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CONTENTS: 10 Oct. 2001 WHAT DO SERBS WANT IN RETURN FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION IN THE
ELECTIONS
Western diplomats held a meeting with the President of the "Serb Coordinating Council" Nebojsa Covic in Gracanica. The Head of the Canadian Office Shawn Barber and Serb representative at the IAC Rada Trajkovic organized the meeting, reported Zëri on page one and three. "The meeting was significant and in the interest of all those who want to have direct contact with Covic and discuss the possibility of holding talks with the Kosovo Serbs and the activities of the council," stressed Barber. Covic did not promise the Serb participation Yesterday's meeting was another chance for international representatives to appeal for Serb participation in the general elections. "We support Serb participation. This is the only way for the voice of Serbs to be heard in the institutions, which will come out of the elections. They should be aware of the fact that this is of great importance for them," stressed Barber. Barber said that Covic did not state any conditions for the Serb participation in the elections, but he did mention many problems. "The issue on which Covic focused the most was the insecurity of Kosovo Serbs and the small number of Serbs returning home to Kosovo," stressed Barber. According to Barber, the participants agreed that the security situation for Serbs is not ideal, however this should not prevent them from taking part in the elections. "UNMIK and ourselves hope that Serbs decide to participate in the elections. Their massive registration and the certification of the Povratak coalition are very positive signs, which indicate that they will take part," said Barber "It is hard for Kosovo Serbs to participate in the elections because the conditions that make this possible were not fulfilled. Before Serbs take part in the elections, many problems have to be solved and Kosovo should turn into a multiethnic country," stressed Covic for Beta news agency. The request to apply the amnesty for the criminals Barber referred to Covic's appeal for an amnesty for all Serb prisoners in Kosovo. "The principles of amnesty are being applied in many crisis regions throughout the Balkans. The Albanians in Southern Serbia and in Macedonia were amnestied. This process of amnesty should not come to an end. We hope that UNMIK in Kosovo will do something similar," stated Covic for the Serb media. According to Covic, an amnesty would lead to cooperation and partnership between the Serb authorities and the international authorities in Kosovo. However, the international representatives are against Covic's request for amnesty. But they agreed to review some of the sentences. "We will have to review the sentences, because when they were being tried, most of the judges were Albanians. Therefore, their punishments are not considered objective. The fact that they are not political prisoners makes their review possible," stressed Barber. But before this takes place, UNMIK will have to raise the question of transferring Albanian political prisoners held in Serbia, back to Kosovo. The representatives requested to continue the investigations of the missing cases. Covic's council is illegal The representatives expressed their concern regarding the status of the Coordinating Council and their dilemma regarding this structure functioning as a parallel structure in Kosovo. "Covic assured us that he will continue cooperating with UNMIK and that we should not have any concerns regarding this issue," stated Berber, satisfied with the fact that Covic's plans are all in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolution 1244. The representatives support the meetings between Haekkerup and Covic. The representatives announced that these meetings with Covic would continue.
Belgrade-based Beta news agency reported that Serb political representatives again affirmed that the "conditions have not been fulfilled for the Kosovo Serbs to participate in the November elections", reported Koha Ditore on page ten. "The Kosovo Serbs' refusal to participate in the elections is understandable," stressed Serb representatives Milan Ivanovic, adding that three Serbs and one Roma were killed during the last week. Ivanovic described as strange statements of UNMIK Administrator Hans Haekkerup that preparations for the general elections were on the right track. "The words of Albanian political parties show the direction in which the elections are heading, which is independence," stressed Ivanovic. "The latest security developments in Kosovo are convenient only for the extremists who are in southern Mitrovica, and others have been released with the decision of Serb Minister of Justice Vladan Batic," said Ivanovic. Ivanovic explained that Serbs would meet on Friday in northern Mitrovica so that their representatives could tell them their participation in the elections would legitimate Kosovo's independence. He called on the Belgrade authorities to make the only possible decision, which is in the "Serbs' interest and not apply pressure for them to participate in the elections Koha Ditore reported, quoting Beta.
