CONTENTS: 10 Nov. 2001

SURROI: THE HASTINESS OF THE LAST WORD
SERBS PROTEST AGAINST THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

SURROI: THE HASTINESS OF THE LAST WORD

Koha Ditore on page ten carried a column by Veton Surroi.

"My response to the reaction of Professor Ymer Muhaxheri is that Haekkerup and Covic's document points out Belgrade's rights in caring for the minority it considers to be its own.

1.Kosovo's Parliament and the Ministry of Education will make decisions that concern Serbs in the field of education. These two bodies are supposed to make Kosovo Serbs' education compatible with those in Serbia. The request for the compatibility of Serbs' education is not only a European practice, but has also a human rights obligation. An independent Kosovo will have the same obligation. It is important for Kosovo that the education of Kosovo Serbs not be turned into an ideological burden. A joint commission to compile texts can deal with this issue in the future. Poland and Germany are the best examples of rewriting the texts of the past. For Kosovo, it would be of interest if the education system is compatible with the Kosovar system of education in the Albanian municipalities in Southern Serbia.
2.Belgrade has the right to be politically engaged in the process of increasing the number of Serb members in the Kosovar courts, police, etc. A right of the minorities is an international right and a part of relations among states. But this does not give Belgrade the right to appoint these people or chose the judicial or administrative system in which they will be working. This is the exclusive job of Kosovar institutions and UNMIK.
3.Belgrade has the right to request for the dissemination of information in the Serbian language. You can buy the 'International Herald Tribune' or 'Die Zeit' in Kosovo, therefore you should also be able to buy a Belgrade or Novi Sad based newspaper. Just like there is no reason for Albanian newspapers not to be sold in Presevo Valley.
4.It is true that the document mentions the Republic of Serbia and FRY, but this is a problem for Belgrade. Kosovo needs to be in contact with its neighbors, especially Belgrade, because the conflict with Belgrade has not come to an end yet. And it is up to Serbs to decide whose capital city Belgrade will be.
5.From what I have read today, the high working group has turned into a great problem for a commentator of a youth paper, who also took part in compiling the Constitutional Framework. As far as this man is concerned, Belgrade is using the group to institutionalize its presence in Kosovo. To be frank, Kosovo Serbs will participate in the elections only because Belgrade governors told them to. They do not feel as if they are a part of the new Kosovo. Their feelings resemble those of many minorities in the world during the process of creating a new state. We do not have to be very smart to figure out that Belgrade will attempt to instruct and advise the future members of Kosovo's Parliament and ministers in government. This was made possible by the parliamentary democracy and not by UNMIK Administrator Hans Haekkerup's signature in the document. A very difficult and long process of turning Kosovo into the motherland of Kosovo Serbs lies ahead of us. This process includes making Kosovo Serbs defend the interests of Kosovo and not those of Belgrade governors.
From this point of view, the 'Trojan Horse' did not emerge out of the high working group, but from the Constitutional Framework, which was compiled by Albanian and international experts. The Constitutional Framework automatically guaranteed the position of a minister to an ethnic Serb, elected by a bunch of Kosovo Serb Parliamentarians. Who guarantees that this minister will not take the advice of Covic or someone else from Belgrade? Maybe the compilers of the Framework forgot to say that it is forbidden for Kosovo's future Serb minister to take instructions from Belgrade. What can this high working group do? The group will do whatever its members want it to do. It would be of interest if its members touch on the issue of the hostages, the missing, personal funds that Serbia stole and the damages committed in Kosovo before and after the war. There is no point in establishing the group, if Belgrade expects Albanians to accept the debate regarding the localization of Serb police in Kosovo. I hope that we will get the chance to discuss all these issues, including the high working group, once Kosovo's Parliament is constituted and the priorities of the sides that have won the election are clear.
6. The current public irritation about this agreement will be old news in a few days. What will remain is the feeling of panic, which has resulted from the lack of debate within our society, an issue which UNMIK is very much responsible for and also due to the political immaturity of those who say their last word first.

SERBS PROTEST AGAINST THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

Kosova Sot on page seven reported about a protest that took place in Northern Mitrovica, in which approximately three thousand Serbs demonstrated against the international community and Belgrade.

According to UNMIK Spokesman in Mitrovica, Georgy Kakuk, the protestors accused the international community of not guaranteeing free movement for Kosovo Serbs, and the Yugoslav authorities for calling for Serb participation in the elections in Kosovo. Furthermore, the protestors criticized the leaders of the Serb coalition "Povratak", which has launched its electoral campaign for the elections in Kosovo.