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May 20,
2003
ERP KIM Newsletter
20-05-03
SERBIAN PREMIER:
KOSOVO IS PART OF SERBIA
CONTENTS:
KOSOVO IS PART OF SERBIA - INTERVIEW WITH
PREMIER ZIVKOVIC
The international community
has not fulfilled even a third of its obligations in this province. Kosovo
is part of Serbia and that this is not something that depends on the mercy
of either Europe or the United States.
COMMENTARY - Fr. Sava Janjic
U.S. WRITER IN PRISTINA FOR ALBANIANS AND IN ALBANIAN ONLY
A mono-ethnic
presentation for "the people of Kosovo"
The U.S. Office in Pristina is organizing
a discussion with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Olen Butler on May
20 in the National and University Library of Kosovo. According to the
information issued by the U.S. Office translation from English will be
available "in Albanian" (only) and that the copies of books in both
English and Albanian will be available at the lecture. ...
I sincerely
doubt that anyone will tell to Mr. Butler that there are many young Serbs,
and other non-Albanian youths who would like to hear his words but cannot
attend the discussion because they are NOT FREE AND SAFE to come and their
language IS NOT ACCEPTABLE for the "academic" auditorium. Are these
"values" of contemporary Kosovo not in utter opposition to
the ideas on which the American society is based, and is not organization
of such Serb-free events an open encouragement of the monoethnic society?
IWPR - "ANA" MENACE GROWING
Extremist
Albanian group says it's recruiting members of region's civilian
protection force.
ARTICLES ABOUT "ANA" ACTIVITIES IN MACEDONIA (2001-2002),
Reality Macedonia
MIC - BLOODY PROM IN TETOVO
Tetovo is calm after the bloody incident that took place Friday evening,
in which two persons were injured with firearms, whereas dozen young
people were lightly injured. The police increased patrols in the town and
holds the situation under control, but the atmosphere is still tense.
More News
Available on our:
KOSOVO DAILY
NEWS LIST (KDN)
KDN Archive
This newsletter is available on our
ERP KIM Web-site:
/erpkiminfo.html
KOSOVO IS
PART OF SERBIA - "SPIEGEL'S" INTERVIEW WITH PREMIER ZIVKOVIC
The international community
has not fulfilled even a third of its obligations in this province. Kosovo
is part of Serbia and that this is not something that depends on the mercy
of either Europe or the United States.
TOP
Politika daily, Belgrade
May 19, 2003
Berlin, May 18 (Beta)
 Serbian prime minister Zoran Zivkovic stated that Kosovo is part of Serbia
and that this is not something that depends on the mercy of either Europe
or the United States.
In an in-depth interview with the German weekly "Der Spiegel" he firmly
rejected the possibility of Kosovo independence.
"But what are you saying? Show me an international law document justifying
the independence of Kosovo! Kosovo is an integral part of Serbia," said
Zivkovic, responding to the question whether, in his opinion, it is
possible to prevent the secession of the province.
"However, I admit that this is not the ideal moment for negotiations on
the final status of Kosovo," he added.
Zivkovic also assessed that the international community has not fulfilled
"even a third of its obligations" with respect to security in Kosovo.
The situation in Kosovo is unacceptable, he said, and "the Albanians are
destabilizing Kosovo with the help of the international community."
Speaking of the battle against crime, Zivkovic said that in one month 30
murders were solved but, when asked whether the actual organizers of these
murders were arrested, responded negatively.
"No, we lack evidence that could be used in court for that. However,
everything we have learned points in the same direction: to opponents of
reforms, opponents of Europe, opponents of cooperation with the Hague
tribunal," said Zivkovic.
Master in the house
At the same time, he added that "these are not only the pillars of the old
Milosevic regime but also those who later joined it; for example, the
opponents of the tribunal."
"What worries us most is the consequences of the Milosevic regime for our
country. Our citizens have lost their faith in the state institutions. The
justice system is still far from being professional and within the police
there are still conflicts with so-called old cadres," said Zivkovic.