Administrator Siegfried Brenke and the Head of the Executive Council in Prishtina Berim Ramosaj promised that they would turn Prishtina into a European capital city. However, a long time has passed since then and Prishtina remains to be a city full of litter, no electricity or water, with numerous illegal constructions, and a traffic system with laws of the jungle, reported Zëri on page ten. "The criticism of local staff is understandable because a majority of these people have lost their patience. We are all impatient when we have a task ahead of us," stressed Brenke regarding the local staff criticizing him and his staff. With regard to relations between local and international staff, Ramosaj said that, "co-government should not be present in Kosovo, but local self-government." "As far as the international staff is concerned, we simply cannot find a common language on many issues. But this does not mean that we have something against Brenke and his people. If we are dealing with an issue, which we consider has strategic importance, we might be tough if need be," stated Ramosaj. "The local authorities say that the internationals are preventing them from carrying out their duties. But the reality is another story. This is only the locals' alibi not to do their job," explained PDK member Ramadan Avdiu. "We are in the middle of a process, which requires the cooperation of the local staff. People in general do not believe that I am an autocratic person, who constantly imposes decisions. But I want you to know that every time I make a one-sided decision, I had no other choice. These are UNMIK's regulations and I must respect them," stated Brenke, adding that he has good relations with the president, deputy president, and the chief executive in Prishtina. "We sometimes dine together, although not as often as I would like to. But, it is not bad this way either." "Thank you for reminding me of the promises I made. As far as the market behind the Youth Center is concerned, I want to repeat that we have discussed this issue at our last board meeting. We came to the conclusion that the best thing to do would be to transfer the market to the space between Prishtina and Fushë Kosova," stated Ramosaj adding that implementation of this project should not take long. "The municipal bodies have not done much, expect paint a few lines on the streets. So what do they have to be proud of? They have done practically nothing. All they did was finish several projects started long ago. They have many projects lying ahead," stressed Avdiu. "Not one part of Prishtina is blooming although this is possible. Of course we cannot expect miracles to take place. But the problem is that nothing has been done. The problem of illegal constructions has got worse," stressed Avdiu. "We were disappointed to find ourselves abandoned during the toughest times. If only I had an effective government, this issue would be forgotten in three months," said Ramosaj in efforts to justify himself, Zeri reported. "You will soon see a joint action against illegal constructions. We will never give up," stated Ramosaj with new optimism. Zeri reported that as soon as Brenke heard the words illegal construction, he burst out laughing and said that this is one of his favorite subjects. "When I first arrived in Prishtina, I made numerous efforts to do something about the illegal construction. But, right after we started taking measures against this phenomenon, our competencies were taken away from us," said Brenke, adding that it was the murder of lawyer Rexhep Luci that led to the suspension of actions. "At the time, the local government did not want to have problems because the local elections were underway and we were told not to take any action. If I ask whose fault it was for the actions to stagnate, it was partly mine. This is a very delicate issue, therefore I cannot talk about it in public," stressed Brenke. Brenke was reported as saying that he disagreed with the way local staff sough to solve the problem of the illegal constructions. "They believe that they should begin destroying these buildings without warning, but what are they going to do if a court comes to the conclusion that they should not have done this," stressed Brenke. Ramosaj denied Brenke's stand that much responsibility on the issue of illegal constructions had been transferred to central government. "This is a local problem and therefore it the local administration's duty to deal with it. We are all aware of the fact that the implementation of actions against this phenomenon requires the cooperation of UNMIK, KFOR and the local administration," stated Ramosaj. But Avdiu argued that people are not doing their job because of lack of engagement, lack of experts and a lack of professionalism among local officials.
Koha Ditore on page four that operations in Pristina University Hospital had been cancelled due to a seminar taking place for the "advanced education of anesthesiologists". "We have one emergency case. A fourteen-year-old girl has appendicitis. But we have no anesthesiologist," said Dr. Murat Berisha. "This is no big deal. The Emergency Center is open nonstop and the team will deal with emergency cases. This was agreed with PUH," stressed Dr. Burbuqe Bruqi, who was taking part in the seminar. Doctors at the hospital could not agree whether it was right to cancel operations and whether the seminar harmed the interests of patients. "We were supposed to operate on a patient with a tumor on his liver. We have to operate immediately because every passing day worsens his situation. However, there is nothing we can do about it," stated Urologist Dr. Isa Haxhia. Another doctor said lectures should have been postponed until operations were finished. "This has never happened since I began to work here back in 83. We had many operations, but we had to cancel them all because our doctors have to attend the lectures," stressed Dr. Ahmeti. According to him, it is not important if the case is urgent or not, the point is that such a thing does indeed damage patients. "This is very difficult and wrong if we consider the psychological aspect. Patients are physically and mentally prepared to undergo their operation, this includes pre-op fasting. But then there is a change of plans at the last minute and the operation is postponed. You can imagine what an impact this can have on child patients and their parents," stated the doctor. "The Emergency Center is open 24 hours a day for every emergency. This is not an ordinary seminar. This is a very important seminar. It is a part of the program financed by the EAR for the advancement of anesthesiology in Kosovo," stated the Director of the Emergency Center Bajram Koci. "A seminar is absolutely no reason to drop scheduled programs," stated the Dean of the Medical Faculty, Riza Binishi. According to him, lectures could have taken place after the operations.
