Continuing Ethnic Crimes in Kosovo

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Date: Mon, 31 Jul 2000 13:31:14 +0200 (EET)
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Subject: Continuing Ethnic Crimes in Kosovo

From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>

Original sender: International Helsinki Federation <[email protected]>

Continuing Ethnic Crimes in Kosovo


Continuing Ethnic Crimes in Kosovo

Vienna, Prishtina, Belgrade, Podgorica, Tirana 26. July 2000. The
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) and its
Committees in Kosovo, Albania, Serbia and Montenegro are deeply
concerned that ethnic violence against Serbs and other minorities in
Kosovo is not being properly and efficiently prevented and
investigated by the responsible authorities. Continuation and
non-prevention of ethnically and politically motivated violence could
lead to deep and long-lasting ethnic hatred that could result in
further conflict and perhaps even more widespread violence.

The IHF deplores this violence and appeals to all individuals and
ethnic communities to exert moral pressure to bring it to an end.

In the Stimlje/Shtime region there have been at least seventeen
grenade attacks since the beginning of June, including at least five
against houses inhabited by Serb, Ashkali and Roma families. In each
of these cases, a grenade was thrown through a window into the house.
No injuries have resulted from these particular attacks.

The failure of the international authorities, as the sole
legally-authorized organs responsible for investigating these crimes
and bringing perpetrators to justice, seriously compromises the
efforts and the success of the overall international mission in
Kosovo.

In Stimlje/Shtime security is ensured by only 100 Finnish UNMIK
soldiers, two international policemen and eight Kovoso Police Service
(KPS) cadets, and the police station is only open 8 hours a day. The
IHF believes that at least double that many KFOR soldiers and many
more policemen are necessary to provide reasonable security under the
prevailing circumstances there.

Life in the many (mainly Serb) enclaves in Kosovo can be described as
difficult and dangerous. The basic freedom of movement is not secured,
and is violated along with other rights, including often their very
right to life.

Ethnically and politically motivated violence is negatively affecting
Albanians also. In this context one has to note that Albanians living
or passing through Serbian enclaves, including those in the Serbian
controlled part of Mitrovica, become frequently victims of ethnic
violence and have many of their rights violated including their right
to life as well.

During a recent fact-finding mission, representatives of the IHF in
the town of Lipljan/Lipjan met inter alia with a Serbian
school-director, who now wants to found a human rights organisation
dealing with the violations of human rights of Serbs.  He has been
forced to leave his flat in the centre of the city, and move in with a
friend who lives in the restricted enclave consisting of only a few
streets.

Of the 4.000 former Serbian inhabitants living before the war in
Lipljan/Lipjan, only 1.500 remain. They do not dare to leave the
streets in their "enclave", at the end of the streets and at street
crossings KFOR tanks protect them. They cannot get to the market in
the centre of the town to buy or sell things, and must go to the
neighbouring city of Gracanica to purchase necessities. On these
journeys, the Serbs are subjected to curses, stonings, and other
humiliations, and sometimes more serious attacks.

Basic medical treatment is ensured by an ambulance, but for more
complicated diseases they have to make the dangerous trip to Gracanica
or Kosovo Polje, and in order to reach the secondary schools, which
are in neighbour villages of the Lipljan/Lipjan district, the young
students need KFOR escorts.

The unemployment rate is nearly one hundred percent. The only persons
with work are those in the schools and the healthcare. It is extremely
difficult for farmers to sell their products locally, as they have no
safe access to the main market. At present almost no Albanian would
buy anything from them. UNMIK has to protect them to bring in their
harvest.

Serb political leaders do much to keep the situation of their minority
as bad as possible, and thus obstruct the efforts of the international
administration. At a meeting between the International Administrator
and leaders of the Serb community of the Lipljan/Lipjan region, it
became clear that their order had been to obstruct the efforts of the
administrator to appoint persons responsible for helping UNHCR in
accessing those Serbians who need social welfare. The Milosevic
government successfully sends signals to the Kosovar Serbs to obstruct
the registration of the Serbian voters for the local elections in
Kosovo planned for this October. All is aimed to have a pretext for
major political manipulations, by accusing and charging UNMIK and
Albanians for their plight. By the same token the Belgrade regime
seems to have as its prime objective to accuse UNMIK and its
administration of not being able to guarantee basic human rights for
the Serbs in Kosovo, and violating them intentionally and
systematically and on those grounds demanding that UNMIK and KFOR
leave Kosovo.

Recommendations:

- The Serbs and other minorities as all citizens of Kosova should
recognize, accept and support the fact that Kosovo is currently a
self-standing entity as an internationally mandated protectorate. The
Kosovo-Albanians, as the overwhelming majority in Kosovo, should
recognize and implement their principal political, moral and ethical
responsibility for supporting a system providing peace, security,
human rights and order for all citizens of Kosovo irrespective of
their ethnic, religious, racial or political affiliation, while the
internationals i.e. the KFOR and UNMIK are the only legally mandated
factor for establishing and guaranteeing security and law enforcement
in Kosovo. The conflicts in Kosovo have to be de-ethnicized. All
residents must work together and cooperate in building a system of
justice that protects individual rights.

- The international administration in Kosovo, especially its law
enforcement and security component should do its utmost to apprehend
suspected war criminals and to get them delivered to justice, i.e. the
Hague Tribunal.

- War crimes trials conducted in the local courts should be overtaken
by the international judges in order to prevent biased decisions which
could further trigger distrust and violence.

- The overall number of UNMIK Police, which reached some 3.030
personnel at the beginning of June, is still falling short of the
4.718 authorised by the UNMIK, which is already a worrisome low number
for the problems that Kosovo faces.

- The UNMIK police should not be hindered in doing their job by
political considerations. If it should turn out, that for example
activists or representatives of any of the sides and ethnicities,
including prominent ones, are involved in criminal cases, they must
get prosecuted and subjected to due legal procedure as all other
Kosovars citizens are, irrespective of national, religious, racial,
political or any other affiliation and notwithstanding needed
"political" support. If certain people are unpunished for their crimes
because of their affiliation, it is not only a major blow against the
rule of law, democracy and indeed against the future of Kosovo, but
also encourages the continuation of attacks and ethnic violence that
could lead to further ethnic antagonism, and criminalization of the
entire society.

- The gravest problem in Kosovo remains the lack of functioning law
enforcement and an impartial judicial system, which allows crimes to
be committed, especially against minorities, with a large degree of
impunity. There must be more courage on the side of Kosovar judges,
belonging to all ethnicities, to deal also with cases against high
ranking former or actual prominent personalities, including members
belonging to former armed formations. There must be stronger support
from UNMIK for these judges in their work, for example with witness
protection programs. Until there is a sufficient number of courageous
domestic judges, more international judges must be engaged, who are
willing to fill this gap at this time. Failing to bring about a
solution to this problem obviously affects adversely the morale and
the efficiency of the UNMIK and KPS police forces.

For further information:
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, Aaron Rhodes,
Executive Director, 
Tel. +43-1-408 88 22
Kosovo Helsinki Committee, Gazmend Pula, Chair, 
Tel. +381-38-535 010 or +43-676-498 1289
Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, Sonja Biserko, Chair, 
Tel. +381-11-637 542
Montenegrin Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, Slobodan Franovic,
Chair,
Tel. +381-86-53 191
Albanian Helsinki Committee, Vasilika Hysi, Executive Director, 
Tel. +355-42-33 671

__________________________________________
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
Wickenburggasse 14/7
A-1080 Vienna
Tel. +43-1-408 88 22
Fax: +43-1-408 88 22 ext. 50
______________________________________

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