Kosovo institutions tolerate illegal construction within Visoki Decani Monastery protected zone

KIM Info Newsletter 18-12-06

Local Kosovo institutions are openly tolerating violation of UNMIK orders and endangerment of UNESCO world heritage - Church concerned for future of its sites

The owner of the illegally built restaurant wants to expand his property

The local Kosovo institutions turn the blind eye to open violations of laws and UNMIK regulations

KIM Info Service, Decani, December 18, 2006

Despite an UNMIK executive order establishing a protected zone and a ban on construction of housing and tourist buildings within this zone illegal construction near Visoki Decani Monastery is continuing. Namely, an Albanian restaurant built not far from the monastery more than a year ago without a building permit is presently being expanded. The owner of the illegal building, Naim Kuchi, has begun building a new tourist building a few weeks ago that is more than 30 meters long, as well as wooden huts that are detrimental to the appearance of the environment surrounding the monastery and represent a flagrant violation of both Kosovo law and the executive order of the UNMIK chief protecting the monastery. Decani municipality recently adopted a decision proclaiming the zone around the monastery an urban zone, thus institutionally and practically opening the door to illegal construction and the violation of the UNMIK order. The restaurant itself has not yet been legalized although it is often frequented by municipal officials and their guests.

The most recent case of illegal construction near Visoki Decani Monastery proves that despite flagrant violation of the law by the owner of the building, local institutions have not show willingness at all to take part in the protection of patrimony in accordance with existing regulations of the UN Mission. Regional UNMIK representative Luis Perez, who observed the beginning of illegal work at the beginning of December, immediately informed the Decani municipal assembly and the local police station (Kosovo Police Service). A document signed on December 9, 2006 by the local police chief, captain Bekim Avdaj, confirms the violation of the UNMIK executive order and the beginning of illegal construction. The decision says that the illegal construction will be stopped immediately and that the mayor and municipal public prosecutor have been informed of the violation of law. However, a week later construction work is continuing unobstructed, proving that neither the police nor the municipality have undertaken any measures to protect the law and thus are supporting the violation of the UNMIK decisions.

Recently erected building in the protected zone of the monastery

In light of negotiations on long-term protection of the Serbian patrimony in Kosovo and Metohija this most recent case of illegal construction near Visoki Decani Monastery clearly shows that Kosovo institutions are not ready to respect existing UNMIK regulations and that they are directly endangering the protection of patrimony that has been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in the meanwhile. As stated in previous correspondence from the office of Martti Ahtisaari to UNMIK local Albanians are using illegal construction to create facts on the ground and usurp as much land as possible. The question is openly being asked how much these institutions would respect the recommendations of the office of Mr. Ahtisaari when they are presently not respecting existing UNMIK orders. In the existing general legal vacuum where lawlessness and organized crime rule, the Serbian spiritual and cultural heritage must get a far more effective level of protection than that being prepared by the team of Martti Ahtisaari.

"We are deeply concerned by the attitude of the Kosovo police and Decani municipality, who are tolerating illegal construction to the detriment of the monastery. This indicates that the protection of Serbian patrimony which would be directly dependent on local Albanian institutions is not possible in practice. The Serbian spiritual and cultural heritage must be placed under a special regime of internationally guaranteed protection where Kosovo institutions will not have the possibility of endangering its survival and identity," said Vicar Bishop Teodosije of Lipljan in a statement for the KIM Info Service. Bishop Teodosije has already informed representatives of the Serbian negotiating team and representatives of the office of Martti Ahtisaari of the illegal construction near the monastery during a recently held meeting in Belgrade.

Parallel with the continuation of illegal construction near Decani Monastery the Pristina Albanian language daily Koha Ditore wrote in its December 14 issue that a section of the future highway to Ulcinj is to pass immediately next to Visoki Decani Monastery. This is yet another direct threat to the monastery because the executive order establishing a protected zone around Visoki Decani Monastery signed in 2006 by then UNMIK chief Soren Jessen-Petersen clearly states that existing roads in the zone cannot be expanded, which means that the construction of highways in the area is not allowed. The existing road next to the monastery, which was recently connected with the part of Montenegro inhabited by ethnic Albanians, has been documented by police as one of the primary routes for the illegal trading of weapons, drugs and white slaves. Unfortunately, international police has yet to establish any sort of effective system of controlling this road, which is presently controlled by local criminal gangs.

On the other hand, beside usurpation of land and illegal building around Serbian Orthodox holy sites attempts to revise the history in some leading Kosovo newspapers are continuing. On December 16, Koha Ditore daily (page 36) published a text by Edi Shukriu in which the author argues that Gracanica Monastery is an ancient Albanian shrine and that Serbs only occupied Albanian Christian heritage in Kosovo. Although such unscientific claims are unacceptable for historians they nevertheless demonstrate a constant urge of Kosovo Albanian "intellectuals" to Albanize Serbian cultural heritage in their quest of independent ethnic Albanian Kosovo. Regrettably in similar attempts some Kosovo institutions have taken so far a significant part which has already been published by KIM Info-service.

The administration of Visoki Decani Monastery will forward an official request to the UNMIK chief Dr. Joachim Ruecker for consistency in the implementation of the decision of his predecessor and that he specifically ask Decani municipality for a decision to remove illegally constructed buildings within the Visoki Decani Monastery protected zone and respect existing laws.

It is the firm position of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Belgrade negotiating team that the Serbian spiritual and cultural heritage in Kosovo and Metohija must receive special status and adequate legal and physical protection in accordance with the ten guiding principles for negotiations on the status of the Province defined by the Contact Group at the end of 2005. If this is not done, it is illusory to talk about any sort of possibility of survival for Serbian Orthodox Christian holy shrines in the existing political and security situation.

Masked Men Rob Villagers In Kosovo

Deutsche Presse Agentur, 04:59 PM, December 15th 2006

A group of armed, masked men robbed a group of villagers in Guska, in western Kosovo, police confirmed Friday.

The group may be the same one which had been setting up illegal checkpoints on western Kosovo backroads since last week, police said.

The description of the robbers, as well as of the previously reported group, was that were wearing some kind of as yet unidentified uniforms, police officials said.

Earlier, police said they could be members of an ultra-militant offshoot of the Kosovo guerrilla army that fought Serbian rule in 1999.