When asked whether he shares the conviction that Mirjana Markovic (the
wife of former president Slobodan Milosevic) is the center of crime in the
country, Zivkovic said that an international warrant for her arrest had
been issued and that she was suspected of involvement in various crimes.
"But in the Balkans it's hard to presume that a woman is making plans for
murder, if there is a master in the house. The center, certainly, was
Milosevic," assessed Zivkovic.
He explained the fact that there has been no serious confrontation with
war crimes since October 2000, like that which occurred in post-war
Germany, by the fact that "until recently this was prevented by the
Montenegrin coalition in the Serbia-Montenegro government and Vojislav
Kostunica's Democratic Party of Serbia."
Zivkovic explained the lack of a public debate among intellectuals on the
same topic by the fact that "like in politics, there is a schism among
intellectuals and the general public on this issue."
"Some uncritically support Milosevic, while others have opposed his
policies from the start. That is why this type of debate remains
problematic to this day. At the same time, you can read daily commentaries
in the papers which present war events in a critical light. The time of
patriot romanticism is over," said Zivkovic.
Uncertain future
Assessing that the former commander of the Bosnian Serb Army Ratko Mladic
"is not considered a national hero in Serbia" and that "civil war would
not break out if he was extradited to the tribunal, Zivkovic said that
"Belgrade would not be the safest of places for him today."
"If Mladic is in Serbia, he will be arrested. I want to successfully
conclude cooperation with the tribunal during the course of the year,"
said Zivkovic.
When asked whether the bombing of Serbia in 1999 and the aftermath of that
war define his attitude toward NATO or the U.S., he responded that "no one
is going to convince me that the bombardment of Yugoslavia solved the
situation in Kosovo or ousted Milosevic from power."
"My relationship with the USA is pragmatic. Serbia is small and poor; it
has a glorious past but an uncertain future. So we have to cooperate with
the USA and Brussels in our own national interest.
"I am a pragmatist prepared to defend our country's tradition and, at the
same time, to do everything to ensure a better future for it within the
limits of permitted morality," said Zivkovic during the "Spiegel"
interview.
Translated by www.serbian-translation.com with
reference to the English summary of the Zivkovic interview provided by
"Der Spiegel" (May 19, 2003)
TOP
COMMENTARY
- Fr. Sava Janjic
U.S.
WRITER FOR ALBANIANS AND IN ALBANIAN ONLY
A mono-ethnic
presentation for "the people of Kosovo"
TOP
ERPKIM Info-Service
Gracanica, May 19, 2003
The U.S. Office in Pristina is organizing a discussion with Pulitzer
Prize-winning author Robert Olen Butler on May 20 in the National and
University Library of Kosovo. On that occasion the U.S. Office in Pristina
will donate a collection of books by U.S. authors for the "library's
literary future." At the end of the information paper distributed by the
U.S. office, readers are informed that translation from English will be
available "in Albanian" (only) and that the copies of these works in both
English and Albanian will be available at the lecture. The last sentence
reassures us that attendance is "free and open to the public" (sic).
Unfortunately, Serb readers who receive U.S. Office public information
messages in the Serbian language can hardly find any good reason to attend
this Albanian-American event where Serb speakers are obviously not expected.
Frankly speaking, for the
200 remaining Kosovo Serbs in Pristina, who cannot even buy bread in a
local shop or use the Serbian language in public, this will not make much
difference in their daily life. International organizations organizing
cultural events in Pristina as a rule do not count on their attendance,
and for the Albanians they are just pariahs who sooner or later must leave
their homes.
Nevertheless, this event once again demonstrates the tragic reality in
Kosovo that there are international offices which are quite indifferent to the building of
mono-ethnic society, too - in this case, one tailored for ethnic Albanians
only.
