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April
18, 2003
ERP KIM
Newsletter 18-04-03
STEINER: ALBANIAN
NATIONAL ARMY IS A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION
 ANALYSIS:
ALBANIAN TERRORISM UNCOVERED
Proclamation of ANA as a terrorist organization is a major
step forward towards interethnic reconciliation claim Serb political
leaders in Kosovo.
Whether this is a change in the existing UNMIK/KFOR strategy or only a new
rhetorical trick the following days and months will show.
STEINER: ALBANIAN
NATIONAL ARMY (ANA) IS A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION
Steiner released an
administrative direction, declaring AKSH - which has claimed
responsibility for the act for blowing up the railway bridge in Zvecan on
April 12th - an outlaw organization. Steiner said the bombing was aimed at
killing "a large number of innocent civilians and damaging public
property." The decision to declare ANA a terrorist organization was the
first such move by the U.N.'s Kosovo administration.
KOSOVO PROTECTION CORPS CONFIRMED THAT ONE OF ITS MEMBERS
MIGHT HAVE TAKEN PART IN BRIDGE MINING
KPC: There is a
reasonable suspicion that Behrami might have been involved in the attack
on the railway bridge at Loziste near Zvecan and that he died in this
attack.
KPC also says that such attack was an individual act which should not be
brought in connection with the institutions.
KOSOVO PARLIAMENT HAS MORE IMPORTANT ISSUES THAN TO CONDEMN
TERRORISM - KOSOVO GOVERNMENT REQUESTS DECISIVE ACTIONS AGAINST "ILLEGAL
ORGANIZATIONS"
"The parliament has
more important issues to debate than the advice and request of Michael
Steiner and Fabio Mini for the parliament to condemn an act against the
people of Kosovo carried out on April 12 by blowing up the bridge on the
Kosovo Polje-Lesak railway line," said Daci, shortly after opening today's
session of the provincial parliament.
ONE SUSPECT IN PEC MURDER IDENTIFIED - ADEM ELSHANI, FORMER
KLA MEMBER
One suspect in the double murder in Pec is 29 year-old Adem Elshani from
Pec, advised Bob Richards, the regional commander of the UNMIK police in
Pec today.
BELGRADE GOVERNMENT: STEINER'S STRATEGY UNACCEPTABLE
The contents
and dynamic of Steiner's plan are contrary to the principles and aim
of the UN Security Council and our state police and, as such, are totally
unacceptable,” said the government in a statement
KOSOVO
INSTITUTIONS WILL BE JUDGED PRIMARILY HOW THE MAJORITY TREATS THE MINORITY
The UN
Secretary General calls on the leaders and people in Kosovo to stop such
counterproductive, antidemocratic behavior and to orient themselves
towards joint work, interethnic dialogue and reconciliation. Kosovo
institutions will be judged primarily by how the majority treats the
minority, warns Annan.
EXTRACTS FROM THE REPORT OF THE UN SEC. GENERAL ON UN MISSION IN KOSOVO
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Analysis: After Steiner's proclamation
that Albanian National Army is a terrorist organization
ALBANIAN TERRORISM UNCOVERED
Proclamation of ANA as a terrorist organization is a
major step forward towards stabilization of security situation and
interethnic reconciliation, claim Serb political leaders in Kosovo.
Whether this is a change in
the existing UNMIK/KFOR strategy or only a new rhetorical trick the
following days and months will show.
TOP
ERP KIM
Info-Service
Gracanica, April 17, 2003
(photo: Image from the front page of ANA (AKSH) Web site www. aksh.org)
 Calling
outlawed Albanian National
Army a terrorist organization is seen as a major step made by UNMIK's
chief Michael Steiner forward towards stabilization of security situation
and interethnic coexistence in Kosovo and Metohija, unanimously claim
Kosovo Serb political leaders in Kosovo and Metohija.
So far UNMIK
and KFOR have persistently denied existence of Albanian terrorism in the
Province, which was seen by extremists as a green light to carry out their
criminal agenda. The attack on the railway bridge near Zvecan seems to be
a turning point. Steiner's radical statement gives hope that the
international community might no longer turn the blind eye towards
Albanian terrorists who have used the sufferings of war to present
themselves as freedom fighters and now continue to keep Kosovo Albanian
political scene in the claws of extreme nationalism.