There is concern that ongoing efforts to settle the future status of Kosovo, nominally still Serbia's province with a vastly dominant, pro-independence Albanian population, could lead to ethnic tension and violence.

Kosovo to draft statute of independent state

Reuters, 12/14/2006 4:50:43

 

Pristina, Serbia . Kosovo said yesterday it would start writing a state constitution, despite major international powers delaying a decision on the Albanian majority province's bid for independence from Serbia.

 

Kosovo Albanian leaders said they had created a working group that would draft a constitution in preparation for independence day. Western powers had promised a decision on the future of the UN-run province by the end of this year, but postponed it to accommodate a Serbian general election in January.

 

The West is sympathetic to the Albanians' demand for their own state, more than seven years after Nato bombed the region to expel Serb forces accused of civilian killings and ethnic cleansing in a counter-insurgency war between 1998 and 1999. But UN veto holder Russia says the settlement should also satisfy Serbia, complicating efforts to reach a deal within the UN Security Council.

 

The Kosovo Albanian negotiating team agreed yesterday to push ahead with preparations regardless. Kosovo's 2 million Albanians are growing increasingly impatient, and UN officials fear unrest if a decision does not come soon.

 

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was to tell the Security Council yesterday that Serbs and Albanians remain "diametrically opposed" in their visions of Kosovo's future. He will warn that "fringe groups and extremists" stand ready to capitalise on growing frustration on both sides.

 

A spokesman for the negotiating team said the draft constitution would be "harmonised with the basic principles" of the UN blueprint being drafted by envoy Martti Ahtisaari.

 

Ahtisaari opened direct talks between Serbia and the Kosovo Albanians in February. With no sign of compromise, his report is expected to reject the Serb offer of autonomy and open the door to a form of independence.

Kosovo: Independence 'one of possible solutions' says UN Secretary General

ADN KRONOS INTERNATIONAL (ITALY), Dec-14-06 13:42

 

New York, 14 Dec. (AKI) - United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan has told the Security Council that the positions of Kosovo ethnic Albanians and Serbs remain diametrically opposed on the status of the province - which has been under U.N. control since 1999 - and that independence "would be one of possible solutions." Annan also warned that a postponement of any decision on Kosovo's future status could trigger unrest in the breakaway province.

 

In a regular quarterly report to the Security Council on the situation in Kosovo late on Wednesday, Annan said that only 15,600 out of 250,000 Serbs that had fled Kosovo since 1999, have returned, and that the return of refugees remained key to preserving Kosovo as a multi-ethnic society.

 

Annan said that both ethnic Albanians, who demand independence, and Serbs who oppose it, were as frustrated as the international community nears a decision on the Kosovo status, which is expected to be made soon after parliamentary elections in Serbia on 21 January. Annan warned that "the great expectations of Kosovo Albanians" might become a source of instability if the status decision was postponed. Pointing to the fact that ethnic Albanians make 90 percent of Kosovo's two million population, Annan said: "Independence would be one of possible solutions."

 

Sanda Raskovic Ivic, Serbian government coordinator for Kosovo, told the Security Council that Belgrade was ready to offer Kosovo ethnic Albanians "The autonomy that no other European or world country has offered to any of its regions," but not independence. She called for the resumption of UN sponsored talks had so far yielded no breakthrough, saying that only a compromise solution would enhance the stability of the entire region.

 

The chief U.N. administrator in Kosovo, Joachim Ruecker, said that considerable progress has been made in implementing democratic and human rights standards set by the international community, and warned that any postponements of the status decision would be detrimental to the general situation.

 

In a Security Council debate, most western countries leaned towards some sort of independence for Kosovo, but Russia and China insisted that the decision should be reached through negotiations and not imposed. Russian ambassador Vitaliy Churkin cautioned ethnic Albanians against threatening violence if their demands for independence were not met. "We can only interpret such statements as an unacceptable blackmail of the entire international community and attempts of radical elements to instigate violence," said Churkin.

 

Kosovo prime minister Agim Ceku has submitted a letter to the Security Council, saying that Kosovo ethnic Albanians could under no circumstances return under Belgrade rule. "In 21st century Europe, there is a state with two million people, without a voice in the world," Ceku said. "We demand you to hear us, without destructive postponements and half-measures... show us the future," Ceku urged.

 

Ethnic Albanians outnumber Serbs in Kosovo by 17 to one. Violence flared in the province when the Kosovo Liberation Army, supported by ethnic Albanians, came out in open rebellion against Serbian rule in the mid-1990s, sparking a brutal Yugoslav military crackdown.

 

Serbian forces began an 'ethnic cleansing' campaign against up to half of Kosovo's ethnic Albanians in 1999, triggering a NATO bombing campaign that drove Serb forces from the province. Some 800,000 people fled to Albania, Macedonia and Montenegro and approximately 10,000 died in the conflict.

Sustainable Serb returns are priority

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 07-12-2006 16:09:31

 

PRISTINA - The president of the Serb Kosovo-Metohija Party Dragisa Miric said that the realization of a program of sustainable returns is the priority for this recently formed political party.

 

He said that sustainable returns presumes, first of all, the economic strengthening of village environments south of the Ibar where Serbs live.

 

"We are insisting in our contacts with representatives of the Belgrade government, UNMIK and Kosovo provisional institutions, that in environemtns where Serbs are living every individual and family must live without fear and daily threats," said Miric.

 

He emphasized that returnees must have the possibility of employment and that it is essential to create conditions for the education and complete health care for children.

 

"A school must be opened in every Serb environment, even if it has only one student, and health care must be provided," said Miric.

 

He emphasized that a priority of the Serb Kosovo-Metohija Party is the opening of institutions of higher education and added that the party is asking both the Serbian Government and the Kosovo provisional government to respond to this request.

 

"In central Kosovo there are approximately 100,000 Serbs and consequently the question must be asked why 200 university professors do not return, which would represent not only a strengthening of the Serb community in terms of numbers but also in terms of intellectual capacity," said Miric.

 

He said that his party is asking Belgrade to find a solution for payment of a regular monthly subsidy to those families where no one is employed.

Protected witness in Suva Reka trial: All the members of the Berisha family belonged to the KLA

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 07-12-2006 15:11:34

 

BELGRADE - Protected witness "A" said today at the trial of those accused of war crimes against civilians in Suva Reka in 1999 that all the members of the Berisha family belonged to the Kosovo Liberation Army.

