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February 25, 2003
ERP KIM Newsletter
25-02-03
CONTENTS:
KIM Radio: RADA TRAJKOVIC - KOSOVO SERBS WILL GET THEIR
ASSEMBLY AND THE PRESIDENT TOMORROW
TANJUG: Community of Serb municipalities for double degree
of autonomy
BETA: ANA claims responsibility for planting landmine near
Muhovac (South Serbia)
MAKFAX: MAJKO SAYS ANA IS KNIFE IN BACK
OBSERVER: Lessons from Kosovo
RADIO YUGOSLAVIA - Kosovo related news (Feb 24, 2003)
Less known part of the Kosovo reality:
HVOSNO: DARKNESS AND A CAGE
More News Available on our:
KOSOVO DAILY
NEWS LIST (KDN)
KDN Archive
B92 News in
English
DR. RADA
TRAJKOVIC: KOSOVO SERBS WILL GET THEIR ASSEMBLY AND THE PRESIDENT TOMORROW
A leading member of the SNC KM and the POVRATAK Coalition before
tomorrow's meeting of the Serb municipalities and communities of Kosovo
and Metohija
TOP
KIM Radio
Gracanica, February 24, 2003
 'All
Serb representativew which were legaly elected in the internationally
sponsored elections will take part in the meeting of the Assembly of the
Association of Serb Municipalities in nothern part of Kosovska Mitrovica
tomorrow (Feb 25)', announced Rada Trajkovic, the deputy of the POVRATAK
Coalition in the Parliament of Kosovo and Metohija and the member of the
Serb National Council speaking for the KIM Radio today.
'I think that tomorrow we are going to get the president and the right
person to lead the Association of Municipalities and Serb communities of
the entire area of Kosovo and Metohija. Unfortunately he will not attend
the meeting because he had suffered an accident. Nevertheless he will be
there with us. Mr. Marko Jasic is one of those who enjoys our support to
lead the community and the Serbian Assembly. Normaly, we plan to establish
certain bodies of the Assembly too'.
Asked if that would mean that citizens of Kosovo and Meothija would get a
new President, Rada Trajovic said: 'If we look at the last Kosovo
elections we may ask ourselves who actually elected Mr. Rugova? It was
only Albanians. He did not receive votes from our enclaves, he was not
elected in the North, nor did any Serb refugee vote for him. If we are
aware of the reality on the ground why should we not accept this reality
and give it form through institutions? Of course, Mr. Rugova cannot have
the role of the president of the Serb community in this area and may only
remain the president of the Albanian entity.'
Speaking about the present security situation in Kosovo and Metohija and
the actions of the so called Albanian National Army (AKSH) in the South of
Serbia, Rada Trajkovic mentioned some facts about the secret training
camps near Decani and Gnjilane. 'Kosovo Protection Corps (TMK) and its
members have already marked thier own territories. We know for sure that
for a longer time members of the Kosovo Protection Corps are training near
Decani and that KFOR never goes into that area. It is also known that
these units are under control of Mr. Ramush Haradinaj. These are
information which we received from reliable KFOR sources and other
international sources. We have also heard about the training camp near
Gnjilane', said Rada Trajkovic.
TOP
ASSOCIATION
OF SERB MUNICIPALITIES FOR DOUBLE-DEGREE OF AUTONOMY
TOP
TANJUG
February 24, 2003
Gracanica, 24 Feb. (Tanjug) - The objective of the founding of an
Association of Serb municipalities and areas in Serb-populated parts of
Kosovo and Metohija is to establish a double degree of autonomy within
which the Serb community would centrally be linked to Kosovo's
institutions, and, locally, with Belgrade, without changing the provincial
borders, Kosovo-Metohija parliament coalition Return member Rada Trajkovic
told Tanjug on Monday.
"The document which will be offered for adoption at the founding assembly
in North Mitrovica tomorrow, envisages that Serb-populated areas get
entity administration through which they would be linked with Belgrade,
and, through them, the ethnic Albanian community as well, to the desired
degree," Trajkovic said.
