September 29, 2005

ERP KiM Newsletter 29-09-05

Compromise In Resolving Kosovo Issues

Belgrade, 28 Sep (RTS) – Slobodan Samardzic, the Serbian premier’s advisor for issue related to Kosovo and Metohija, stated that Belgrade plan for Kosovo and Metohija means keeping the Serbs in the southern province and points out to Serbia’s goodwill that Kosovo gets high level of autonomy, and Serbia’s goodwill to grant Kosovo an untypical status with in Serbia’s current borders. 

Samardzic gave this statement during a RTS show called “Upitnik” (Question Mark), the same edition of this show was also participated by Nexhmedin Spahiju, former advisor of the Ramush Haradinaj, the former Kosovo Premier. Samardzic said that the Belgrade government is ready for talks and that it sent the Kosovo premier and official invitation. He reminded that the Prishtina answer came in the form of an announcement trying to show this meeting as a discussion between premiers of two neighboring countries, adding this was unacceptable for Belgrade. Saphiju evaluated that the position of the Serbs in Kosovo is not the best but that according to him Belgrade is additionally influencing the Serbs into being afraid to live in the province. He classified the murders and the injuring of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija as incidents while Samardzic emphasized that those incidents are part of an organized crime. Spahiju stated that the 2004 March unrest in Kosovo and Metohija was a consequence of the dissatisfaction of the locals with the job UNMIK is doing, and that in those incidents due to the anarchy the Serbs were the ones that suffered.

Samardzic emphasized that Serbs should be protected into staying in Kosovo and Metohija and that this is possible only if they are provided a relatively separate lives from the Albanians. Spahiju considers it is unfair to accuse the Albanians because of the job UNMIK is doing, adding it is hard to say if the Kosovo status will be resolved by 2006. “I hope that phase of negotiations regarding the Kosovo status will start by 2006, so that someone can take responsibility for Kosovo”, said Spahiu. Samardzic answered this by saying future was not addressed as the final status. “Before this standards must be fulfilled”, said the advisor to the Serbian premier.  Samardzic emphasized that regarding Kosovo everyone should be granted to have its own opinion, and not only the political class of Albanians, and that everyone should be an equal participant in the talks regarding the resolving of the situation in Kosovo. Spahiju pointed out “independence is the only solution for Kosovo and the region,” and that “sooner or later this province will become independent”. 

Samardzic reminded that Serbia will accept all solutions except independence, and pointed out that for the Serbian side the most important thing is the fulfillment of the standards. Samardzic also said that the solution for Kosovo has to be in a form of a compromise, which would be the first ever compromise between the Serbs and the Albanians.

Attack another proof that Kosovo is not safe, says Raskovic Ivic

BELGRADE, Sept. 29, 2005 (BETA) - The chairwoman of the Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija, Sanda Raskovic-Ivic, said the attack against the colonel of the Kosovo Police Service, Dejan Jankovic, was "another proof" that basic standards of security and protection of human life have not been fulfilled in the province.

"Unfortunately, it has been proven yet again that the basic standards of security and protection of human life have not been fulfilled in Kosovo and Metohija," Sanda Raskovic-Ivic told BETA, commenting on the wounding of Jankovic.

Albanian terrorism continues, Draskovic says

BELGRADE, Sept. 29, 2005 (BETA) - Serbia-Montenegro Foreign Minister Vuk Draskovic said the attack against a colonel of the Kosovo Police Service (KPS), Dejan Jankovic, was proof of the continued strategy of Albanian extremists to create an independent and ethnically clean Kosovo, through terrorism and crime against the Serbs.

"They will certainly fail, because an obligation was adopted at the recent U.N. summit in New York for the world organization to confront terrorism with all means available, regardless of where and by whom it is committed and to what political end," Draskovic told BETA in the evening of Sept. 28.

The wounded Jankovic is the highest-ranking Serb in the KPS.

Albanian Status Delegation Confirmed

Pristina, 28 Sep (B92) - The Kosovo Parliament has confirmed the members of the delegation for future status discussions. 

Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova was responsible for nominating the members of the delegation and will be heading it himself. Parliamentary Speaker Nexhat Daci, Prime Minister Bajram Kosumi, Democratic party of Kosovo President Hashim Thaci and ORA Party President Veton Surroi round out the group of negotiators.

At today’s parliamentary meeting, officials of the Democratic Party of Kosovo asked that the Kosovo Parliament proclaim independence for the region without further discussion. ORA Party officials asked to have this question postponed until the next parliamentary meeting so that all of Kosovo’s political entities could reach an agreement on the issue. 