 

During clashes between Serbian security forces and the KLA in Kosovo and Metohija on March 26, 1999 in Suva Reka, 48 civilians were killed, mainly women, children and elderly, all members of the Berisha family.

 

Testifying before the War Crimes Council in Belgrade witness "A" said that Naim Berisha from Suva Reka was the commander of the Black Unit Brigade, which was responsible for executions.

 

He said that the unit first killed all the Albanians not loyal to the ideals of the KLA, and then began targeting Serbs.

 

"Gunshots were fired daily from the Berisha settlement in Suva Reka," said the witness, adding that the police se up a security point near the settlement to protect the town from these terrorist attacks.

 

In the continuation of the trial witness "A" will be questioned by the accused.

Electrical power donated by Serbia to Kosovo Serbs in 15 days

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 07-12-2006 14:54:02

 

PRISTINA - Head of the Economic Team for Kosovo and Metohija and South Serbia Nenad Popovic said today that Serb households in Kosovo and Metohija can expect to get electrical power donated by the Serbian Government in the amount of 50 million kilowatt-hours in about 15 days.

 

After a meeting with representatives of UNMIK and the Kosovo Energy Corporation Popovic said that an agreement had been reached for technical teams to begin work in the field on Monday, December 11 to prepare a network for distribution of electrical power.

 

"We agreed that it is necessary to register all 39,000 Serb households and determine their individual social profile, i.e. ability to pay," emphasized Popovic, emphasizing that the proposal of a donation by the Serbian Government was met with understanding on the part of the collocutors.

 

Also discussed at the meeting was the question of a second distributor of electrical energy, and an agreement was reached that Electro-Kosmet, a branch of the Serbian Power and Distribution Company, would submit a request to UNMIK for registration and acquisition of a license because UNMIK insists that it cannot recognize Electro-Kosmet's license acquired by the Serbian Power and Distribution Company for all the territory of Serbia some 50 years ago.

 

Popovic says that it was concluded that the Serbian Government's proposed donation of electrical power was of great assistance to the Kosovo Energy Corporation and the organization of electrical power distribution.

 

He added that this assistance, valued at 3 million euros monthly, is intended for distribution to Serb households in Kosovo over the next five months.

Popovic: Most obstacles to providing power to Kosovo Serbs have been overcome

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 07-12-2006 17:04:00

 

BELGRADE - Head of the Economic Team for Kosovo and Metohija and South Serbia Nenad Popovic stated that most administrative and legal obstacles for realization of humanitarian delivery of electrical power for Serb communities in Kosovo and Metohija have been overcome during negotiations in Pristina with senior UNMIK officials.

 

"We are one step away from a final solution to the problem. The technical details of the delivery will be resolved by next week through joint work by experts from the Serbian Power and Distribution Company, the Kosovo Energy Corporation and UNMIK, said Popovic, according to the Economic Team's Info Service.

 

Delegations of the Economic Team and Telecom Serbia on one side and UNMIK on the other have remained firm in their earlier positions with respect to the blocking of Telecom Serbia's transmitters.

 

Popovic said that UNMIK representatives, who are insisting that the legal framework for Kosovo and Metohija was changed by the adoption of Resolution 1244, are not accepting the license of Telecom Serbia, for which the company paid 125,000 German marks in 1997, as valid.

 

"Telecom Serbia as a company respects valid regulations in Kosovo and Metohija and wants to emphasize that acquired rights such as those that Telecom Serbia has must also be respected. The company has been carrying out its activities for many years, it employs more than 200 workers in the Province, it has invested great material means and it plans to invest an additional 100 million euros over the next four years in the region of Kosovo and Metohija," said Popovic.

 

The head of the Economic Team for Kosovo and Metohija and South Serbia mentioned that this meeting is only one in a series where legal experts from either side will attempt to reach agreement on interpreting the laws and work out a compromise solution.

 

The delegation of the Economic Team for the meeting in Pristina also included experts from the Ministry of Mining and Energy, the Serbian Power and Distribution Company, and Telecom Serbia.

Surroi: Request for the recognition of Kosovo independence

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 09-12-2006 18:30:42

 

SKOPLJE - Member of the Kosovo negotiating team in the negotiations with Serbia on final status of Kosovo Veton Surroi said in Skoplje that Kosovo will soon ask Macedonia and its other neighbors to recognize its independence.

 

"Resistence to the independence of Kosovo is not ideological but geopolitical and it has nothing to do with Kosovo but with the great powers. Since that is how things are, the great powers need to reach an agreement on overcoming disagreements in order to arrive at an explicit resolution," Surroi said at a gathering in Skoplje.

 

According to Skoplje media, he emphasized that the possibility of Kosovo's independence being recognized by its neighbors and other individual countries is known to Belgrade, especially keeping in mind that chances are small for a resolution to be adopted by the UN Security Council with an explicit position on the status of Kosovo, which is hindered by the possibility of a veto on the part of Moscow.

 

Surroi believes that in addition to the neighbors independence will be supported by Switzerland and by some members of the United Nations, thus creating a critical mass for independence to be recognized by the biggest global organization.

 

Former Macedonian premier Vlado Buckovski is among those who has not excluded the possibility of recognizing Kosovo independence, saying that this would occur after the U.S. decided first to take such a step.  

UNMIK and KPS are covering up activities of Albanian terrorism in Kosovo

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 08-12-2006 13:43:06

 

BELGRADE - Neither UNMIK nor the Kosovo Police Service have commented following several armed attacks on civilian and police vehicles in the area of Srbica and Klina carried out last week by members of still unidentified bands of terrorists, advised the Coordinating Center's International Press Center in Kosovska Mitrovica.

 

In a written statement the International Press Center states that in the village of Vocnjak on the road from Srbica to Klina four masked terrorists attempted to stop a passenger vehicle on the evening of December 1 and opened fire on it from an automatic weapon.

 

"Despite the fact that the vehicle was hit by at least four projectiles, the driver managed to escape from the terrorists," the statement says.

 

The International Press Center emphasizes that according to available information the terrorists were in uniform: they were wearing Kosovo Protection Corps uniforms with the insignia of the terrorist KLA (Kosovo Liberation Army).