TOP
ANA CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY
FOR PLANTING LANDMINE NEAR MUHOVAC - SOUTH SERBIA
TOP
BETA
February 24, 2003
 BELGRADE
- The illegal Albanian National Army (ANA or AKSH in Albanian) today
claimed responsibility for planting a landmine in the road near the
Bujanovac village of Muhovac whose explosion resulted in the loss of life
of Serbian policeman Milan Vukovic and the injury of two others.
Yesterday's activity was carried out "by a guerrilla unit of the ANA
acting as part of the Adem Josher division in the area of eastern Kosovo,"
the ANA claims on its web site (www.aksh.org).
The statement, signed by the spokesman of the Adem Jashari division
Besfort Karadaku, assesses that the activity was successfully carried out
"against criminal policemen in the village of Muhovac in Bujanovac
municipality".
The ANA states that the activity resulted in damage to the enemy in
manpower and war equipment.
The activity was commanded was commander Korabi, who claims responsibility
for this attack which resulted "in the death of many policemen".
Head of the Coordinating Committee for southern Serbia Nebojsa Covic told
Beta News Agency that the entire activity was coordinated "by well-known
outlaws in southern central Serbia: Shefchet Musliu, Besim Tahiri
"Chechen" and Lirim Jakupi "Nazist", whom the Belgrade government had
already pointed out earlier.
"This has no connection with other and former commanders of the Liberation
Army of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja (UCCPBM) and no connection with
the citizens. We expect UNMIK and KFOR to arrest these three men and
extradite them to us because they are presently in Kosovo and Metohija,"
said Covic.
Covic said that otherwise UNMIK "will otherwise be an accessory to
organized crime, terrorist activities and violence".
Covic announced that the police force and joint security forces would take
adequate measures to stabilize the situation and ensure security in the
region of Bujanovac and Presevo municipalities.
TOP
MAJKO SAYS ANA IS KNIFE
IN BACK
TOP
MAKFAX
February 24, 2003
 Albanian
Minister of Defense Pandeli Majko said the Albanian National army (ANA)
poses a threat not only to Albanians in Macedonia but also to Albanians in
Kosovo.
'ANA is a knife in the back. This organization creates problems to
Albanians in Macedonia and Kosovo alike,' said Majko in an interview with
Albanian television Klan.
Ahead of meeting with his Macedonian counterpart Vlado Buckovski, Majko
appeared rather concerned with the statement of Macedonian Defense
Ministry’s Spokesman, who said that Albanian officers have trained the
extremist groups operating in Macedonia.
'Macedonia and Albania are fully committed to promoting the bilateral
co-operation. We had a friendly meeting with the Macedonian Minister of
Defense,' said Majko after the meeting with his Macedonian counterpart
Vlado Buckovski.
'Albanian politicians raised concerns over the recent arrest of Fatmir
Limaj, one of the leading figures of Hashim Thaci' Democratic Party of
Kosovo (DPK),' Majko told the Albanian private television Klan.
TOP
LESSONS FROM KOSOVO
If there is war from Iraq, there are many
lessons about post-war reconstruction from the west's experience in
Kosovo. But the current crisis also means we risk overlooking unfinished
business elsewhere, say Val Percival and James Lyon of the International
Crisis Group
TOP
Observer, U.K.
February 23, 2003
 As the United States and its allies prepare for possible military
intervention in Iraq, they should bear in mind the lessons of their
intervention in Kosovo - perhaps the most ambitious experiment in post-war
reconstruction that the international community has undertaken.Since 1999
the donor community has contributed billions of dollars in humanitarian,
reconstruction, and development assistance. Tens of thousands of
peacekeepers and thousands of civilians worked to rebuild Kosovo into a
democratic 'autonomous' society.