Is it
not somewhat strange that the U.S. Office forgot that Kosovo Serbs are
also citizens of Kosovo and deserve translation in their own language at
such a presentation? Not really, because everyone in the
Office knows quite well that Serbs cannot freely attend cultural
events in Pristina or even enter the National and University Library or
Pristina University itself. In the University campus there is not one Serb student
at the moment,
although 18,000 attended classes there before the war. The problem is that
more and more internationals take the reality of mono-ethnic society for
granted and make hardly any effort at all to change it.
Was not the visit of the eminent American writer a good opportunity to reinforce the official
international and U.S. policy that
all inhabitants in Kosovo are free to attend all public events? Would it not have been a good idea to find a Serb translator
and invite several Serb students (perhaps from the enclaves?) so they can
learn more about contemporary U.S. literature? Finally, would it not have
been a good opportunity to demonstrate that the National and University
Library of Kosovo at least is not exclusively the possession of Kosovo
Albanians, but of all citizens, regardless of their ethnicity and religion?
Unfortunately, no one apparently thought much about this, as usual.
At the same time that the U.S. Office is so ardently seeking to enrich the
"literary future" of "the people of Kosovo" its representatives have never
reacted to the public incineration of thousands of Serbian language books
destroyed in Kosovo and pulled from the shelves of all libraries,
including the University Library in Pristina, since 1999. Similarly, there
was no reaction when several thousand titles by eminent Serbian writers,
among them the books of Serbian Nobel Prize winner Ivo Andric, were thrown
in the garbage dump only two weeks ago in Gnjilane, a city which is,
incidentally, in the U.S. KFOR contingent's area of responsibility.
Sadly, such a biased position of the part of the U.S. Office in
Pristina and organization of mono-ethnic events where the organizers are
completely certain there will be no Serbs, Roma or Bosniacs in attendance,
hardly contributes to the building of a tolerant and democratic society in
Kosovo. On the contrary, such actions may only serve to strengthen the
suspicions of Serbs that the U.S. is supporting the creation of an
ethnic Albanian state in the Province of Kosovo where there will be no
room for Serbs, just as there is no room for them at this literary
event.
I sincerely
doubt that anyone will tell to Mr. Butler that there are many young Serbs,
and other non-Albanian youths who would like to hear his words, but cannot
attend the discussion because they are NOT FREE AND SAFE to come and their
language IS NOT ACCEPTABLE for the "academic" auditorium. Are these
"values" of contemporary Kosovo not in utter opposition to the
ideas on which the American society is based, and is not organization of
such Serb-free events an open encouragement of the monoethnic society?
An arbitrary and imprudent decision to organize the discussion with an
eminent American writer for
Albanians only also seems to be quite contrary to the official
position of the U.S. Administration, which is making efforts to support
returns to Kosovo and ease the suffering of the Serb population. Such
miscalculations also misinterpret the good intentions of many unbiased
Americans working to support the building of a just, multiethnic and
democratic society in Kosovo--for all its inhabitants.
===========================================================
We are
enclosing the text circulated by the US Office in Pristina:
===========================================================
U.S. Office to Donate Books to 'American Corner'
as part of "Life as an American Writer" Discussion
[Pristina, USOP] - On Tuesday, May 20, at 6 p.m. at the auditorium at the
National and University Library in Kosovo, Pulitzer Prize-winning American
author Robert Olen Butler will discuss what life is like in the U.S. for
writers. Preceding Mr. Butler's talk, the U.S. Office in Pristina will
donate a collection of books by American authors for the library's future
"American Center."
Mr. Butler, who won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1993, is traveling
through Kosovo and the Balkans to discuss what life is like in the U.S.
for writers and how to explore the creative process. Mr. Butler has
published 10 books since 1981 and has written several feature-length
screenplays for movie studios such as New Regency, Universal Pictures and
Disney. He currently is working with actor Robert Redford on a screenplay
about television media in America. Many American-based magazines, such as
"The New Yorker" and "Esquire", have published his short stories and his
works have been translated into many languages. For this event, the U.S.