The goal of
ANA is so called "reunification of all Albanian lands", which clearly
means not only redrawing of international borders of Serbia and
Montenegro, of which Kosovo is a constitutive part, but also reshaping the
entire Balkan political map. At their recent meeting in Belgrade, Balkans
political leaders expressed their strong commitment not to allow changes
of borders, seen by all as too dangerous a threat for their fragile
democracies. But Albanian extremists like ANA think that it is time to
make their dream come true despite serious political changes in the region
and public opinion in the last four years.
Albanian extremists enjoyed certain Western favor during the Milosevic
rule, when they were even presented in the press as freedom fighters and
pro-Western guerillas. Actions of Serbian police against KLA terrorists
were exclusively painted as repressive actions against "peaceful
civilians". However, the situation on the ground was much more complex. As
much as Milosevic regime wanted to prevent any kind of
internationalization of the Kosovo problem, using brutal force to
discourage rebellion, Albanian guerillas sought by all means to draw NATO
into the war by provoking massive police crackdown. But now the one time
allies seem no longer welcome to their former sponsors, the fate similar
to Osama Bin Laden who used to be seen in his younger days as a freedom
fighter against Russians in Afghanistan.
There are many
indications that certain number of the former KLA guerillas, dissatisfied
by decreasing Western support, joined the new Albanian National Army
(ANA), which pursues exactly the same strategy as presented in the first
public KLA statement read by Jakup Krasniqi, now a minister in the Kosovo
Government. But upon intervention by their Western sponsors, the goals of
KLA, including the controversial "reunification of Albanian lands", were
quickly changed into more palatable "struggle for human rights and
democracy". Although special US envoy for the Balkans Robert Gelbard
identified KLA as a terrorist organization, the U.S. Administration
changed its opinion overnight out of fear that Milosevic police might have
excuse to crack on the entire Kosovo Albanian separatist movement.
American and some other intelligence services also managed to prevent
spreading of excessive Islamic influence on KLA despite obvious attempts
by Bin Laden to impose Al Qaeda as a protector of the new Moslem "freedom
fighters". Although groups of bearded moujaheddins were seen near
Mitrovica and Malisevo , the KLA remained faithful to its Western
sponsors. Obviously the West needed the KLA to topple the Milosevic regime
and Kosovo was seen as Milosevic's most sensitive stronghold where he won
the power in 1989. That is why many in the West were too ready to overlook
the whims and excesses of their new allies. Information about drug links
of some KLA fighters and a typical separatist political agenda (at least a
century old) were deliberately pushed behind the new image of brave young
Albanians "fighting for democracy and freedom".
However, "the
allies" went too far in their encouraged national enthusiasm and after the
war immediately seized power under NATO eyes, committing hideous crimes
against innocent civilians. Murders, illegal detentions, cleansing of
Serb- and Roma-inhabited areas and destroying of Serb houses and churches
were the most significant activities of the KLA "liberators" upon
establishing their rule of terror. But Albanian dissenters were not
spared, either. On the contrary, many of them (the number is still
unknown) perished overnight while Western politicians were applauding the
birth of new democracy. To get into direct conflict with their war time
allies was seen as too dangerous because, thanks to Western media and
politicians, the KLA established its authority in Kosovo as a liberation
movement and any measure against the wild Drenica clans and self-made
"ministers" could ignite an armed conflict between the peacekeepers and
Albanians themselves. In that case, the Mission could easily fail and the
world would be confused by the new reality which was all too far from
enthusiastic reports in media. At the same time, this could give a
plausible excuse to Milosevic to say that he was right after all. That is
why a solution was found to officially disband KLA and establish a new
organization under Western sponsorship: the Kosovo Protection Corps. For
all well informed observers, it was more than clear that this was not the
end of the KLA agenda and their dream of expanded ethnic Albanian land.
The rebellious spirit of Adem Jashari and his gunmen continued to be
glorified by Corps and was now amply supported by Western money. For Serbs
the Corps remains even today nothing but the KLA in disguise.
After the war,
under the guise of legality, former KLA "commanders" began organizing
rebel movements in southern Serbia and Macedonia in order to try out the
Kosovo strategy in these territories, too. In front of NATO's nose they
exported machine guns, rocket propelled grenades, bombs and explosives to
help their brethren on the other side of the border. While NATO led
peacekeepers were guarding the boundary towards central Serbia, fearful of
Milosevic revenge, "the freedom fighters" freely brought fresh weapons to
Macedonia. But the West was not ready to go into a new adventure this time
with their former friends which immediately caused considerable
frustration among some leading figures who thought that their allies were
going to help them "unify all Albanian lands". Although these guerrilla
movements were put under certain kind of control, they still remain
destabilizing factor in both south Serbia and Macedonia today. The Serb
and Macedonian population is slowly leaving these areas where Albanians
await some better days to finally proclaim their sovereign territory.