 

The statement says that on the same road near the village of Zli Potok on December 4 at about 7:00 a.m. terrorists opened fire on a KPS patrol vehicle and wounded one policeman.

 

"Following someone's orders, the other policemen turned over the vehicle and filed a report as if a traffic accident had taken place, an obvious attempt to cover up the truth about the activities of Albanian terrorism in Kosovo and Metohija," says the statement.

Bus transporting Serbs stoned

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 10-12-2006 10:41:44

 

STRPCE - Yesterday at about 4:00 p.m. in the village of Doganovici on the road from Urosevac to Strpce unknown persons stoned a bus owned by the private transportation company Gorce from Strpce, which was carrying 55 Serb passengers at the time.

 

The bus sustained significant physical damage, bus driver Novak Nedeljkovic told SRNA.

 

He emphasized that immediately after the stoning the attackers sought shelter in the nearby woods and that, despite the filed report, the Kosovo Police Service had given up on the chase.

 

This is the fourth time a bus owned by this company has been stoned in Doganovici, where two Serbs from the municipality of Lipljan were killed slightly over one year ago.

 

In the village of Brod, located a few hundred meters from the site where the bus was stoned, the Kosovo Police Service arrested two Serbs from Dobrotin near Lipljan four nights ago and after torturing and inflict injuries upon them, released them after filing charges.

 

Following this incident the Strpce Serb National Community advised that security was being looked after "by extremists wearing the uniforms of the Kosovo Police Service".  

Serbian premier asks Ahtisaari to condemn Albanian separatism

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 10-12-2006 11:49:19

 

BELGRADE - Serbian prime minister Vojislav Kostunica has requested a response to the question why UN special envoy Martti Ahtisaari has never yet condemned terrorism by Albanian separatists in accordance with his mandate and responsibilities as an international mediator.

 

In a public statement Kostunica pointed out that Ahtisaari has the strict responsibility of immediately and unambiguously condemning every form of threat, especially acts of terrorism such as the dynamiting of railways.

 

"We must know what it is that is preventing Ahtisaari from carrying out his responsibilities," said premier Kostunica.

 

He reminded that in the past Ahtisaari has leveled serious charges against the entire Serbian people, undoubtedly due to prejudices he cannot escape, while at the same time "silently observing terrorism by Albanian separatists".

 

Kostunica emphasized that the Serbian Government certainly will not remain silent on Ahtisaari's performing the responsible duties of international mediator in this fashion.

 

"It is critically important that whoever holds the position of international mediator for talks on Kosovo and Metohija is unbiased, objective and always very sharp in condemning terrorism by Albanian separatists," concluded the premier.

Blast destroys Kosovo railway used by Serbs

Reuters, 12/10/2006 11:2:24

 

Pristina, Serbia . An explosion in Kosovo destroyed a railway line used primarily by minority Serbs but no one was hurt, UN police in the breakaway Serbian province said yesterday.

 

The so-called "Freedom of Movement Train" that thousands of Serbs scattered across Kosovo use to reach northern Mitrovica, where many Serbs live, was halted on the tracks before the site of the explosion, just short of a river crossing.

 

The blast happened on Friday evening near the northern town of Vucitrn. It destroyed several metres of track and could have caused the train to plunge into the river.

 

"It's a passenger train primarily utilised by Serbs," said UN police spokesman Larry Miller. "But the train never made it to the bridge."

 

Tensions are running high in the U N-run province since Western powers and Russia opted in November to delay until 2007 a decision on the 90 per cent Albanian majority's demand for independence.

 

The United Nations, which has run the territory since Nato bombs drove out Serb forces in 1999, urged patience on Friday following reports of armed men patrolling roads in the west.

 

Kosovo's 100,000 remaining Serbs, who want to remain part of Serbia, have been the targets of sporadic violence since 1999.

 

A Nato bombing campaign that year drove out Serb forces accused of ethnic cleansing and atrocities against Albanians in a two-year war with guerrillas.

 

At least half the pre-war Serb population fled a wave of revenge attacks. The United Nations says the rate of ethnically-motivated crime is falling, but any major unrest could derail U N-led talks to decide the fate of Kosovo.

Kosovo president elected head of ruling party, replacing late "pacifist' leader Rugova

Associated Press, Saturday, December 9, 2006

 

PRISTINA, Serbia - President Fatmir Sejdiu was elected leader of Kosovo's largest political party Saturday, replacing the province's late iconic pacifist leader, Ibrahim Rugova.

 

Sejdiu is only the second head of the League of Democratic Kosovo, or LDK, in 17 years. Party members at a congress in Pristina chose him as leader over former speaker Nexhat Daci.

 

Rugova, who died of lung cancer in January, launched the party in 1989 from a gathering of prominent figures in Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority and campaigned for self-rule from Serbia.

 

Sejdiu, 55, was expected to name a temporary replacement as party chief while, in his capacity as Kosovo president, he leads a five-member delegation engaged in talks with Serbia's officials on the province's future status.

 

The Albanian majority - about 90 percent of Kosovo's 2 million population - wants to establish an independent state, while Serbia has insisted it remain part of its territory.

 

Talks on settling the dispute so far have produced no results, and the U.N. envoy in charge of them has delayed any resolution until next year. He said he would make a proposal after Serbia's Jan. 21 elections.

 

The delay has raised fears of renewed violence in the volatile province.

 

On Friday, police said unknown suspects blew up railway tracks in central Kosovo, stopping railway traffic on a passenger route used by minority Serbs. No injuries were reported.

 

Over the week police also confirmed the appearance of masked gunmen in Western Kosovo allegedly bearing insignia of the clandestine Albanian National Army.

 

Kosovo has been under U.N. control since a 1999 NATO air war halted a Serb crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists. It is currently patrolled by about 16,000 NATO-led troops in charge of security. NATO has said it would keep its troops in Kosovo intact.

Kosovo railway damaged in explosion

KIM Info Newsletter 09-12-06

Kosovo-Polje - Zvecan railway sabotaged

Railway near village of Mijalic blown up

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, December 8, 2006 (Beta news agency, Belgrade)

Unknown attackers blew up the tracks of the railways near the village of Mijalic* near Vucitrn today at 5:30 p.m. only minutes before a train transporting Serbs from the village of Priluzje and Plemetina was scheduled to pass.