Office in Pristina translated two of Mr. Butler's short stories and one of
his essays into Albanian. Copies of these works in both English and
Albanian will be available at the lecture on a first-come, first-served
basis. A small reception will follow the discussion.
Mr. Alec Mally, Acting Chief of Mission of the U.S. Office Pristina, noted
the importance of this visit for Kosovo's literary community. "American
literature," said Mr. Mally, "includes a very wide range of genres,
influences, and characteristics that reflect the rich diversity of
American life. With the increasing normalization of life in post-war
Kosovo, the U.S. Office is pleased to share with the people of Kosovo the
work of a noted American author and to give them the chance to discuss his
work personally, as well as to learn more about the latest trends in
American writing. We are especially pleased that Mr. Butler will have a
selection of his work available for people to take home and read and share
with their friends and family. This is the first time - but certainly not
the last - that an American writer has come to Kosovo under our
sponsorship, and we look forward to sharing more of America's rich culture
with our friends in Kosovo in the months and years ahead," concluded Mr.
Mally.
As part of the evening, the U.S. Office will donate books of fiction,
essays and poetry by American authors to the Library, for use in its
"American Center" collection. The donation will include several works by
Mr. Butler, including a copy of the book that won the Pulitzer, "A Good
Scent from a Strange Mountain."
In addition, the Library's show of "American Writers" will be on display
near the entrance to the auditorium. The show consists of 10 posters that
describe the life and works of various classic and contemporary American
writers.
Mr. Butler's talk will be in English with consecutive interpretation into
Albanian. It is free and open to the public.
TOP
IWPR -
"ANA" MENACE GROWING
Extremist
Albanian group says it's recruiting members of region's civilian
protection force.
TOP
Institute
for War and Peace Reporting - IWPR
By Jeta Xharra in Pristina (BCR No 430, 16-May-03)
The leadership of the shadowy extremist group the Albanian National Army,
ANA, has told IWPR that it has links to Kosovo's civil defence
organisation.
Alban Vjosa, who claims to be the political leader of the ANA, said the
radical group counts members of the Kosovo Protection Corps, KPC, amongst
its ranks but that it does not specifically target the force for
recruitment.
In a telephone interview with IWPR, Vjosa - speaking from Liege in Belgium
- confirmed suspicions that KPC member Hamze Behrami, who was killed
attempting to bomb the Kosovo Polje-Lesak railway line in northern Kosovo
on April 11, was an ANA operative.
"Nobody, not even the KPC commander of Mitrovica zone, where the incident
took place, knew that Hamze Behrami worked for KPC by day and ANA by
night," he said.
Alban Vjosa, believed to be a pseudonym, is understood to be general
secretary of the ANA, a militant group, dedicated to the unification of
Albania with Albanian-populated territory in the Balkans, which emerged
during the Macedonian conflict.
Thought to be originally from Albania, Vjosa has given numerous interviews
to Albanian language newspapers in Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania. IWPR
acquired his telephone number after making initial contact via the ANA's
website and through reputable sources in the protectorate.
Asked what he felt motivated Behrami, Vjosa said, "Hamze Behrami felt
himself superfluous in the KPC - he was unhappy and frustrated with the
post-war political situation in Kosovo and with the ambiguity that
surrounds the question over the region's status and that of the KPC [a
reference to the fact that force is not the official army of Kosovo].
"Ultimately, Behrami was a man of action and it was a matter of days
before he was going to leave the KPC."
The apparent admission by the ANA comes after KPC chief Agim Ceku last
week dismissed three force commanders responsible for the area around the
town of Zvecane in northern Kosovo where last month's bombing occurred.
KFOR suspicions that members of the KPC were involved in outlawed groups
such as the ANA prompted it earlier this month to freeze KPC training
programmes outside the protectorate until measures are introduced to weed
out extremists from the force.
Doubts still remain over who the ANA are, despite UNMIK chief Michael
Steiner's decision last month to officially declare it a terrorist group.