Although they seemed to be a useful tool to bring down Milosevic's power,
now the KLA - UCPMB - NLA and their satellites look more like dangerous
viruses which escaped from the laboratory.
In the
meanwhile, almost all leading figures of the Kosovo Protection Corps,
except its leader Agim Cheku, who is seriously suspected of war crimes in
Croatia, have either been suspended or arrested for various crimes. Some
of them, especially those who exported "democracy" to Macedonia, were
immediately put on a black list by U.S. President George W. Bush. Some
have already been brought to justice and a deputy of Hashim Thaqi was sent
to the Hague tribunal. For the first time, Albanian people of Kosovo could
read in their newspapers that their famous war-time "generals" and
"commanders" killed probably more ethnic Albanians than Serbs in their
insatiable quest for power and control of illegal financial resources.
They gathered a great wealth from drug smuggling, prostitution, white
slavery and production of illegal cigarettes while the majority of
ordinary Albanians lived in poverty and unemployment. Again, some circles
in the West took care to hide this reality from the world because the
truth of KLA crimes could seriously put to question the plausibility of
the NATO intervention and could also throw a dark shadow on the "success
story" of the UN Mission in Kosovo.
Dugi Gorani,
one of the members of the Kosovo Albanian negotiation team at Rambouilett
in France, explained to BBC that creating a humanitarian crisis during
1998 and early 1999 was the only way to attract the attention of the world
and media (documentary "Moral Combat", BBC). KLA would simply carry out a
terrorist attack against Serb officials or infrastructure which would
result in fleeing of Albanian civil population before rampaging Serb
policemen. Hardly any Albanian would ever consider this strategy morally
wrong. In addition, many have forgotten that the large-scale humanitarian
catastrophe began after the beginning of the bombing campaign, when
enraged Milosevic regime decided to take most radical measures against the
Albanians. After all, it was not too difficult to trigger Milosevic's
excessive reaction. Both during and after the war, the main victims were
innocent civilians on both sides. This was definitely not a war between
Serbs and Albanians but between a brutal regime which employed excessive
force to preserve its control over a rebellious territory and a guerrilla
movement which wanted to draw NATO into the war on their side. Tragically,
many do not realize that even today.
Steiner's
radical statement against ANA came out of blue as a real surprise after
the lukewarm and cautious statements by UNMIK police spokesman who flatly
denied the very existence of the ANA in Kosovo. Such a radical statement
could not be heard even after the blowing up of the Serb bus in February
2001 when 11 Serb civilians were killed and 40 wounded. Although it is
still early to draw any final conclusions, this decision may indicate that
the international community might no longer tolerate Albanian terrorism
and violations of human rights of non-Albanian population. Whether this is
a change in the existing UNMIK/KFOR strategy or only a new rhetorical
trick, the following days and months will show. If UNMIK and KFOR
seriously decide to crack down on extremism and organized crime in the
same manner as the Serbian police is now dismantling Milosevic's mafia
structures which survived the opposition coup in 2000, this could open a
new page in the contemporary history of Kosovo and lead to much better
Serb-Albanian cooperation. On the other hand, if UNMIK fails to act on its
words and continues to hide Kosovo reality behind the facade of
non-existent multiethnicity and sham-democracy, the volatile Province will
continue to slide towards further conflicts which may easily create
additional instability in the region.
D.S.
TOP
STEINER: ALBANIAN NATIONAL ARMY IS A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION
Steiner released an administrative
direction, declaring AKSH - which has claimed responsibility for the act
for blowing up the railway bridge in Zvecan on April 12th - an outlaw
organization. Steiner said the bombing was aimed at killing "a large
number of innocent civilians and damaging public property." The decision
to declare ANA a terrorist organization was the first such move by the
U.N.'s Kosovo administration.
TOP
Radio
21 (Pristina)
April 17,
2003
 Steiner
released an administrative direction, declaring AKSH (ANA) - which has
claimed responsibility for the act for blowing up the railway bridge in
Zvecan on April 12th - an outlaw organization.