The railway line from Zvecan toward Kosovo Polje is chiefly used by Serbs traveling from Kosovo and Metohija, advised the Press Center of the Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija.

According to a written statement, the train transporting several dozen Serbs was stopped after the explosion in Vucitrn and passengers continued on their way to Priluzje and Plemetina by bus.

*After Serbs living there were expelled in 1999, the village of Mijalic has been inhabited by ethnic Albanians (KIM Info Service)

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KPS confirms railway blown up

PRISTINA, December 8, 2006 (Beta news agency, Belgrade)

The Kosovo Police Service (KPS) confirmed that an explosion occurred today at about 5:00 p.m. near the village of Mijalic, municipality of Vucitrn, which damaged a section of the railway.

KPS spokesman police captain Veton Elsani said that no one was injured and that members of a region investigation unit from Kosovska Mitrovica and the district public prosecutor immediately went to the scene of the explosion to conduct an investigation.

Police thus far have no information regarding the possible perpetrators or motives of this criminal act.

Serb sources in Kosovo reported that the explosion occurred just minutes before a train transporting Serbs from the villages of Priluzje and Plemetina was scheduled to pass.

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Thaci: Government responsible for appearance of masked men

PRISTINA, December 8, 2006 (Beta news agency, Belgrade)

The president of the largest opposition party, the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Hasim Thaci, stated today that the "parapolitics" of the Kosovo Government is responsible for the appearance of masked men who are harming the image of Kosovo.

"I have expressed my concern because of the current situation and the tendency toward destabilization and the damage being inflicted to the image of Kosovo independence. The Kosovo Government is guided by parapolitics and that parapolitics has put masks (masked men) on the streets of Kosovo in order to threaten the process and send a bad message for Kosovo," said Thaci after meeting with UNMIK chief Joachim Ruecker.

Thaci said that no compromises should be made with those working against the independence of Kosovo.

After the meeting the UNMIK chief stated that he had discussed current developments and the process of establishing the future status of Kosovo with the DPK president.

Ruecker expressed satisfaction with the work of the Pristina negotiating team on activities it has undertaken to explain the process of establishing status, especially decentralization, to the citizens (sic) of Kosovo.

Commenting on the appearance of masked men, Ruecker said that this has been taken seriously and that work is being done "to bring them to justice".

(Albanian language) Pristina media reported today evaluations by several security analysts that the so-called Albanian National Army, which has been proclaimed a terrorist organization, is behind the masked men.

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Coordinating Center accuses UNMIK and Kosovo police

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, December 8, 2006 (Beta news agency, Belgrade)

The Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija accused security services in Kosovo today of failing to comment on "armed attacks on civilian and police vehicles" in the areas of Srbica and Klina.

In a written statement the Coordinating Center says that "as yet unidentified terrorist" groups have attacked two vehicles, one of them belonging to the Kosovo Police Service, in that area.

The statement says that the first incident occurred on December 1 at 8:30 p.m. in the village of Vocnjak on the road from Srbica to Klina.

At that time, the Coordinating Center states, shots were fired at one automobile but the driver managed to escape.

The statement says that the attackers wore uniforms of the Kosovo Protection Corps with insignia of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

It adds that on the same road near the village of Zli Potok armed attackers opened fire on a Kosovo police vehicle on December 4 at about 7:00 a.m. and that one policeman was wounded in this attack.

The Coordinating Center claims that after the incident the other policemen "flipped over the vehicle and filed a report as if it had been an automobile accident".

The Kosovo Police Service advised yesterday that after more than one year masked men had again appeared on the territory of Metohija.

KPS spokesman for the Pec region Avni Qevukaja said that these masked men had put up road blocks and were checking the documents of travelers.
He said that last night police removed once such road block after it was reported.

"In the village of Grcina, Djakovica municipality, masked and armed men set up a control checkpoint on their own initiative in order to stop and check the documents of citizens. Immediately upon receiving this information members of the KPS from Djakovica went to the scene last night at about 9:00 p.m. where they found about ten masked and armed men, who fled into the nearby woods," said the KPS official.

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Use of official languages in Kosovo unsatisfactory

PRIZREN, December 8, 2006 (Beta news agency, Belgrade)

The use of official languages is not properly honored in Kosovo municipalities, says an OSCE report on the official use of minority languages in municipalities in Kosovo.

Noting that the report is based on the evaluations of OSCE municipal teams in 30 communities from March to August of this year, the study states that in 26 municipalities there is no possibility for meeting language requirements for financial reasons.

The situation in 16 municipalities is further harmed by the fact that they are receiving documents from central authorities exclusively in the Albanian language.

This has an additional negative influence on achieving standards on language use in the municipalities of Zubin Potok, Leposavic and Zvecan, which have severed ties with the central government in Pristina.

Also demonstrated is a comprehensive lack of political will as, for example, in the municipality of Zvecan, where it is claimed that meeting language standards is not a priority.

In Novo Brdo, Kacanik, Suva Reka, Malisevo, Glogovac, Obilic and Djeneral Jankovic translating teams have not yet been formed, says the OSCE report.
Minority communities in municipalities north of the Ibar River are completely dependent of UNMIK with respect to translation services. In Pristina, Obilic and Pec, ads have been placed for additional translators.

As far as respecting languages and scripts in street names, signage and road signs is concerned, there is a lot of discrepancy. Thus, many signs and markings in Glogovac, Malisevo and Kacanik are exclusively in Albanian.

On the other hand, in Zubin Potok, Leposavic and Zvecan, as well as in villages with a Serb majority (sic) population near Pristina, Lipljan, Pec and Istok, signage is exclusively in Serbian.

The OSCE report recommends full respect for regulations, including the law against discrimination, ensuring equal language rights for minority communities, and establishment of priority for translating services upon allotment of funding.

At the Kosovo level, official languages are Albanian and Serbian, and in municipalities where other communities live in significant number, Bosnian is also in use, and since recently Turkish, for example, in Prizren.

Kosovo Self-Determination leader says rally is final warning to government

BBC Monitoring International Reports - December 2, 2006 Saturday

 

Text of report by Kosovo Albanian Kosovapress news agency website

 

Prishtina [Pristina], 28 November: Thousands of people attended the Self-Determination Movement rally today in Prishtina to protest against the Kosova [Kosovo] Negotiating Team and the political processes in the country. The protesters threw bottles of red paint at the buildings of the Kosova government, Assembly, and UNMIK [UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo] headquarters.