Two members of the Serbian Kosovo list were present at today’s parliamentary meeting, but did not make any comments about the appointments to the delegation.  

In response to the naming of the delegation, Serbia-Montenegro Foreign Affairs Minister Vuk Draskovic said that Kosovo Serb officials will be part of Belgrade’s status discussion team. As a guest on Radio B92, Draskovic said that Serbs can talk on their own with Albanians and officials of Kosovo’s temporary institutions if the discussions stick to local questions and problems. 

“But at the moment in December when we begin talking about status and dividing Serbian territory, everyone must understand that, these are not local discussions. They are discussions which involve Serbia.” Draskovic said. Asked to comment on the statement given by a group of Kosovo Serb officials who believe that they should participate in the discussions as a third party, associated with the Belgrade or Pristina delegations, Draskovic said that “That is not possible and will not be allowed.” “They will probably be the first to realize that we have reached the border of what is acceptable and what is not.” Draskovic said.

Pristina Delegation Has Mandate To Advocate Independence

Pristina, 28 Sep (SRNA) - According to the position of the Kosovo parliament, the Kosovo Albanian delegation in future dialogue on the status Kosovo only has a mandate to advocate the independence of the province. 

At a session today the Kosovo Assembly adopted a Declaration on political platform for the work of the Pristina delegation in future dialogue on the final status of the province, in which it emphasizes that the delegation must not waver from the position on independence. "The mandate of the members of the work group, including president Ibrahim Rugova, premier Bajram Kosumi, parliamentary speaker Nexhat Daci, Democratic Party of Kosovo president Hashim Thaci and Civil Initiative ORA president Veton Surroi, is the independence of Kosovo," the Assembly concluded. 

The Assembly explained that the independence of Kosovo is "a done deal, expressed as early as the 1999 referendum". 

The Democratic Party of Kosovo requested as an alternative solution that another referendum be held in which citizens will vote on the future of Kosovo, and the Kosovo Assembly adopted this request in principle. 

The assembly concluded that in future dialogue "all responsibilities from international conventions on recognition of human rights should be accepted, and those who wish to live or to return to Kosovo will have the right to do so and necessary conditions for this will be created". 

At the session of the Assembly there were a number of criticisms by opposition deputies regarding the composition of the negotiating team, especially with respect to prime minister Kosumi who is still being accused by the Democratic Party of Kosovo of heading the most corrupt government in Europe. 

The two [Serbian] deputies belonging to the Civil Initiative of Serbia voted for the Declaration while representatives of the Group of Six, comprised of Turks, Bosniaks and Gorans, abstained from voting.

Internal Political Matter Of Kosovo Albanians

Belgrade, 28 Sep (SRNA) - Dusan Prorokovic, the chairman of the Serbian Assembly's  Committee for Kosovo and Metohija, said that the declaration adopted today  by the Kosovo Assembly is "an internal political matter of the Kosovo  Albanians which seeks to reduce the growing tension between the government  and the opposition". 

He added that this is not the first time the Kosovo Assembly has done  something like this because there have been various earlier resolutions,  declarations and platforms relating to the status of Kosovo and Metohija. 

According to Prorokovic, at this point in time the Kosovo Assembly should  concern itself more with the degree of standards fulfillment which is its  job, according to UN Security Council Reso

lution 1244 and the provisional  constitutional framework, not concerning itself with the status issue. "I think that they themselves are aware that Pristina will have far less to  say on the matter than they are admitting publicly. Brussels and New York  and Washington will have far more to say on it," emphasized Prorokovic.

Eide will recommend that status negotiations begin, diplomat says

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 29, 2005 (BETA) - The U.N. secretary general's special envoy for the assessment of standards in Kosovo, Kai Eide, will recommend next week that the negotiations on the final status of Kosovo should begin, a European diplomat told Reuters in New York on Sept. 28.

Eide will present his report to Secretary General Kofi Annan next week, and recommend him to allow the beginning of negotiations, that would most probably lead to conditional independence for Kosovo, the diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"The issue is to carry the process toward conditional independence," said the diplomat, who is acquainted with Eide's report, but has no authority to speak about it in public.

In his words, Eide will recommend in the report that the negotiations on the status should begin, although the sought standards had not been fulfilled to the expected level.

Ultimately, everything will depend on Annan, who will decide whether to announce Eide's conclusions, and then on whether Kosovo had made sufficient progress in the implementation of standards for the negotiations to begin.

UNMIK chief Soren Jessen-Petersen said earlier this week that he expected Annan to present his conclusions to the U.N. Security Council in mid-October.

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