"Noting further that AKSH publications and other propaganda materials,
including the AKSH web-site, clearly manifest that it seeks to achieve its
objectives by violence and use of force, Armata Kombetare Shpiptare (AKSH)
/ Albanian National Army (ANA) is a terrorist organization as defined
under section 1 (f) of UNMIK Regulation No. 2001/12", reads Steiner's
administrative direction.
The ruling by German diplomat Michael Steiner means that members of the
Albanian National Army (ANA) can be jailed for up to 40 years. The move
suggests that Western officials are starting to take ANA, which has been
dismissed by some diplomats as little more than a band of criminals, more
seriously.
ANA says it wants to unite Albanian lands in the Balkans. It said this
week on its website that it was behind the bomb attack designed to cut the
railway connecting "occupied" parts of Kosovo with Belgrade. Two suspected
bombers were killed.
Steiner said the bombing was aimed at killing "a large number of innocent
civilians and damaging public property." The decision to declare ANA a
terrorist organization was the first such move by the U.N.'s Kosovo
administration.
U.N. police spokesman Barry Fletcher said the remains of two people were
found by a bridge, damaged in Saturday night's explosion near the town of
Zveçan, northern Kosovo. "We believe they were the people who were setting
the explosive device," UN Police spokesman told.
He said three people were detained in connection with the incident, adding
they were from an Albanian-populated area near the divided flashpoint town
of Mitrovica.
Also Kosovo Assembly, Government, the President Ibrahim Rugova, the leader
of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci and the one of the
Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, Ramush Haradinaj strongly condemned the
terrorist act of the bombing of the railway bridge near Zvecan.
"This is an act against stability and overall progress in Kosovo. We
expect the authorities which implement the law to investigate the case and
bring the culprits to justice", Government, Rugova, Thaci and Haradinaj
said among others.
TOP
KOSOVO
PROTECTION CORPS CONFIRMED THAT ONE OF ITS MEMBERS MIGHT HAVE TAKEN PART
IN BRIDGE MINING
KPC: There is a reasonable
suspicion that Behrami might have been involved in the attack on the
railway bridge at Loziste near Zvecan and that he died in this attack.
KPC also
says that such attack was an individual act which should not be brought in
connection with the institutions.
TOP
BETA News
Agency
PRISTINA, April 17, 2002
 "Unfortunately,
according to the information from the family and the several days of
absence from work of Hamza Behrami, member of the Kosovo Protection Corps,
Fourth zone, there is a reasonable suspicion that he might have been
involved in the attack on the railway bridge at Loziste near Zvecan and
that he died in this attack", it is said in the communiqué of the Kosovo
Protection Corps today.
KPC also says
that such attack was an individual act which should not be brought in
connection with the institutions.
TOP
KOSOVO PARLIAMENT HAS MORE IMPORTANT ISSUES THAN TO CONDEMN TERRORISM -
KOSOVO GOVERNMENT REQUESTS DECISIVE MEASURES AGAINST 'ILLEGAL
ORGANIZATIONS'
"The parliament has
more important issues to debate than the advice and request of Michael
Steiner and Fabio Mini for the parliament to condemn an act against the
people of Kosovo carried out on April 12 by blowing up the bridge on the
Kosovo Polje-Lesak railway line," said Daci, shortly after opening today's
session of the provincial parliament.
TOP
BETA News
Agency
April 17, 2003
 Today
the speaker of the Kosovo Parliament Nexhat Daci rejected the proposal of
UNMIK chief Michael Steiner and KFOR commander Fabio Mini that deputies
condemn the blowing up of a railway bridge near Zvecan and the murder of
two Albanians in the village of Ozrim near Pec.
"The parliament has more important issues to debate than the advice and
request of Michael Steiner and Fabio Mini for the parliament to condemn an
act against the people of Kosovo carried out on April 12 by blowing up the
bridge on the Kosovo Polje-Lesak railway line," said Daci, shortly after
opening today's session of the provincial parliament.
Steiner and Mini submitted a request in writing this morning that the
parliament condemn the blowing up of the bridge and the murder of two
Albanians near the village of Ozrim near Pec, stating that "these are acts
directed against the people and represent a danger to the future of
Kosovo".
Despite Steiner's advice not to debate the tax law on real property, and
the opposition of Serb deputies, the Kosovo parliament included the
proposed draft of this law on today's agenda.
In a request a few days ago, Steiner warned the Kosovo Parliament that its
deputies cannot debate the proposed draft law on real property because
this area falls under the jurisdiction of the UNMIK chief.