 

The demonstration began at 1400 [1300 GMT] in front of the Self-Determination Movement offices in Payton Town [neighbourhood in Pristina]. The protesters marched through the city centre to the Skenderbeg Square.

 

Addressing the crowd, Self-Determination Movement leader Albin Kurti said that the time had not come yet to celebrate the Flag Day in hotels and restaurants because, "in that way, we would contribute to the illusion, that politicians have been spreading among the people, that independence has already been won and that they can continue sleep".

 

"When a set of institutions are not democratic, then we are the democracy. When a set of institutions are not free, then we are the freedom. Today, we are celebrating through demonstration and we are demonstrating so that we can really celebrate one day like other free nations and societies," Kurti said.

 

According to him, the time has come for a popular, social, political, and national awakening in Kosova. Therefore, he said: "Politicians can conduct negotiations with Serbia in Vienna and they can make deals there, but they will not be able to carry out their plans here in Kosova."

 

"Politicians turned negotiators are leading these institutions and they are the ones that have sold out the will of 2 million people to our enemy, Serbia. This is unacceptable to us. We must realize that we will be totally free only when the Albanian flag is flown from the house of Isa Boletini [Albanian nationalist who fought against Turkey, Serbia at the beginning of the 20th century] in Zvecan," Kurti said.

 

The protesters then threw bottles with red paint at the Kosova government building and at the entrance of the assembly and its backyard.

 

Kurti said that this was minimal punishment and a final warning to the institutions and the Kosova Negotiating Team to respect the will of the people.

 

"This paint symbolizes the blood that the martyrs have shed so that Kosova could be free, but our politicians have desecrated this blood by agreeing to negotiations with Serbia. Therefore, this is minimal punishment and a final warning," Kurti said.

 

In addition to throwing bottles, the Self-Determination Movement activists left a letter with five reasons for organizing this protest in front of the assembly and government buildings.

 

The letter read: "You have been defending Serbia institutionally in Kosova. You have usurped and monopolized the entire political, economic, and social life in Kosova, thus denying the people of Kosova the right to be citizens and turning them into residents without asking them. You have corrupted the courts and the police, forcing them to work for you and not to protect the safety of the people. You have deprived the people of Kosova of their government, which is a universal right enjoyed even by autonomous territories, by usurping and holding to ransom the IPVQ [Provisional Institutions of Self-government] that you yourself have set up."

 

The protesters then marched past the Prishtina municipal building, chanting "Self-Determination" and "UCK [Kosovo Liberation Army - KLA]" and then stopped in front of the UNMIK headquarters. Up until this moment, there was no incident and no intervention by the ShPK [Kosovo Police Service].

 

In front of UNMIK headquarters, the UNMIK police intervened with teargas when protesters started to pull down a section of the concrete wall surrounding the building.

 

The police intervened at this moment, which triggered the protesters' reaction, who began to throw bottles with red paint, stones, and other objects. After this, the Self-Determination Movement activists called on the protesters to disperse.

 

Source: Kosovapress news agency website, Pristina, in Albanian 28 Nov 06

Displaced Serbs, lawyers detail "fraudulent" sale of Serb property in Kosovo

BBC Monitoring Europe (Political) - December 5, 2006, Tuesday

 

Text of report by Ana Stevanovic: "Dead people 'selling' property" by Serbian newspaper Blic on 4 December

 

Belgrade, Pec - About 10 days ago, I learned by chance from an Albanian [from Kosovo] that was visiting Belgrade that my house in Pec has been sold. More particularly, he told me that he bought my property. I was stunned, because neither I nor anybody else in my family had given a power of attorney to anybody to sell our house and land in Pec, nor did we negotiate a sale with anybody, Dejan Simic, who has been living in Belgrade as a displaced person for the past eight years, told Blic.

 

Simic is just one of Serb refugees from Kosovo-Metohija (KiM) stripped of their property on the strength of forged documents. Houses, apartments, business premises, and land have been taken away in a similar way from the families Stankovic, Bojovic, Simic, Ivanovic, Lazovic, Dabizljevic, Mikic, Knezevic, Krivokapic, and so on.

 

Displaced Serbs would learn of the malversation by chance, mostly when they applied to the cadastral registers in their municipalities of origin for deeds of property, at which time they would learn that they had no property left on KiM territory.

 

Blic has learned that Serbian and Albanian swindlers are behind this criminal enterprise. It is suspected that they work in collusion with court clerks in Serbia and Montenegro that certify totally false documents purporting to show title to immovable property. The Serbian MUP [Interior Ministry] has been searching for some time now for a number of persons that were selling the property of displaced Serbs in this way.

 

Vladislav Raickovic, president of the Podgorica-based Hearth [Ognjiste] Association of Displaced People from Kosovo-Metohija, says that more than 50 Serb houses, apartments, estates, and business premises have been sold on the basis of forged powers of attorney on the territory of the Pec District alone.

 

"There are even papers according to which a Serb after his death 'authorized' an Albanian to dispose of his property. Also, it is glaringly obvious that data in a forged ID card of an alleged principal most often do not correspond to the actual facts about the person's year and place of birth, names of parents, or unique personal identification number. Another interesting point is that the powers of attorney are signed in the Latin script, which Serbs in Kosovo do not use," Raickovic says.

 

Milorad Mitic from Klina learned that his ancestral property was sold by one [Kosovo] Albanian to another on the basis of a power of attorney "issued" by his late father Velimir.

 

"My father died in Pristina in 1997 and the alleged power of attorney was certified in a court in Podgorica in 2003. I discovered the scam when a neighbour of mine, who wanted to buy our land, said that they had told him in the Klina municipal cadastral office that the land no longer belonged to me. I filed charges with the Klina court in May 2005, but there has been not a single hearing to this day. I do not believe that our courts can solve this problem. Perhaps international courts might do so, I do not know," Milorad Mitic says.

 

Lawyer Slavisa Vukosavljevic represents a number of Serbs whose property in the Vitomirica locality in the Pec area has been sold.

