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01 December 2002, Sunday Edition
CONTENTS
· Steiner:
We will have legitimate structures in entire Kosovo (Bota Sot/Koha
Ditore)
· In Brussels
to stop rumors about Kosovo (Koha Ditore)
· Hague says
that we are close to the moment when a Kosovar Albanian will be indicted
(Koha Ditore)
· Bates: UNMIK,
give local government to the people (Koha Ditore)
Note : Simon Haselock's rebuttal in yesterday's media was in response
to Nexhmedin Spahiu and not Faruk Spahiu.
Steiner: We will have legitimate structures in
entire Kosovo (Bota Sot/Koha Ditore)
Both dailies report on SRSG Michael Steiner's visit to northern Mitrovica
yesterday. Koha Ditore based on Beta news, quotes chief administrator
Steiner as saying that it is the right time for the start of a Belgrade
- Prishtina dialogue after the presidential elections in Serbia, and local
elections in Kosovo.
Talking to the Serbian journalists, north of the Ibër river, Steiner said that Prishtina and Belgrade stances on the future of Kosovo are different, but the final status of Kosovo will depend on the fulfillment of international standards, says Koha Ditore.
UNMIK chief accompanied by his mother Julia and his team, had a coffee with Serb journalists in 'Crna Dama' cafeteria, reports Beta.
Chief Administrator Steiner repeated that the aim of the international mission is a multiethnic Kosovo, and that everyone who wants to return to his home should be able to do so. "This is the right of all the IDPs in Kosovo and of those that are temporarily in Serbia," SRSG Michael Steiner was quoted as saying.
Based on Beta news, Koha Ditore says that chief administrator Steiner said that there will be no hastening or unorganized steps on the return of IDPs. "If we don't manage multi-ethnicity in Kosovo, this means that our mission has failed and we don't want this," SRSG Steiner was quoted as saying in Koha Ditore.
Beta further says that Steiner expressed his dissatisfaction on the Kosovo Assembly's work, therefore he established the OSCE Commission to monitor Parliament activities.
Further, Koha Ditore quotes SRSG Michael Steiner as saying that "We will monitor Assembly work and if regulations are not respected I will react. I can only help if the readiness for participation in institutions exists".
Koha says Albanian journalists could not follow Stener's visit to northern Mitrovica, since they were not allowed to go to the northern part of the city.
Bota Sot reports that on his return from the northern part of Mitrovica, chief administrator Steiner told Albanian journalists that "What we want is to have legitimate structures in entire Kosovo and we will have them here in Mitrovica. This is in the interest of all."
Further this daily quotes SRSG Michael Steiner as saying that "I think that people in the north are getting friendlier, they expect a lot from us and they understand that it is for their good to have legitimate structures. I think that if we are patient, we will have progress".
Just like every other visit to Mitrovica, chief administrator Steiner stopped at the Mitrovica market, this time with his mother, says Bota Sot.
Koha Ditore says that Mitrovica citizens call chief administrator Steiner "the Saturday visitor", and adds that different from the other times, yesterday Mitrovica citizens had some tough questions for SRSG Michael Steiner.
In Brussels to put an end to rumors about Kosovo
(Koha Ditore)
Koha Ditore reports that a Kosovo Assembly delegation left on Saturday
for Brussels. Members of the delegation, Assembly chairman Daci, Hydajet
Hyseni, Oliver Ivanovic, Ramush Haradinaj and Hilmo Kandiq will stay there
until the 3rd of December and will meet with a group of EU Parliamentarians
from the Commission for Cooperation with southeastern Europe, lead by
deputy Doris Pack.
Koha Ditore says that the subject of these meetings will be the position
of the minorities in Kosovo, the work of the Kosovar institutions and
of the international administration.
This daily quotes Assembly chairman Daci as saying at the airport that
"I hope that this visit is opening a channel of direct representation
of parliament and Kosovo institutions towards European integration".
Daci added that "There are many rumors for Kosovo and its institutions.
This would be a good chance to inform of Kosovo's course and the problems
that we have had for one year of the functioning of Kosovo's institutions.
We consider this visit to be profitable and we are prepared to represent
Kosovo and its interests with dignity".
Kosovo Assembly chairman said that he would ask the EU deputies for help on eventual assembly failures.
Hyseni was quoted as saying that this visit is a good chance to present once again the truth on Kosovar reality to the European Parliament. "The path of Kosovo's Parliament is integration and becoming part of the EU Parliament," Hyseni was quoted as saying in Koha Ditore.