KOSOVO GOVERNMENT REQUESTS
DECISIVE MEASURES AGAINST "ILLEGAL ORGANIZATIONS"
Kosovo
Government condemned today all forms of illegal organizing, either it is
military or political, and requested from the security bodies to undertake
decisive measures in preventing and eliminating of such organizations.
Kosovo
Government in its communiqué called KFOR and UNMIK as well as
international forces responsible for security to clarify as soon as
possible "appearances of illegal and dangerous organizations the activity
of which is in opposition to the goals of
TOP
ONE
SUSPECT IN PEC MURDER IDENTIFIED
- ADEM ELSHANI FORMER KLA MEMBER
One suspect in the double murder in Pec is 29 year-old Adem Elshani from
Pec, advised Bob Richards, the regional commander of the UNMIK police in
Pec today.
TOP
BETA NEWS
AGENCY
Pristina, April 17
 PRISTINA,
April 17, 2003 (Beta) - One suspect in the double murder in Pec is 29
year-old Adem Elshani from Pec, advised Bob Richards, the regional
commander of the UNMIK police in Pec today.
The police has called on citizens to give police all information regarding
the incident in which Ilir Selimaj and Feride Selimaj were killed, and two
children and one adult were wounded, even anonymously.
Richards stated that suspect Elshani has a criminal record and that there
is a possibility that the same persons who recently committed the double
murder near Pec also recently murdered former KLA member Tahir Zemaj, also
in Pec.
Tahir Zemaj, like Ilir Selimaj, was a witness against the members of the
so-called "Dukadjin group" (Dukadjin - Albanian name for Metohija)
sentenced to serve multi-year prison terms for crimes against Albanian
civilians during the war in Kosovo.
This group of former KLA members included its senior official Daut
Haradinaj, the brother of Alliance for the Future of Kosovo leader Ramush
Haradinaj.
RADIO YU
April 18, 2003
The
commander of the UNMIK police in Pec, Bob Richards, confirmed that one of
the participants of the terrorist attack mounted in Pec on Monday, when
two persons were killed and three injured, had been identified. At issue
is 29-year-old Adam Eljsani of Sec, former member of the self-styled KLA.
The police is searching for him and other murderers, Richards said and
added that there was a resonable suspicion that the same persons killed
Tahir Zemaj last year, who, like Ilir Selimaj, who was murdered four days
ago, was a whitness in the trial of four Albanans - former members of the
KLA from the so-called Dukadjini group.
The members of the Dukadjini group have been sentenced by the
international court in Pristina to between 5 and 15 years’ of imprisonment
respectively, due to war crimes committed during and following war in
Kosmet.
TOP
BELGRADE GOVERNMENT - STEINER'S STRATEGY UNACCEPTABLE
The contents and dynamic of
this plan are contrary to the principles and aim of the UN Security
Council and our state police and, as such, are totally unacceptable,” said
the government in a statement
TOP
BETA NEWS
AGENCY
April 18, 2003
 BELGRADE
-- Thursday – UN governor Michael Steiner’s plan to transfer his mission’s
authority to the institutions of the temporary Kosovo government is an
additional burden on the process of establishing peace and stability, the
Serbian government said today.
“The contents and dynamic of this plan are contrary to the principles and
aim of the UN Security Council and our state police and, as such, are
totally unacceptable,” said the government in a statement.
Belgrade called for priority to be given to the standards of the Kosovo
institutions rather than burdening them with new authority “at any cost”.
“Of the highest importance in successfully resolving the problems of
Kosovo are the issues of repatriation, freedom of movement and
decentralisation, which are the key to securing the status of the Serb
community in Kosovo,” said the government.
RADIO YU
April 18, 2003
The
Serbian Government pledges for a consistent implementation of Resolution
1244 and of the Joint Document of Belgrade authorities and UNMIK, and
insists on the dialogue with the international administration officials
and representatives of local authorities, regarding all questions of
importance for the living of Kosmet inhabitants.
This was stated after the Government’s session. As quoted, it is necessary
for the resolving of problems in Kosmet to create conditions for freedom
of move, return of refugees and decentralization, being key-issues for the
protection of the collective status of the Serbian national community. The
Government assessed that the plan of the UNMIK head, Michael Steiner
regarding the transfer of competences onto provisional institutions of
self-administration, was not acceptable because it was in contradiction
with principles and goals of the policy of the UN Security Council and the
authorities in Belgrade.