 

"I have filed lawsuits on behalf of clients with the Municipal Court in Pec, demanding that sales contracts made on the basis of fraudulent powers of attorney should be declared null and void. I have also filed charges with the Prosecutor's Office in Pec against the alleged buyers, sellers, and agents in these transactions. In the case of one of my clients, the Prosecutor's Office found that the buyer of his property had no case to answer, but indicted two alleged agents, Driton Gashi and Nusret Laiqi from Pec. Laiqi, posing as an authorized agent, appears in two other cases," lawyer Vukosavljevic says for Blic.

 

Bringing charges is no guarantee that the problem will be solved in the near future, as evident from the sluggishness of the provisional administration, courts, and UNMIK [UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo].

 

"When I send a letter to the Prosecutor's Office in Pec, it returns from Zvecan or Gracanica marked undelivered due to a postal traffic disruption. If I mean to accomplish anything, I have to go there in person with my client. Also, a hearing is liable to be cancelled without prior notice and without explanation," lawyer Vukosavljevic says.

 

He adds that the problem could be solved by the courts if they were to issue temporary orders banning further handling, mortgaging, or selling of immovable property. However, no such measure has been taken so far.

 

Source: Blic, Belgrade, in Serbian 4 Dec 06 pp 14-15

Russia to veto imposed Kosovo solution, says envoy to Serbia

BBC Monitoring International Reports - December 5, 2006 Tuesday

 

Text of report by Belgrade-based B-92 TV on 4 December

 

[Presenter] Russian Ambassador [to Serbia] Aleksandr Alekseyev has confirmed for B92 that Russia will, unless the decision regarding Kosovo [and its final status] is acceptable for both sides, put a veto on such decision in the UN Security Council.

 

[Reporter] Mr Alekseyev, Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku has said upon his return from Moscow that he did not get the impression that Russia was ready to put a veto on a UN Security Council decision to grant Kosovo independence, should it decide to do so. On the other hand, Serbia, when it comes to the diplomatic defence of Kosovo, expects the most from China and Russia. Is Russia ready to put a veto on a UN Security Council decision if the solution for Kosovo set a precedent in world practice?

 

[Alekseyev] I must say we are strictly adhering to our position regarding the solution of the Kosovo status issue. In the case of the status solution not being acceptable for both sides, for Belgrade and Pristina, Russia will exercise its veto rights. I must stress that the Kosovo problem must be solved in line with international law, with the principles of European security, and the UN Security Council Resolution 1244. And, Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku was briefed on this position in detail during his recent visit to Moscow.

 

[Reporter] Was Ceku's a visit by a foreign statesman?

 

[Alekseyev] The level of contact, the level of interlocutors, the protocol details point out that this was not an official visit by a [foreign] official. These were serious and open consultations that included an exchange of opinion, estimates, but also our thoughts on the Kosovo status solution process and its perspectives. It was very important for us to hear about the goings-on in the Kosovo problem solution process firsthand, and to directly bring forward the Russian position. I am convinced that, in that sense, these consultations were useful.

 

[Reporter] UN Kosovo envoy Martti Ahtisaari has recently announced that his Kosovo status proposal will be presented to Belgrade and Pristina immediately after the Serbian elections [scheduled for 21 January]. He also said it was stupid to expect a compromise solution to be reached between Belgrade and Pristina. Does that mean that the Kosovo solution must be imposed on either side?

 

[Alekseyev] This is not at all suitable for Russia. Until now, as far as I know, Kosovo status talks lasted only two hours. It was a so-called elephant meeting, during which the parties did not even manage to exchange opinions. In fact, all they managed to do was read the statements they brought with them. It is, to say the least, naive to draw any conclusions as to the failure of the talks based on that event. It seems to me that a rather original method of negotiations was invented, where the outcome was presented before the talks had even begun. I believe this methodology must be abandoned, and we must get down to serious business.

 

[Reporter] Thank you for being our guest today.

 

Source: B92 TV, Belgrade, in Serbian 1500 gmt 4 Dec 06

Government of Kosovo accused for supporting of paramilitary groups

KiM Info Newsletter 08-12-06 Comment by Fr. Sava Janjic

KIM Info-Service, December 8, 2006

Twice in several days Kosovo's Government is brought by K-Albanians themselves into connection with extremist activities the goal of which is most likely to raise tensions and blackmail the international community prior to the finalization of Ahtisaari's proposal for the future status of the restive Serbian Province.

On November 28, the day of celebration of pan-Albanian celebration of the Flag Day demonstrations led by a radical organization Self-Determination turned into riots in which 40.000 Euro damage was made on the UN Mission building and other locations in Pristina. The leading Kosovo daily Koha Ditore published in a special report a day after the riots that the stones and paint used by rioters were transported by vehicles belonging to Kosovo's Ministry of Labor, headed by one of the closest associates of ICTY indicted former Kosovo's Premier Ramush Haradinaj. The proofs offered by Koha Ditore have not been denied.

After the most recent armed clash of a group of armed and masked paramilitaries in Western Kosovo with the UN established Kosovo Police was another element rising tensions in the Province. The paramilitaries were not only armed with light weapons but also by rocket propelled launchers and sophisticated night warfare equipment. Two days after Kosovo opposition accused the Government of being behind the paramilitary group which has already been identified in Kosovo Albanian press as - Albanian National Army, a formation proclaimed a terrorist organization by one of former chiefs of UNMIK after an unsuccessful attempt to blow up a railway bridge in the Serb majority part of Kosovo.

These events are not unconnected and one can clearly see that extremist and pro-independence Kosovo political circles are again, according to the March 17 riots scenario, using violence and display of weapons in order to blackmail international community and additionally encourage Kosovo Serbs to leave their homes. The most of Western media in a chorus jumped into a hasty conclusion that the violence in Pristina streets and in Western Kosovo are consequences of unresolved Kosovo status as if in independent Kosovo terrorist organizations which struggle for pan-Albanian cause together with radical political organizations organizing protests against protection of minorities would turn overnight into doves of peace, lay their weapons and embrace their Serb neighbors. The status of Kosovo is only one of keys to the problem but definitely not a magic wand to turn the restive Province into a modern state. In fact the status, whatever it may be, would bring no good to anyone until extremist and criminal structures are in power and as long as they may use the status a smokescreen for continuing their activities.

