Head of Kosovo Journalists Association Quits

Liridona LLuka-Gashi resigned on Saturday, asking journalists to appoint a new head of the Association of Professional Journalists of Kosovo in the next two weeks.

She resigned hours after journalists gathered in Pristina to initiate a petition calling for an extraordinary convention of the association.

“The Association of Professional Journalists has been subjected to politicization through its head, which international reports have also proved,” the journalists said in a press release.

Lluka-Gashi said she would continue to work as a journalist despite what she called "defamation".

She was elected head of the association last spring, but has been criticized for the way she carried out her duties.

The EU Progress Report on Kosovo for 2013 noted that while the association “was active in condemning attacks against media and journalists throughout 2012... following the appointment of a new board in April, several board members left, citing close ties between the chairwoman and business and political representatives”.

The association is a non-governmental and non-profit organization, which aims to promote and improve the position of journalists in society.