Estimating that much more important is to achieve international standards
in the building of institutions than to burden them with new competences,
the Government of Serbia points out that the justification of such
position has been confirmed by the reports of OSCE, UNHCR and the
ombudsman in Kosmet.
TOP
KOSOVO
INSTITUTIONS WILL BE JUDGED PRIMARILY BY HOW THE MAJORITY TREATS THE
MINORITY
The UN
Secretary General calls on the leaders and people in Kosovo to stop such
counterproductive, antidemocratic behavior and to orient themselves
towards joint work, interethnic dialogue and reconciliation. Kosovo
institutions will be judged primarily by how the majority treats the
minority, warns Annan.
TOP
SRNA NEWS
AGENCY
April 17, 2003
 New
York, April 17, 2003 (SRNA) - In his most recent report on the work of
UNMIK and the situation in Kosovo, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan warns
the Security Council that local Albanian leaders and provisional
institutions are attempting to gain status and respect by publicly
promoting positions contrary to Resolution 1244.
As an example of greatest concern, Annan cites the decision of the Kosovo
Parliament to vote on the Law on Higher Education in which the vital
interests of minority communities are not taken into account and which
represents a direct threat to UNMIK’s authority and the implementation of
Security Council Resolution 1244 and the Constitutional Framework.
Local leaders must strictly adhere to Resolution 1244 and the
Constitutional Framework. They must not overstep and abuse the rights they
have acquired nor allow their political and ethnic differences to impede
the activities of provisional institutions and prevent the realization of
goals of vital importance to all residents of Kosovo, including those who
are scheduled to return,” emphasizes the report to be reviewed by the
Security Council in an open session on April 23.
The UN Secretary General asks that local leaders in Kosovo and Metohija
work together on tasks and duties for which they are responsible and which
are in accordance with the policy of “standards before status.”
This presumes the meaningful participation of all communities in the work
of the provisional institutions and support for a multiethnic Kosovo
“towards which we all strive,” emphasized Annan, who asked the Belgrade
government to work with UNMIK to dismantle existing parallel
administrative bodies.
The report advocated the need for strengthening dialogue between Belgrade
and Pristina and appeals to the authorities in Serbia to refrain from
making public statements which create unnecessary tensions, undermine
cooperation and are contrary to the provisions of Resolution 1244.
Kofi Annan gives credit to his Special Representative Steiner, UNMIK, the
provisional government and some municipalities for their efforts to create
conditions for the return of refugee members of national communities and
expresses his regret due to attempts to use “threats and violence against
returnees to discourage their participation in public life.
The UN Secretary General calls on the leaders and people in Kosovo to stop
such counterproductive, antidemocratic behavior and to orient themselves
towards joint work, interethnic dialogue and reconciliation.
Kosovo institutions will be judged primarily by how the majority treats
the minority, warns Annan. He gives recognition to local administrators
for increasing cooperation with the Hague tribunal, emphasizing that no
one is above the law and appealing to all citizens to respect laws and
turn away from crime and violence.
The report covers the period concluding with March 2003 and describes the
situation in detail and already known events in the Province. It points
out that minorities in some regions, primarily in Pec and to a lesser
degree in Pristina and Mitrovica, lack full freedom of movement, while the
situation in the regions of Gnjilane and Prizren is improving.
Kofi Annan informs the Security Council that minority members are still
not able to feely use their own language, being unable to use it even in
courts, public and state institutions. Signs on public buildings and roads
are mostly in Albanian, and the names of non-Albanians are “Albanized” in
official documents.
Refugee returns are going slowly and violence against returnees is
continuing. The economy is not functioning well, and the reduced presence
of international representatives in Kosovo is partially to blame.
In the opinion of the UN Secretary General, the assassination of premier
Djindjic and the provocative statements of some officials in Belgrade with
regard to the future status of Kosovo have negatively impacted the
political situation in the Province. The statements of Albanian leaders on
the same subject have had the same effect.
UNMIK’s effort to establish direct dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina
are being obstructed by Albanian leaders, who are posing a series of
preconditions. The situation in Kosovo and the work of self-governing
institutions are made also made more difficult by the support Belgrade is
giving to parallel administrative structures in regions predominantly
inhabited by Serbs, stresses the report.
Because of the tendency of representing the Kosovo Protection Corps as the
army of the future independent Kosovo, the Serbs are refusing to join in
the work of this organization, which should be multiethnic but is not.