UNMIK police spokesman Barry Fletcher told IWPR last week that the group
appears to be organised primarily via the internet. Fletcher emphasised
that until the railway blast the ANA site was the only tangible thing
about it. "We view the website as a money-making system from the Albanian
diaspora," he said, adding that the bombing may have prompted by a need to
reassure funders. "Perhaps the donors wanted to know where the action is."
But Steiner's decision may have backfired, since it appears to have served
to bolster ANA recruitment. Vjosa told IWPR that since the decision to
outlaw the group, membership applications are up by around 20 a day.
But while the ANA's stock amongst Albanians appears to be rising, the KPC
leadership is increasingly coming under fire for failing to control what
some of the corps do outside working hours. According to the rules of the
organisation, members must not be associated with any political movement.
Ceku says his force has come under pressure to act against radicals within
its ranks, but claims there is little he can do. "We are asked [by UNMIK
and KFOR] to take concrete action on something which we have no power
over. I have very limited authority to have an efficient control over my
people. As a commander of KPC I am not even entitled to discharge or
nominate KPC officers," he told IWPR.
UNMIK's chief coordinator for the KPC, General Andrew Cummings, confirmed
that while this is the current situation the civilian defence force does
have the authority to recommend that UNMIK take disciplinary action
against those suspected of insubordination. "In a technical sense they are
right," Cummings told IWPR, "but they are by no means powerless."
The KPC was officially constituted in January 2000 in a ceremony that was
supposed mark the transformation of the former Kosovo Liberation Army,
KLA, into a civilian agency charged with providing emergency response and
reconstruction services to Kosovo.
Modelled on the French Sécurité Civile, the KPC has 3,000 active members
and an auxiliary branch of 2,000, who see their role as the future armed
forces of an independent Kosovo.
While many Kosovars are unhappy with speed of negotiations on the final
status of the protectorate, there are very few who believe that blowing up
bridges is the best way to advance nation-building.
Even those considered to be radical nationalists believe the ANA's actions
are foolhardy. One former KLA man, Ramiz Lladrovci, suspended from the KPC
in July 2001 after the Bush administration expressed suspicions that he
was among those who "undermine peace and stability in the region",
believes that the ANA, whoever they may be, are fighting a losing battle.
He pointed out that there are legal political parties in Kosovo who have a
similar platform to the extremists but who don't condone violence to
achieve their aims.
But while the likes of Lladrovci doubt whether the ANA poses a serious
threat, others are taking them, and their alleged KPC links, seriously.
UNMIK spokesperson Isabella Karlowicz said at a press conference on May 6
that the KPC "is required not only to identify those members involved in
the ANA but also to remove them. We want to see action".
While UNMIK and KFOR expect the KPC to give them names of the people
involved, Ceku asserts that since responsibility for security in Kosovo
lies with the two international forces, they are the ones who should
investigate the incident.
"We don't want to avoid responsibility but we have asked to get special
training in doing internal investigations of KPC members and we have
received no assistance in that regard," he said.
Nonetheless, the ban on KPC training abroad is not going to be lifted
unless the international community is convinced serious measures have been
taken to ensure members are not involved with ANA or other groups.
Asked if he felt the ANA's actions would damage the KPC by restricting
their training, Vjosa remained unrepentant, "We don't see that this will
even slightly damage the KPC - these measures are in fact good for their
officers because there is no need for them to go and train abroad as this
experience will only soften them as soldiers."
