Pristina, Kosovo - Mrs. Atifete Jahjaga was elected President of Kosovo on April 7. The only female general in Kosovo and the Balkans, she rose through police ranks and became General Director of the State Police. She graduated from the law faculty in Pristina-Kosovo and studied Police Management and Penal Rights at Leiceister University in the UK and Criminal Sciences at the University of Virginia in the US.
President Jahjaga was appointed an Ambassador for Peace in 2008, two weeks before Kosovo's declaration of independence, and attended the recent meeting of UPF's National Peace Council. Because of her police role, Jahjaga was not a member of any political party.
"I never thought until yesterday that I would take a high political office, but I was ready to serve my country," Jahjaga said after taking the oath of office, according to a report by Agence France Presse. She pledged to work for Kosovo's admission to the European Union and the United Nations.
Her election by members of Parliament ended a period of political turmoil after Kosovo's top court ruled that the election of the previous president was unconstitutional. Jahjaga pledged to support plans for constitution and election reform leading to direct elections of a president later this year.
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Report of the Inauguration of the Kosovo National Peace Council