Although the international community has much to be proud of in Kosovo,
two key weaknesses have hampered their efforts: failure to get full
control of the security situation, and failure to develop a realistic exit
strategy in partnership with the local actors. Both of these are also
risks for any future international intervention elsewhere, and while
Kosovo's specific circumstances are of course unique, the situation there
illustrates the problems that will arise elsewhere.
When the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) rolled into the province on 11 June
1999, they feared resistance from remaining Yugoslav army and paramilitary
forces, as well as retaliation attacks against KFOR from the local Serb
population.
In fact (as should have been anticipated) the problems of those first few
months were completely different - a complete security vacuum, with
horrific crimes of revenge perpetrated against the Serb civilian
population by Albanian extremists. NATO and the UN were shown to be
impotent, and they - and Kosovo's population - are still paying for that
early failure. The international community cannot afford to make that
mistake elsewhere.
NATO also failed to effectively neutralize its former allies from the 1999
conflict, the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). In the immediate aftermath,
KLA members were able to gain control of local institutions, involve
themselves in organised crime, and engage in extortion and intimidation.
Although the international community tried to occupy former KLA members
through recruitment to a new Kosovo Protection Corps and the Kosovo Police
Service, former KLA fighters were still able to exacerbate armed conflicts
in South Serbia in 2000 and Macedonia in 2001. It is not sufficient to
disarm the enemy - to get a peaceful environment, you have to disarm your
allies as well.
Under Security Council Resolution 1244 the UN must develop "autonomous"
government institutions for Kosovo pending the resolution of the
province's final status. Kosovo is thus in a sort of international
twilight zone: a de jure part of Yugoslavia (now renamed "Serbia and
Montenegro"), yet simultaneously a de facto UN protectorate under
international administration, which may well be on the road towards
independence.
The UN at first found it difficult to attract sufficiently skilled
international recruits to work in a difficult post-conflict setting. Many
internationals found themselves running municipal administrations, or even
government ministries, for which they had no experience or training.
Three and a half years down the line, Kosovo now has a President, a Prime
Minister, and a functioning government. However international
administrators are finding it hard to let go. Consultation mechanisms with
local leaders have not been institutionalized, and critical information is
kept in the hands of internationals. While local politicians lobby the
international community for more authority, it is often a cry for
inclusion in the process of governing rather than a desire to be at the
helm.
While UNMIK has outlined "benchmarks" to assess Kosovo's institutional
development, the process has not gone much beyond describing these
objectives. There is no implementation strategy, no assessment of how
close (or far) Kosovo is from meeting these benchmarks, what resources are
needed, and what further action. At the same time there is mission
fatigue, resources are running low, and the world's attention is focused
on the Middle East. UNMIK is planning to transfer as much responsibility
as possible in the next twelve months to minimize the costs and to
minimize its responsibility for governing Kosovo.
Yet Kosovo is at a critical phase. Institutions are not yet fully
developed, the civil service has not yet been completely recruited, and
there is no transition strategy. Moreover, too early a transfer of power
would put the three billion dollar investment to date at risk. What is
lacking is a careful transition strategy - to build local counterparts who
will be able to take over responsibility gradually from UNMIK.
On the ground, Serbian areas of Kosovo still function as if they were part
of Serbia, outside the framework of government established by UNMIK, in
terms of courts, schools, health care, pensions, telecommunications and
most importantly security forces. Zoran Djindjic, the Prime Minister of
Serbia, has appealed to the international community to start talks on
Kosovo's final status sooner rather than later. Rather than repeat the
traditional mantras of returning the whole province to Belgrade rule, he
takes the line that independence for Kosovo is not a taboo topic; but he
also has begun to hint about partition of the province as part of an
independence deal.
The overwhelming majority of Albanians will accept nothing less than the
independence that they proclaimed over ten years ago, while the vast
majority of Serbs want to remain part of Serbia. Until this question is
addressed, insecurity among both populations about the future will remain
high, impeding important aspects of Kosovo's rebuilding effort, including
privatization, trade relations, economic development, and the willingness
of displaced Serbs to return to the province.