Haradinaj reportedly said that Kosovars in Brussels will try not only to give information but also to show the achievements that have been made in Kosovo.
This delegation will also meet with the chief of the group for Balkans
in Inter-Parliamentarian Union at Belgium's Federal Parliament.
The Hague says that we are close to the moment
when a Kosovar Albanian will be indicted (Koha Ditore)
Koha Ditore carries an article by its correspondents in Brussels and in
Berlin, Beqë Cufaj and Augustin Palokaj, on the Hague Tribunal indictments.
This daily says that unlike other countries of the region, where governments
are accused of not cooperating with the Tribunal, its Prosecution will
not have this problem in Kosovo since UNMIK is the government there and
arrests are expected to be performed by KFOR.
Koha says that Carla Del Ponte's problem is to find witnesses and enough proof to raise charges against Albanians. Most of the 'facts' against Albanians come from Serbian authorities, and it would be a mistake to raise charges based only on their testimonies and lose the case later, says Koha Ditore.
Considering the number of the Serb crimes in Kosovo, raising of charges against the Albanians would be painful for Kosovars, says Koha Ditore. This can not only bring immediate irritation for the Hague Tribunal's work but can also cause turbulence and the raising of political and inter-ethnicity tensions in Kosovo. Due to this fact, it seems that KFOR and UNMIK are preparing different options. Pushed by Belgrade political pressures and, it seems, by some western governments, Del Ponte has set herself the goal of raising charges against at least one Kosovar Albanian by the end of this year. Sources at The Hague Tribunal told Koha Ditore that December would be the month when charges against one Kosovo Albanian will be raised. The other two indictments that Carla Del Ponte spoke about in Prishtina are not being mentioned here, say Koha Ditore correspondents.
Even Though the Hague Tribunal might have sufficient evidence on some ex-KLA warrior, this step will definitely have political character, or at least it would be considered as such. Negative reaction of Albanians would prove that The Tribunal is not biased. Koha Correspondents consider this to be an irony and they add that the Hague Tribunal has played such balancing games before in other cases of conflicts in ex-Yugoslavia.
Bates: UNMIK, give local government to the people (Koha Ditore)
Koha Ditore carries an article by Scott Bates, Foreign Policy advisor
to congressman Jim Turner. Bates says:
The main mission of the UNMIK, as stated in Resolution 1244, is to provide
"meaningful self-government" for the people of Kosova. After
three years we can now say that the UNMIK must move quicker to live up
to its mandate, or risk being a failure.
UNMIK has many accomplishments of which it can be proud. Men and women
came from every corner of the world to give a hand to the people of Kosova
in their time of crisis. They stood with you in the first cold winter
after the war, helping provide new housing, health care and basic services
that had been disrupted from war and forty years of bad service from Belgrade.
Now we are at a new stage in the development of Kosova. The immediate
needs of emergency food relief , massive road construction and housing
have been met. The war related crisis has passed. The challenge today
is to make sure that Kosova is self sufficient. Strong enough to stand
on its own two feet and have a future in which her children will have
the greatest opportunities.
However, some of the international bureaucrats of UNMIK do not seem to
understand that their mission at this stage is to put Kosovars in leadership
positions and let them have real power, or as the UN calls it, "meaningful
self-government". The first place to start is with the municipal
governments.
Some in the international community were surprised to learn that voter
turnout for the recent municipal elections had dropped compared to two
years ago. Why should they be surprised. Because the UNMIK has kept control
of municipal government for itself, many Kosovars believed that their
vote would make no real difference in their daily lives. As for the municipal
councilors, they were able to say to the voters, "of course we could
not solve your problems, we are not responsible, it is the fault of UNMIK.
This is a bad situation for the UNMIK which gets blamed for the failings
of local officials, it is a bad situation for local officials who want
to make a difference but are frustrated by UNMIK bureaucracy and it is
bad for the voters of Kosova who have no one they can hold accountable
for their actions at a local level.
This situation could be solved as a package deal. Herr Steiner's decentralization
initiative promises to put some local decision making in the hands of
minority communities, and that is a good thing. Let's be honest with ourselves,
if Kosova was made up of only 5% Albanians, I think most Albanians would
feel more comfortable if they had decentralized government where they
could feel secure that they could decide on some of the basic issues in
their life.