These events have shown us rather the following:

- Terrorist organizations like ANA still freely operate in Kosovo despite 17.000 NATO led troops, establishing illegal checkpoints and even fighting at UN established Kosovo Police. Dozens if not hundreds of thousands of people in Kosovo are still armed despite 7 years of international presence. The KLA although officially disbanded still operates through a network of radical and right-wing organizations the agenda of which goes much beyond independent Kosovo.

- Kosovo Government which on one hand claims to be a guarantor of stability in independent Kosovo seems to be directly or indirectly involved in paramilitary and criminal activities according to accusations of Kosovo Albanians themselves (not to mention organized crime which has already been confirmed in many international and local reports).

- Crowd of at least 5000 rioters made damage to official buildings in Pristina and not one rioter has been arrested and brought to justice. In fact Kosovo and UN police did not go after rioters but only focused on protecting internationals. KFOR troops did not appear in Pristina at all leaving crowd to continue their rampage through the streets. Besides, these days a rumor goes through Pristina that Albanian extremists are making target lists of pro-Serb internationals. In a same fashion former KLA extremists (some of which turned into political leaders) organized a campaign of systematic liquidation of hundreds of Serbs and dissenting Albanians after the war.

Therefore, one cannot help asking a few quite legitimate questions.

How in the world Kosovo Serbs and other discriminated non-Albanian communities in Kosovo be encouraged to live in an independent Kosovo in such a dire security, political and economic situation?.... An independent Kosovo in opinion of large majority of Kosovo Serbs would become an ethnically clean Albanian state and the policy of ethnic cleansing would be rewarded by an unilateral solution. There are very few if any Serbs who believe that independent Kosovo led by present Kosovo leaders would be able to remain their home.

Is the policy of blackmailing with violence and threats to be rewarded by the status and how it would effect other disputed regions in the world? This would be the same like granting extremist groups in the world all their requests in order to make them more constructive members of society, a policy definitely not followed by Western democracies in their countries.

How reasonable is to rush into the status final settlement when minimum of standards has not been achieved (not to mention already well known economic unsustainability). Kosovo cities are ethnically cleansed, the return process has stalled, non-Albanians if not directly attacked are generally discriminated and unable to find their normal place in society and economy of Kosovo.

After these thoughts it is not easy to remain convinced that the hasty status resolution would bring much stability as some in the West believe. In fact it may only open another chapter of prolonged violence and chronic instability for the region. In any case, it appears, the international community would finally have to face more responsibly the situation which threatens not only to become a cancer of the Balkans but a ticking bomb for entire Europe.

A difficult choice on sanctions for Kosovo

RUSSIAN INFORMATION AGENCY NOVOSTI, 08/12/2006 17:57

 

MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti military commentator Alexander Bogatyrev) - The other day, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said it would be counterproductive to introduce UN sanctions against either side in the Kosovo conflict.

 

Before that, the Russian ambassador to Belgrade had said that Russia would veto any "harsh" UN Security Council resolution on Kosovo.

 

The sanctions in question are directed against Serbia.

 

According to the Kremlin, the Kosovo dispute can be resolved only at the negotiating table and there should be no deadlines. The sides involved in the conflict need time to resolve their problems.

 

Criminal organizations have taken over the province's authorities since 1999. Youth groups in Kosovo are growing increasingly radical, so much so that on November 27, the Albanian Flag Day was marked in Kosovo under circumstances of tightened security guaranteed by the presence of nearly all the Kosovo Force's (or KFOR, the province's multinational peacekeeping force) troops and police.

 

KFOR set up reinforced roadblocks in Pristina and ensured a military presence in the key sections of the provincial capital. But this did not stop mass demonstrations from degenerating into riots. For several days afterwards, demonstrators threw bottles of paint and stones at the building of the provincial government and parliament, the UN mission and peacekeepers' roadblocks, and shouted insults and threats at KFOR troops and observers.

 

Kosovo Albanians claim that they have the right to demand independence because they constitute an overwhelming majority (90%) of that traditionally Serb province. This is not surprising, because the Kosovo Liberation Army forced nearly all Serbs out of the province. I wonder what the governments of France and Germany would do if their large Arab or Turkish communities decided to proclaim independent territories and started evicting local residents.

 

Kosovo remains a province of Serbia. Had it been allowed to secede, it could have served as a precedent for Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transdnestr, as well as several European enclaves, to demand independence too. And if Georgia and Moldova refused to grant it, the freedom-seeking republics could appeal to the UN Security Council, the OSCE and other international organizations to put pressure on the parent states, just as they are now doing to Serbia. Russia, as its foreign minister has said, does not accept this viewpoint.

 

The official secession of Kosovo from Serbia is supported by London and Washington, which are saying that the question of Kosovo's independence should be decided by the end of this year, or in the first half of 2007 at the latest. They insist that Kosovo's independence is a necessary condition for restoring peace and ending the killing there.

 

Why not grant independence to Serb enclaves in the north of the province then, because they will never be able to live at peace with Albanians after years of violence? London and Washington, however, say that Kosovo, unlike Serbia, cannot be broken up.

 

Moscow is protesting against this approach for several reasons, primarily because it does not need a pocket of instability in Europe threatening Moscow's plans for cooperation with Serbia, Montenegro and the EU.

 

The issue at hand is what partners Russia will have to deal with, strong countries or ones weakened by internal problems. Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov recently said in an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel: "We are not directly concerned with potential and real conflicts far away from Russia's borders. Events in, say, Kosovo are unlikely to affect Russia's security, but they will affect the security of Germany and the whole of Europe."

 

The story of KFOR's seven years of efforts to "pacify" Kosovo should have led Europe to draw some sad conclusions. There are some events in the story that many would like to forget, such as Albanian fighters' easy escape from the U.S.'s Bondstil military base in Kosmet, or the past of Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku, who visited Moscow with a delegation of Kosovo interim government officials in late November.

 

I am not referring to Ceku's fine words about peace at a time when Serbs are being killed and Orthodox relics destroyed in Kosovo. I am referring to his bloody past in Croatia in the early 1990s and in Kosovo in 1998-1999.

 

If Agim Ceku and others like him are rewarded for their unseemly deeds by granting independence to the province, it will mean that the international community has not yet learned the lesson of Kosovo, and we need more time.