But the UN Security Council (mindful perhaps of possible parallels in
Tibet or Chechnya) was, and is, unwilling to move in that direction.
Michael Steiner, who as UN Special Representative runs Kosovo on behalf of
the international community, has declared that any resolution of the issue
must wait until the UN's benchmarks have been met - his slogan is
"standards before status".
Meanwhile there is a Kosovo parliament with 120 members, all of whom were
elected because of their views on the one subject - Kosovo's future status
- which they are forbidden to discuss.
Any partition of Kosovo along ethnic lines would raise very uncomfortable
issues elsewhere in the Balkans - not least in Bosnia, and in neighbouring
Macedonia. But if the international community continues to stonewall on
the question of final status, the existing soft partition on the ground
will become harder, and the ability of the UN or its members to have a
positive influence on the outcome will be correspondingly less. These are
indeed difficult issues - and there will be similar difficult issues in
planning the future of Iraq - but that is no reason not to address them.
For, while international attention will focus still more sharply on Iraq
in the coming weeks, the lengthy process of clearing up earlier crises,
Kosovo, Afghanistan, and indeed Bosnia, remains incomplete. Rather than
allow them to slip off the agenda in favour of the hot issue of 2003, we
should remember that those who do not learn from past mistakes are doomed
to repeat them.
Val Percival is Kosovo Project Director,
International Crisis Group, and James Lyon is Serbia Project Director,
International Crisis Group.
TOP
RADIO YUGOSLAVIA NEWS (ON
KOSOVO)
TOP
Radio Yugoslavia
February 24, 2003
CREATION OF THE NEW STATE UNION OF SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO DOES NOT
INFLUENCE THE STATUS OF KOSOVO
The creation of the new state union of Serbia and Montenegro does not
influence the Kosmet issue and the resolution 1244 still remains
applicable in all respects. This was stated after the meeting of the
ministers of foreign affairs of the European Union countries in Brussels.
Calling on Belgrade and Pristina to start a dialogue on practical
questions of mutual interest, the ministers requested both sides to
refrain from unilateral moves, which may imperil the stability in Kosmet
and in the region. The EU Ministerial Council gave full support to the
position of the UNMIK head Michael Steiner, that in the first place, it is
necessary to attain certain democratic and legal standards in the Province
and only then to approach the discussion on the status of Kosmet. The
ministers welcomed the extradition of former KLA members to the Hague
Tribunal, estimating that it had shown the resoluteness of the
international community to put on trial all those who had committed war
crimes.
STEINER: RETURN OF SERB SECURITY FORCES TO KOSOVO WOULD NOT CONTRIBUTE
TO THE STABILISATION OF THE SITUATION IN PROVINCE
The return of Serbian security forces into Kosmet within the present
circumstances would not contribute to the stabilization of the situation
in the Province, but would only create additional problems, assessed the
UNMIK Head, Michael Steiner, in a letter to the Serbian Prime Minister
Zoran Djindjic. BETA News Agency reports that Steiner reiterated that
UNMIK and KFOR held exclusive responsibility for the security in Kosmet
and said that the UN Security Council rejected all unilateral initiatives.
BELGRADE AUTHORITIES EXPECT UNMIK AND KFOR TO ARREST THREE ALBANIAN
TERRORISTS AFTER YESTERDAY'S KILLING OF SERB POLICEMAN IN SOUTHERN SERBIA
The authorities in Belgrade expect UNMIK and KFOR to arrest three Albanian
terrorists responsible for yesterday’s killing of a Serbian policemen in
the south of Serbia, declared the vice-president of the Serbian Government
and Head of the Coordination Body for the South of Serbia, Nebojsa Covic.