The report devotes significant attention to the transfer of an increasing
amount of responsibilities to the Kosovo provisional institutions.
However, it emphasizes that the responsibilities which belong to UNMIK and
the Special Representatives of the UN Secretary General according to
Resolution 1244 will not be transferred and that everyone in the Province
must respect this.
TOP
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL ON THE UN INTERIM ADMINISTRATION MISSION
IN KOSOVO
United Nations
S/2003/421
Security Council Distr.: General
14 April 2003
Original: English
03-31663 (E) 150403
http://www.un.org/Docs/sc/sgrep03.html
(We are presenting only the 9th chapter
with general obesrvations and a few extracts which reflect specific
problems of the Serb community. The full report will be published on our
Kosovo Daily News List)
TOP
XI. Observations
 53.
The continuing and accelerating transfer to the Provisional Institutions
of the responsibilities outlined in chapter 5 of the Constitutional
Framework is welcome. This is an important step in the process of
establishing provisional democratic self-governing institutions, as
foreseen in resolution 1244 (1999). The transfer process will be conducted
in a phased manner, so that it is sustainable and in compliance with
applicable law. It will take into account the capacity of these
institutions to assume additional responsibilities. At the same time, the
transfer must proceed, so that the Provisional Institutions become
accountable to the people of Kosovo for the delivery of those services and
administration for which they are responsible. This will lead to a greater
need for the Provisional Institutions to make concrete progress in
operationalizing and achieving the benchmarks laid out by my Special
Representative. The transfer process will not affect the authority of
UNMIK and KFOR under resolution 1244 (1999) or the powers and
responsibilities reserved to my Special Representative in accordance with
chapter 8 of the Constitutional Framework.
54. The tendency of local Kosovo Albanian leaders and the Provisional
Institutions to focus on symbols and image and to publicly promote
positions contrary to resolution 1244 (1999) is a cause for concern, as
well as the action taken by the Kosovo Assembly on higher education and
its refusal to take into account vital interests of minority communities.
This amounts to a direct challenge to resolution 1244 (1999) and the
Constitutional Framework, as well as to UNMIK’s authority under those
documents.
55. All local leaders should adhere strictly to resolution 1244 (1999) and
the Constitutional Framework. They should also keep their political
differences separate from the activities of the Provisional Institutions,
and work together to consolidate these institutions by focusing on
substance and practical results, instead of holding institutional
development hostage to political or ethnic differences. The Provisional
Institutions and municipalities need to focus on their areas of
responsibility and on what matters directly to all the people of Kosovo,
including those waiting to return. The “standards before status” policy
provides a framework for this focus, and the local leaders are called upon
to support and join in the efforts to make measurable progress towards
achieving them. These institutions can and will increase their capacity to
deliver services to the people with the concerted effort of all concerned.
A lack of participation in the institutions themselves, as well as
disengagement from the political process, serves only to hamper progress
in concrete issues of governance and does nothing to improve the image of
Kosovo in the eyes of the international community.
56. This, of course, includes the meaningful participation of all
communities of Kosovo in the provisional institutions and municipal
bodies. Forming separate, mono-ethnic administrative institutions will not
lead to the multi-ethnic Kosovo towards which we all strive. Working
within the established structures requires willingness on the part of the
minority communities and receptivity on the part of the majority
community. Leaders of these communities are called on to work together to
this end, and to foster an environment within Kosovo and its provisional
institutions that encourages such participation. I also call on the
authorities in Belgrade to work with UNMIK to dismantle the existing
parallel administrative bodies still functioning in Kosovo.
57. With the returns season fast approaching, UNMIK is working hard to
ensure that the Kosovo environment is conducive to minority returns.
Progress has been made on the ground by preparing projects and sensitizing
communities to ensure that returns take place in as safe, secure and
sustainable an environment as possible. The progress made by the
Provisional Institutions and some municipalities in providing support to
the return of minority communities, which must continue and be further
strengthened, is encouraging. Everyone’s support and dedication is needed
to create a welcoming and sustainable environment. However, acts of
intimidation, threats and violence directed against minorities still occur
and are intended to discourage minority participation in public life. Such
acts have a negative impact on Kosovo’s institutional development, which
will be judged, inter alia, by how the majority treats the minority. The
leaders and people in Kosovo should put an end to such acts, and work
actively on inter-ethnic dialogue and reconciliation. Such acts,
deplorable as they are, should not be used to obstruct the functioning of
the democratic institutions that are being developed. Positive change can
only be brought about by genuine dialogue and participation.
