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UNMIK-KFOR-UNMIK Police Press Briefing, 27 August 2001 UNMIK Spokesman Simon Haselock Simon Haselock Registration As I think many of you are already aware both President Kostunica and Prime Minister Djindjic have now called on Serbs to register. Clearly we welcome these statements. Although we note that they all still reserve judgment on participation in the elections themselves, all three principal political figures in the FRY have now come out unequivocally in saying that Kosovo Serbs should register. This of course means that they will have kept their options open and will be able to vote if they so wish when the time comes. That is good news. IAC The IAC which normally takes place on Tuesday, is taking place as we speak. Mr. Haekkerup will brief the IAC members on the his talks with Mr. Covic. Sqrdn. Ldr. Roy Brown Task Force Harvest Although the focus of the media and world attention has, primarily, been on events on the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the deployment of Task Force Harvest, there have been a number of noteworthy events in Kosovo this past week that have kept KFOR units fully occupied. Prizren Statues In Prizren, we have seen large scale protests against the decision of the local Municipal Assembly to stop the construction of two memorials. After the first of these protests turned violent KFOR has operated closely with UNMIK-Police to ensure that those that followed passed off peacefully. We have continued with our framework operations, conducting a series of housed searches throughout Kosovo, many of which resulted in the confiscation of weapons and ammunition. FYROM But it is the events on the border with the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia that I want to concentrate on this morning. While TFH prepared to collect weapons, voluntarily handed over by the so-called NLA, KFOR has maintained a strong presence along the border in order to interdict the movement of the men and material of violence. This policy has resulted in the detention since Friday morning, of a total of 149 individuals, (96 of them last night), all suspected members of the so-called NLA, that have illegally crossed into Kosovo. We have no intention of allowing these people to utilize Kosovo as a safe haven or as a hiding place for their weapons. On Friday morning, one group that had illegally crossed into Kosovo, near Gorance, opened fire on the KFOR patrol that challenged them. Let me make it quite clear; KFOR has a legitimate roll to play here in Kosovo and challenges to our presence will not be tolerated. The actions of the soldiers, in this case, were absolutely correct and serve as a timely reminder that any attack on KFOR will be met with a robust appropriate and proportional response. Fortunately, this incident appears to have been the exception to the norm. By far the majority of the individuals, we have detained, crossed the border at Muciat Mahala; many have been found to be in possession of items or documents indicating membership of the so-called NLA and only a few were in possession of weapons. All indications are that these individuals have been disbanded and, having left their weapons and equipment in the FYROM, have been released by their commanders to make their way home. There is no indication that weapons are being moved into Kosovo by the so-called NLA to prevent their collection by TFH. Other News Tomorrow sees the start of works to improve the "Northern" Line of Communication through Kukes to Durres in Albania. This is an important development for the region. It comes as a result of lengthy negotiations with the Albanian Ministry of Transportation. The represents a significant financial commitment by NATO, which is fully funding the first tranche of works at a cost of DM 930 000. There are seven projects in the first tranche of works, which is expected to be completed before the onset of winter. And finally, after a somewhat protracted deployment phase, the forces of the Operational Rehearsal, RAPID CHEETAH are now all in theatre. E Company of the 24th MEU took over from elements of the Polish / Ukraine Battalion at Camp Seminole yesterday. They will be joined, in their allocated Area of Responsibility, by the rest of the force and begin to conduct framework operations in the next 24 -48 hours. Dean Olson KPS Assaults There has been a dramatic increase of threats and assaults against KPS officers in the last few weeks. There have been no less than 25 assaults and threats made against KPS officers performing their duties and one attempt on a KPS officer's life when a motorist attempted to kill a KPS officer with his vehicle after receiving a traffic citation. We have highlighted these dishonourable acts of violence against the KPS before. But nowhere have we heard voices of support for them from their own people. We cannot begin to express our concern at this flagrant disregard for the law and the officers who represent the communities of Kosovo. It is a serious crime to threaten an entire community, and that is exactly what people are doing when they threaten the officers who represent them. They are damaging the stability and the prosperity of Kosovo when they attempt to hold themselves greater than the law. When one of these criminals attacks a KPS officer, they are attacking the community which they serve. Those who condone this behaviour are the enemies of their own people. We call on all community leaders to actively voice their support for the KPS officers who are working for the future of Kosovo, and to condemn anyone who would threaten their police officers. This will only continue if it is tolerated. Do not tolerate it. Traffic accidents There were five people killed yesterday and four people injured in various accidents throughout Kosovo. The death toll for traffic accidents in Kosovo now stands at 123, up 8 from last week, and the number of injuries now stands at 1028, up 43 from last week when we asked everyone to attend the presentation of the educational program that the KPS will be involved in presenting to primary school children. We were disappointed to see that none of the local press was in attendance at the Road Safety presentation on Friday. The presentation was free of charge, by the way. No cost for admission. No contracts to sign. No blood taken. No needles used. Yet no one showed up. We cannot highlight enough the importance of spreading that word that innocents are at risk and that measures must be taken to ensure the safety of all the citizens of Kosovo. These tragedies are surely preventable. This should have been of particular interest to parents. This affects you all. Children, if not properly educated about road safety, are completely defenceless when it comes to the hazards of manoeuvring through traffic. These losses of life do not need to happen. Last week we were asked what UNMIK Police was doing to discourage reckless driving. To date, 135,210 traffic tickets have been issued since the beginning of the year. This is not counting the estimated 500 or so tickets that may be included from yesterday. Law enforcement cannot do this alone. We need your help. We are desperate for your help, both in spreading the word that this kind driving is reprehensible and that anything that can safeguard your children is worthy of your time. Weekly Summary of Statistics This week 4 murder was reported, 9 aggravated assaults, 8 kidnappings, 4 cases of arson, a total of 117 arrests, and of those arrests, five were for murder, two were for attempted murder, two for grievous assault, five for kidnapping, and two for rape. Questions: Q: Will there be a screen-and-release policy with the border with the
FYROM, like happened in Presevo Valley when the UCPMB surrendered
weapons? Q: In the NLA agreement signed by Peter Feith it says that the NLA
soldiers could hand over their weapons to KFOR on the Kosovo border and
they will not be pressed. Is this true? Q: Any indication that they are trying to move weapons from Macedonia
into Kosovo? Q: Total number of people that have been detained so far?
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