,980 23.13 5,808 43.01
Hajzer Krasniqi Democratic League of Kosovo 4,016 18.65
Naim Azemi New Kosovo Alliance 1,464 6.80
Menderes Ibra Alliance for the Future of Kosovo 1,270 5.90
Lutfi Bilalli Democratic League of Dardania 1,036 4.81
Sabit Kadriu Independent 660 3.07
Abit Asilani ORA 492 2.28
Nexhat Sopjani Albanian Republican Party 143 0.66
Total valid votes 21,532 100 13,505 100

Notes
  1. The political status of Kosovo is disputed. Having unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008, Kosovo is formally recognised as a sovereign state by 101 UN member states (with another 13 states recognising it at some point but then withdrawing their recognition) and 92 states not recognizing it, while Serbia continues to claim it as a part of its own territory.

References
  1. In 2009, Kosovo's Express newspaper published an article with claims against Shabani that were later found to be false and defamatory. The Press Council of Kosovo's ruling in the matter confirms that Shabani was president of the municipal court in the 1980s. See "Adjudication of Press Council of Kosovo on the complaint of Mr. Muharrem Shabanit versus Express newspaper", Press Council of Kosovo, 7 April 2009, accessed 4 February 2022.
  2. National Assembly of France – Information Report, 8 October 1992, accessed 4 February 2022.
  3. "2 Korrik 1990- PAVARËSIA E KOSOVËS DEKLAROHEJ PARA 29 VITEVE", Gazeta Dielli, 1 July 2019, accessed 4 February 2020.
  4. ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2000 – Fletëvotimet dhe listat e kandidatëve (Vushtrri), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 21 January 2022.
  5. ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2000 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Kandidatët e zgjedhur sipas subjekteve), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 21 January 2022.
  6. ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2002 – Fletëvotimet dhe listat e kandidatëve (Vushtrri), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 3 February 2022.
  7. ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2002 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Statistikat sipas komunave), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 2 February 2022. The LDK won eighteen seats in 2002.
  8. "Kosovo mayor discusses cooperation with Serb community representatives," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 3 August 2004 (Source: Text of report in English by independent internet news agency KosovaLive).
  9. Shabani also led the Democratic Union's list for the local assembly and would have at least have had the option of taking a seat when the list won two mandates. Online sources do not indicate if he took the mandate. See ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2007 – Fletëvotimet dhe listat e kandidatëve (Vushtrri), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 4 February 2022; and ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2007 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Rezultatet e subjekteve sipas komunave), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 1 February 2022.
  10. "Shabani premton ditë më të mira për Vushtrrinë", Telegrafi, 5 December 2019, accessed 4 February 2022.
  11. He also led the AAK's list for Vushtrri and, again, would at least have had the right to claim a mandate when the list won seven seats. See ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2009 – Fletëvotimet dhe listat e kandidatëve (Vushtrri), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 4 February 2022; and ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2009 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat, Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 20 January 2022.
  12. He received the twenty-second position on the AAK's list. The election was held under open list proportional representation, and he finished forty-second among the list's candidates. The AAK won only twelve mandates. See ZGJEDHJET E PARAKOHSHME PËR KUVENDIN E REPUBLIKËS SË KOSOVËS 2010 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Rezultatet e të gjithë kandidatëve), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 17 January 2022.
  13. "Muharrem Shabani, kandidat i AAK-së për Vushtrri", Telegrafi, 10 July 2013, accessed 4 February 2022.
  14. He again appeared in the lead position on the coalition's list and would have had the opportunity to take a seat when it won six mandates. See ZGJEDHJET PËR KUVENDE KOMUNALE 2013 – Fletëvotimet dhe listat e kandidatëve (Vushtrri), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 4 February 2022.
  15. ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2013 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat, Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 20 January 2022.
  16. "Muharrem Shabani braktis AAK-në, aderon në PDK?!", Telegrafi, 12 May 2014, accessed 4 February 2022.
  17. ZGJEDHJET E PARAKOHSHME PËR KUVENDIN E REPUBLIKËS SË KOSOVËS 2017 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Rezultatet e kandidatëve sipas subjekteve të renditur sipas numrit të votave), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 2 February 2022. He finished in ninety-seventh place among coalition candidates on the open ballot.
  18. "North Kosovo municipalities unhappy with state budget," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 7 November 2016 (Source: Excerpt from report by Kosovo Albanian privately-owned newspaper Koha Ditore on 4 November).
  19. ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2013 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Raundi i parë), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 20 January 2022.
  20. ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2013 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Raundi i dytê), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 20 January 2022.
  21. ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2009 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Raundi i parë), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 20 January 2022.
  22. ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2009 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Raundi i dytê), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 20 January 2022.
  23. ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2007 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Raundi i parê), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 1 February 2022.
  24. ZGJEDHJET PËR KRYETARË TË KOMUNAVE 2007 – Rezultatet dhe Statistikat (Raundi i dytê), Komisioni Qendror i Zgjedhjeve, accessed 1 February 2022.
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