Jeta Xharra is IWPR project coordinator in Kosovo
TOP
ARTICLES ABOUT "ANA" ACTIVITIES IN MACEDONIA (2001-2002)
Source:
REALITY
MACEDONIA
TOP
ANA Claims Responsibility For Recent Attack On Macedonian Army Patrol
(Sep 09,
2002)
ANA: Cop-Killers Are "Avni Bekjiri's Guerillas"
(Aug 29,
2002)
NLA, ANA & Other Albanian Nationalists Listed in American Counterterrorism Report
(May 22,
2002)
Macedonian Sources Say 150 Former Kosovo Rebels Joined ANA Ranks
(Apr 02,
2002)
Albanian Political Parties Regret Spoiling of "Albanian Political and Military Image"
(Mar 27,
2002)
Ahmeti Threatens ANA Through Public Statement
(Mar 26,
2002)
So-called ANA blames "disbaned" NLA for the Clash
(Mar 26,
2002)
Dnevnik: ANA Declares 'Free Territories'
(Mar 21,
2002)
Accused Claim to Have Been "NLA Soldiers" Having Nothing to do With "ANA"
(Feb 02,
2002) |
So-Called ANA Claims Responsibility For Bomb Explosion In Tetovo
(Nov 19,
2001)
ANA or NLA, Macedonian Citizens Are Held Hostage
(Nov 12)
So-Called "ANA" Takes Responsibility For Murder Of The Three Macedonian Policemen
(Nov 12,
2001)
ANA Prepares For New War In Macedonia
(Oct 29,
2001)
NLA Forms A Party, ANA Refuses To "Give Up" Macedonia
(Sep 26,
2001)
Interesting Coincidence
(Sep 07,
2001)
ANA's "Outlaws" Will Continue The Violence
(Sep 05,
2001)
ANA Calls For A War Of Total Conquest
(Aug 15,
2001)
Terrorist Organization "ANA" Rejects Framework Agreement
(Aug 14,
2001)
TOP
BLOODY PROM IN TETOVO
Tetovo is
calm after the bloody incident that took place Friday evening, in which
two persons were injured with firearms, whereas dozen young people were
lightly injured. The police increased patrols in the town and holds the
situation under control, but the atmosphere is still tense.
TOP
Skopje, 19 May
(MIC) - Tetovo is calm after the bloody incident that took place Friday
evening, in which two persons were injured with firearms, whereas dozen
young people were lightly injured. The police increased patrols in the
town and holds the situation under control, but the atmosphere is still
tense.
The problems started Friday evening when, according to eyewitnesses, a
group of drunk Albanian students, coming from a prom, passed through the
part of Tetovo where the Macedonians were gathering. The group reportedly
started taunting the guests and there was a mass fight between young
Macedonians and Albanians who were throwing bottles and other things at
each other. The rumor about the fight spread through the town and hundreds
of young people started fighting everywhere, using even firearms.
Two persons were injured in the shooting. Arxhen Selmani (20) and Mevljude
Selmani (20) were transferred to the Tetovo medical center, and then to
the Skopje medical center. According to the Director of the Tetovo center,
Sinasi Gafuri, their condition is not critical. In the fight, which
according to eyewitnesses lasted until after midnight, many restaurants,
shops and cars were demolished.
Patrol of the Tetovo police intervened immediately after the start of the
incident. It tried to separate the two groups, shooting in the air, but
failed. When reinforcement came, the situation was put under control, and
policemen were deployed all over town. The police arrested only one person
who was seen shooting from a window.
One hour after the fight, on the crossroad of "Kiro Ristoski-Drnc" and
"Blagoja Toska", police armored vehicle "Hermelin" with six policemen was
fired at with hand rocket launcher. None of the four Albanian and two
Macedonian policemen was injured.
Around 4.30 a.m. on the same night, there was a terrorist attack on the
Tetovo barracks "Kuzman Josifovski-Pitu". Five grenades were fired from
hand rocket launcher from the villages Drenovec and Poroj, but they did
not cause damages. Daily "Nova Makedonija" reports that the Albanian
terrorist organization ANA claimed responsibility for the attack.
"The purpose of the action was to damage the military potentials of the
Slav-Macedonian government which constantly militarizes itself to perform
genocide and colonize the unprotected Albanians," it is said on ANA's web
site.
According to the press release signed by the spokesman of the ANA
Headquarters Ilir Duraku, the action was performed by the special units of
the division "Skenderbeg", stations in the villages Drenovec and Poroj.
TOP
ERP KIM
Info-Service is the official Information Service of the Serbian Orthodox
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Bishop Artemije.
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