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+ARTEMIJE
Serbian Orthodox Bishop of
Raska-Prizren and Kosovo-Metohija
Gracanica, December
14, 2002
UN Security Council Delegation
Your Excellencies,
 It
is my distinct pleasure to be able to inform you about the current situation
in the UN administered Yugoslav province of Kosovo on behalf of the
Serbian Orthodox Church. It is with great regret that I must admit that
the security and economic situation for the Serb people in Kosovo has
not essentially improved after three years of UN/KFOR protectorate.
Without wishing to ignore certain achievements in the domain of reconstruction
of war damaged facilities in Albanian inhabited areas and institution
building, I nevertheless feel it is necessary to say that these results
have had very little or no impact on improving the lives of Serbs and
most other Kosovo minorities. Consequently, the claim that Kosovo mission
has been “a success story” should be taken with serious
reservation.
More than
three years after the conflict Kosovo Serbs are still exposed to systematic
human rights violations, while the destruction of Serbian Orthodox holy
sites still continues despite a strong NATO-led presence in the area.
The relative decrease of ethnic violence (in comparison to 1999 and
2000) is more the result of the physical separation of communities than
of improved security and a higher level of inter-ethnic tolerance. As
a result, UNMIK figures and assessments usually do not reflect the reality
on the ground which is much more complex. In most parts of the Province
Serbs can live in relative freedom only within their tiny enclaves and
under deplorable economic conditions. Freedom of movement is restricted
to Serb inhabited areas and to some extent to major roads while most
urban areas (except in the north) are largely inaccessible for Serbs.
This is the reason why Serbs still do not have normal access to medical,
educational and other institutions in major Kosovo cities. Even Serb
members of the Kosovo Parliament travel to their sessions in armored
vehicles and cannot visit their constituency normally. Serbs still do
not have Kosovo-wide media and communication between enclaves is seriously
limited. In short, everywhere except in Serb inhabited areas Serbs do
not feel the benefits of post-conflict developments and they urgently
need the following: a decentralized administration which would bring
the services to the level of the population, more investments and, above
all, security and freedom of movement.
The greatest
disappointment in post-conflict Kosovo is the inability of more than
200,000 Serb and other IDP’s and refugees to return to their homes,
as guaranteed by UNSCR 1244. The main reasons for unsuccessful returns
are the following: continuation of extremist attacks, inability of the
UN/KFOR mission to provide security throughout Kosovo and Metohija,
inadequate international financial support for refugee programs, as
well as the relatively limited opportunities for involvement of the
Belgrade government in this process. To date Serb returns have been
of a symbolic nature and presently returnees can live normally only
in protected enclaves. Kosovo’s major cities are becoming more
and more mono-ethnic and no one can guarantee Serbs who would like to
return to their homes security, jobs and restitution of their privately
owned property. The fate of more than 1.300 Serbs civilians abducted
after the conflict is unknown. In the same period nearly 1000 Serbs
were killed by Albanian extremists and only some of their bodies have
been recovered so far. An especially discouraging development for returnees
is the continuing systematic destruction and desecration of Serbian
Orthodox churches and cemeteries. Since the arrival of the UN Mission
to Kosovo, 112 Orthodox churches and dozens of cemeteries have been
destroyed or desecrated, and not one perpetrator of these crimes has
been brought to justice. The remaining Serb monasteries survive thanks
only to constant KFOR military protection. By attacking Serb holy sites,
Kosovo Albanians seek to change the cultural, ethnic and religious identity
of the Province and thus discourage returns. Their political leaders
officially condemn these attacks but in reality they do nothing to change
the situation on the ground. Some of them even directly or indirectly
encourage extremist behavior in order to win public support.
The Serb representatives
in the Kosovo Parliament and Government have recently decided not to
participate in these institutions because they see that these Albanian
dominated institutions are not working towards building a multiethnic
society but a society tailored only for ethnic Albanians. UNSCR 1244
envisages institutions which will improve the quality of life and create
conditions for normal coexistence of communities in form of substantial
autonomy of Kosovo; however, Albanian leaders use their position in
these institutions to promote the idea of an independent Kosovo to the
detriment of other communities, which is unacceptable. Serb representatives
rightly request efficient mechanisms which will protect them from humiliations,
overvoting and other forms of ethnic discrimination in the Parliament.
Insisting
on the full integration of Kosovo’s communities under conditions
of deep linguistic, cultural and historical differences is not realistic
because, in the existing atmosphere of hostility smaller communities
cannot adequately protect themselves from institutional repression and
discrimination by the majority. In order to achieve peaceful coexistence
of communities, it is essential to implement decentralization of the
Province on all levels, which would enable smaller and vulnerable communities
to preserve their ethnic, cultural and religious identity. Decentralization
must not be only symbolic but should provide communities with effective
mechanisms to protect their vital interests and prevent discrimination
on an ethnic or religious basis. Most residents of Kosovo and Metohija
are not bilingual, which makes the situation much more complicated than
elsewhere.
Kosovo Serbs
would like to live in a society which would offer conditions for a peaceful
and dignified life for all communities. We are seriously concerned that
Kosovo Albanian leaders instead see the future of Kosovo and Metohija
in the creation of a second ethnic Albanian state with an insignificant
non-Albanian population to be tolerated only for the sake of Kosovo’s
public image. We can hardly observe any true democratic engagement in
the Province, where the greatest heroes are still former KLA leaders
directly responsible for post-conflict violence and many innocent victims.
True intentions of Albanian leaders can be seen in everyday reality.
Geographic names which had even survived Ottoman rule are now being
replaced by newly-invented Albanian names. The Serb language has been
expelled from public life while traditional Serb Cyrillic script is
unacceptable even in Kosovo Parliament. Idea of intolerance toward Slavic
peoples and the Orthodox Christian religion is strongly promoted in
the education of young Kosovo Albanians and media encouraging younger
generations to take a leading role in attacks and provocations against
Serbs, such as the recent attack against elderly Serb pensioners in
Pec. The level of organized crime in the Province is frightening while
the economic situation in general is deplorable despite substantial
foreign investments. Former KLA members have not yet been fully disarmed
and they still continue with armed attacks against Serbs and dissenting
Albanians jeopardizing the fragile stability in Kosovo.
We kindly
request that the Security Council take a more objective position with
regard to the situation in Kosovo and Metohija, and initiate all necessary
measures in order to return the process of institution building and
the work of the Kosovo Mission within the framework of the UNSCR 1244.
This will encourage all inhabitants of Kosovo to do more to realize
the standards of democracy and tolerance instead of speculating on the
final status of the Province before basic conditions for normal life
are achieved. The idea that the rapid resolution of the final status
can encourage returns and create better security conditions is essentially
wrong and dangerous. A premature resolution of the status which would
be imposed on Kosovo from outside or by force would instead lead to
the flight of the remaining Serb and other non-Albanian population and
the creation of a mono-ethnic society. This is completely opposite to
the goals of the international community. The roof of the house cannot
be built before the strong walls of a modern European society are erected.
Kosovo cannot exist like an island but has to be fully integrated into
the region to which it belongs. That is why the status of Kosovo and
Metohija can be justly resolved only within the wider context of the
Balkans, whose future does not lie in the drawing of new ethnic and
state maps and borders but in integration and transcendence of the anachronisms
of the past.
Sincerely yours,
+ Artemije
Serbian Orthodox Bishop of Raska-Prizren
President of the Serb National of Kosovo-Metohija
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