As political parties enter the second week of campaigning for the 17th November general elections, it seems that the international administration will remove the sole "economic giant of Kosovo", the Kosovo Power Corporation (KEK), from the debate, reported Koha Ditore on page one. Betty Dawson, spokeswoman for the Department of Public Services, confirmed Tuesday that the international administration is considering the possibility of managing the KEK, as is the case with "Hygiena Teknika," which is now being managed by international experts. Dawson also said that efforts to improve management include the option of strengthening the Executive Board with international experts. Quoting unofficial sources, the paper reported that Haekkerup has in front of him a document through which a foreign company would manage the KEK, however Dawson said that until now nothing has been signed and that discussions are ongoing. The options, on the other hand, have been announced in the weekly report of UNMIK Pillar Four, but it was then said that the contracts would require guaranteed funds from the European Agency for Reconstruction. Quoting well-informed sources, the paper said that 10 million euros have been secured for the stay of an unknown number of foreign experts in Kosovo. "The appointment of five foreign experts to the executive board was also foreseen in the latest draft of the statutes of the Kosovo Power Corporation," it was added. On the other hand, KEK officials expressed dissatisfaction with these options. A senior official of the corporation said that the Executive Board would not allow foreign experts to control the power capacities of Kosovo. "Now it is not a question on who will be on the Executive Board, but that they are Kosovars, Kosovo has human resources and experts for the job," he added. According to the same source, KEK would not rule out help from foreign experts, but they would have to meet certain conditions. "International experts have to be appointed based on a tender announced by KEK; they should serve as KEK staff and be paid by the corporation … even if their salaries are 17,000 DM and not the same as the salaries of our engineers," said the unidentified source. The international administration has justified the need for change because of delays in transforming the corporation into a profitable enterprise. "However, these excuses sound strange, given the fact that the international administration manages KEK through the Supervisory Board, which is led by Joe Trutschler, Koha Ditore commented.
Zëri on page nine carried a report from the meeting of UNMIK municipal administrators of Zone Six, which was held in Vitia. After a visit to the town of Vitia and the municipal administration, they talked about the work of the Vitia Assembly, the economical development and the further development of the local administration. Verdichio, regional administrator of Zone Six, said that the municipality, with its local administration and the integration of minorities in the institutional life, should serve as an example for all municipalities in Kosovo. "Our aim to develop a professional administration to European standards are running into a lot of problems," said Vitia mayor Samet Dalipi. "These difficulties are evident given huge unemployment, lack of finance, problems with Macedonia, and the boycotting of institutions by a section of the minorities in the municipality. However, in cooperation with UNMIK, we are working and trying to overcome these problems." Zoran Krcmarovic, Vitia deputy mayor, was quoted as saying: "little has been done, but there are positive steps towards the integration of the Serb minority in the institutional life. Thanks to the engagement of UNMIK and the structures of the municipality, Serb minority members have been employed in two social enterprises, and it is soon expected that 14 Serbs will also be employed in the local administration." ALBANIANS ALLEGE MISTREATMENT IN MITROVICA PRISON Albanian prisoners in the detention center in Serb-controlled northern Mitrovica went on a rampage on Monday. After breaking the doors of their cells, the prisoners used metal bars to demolish several other doors. Police later brought the situation under control, reported Zëri on page six. Bob Richards, spokesman for UNMIK Police, confirmed the event in northern Mitrovica during yesterday's press briefing. According to Richards, two Albanian prisoners cut their veins. Doctors later concluded that the prisoners suffered only slight injuries.
Marek Nowicki, the Ombudsperson of Kosovo, decided on Tuesday to launch investigations regarding the order of Kosovo Chief Administrator Hans Haekkerup to deny the right of candidacy for the future Kosovo Parliament to Emrush Xhemajli, Gafurr Elshani and Sabit Gashi, reported Koha Ditore on page eight. According to officials of the Ombudsperson's office, Nowicki includes information published in Kosovar media and at the same time relies on sources close to the named people involved. Zëri on page eight also carried a report related to the matter. The paper said that a delegation from the Ombudsperson's office comprised of Hilmi Jashari, director of investigations and Veton Vula, investigating lawyer, yesterday visited the seat of the Kosovo Popular Movement (LPK), where they were welcomed by party chairman Emrush Xhemajli and deputy chairman Gafurr Elshani. The goal of the visit was to inform the LPK leaders about the decision of Nowicki to launch investigations regarding the "arbitrary decision" by Haekkerup to remove Emrush Xhemajli and Gafurr Elshani from the LPK list of candidates. "It is not the first time that Haekkerup has made arbitrary decisions. The arbitrary decision to remove the names from the list of candidates, without any justification and proof, is unprecedented because it has no support either in Kosovar or international law," said the representatives of the Ombudsperson's office. Emrush Xhemajli was quoted as saying, "we received no written decision except for a verbal information from Ambassador Everts who expressed regret saying that he was powerless with regard Haekkerup's executive order. Up to this day, we still don't know the real reason why we were removed from the list." The same day, a LPK delegation led by Xhemajli and Elshani visited the office of the representative of the Council of Europe in Kosovo, Owen Masters, in order to show appreciation for his stance regarding the decision by Haekkerup. Owen once again expressed regret and added that the decision to deny the civic right to run for elections should be backed with convincing arguments, the newspaper reported. Owen reportedly told LPK leaders that he would try to meet Haekkerup and talk about the problem, as well as prepare a report on everything surrounding the matter.
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