CRIMINAL, CIVIL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF THE PROTECTION OF UNBORN LIFE IN THE REPUBLIC OF KOSOVO

Background: Human life is a natural right, and as a fundamental right, its loss entails the loss of all other rights. Consequently, human life is protected by international and national legal acts. This study will approach the chosen topic from a critical thinking angle. Its purpose is to present the basic notions of life, tackle the protection of life through positive legal norms, examine the legal treatment of the unauthorised termination of pregnancy, and provide an overview of data related to such terminations. Furthermore, we will examine whether current legal provisions in Republic of Kosovo effectively safeguard life or, instead, permit the termination of unborn life. The topic will be approached from the perspectives of civil law and the socioeconomic aspect of this phenomenon. Given that Kosovo was once an Autonomous Region of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, we will draw a comparative parallel in terms of legal reforms. The importance of this study will be evident based on the fact that studies of this interrelated nature of such a topic are lacking. Consequently, such a study will be relevant to legislation and legal practice. Methods: The selected topic will be treated by applying the historical-legal method, the normative method, the comparative method, the method of analysis and the synthesis method. Through the application of these study methods, an effort will be made to achieve the goal and the study objective, always with the aim of providing concrete answers to the research questions and validating the raised hypotheses. Results and Conclusions: While it must be accepted that termination of pregnancy is not murder, it is crucial to recognise that if it occurs at advanced stages of fetal development, it cannot be called anything other than murder. In addition to the legal fragility facing Kosovar society, there is also a notable weakness in the punitive policy. This policy, in its effort to be humane towards the perpetrators of criminal offences, may fail to achieve its intended objectives. Consequently, there is an urgent need for a shift in legislative policy concerning certain antisocial phenomena. Such a change would inherently lead to a reevaluation of punitive measures, especially considering that the criminal offence of unauthorised termination of pregnancy continues to be present in our society.