Sefcet Musliu, Besim Tahiri and Lirim Jakupi are in Kosovo-Metohija and
the international forces are obliged to arrest them. Otherwise they will
become accomplices in terrorist violence and organized crime - warned
Covic. He announced that the Serbian security forces would take
appropriate actions in order to stabilize the situation in the region of
municipalities of Bujanovac and Presevo. The UNMIK head Michael Steiner
refuted the claims of Nebojsa Covic and said that he had not received any
information from Belgrade authorities that the terrorists were located in
Kosmet.
OSCE MISSION IN SERBIA CONDEMNED TERRORIST ATTACK IN SOUTH SERBIA
The OSCE mission in Serbia and Montenegro condemned the act of violence in
southern Serbia, which was committed in the municipality of Bujanovac on
Sunday, when a member of the Gendarmerie, Milan Vujovic, was killed and
his colleagues Goran Perovic and Zoran Zivic were wounded in a terrorist
attack. The perpetrators of this heinous act of violence must realize that
such actions cannot be accepted in a democratic society, it is said in the
statement. The OSCE mission will not allow provocations which disturb the
current process of the consolidation of the rule of law and multi-ethnic
democracy in the region. Together with the local authorities in southern
Serbia and the leadership in Belgrade, the Mission remains dedicated to
the success of the peace process and future stabilization in the region,
the OSCE mission in Serbia and Montenegro announced.
PRESS REVIEW
VECERNJE NOVOSTI - DANAS: UNMIK AND KFOR EXPECTED TO ARREST
PERPERTRATORS OF THE TERRORIST ATTACK
Today’s press covers the news that a member of the Serbian gendermarie was
killed and another two were seriously injured in an anti-tank mine
explosion near Bujanovac, in southern Serbia. VECERNJE NOVOSTI quotes the
head of the Coordination Body for Southern Serbia, Nebojsa Covic, as
saying that at issue is a classic terroist act aimed against the citizens
and institutions of Serbia and Montenegro and efforts by the state bodies
and the international community to stabilize the situation.
DANAS reports that Covic has identified the perpetrators of the attack and
emphasized that at issue are already well-known criminals to whom the
authorities in Belgrade have pointed many times. Covic said he expected
UNMIK and KFOR to arrest the three perpetrators and extradite them to
Serbia.
POLITIKA - NACIONAL: OLIVER IVANOVIC ON ARRESTS OF K/ALBANIAN WAR CRIME
SUSPECTS
The POLITIKA daily quotes a member of the Presidency of the Kosovo
Assembly, Oliver Ivanovic, as saying that the arrest of four Albanians
indicted for crimes against Serbs and Albanians and their extradition to
the Hague Tribunal have caused a veritable shock among Albanians and that
protest rallies and other excesses on the part of Albanians are to be
expected, in order that pressure be exerted on UNMIK and KFOR and on
witnesses to the crimes as well. Ivanovic assessed the arrest of the
indictees as very important and connected with the process of the return
of displaced persons. The Serbs who wish to return to Kosmet will realize
that the perpetrators will be punished and those who intend to perpetrate
crimes will be prevented, Ivanovic said. NACIONAL writes that Ivanovic
agreed with the leader of the Serb Resistance Movement party, Momcilo
Trajkovic, that the idea of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic on the
division of Kosovo-Metohija and the creation of a mini-Serb state in
Kosmet, if the West should not allow the return of military forces which
would secure the return of Serbs, is only a warning and an ultimate
possibility. Serbs want to live in their own state, Ivanovic said and
added that, according to cadastral books, 62% of Kosmet belongs to Serbs.
TOP
A lonely Serb church amidst Kosovo uncertainity, Osojane
nr. Klina
DARKNESS AND A CAGE
TOP
Hvosno (local Kosovo Serb newspaper from Leposavic)
February, 2003
The stone crusher in Brestovik has ground up the stones of many Serb
houses in Brestovik and neighboring Siga. And who knows what other Greater
Arbanas (Albanian) crushers are also working away. Serb property is being
ground up. It's very cheap. But why buy it? Grab as much as you can! Take
whatever you want that is Serb-owned! Remove every sign of the Serbs. Dig
up the Serb graves, scatter the bones. Wipe out every trace. Don't worry,
it's all under the UN flag. The perfect crime is being committed.