It is time that minorities receive some self-government at the local level
in Kosovo, and it is long past time that Kosovars begin to take their
destiny in their own hands and control their own municipal assemblies.
Therefore, a condition for the acceptance of a decentralization plan should
be that UNMIK administrators turn over all decision making to municipal
assemblies.
I have spoken to some internationals who say, "they are not ready,
the municipal councilors have not been trained". My friends, if we
applied this standard to all elected officials, we would be forced to
remove half of the local officials in the United States. In America, we
chose our leaders, make our decisions, make our mistakes and accept responsibility.
We do not make faceless bureaucrats responsible, we elect men and women
who are responsible to us. If the garbage is not being picked up, we complain
to the elected official. If the poor service continues, then we vote against
them at the next election. It is as simple as that.
If the standard of progress is perfection, then UNMIK will never leave.
Perhaps Kosovo's municipal governments may not function exactly like those
in Stockholm or just like the theory of a Professor from Paris. But I
think all patriotic Kosovars would accept the learning that only comes
from doing things yourself and sometimes making a mistake, over continued
rule by international bureaucrats at the local government level.
To my international friends I say this- your mission is a failure unless
you allow Kosovars to run their own affairs. How many trainings does it
take. If you have not provided the guidance and support over the course
of three and a half years that is necessary to live up to the mandate
of Resolution 1244 and give "meaningful self government"- then
get out and let someone else do the job.
You can best help by providing support and advice, when asked by Kosovars.
You can remain responsible for the aid dollars that are provided by doing
periodic audits of local government accounts. If there are cases of corruption
by local officials- then people will go to jail and the money will be
cut off. It is all about responsibility and respect. Treat people with
respect and they will act responsibly. It is time for a new way forward.
Kosovo Press Headlines
Koha Ditore
Front page
· Hague says that moment for an indictment against an Albanian
is coming
· Mother Teresa's secret diary discovered
· Steiner: Northern Serbs' will to integrate is increasing
· In Brussels, to prevent rumors on Kosovo
· Minister defers, student union unsatisfied
· Meta dismisses two government officials
Other Headlines
· 'Bridge watchers' insult and threaten Albanian journalists in
presence of internationals (2)
· Steiner:It is the right time for Prishtina-Belgrade dialogue
(2)
· Dnevnik: Kosovo's criminals shelter in Macedonia (3)
· Tahiri: Kosovo issue cannot be resolved by putting it in or out
of Serbian constitution
· Bajrami: Decoding the code (4)
· November, month of historical turns for Albanians (4)
· Customs to return money to factories with one condition (5)
· KEK saves import for January (5)
· Hofmann: It is important that Kosovo is going towards Europe
(8)
· Flacher: Internationals didn't bring prostitution here (8)
· Dubrava prisoners stop their strike (8)
· Demiri: Statute defect or not sharing responsibility (9)
· Three million euro for 3000 square meters for the hospital in
Gjakova (9)
· Tolaj: Wrong doers should by caught by justice hand (10)
· Godo: Why don't you come to Albania Mr. Rugova? (10)
· Mitrovica: Not every mean justifies the aim, Mr. Haselock (11)
· EU doesn't know which are "Yugoslavian" borders (11)
Bota Sot
Front page
· Chancellor Shroeder, Minister of Foreign Affairs - Fischer thank
Rugova
· Steiner: We will have legitimate structures in entire Kosovo
· Terrorist act against PSHDK Rrok Berisha's family
· Rexhepi and Thaçi left out of VIP room in Rinas
· National Bota Sot returns in Macedonia as a winner
· Change of border without participation of Kosovo institutions
unacceptable for Debellde dwellers
· Is Kosovo Assembly missing opposition?
Other headlines
· Mitrovica - Kosovo's economical metropole (2)
· Hoffman: No where is better than in Kosovo (2)
· Osmani: Game with political nuances (3)
· Rajnhardt visits German KFOR troops and meets local leaders (4)
· Fletcher: Kosovo continues to progress, crisis is its history
(4)
· Kosovo's economy discriminated by neighboring countries (4)
· Meta dismisses two officials (5)
· Will Drateks as the only industrial enterprise in Dragash survive?
(6)
· Three political entities in Ulcinj (7)
· Robertson: Do the reforms and fight trafficking (8)
· Students to pay 100 euro each year (9)
· Çagllavica Serbs attack Kosovatrans bus (9)
· Reorganizing of KFOR troops expected in January (9)
· Macedonia: Why was Flag Day celebrated without a flag? (11)