58. Dialogue is also needed between Belgrade and Pristina. My Special
Representative’s initiative to start this dialogue on practical matters of
mutual concern is commended. This initiative will be pursued after a
consolidation phase necessitated by developments in Belgrade and the need
for the Provisional Institutions to prepare for such dialogue. Those
concerned should work constructively together in order to begin this
process in a spirit of compromise and within the framework of resolution
1244 (1999). Leaders on both sides, and particularly in Belgrade, should
refrain from making public statements, which may undermine the proposed
dialogue or contradict the provisions of resolution 1244 (1999). Such
statements create unnecessary tensions and do not serve the best interests
of the communities concerned.
59. It is encouraging that respect for the rule of law appears to be
improving, as evidenced by the support given by local leaders to the
efforts of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.
No one is above the law, and it is the responsibility of the leaders and
the population to support the consolidation of the rule-of-law structure,
and to turn away from crime and violence.
60. Finally, I would like to express my appreciation to my Special
Representative, Michael Steiner, and to the men and women of UNMIK for the
exemplary and professional manner in which they have carried out their
duties. I would also like to express my gratitude to our partners within
UNMIK, the European Union and the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe, as well as KFOR, and the organizations, agencies,
contributors and donors for their substantial political and material
support in implementing Security Council resolution 1244 (1999).
Extracts from the Full report:
FREEDOM OF
MOVEMENT
24. Several communities remained unable to exercise unescorted freedom of
movement. The level of freedom of movement differed significantly from one
region to another, and from one ethnic group to another. Freedom of
movement for members of minority communities, particularly the Kosovo Serb
community, remained extremely restricted in much of the Pec region, and
substantial limitations also continued in the Pristina and Mitrovica
regions. In contrast, there was a limited, although still not fully
acceptable, level of freedom of movement throughout the Gnjilane region,
and freedom of movement in the Prizren region continued to improve.
29. Minority communities in Kosovo are still not able to freely use their
own language and alphabet throughout Kosovo, including in courts, agencies
and other public bodies. This provision has been fully respected only in
the Assembly of Kosovo, whereas other central bodies and municipalities
often continued to disregard this legal right. Documents issued by the
courts have been translated into other languages only upon a request by an
individual, rather than as a matter of routine. At the municipal level,
working materials, municipal decisions, by-laws and regulations have
frequently been translated only with delays or not at all. The reluctance
of civil servants to speak in Serbian continued at both the central and
municipal levels. Signs in public buildings, road signs and names of
municipalities were generally posted only in Albanian. The personal names
of non-Albanians have been “Albanized” in official documents, such as
civil status papers (e.g. identity cards), contracts, bills and statements
issued by either public institutions or public utility companies. Wherever
these violations have been brought to the attention of UNMIK, they have
generally been rectified. In the case of UNMIK identity cards, thousands
have had to be reissued to minorities with the correct spelling of
personal names.
KOSOVO PROTECTION CORPS
48. The more fundamentally challenging task of transforming the Kosovo
Protection Corps into a multi-ethnic body focused solely on its mandate as
a civilian emergency agency has lagged. The ethnic Kosovo Albanian basis
of the Corps, which celebrates “KLA war values”, combined with public
declarations by KPC and Kosovo Albanian leaders that the Corps is well on
its way to becoming the army of an “independent Kosovo” made it almost
impossible to attract Kosovo Serbs to the organization. In addition, the
aspirations of the organization to serve as an army clearly contravene the
principles of resolution 1244 (1999) and the provisions set out in chapter
Seven of the Constitutional Framework, as well as applicable law. The
commitment of KPC to its civil protection mandate has fluctuated, although
in recent weeks the organization appeared to be more focused on its
mandated tasks. The verbal commitment to acknowledge UNMIK authority is
positive, but some actions belie this. Comments by KPC officials on recent
criminal cases and on the Tribunal arrests have shown a lack of
understanding for the rule of law, although, in one recent case, the head
of KPC took disciplinary measures against an outspoken KPC member. While
the standard of individually trained KPC members is high in all mandated
tasks and there are adequate internal structures, command and control is,
at best, weak. Training has been received in such skill areas as demining,
basic first aid, map reading, communications, mountain search and rescue
and public information. A Civil Protection Development Group was formed to
improve coordination of all the constituent parts of the emergency
response organizations in Kosovo and to develop tasks for KPC within its
mandate.
TOP
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