The worst restrictions of electrical power in Europe are in Kosovo and
Metohija. The sabotage in Obilic has already been forgotten. UNMIK has
arrived at the phase of tranferring responsibility to provisional
institutions. They stress: "Improving the quality of life in Kosovo is now
almost completely in the hands of the people of Kosovo."
Who are these "people from Kosovo"? The "partners" of the international
community have been tasked with meeting eight standards. One of those
standards is "sustainable returns". What is meant by "sustainable
returns"? Lists for return were created by OSCE and UNMIK representatives
in collective housing and given to Arbanas representatives for
verification. The desirable ones were the elderly and the helpless.
If you ask a KFOR officer whether they are creating "an affiliate of a
united Europe" or the worst "affiliate of anti-Christian fanatics" you
will be met by silence. Nor will he will not say how many millions of
dollars per month the so-called Kosovo Protection Corps costs. Do they
know that these "partners of the international community" fought for
democracy by attempted rapes of Serb schoolgirls and nuns, by throwing
dead frogs and dogs into classrooms while classes were being conducted by
Serb schoolteachers, by defecating in the classrooms of Serb students and
who knows what other atrocities? And that the Arbanas professors were
single-minded in refusing to allow these disgusting acts to be condemned.
Attack under the UN flag!
Attack against the elderly Serb "wretches" in Pec. Set the Serb bus on
fire and shower the members of KFOR with gunfire. Descend on the 269 newly
opened brothels. Attack against every Serb sign! Attack against the
remaining Serb graves!
According to the commanders in chief, things are getting better and
better. The drama is coming to an end. Checkpoints near Serb enclaves are
being abandoned. "Freedom" is alive and well and there is no need to
protect the remaining Serb monasteries and churches. The only thing
missing is for the UN to grant "independence" to the terrorists become
"freedom fighters". And the river of democracy will flow. Of "democracy"
without fundamental democratic values, that is.
It is important not to anger the Arbanas "partners".
It is most important that the green money continues to funnel in,
preferably without any control. The Greater Arbanas have become especially
proficient in taking things from Serbia. The great lie is useful for both
the major financers and the numerous beneficiaries. All with the blessings
of "Big Brother" and "the Omniscient".
The Greater Arbanas program rolls on. The Serbs are not returning to their
homes. The Serbs are in a cage. We are waiting to see "what America will
say". Time is working for the Arbanas.
"The non-Albanians" are in a great state of ennui. For the Serbs
everything is going wrong. More than 85 thousand Serb homes are illegally
occupied. In the three years of UNMIK administration a few hundred
Albanians have been moved out of occupied Serb homes. This occupation is
not publicly discussed in the West. Less than 300 Serbs have returned.
Thousands have left on top of the original 250 thousand.
In less than six months of the UN mandate, there were 4,253 attacks
against Serbs. 982 were killed and 1,063 were kidnapped. Serbs have wasted
away in prison in kangaroo trials where they are accused of genocide and
treated in violation of every international convention on human rights
despite supposed UNMIK supervision. Less than 0.1 percent of
reconstruction aid was allotted for the repair of Serb homes. Does UNMIK
know this? It is better to stay quiet; the pay is good. Darkness is good.
Fishing is good in troubled waters.
Translation by S.L.
www.serbian-translation.com
TOP
ERP KIM Info-Service is the official
Information Service of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Raska and Prizren
and works with the blessing of His Grace Bishop Artemije.
Our Information Service is distributing news on Kosovo related issues. The
main focus of the Info-Service is the life of the Serbian Orthodox Church
and the Serbian community in the Province of Kosovo and Metohija. ERP KIM
Info Service works in cooperation with
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Kosovo
Daily News (KDN) News List
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