15 November 2002

CONTENTS

Press coverage on police operation in northern Mitrovica

For half an hour, police expelled 'municipal officials' in N. Mitrovica (Koha)

Special police units have entered the Serb Municipal Assembly in northern Mitrovica on Thursday afternoon. The daily newspapers say that the police have asked the workers of the parallel institution to leave the building and to stop their illegal work. After the intervention of Polish special police units, a group of Serbs, mainly women and children have gathered in front of the municipality and protested against the intervention of UNMIK forces.

The intervention was also confirmed by Mitrovica UNMIK Police spokesperson Soji Idowu who refuted that anyone was arrested our injured during this operation. Idowu said additional information would make public Friday. He said that the action is continuing in the afternoon hours, other sources said that the intervention lasted only 45 minutes and that workers returned to their posts.

In a telephone conversation with Koha Ditore member of the Serb National Council for northern Kosovo Vladimir Rakic said that all this action happened without a warning or an official confirmation by UNMIK administration. "As SNC representative I went right away at the site and saw expelled workers from their offices," said Rakic and added that most of them were women and they were terrified by the brutal intervention of the special police unit. Rakic later on contacted regional deputy administrator and the municipal administrator in Mitrovica however neither could confirm as to what happened there.

"I was told to call Prishtina, to find out what happened in Mitrovica, I did not get an answer form Prishtina because they were also surprised with this action," said Rakic.

The action undertaken by UNMIK special police unit could not be confirmed neither by UNMIK regional spokesperson Gyorgy Kakuk.

Serb media have quoted Mitrovica Municipal Assembly Executive Council President as saying that neither UNMIK nor Belgrade had warned them about this action. He said that any agreement between federal government and UNMIK would be accepted however we have no knowledge that a plan for Mitrovica has approved by Yugoslav and Serb authorities. "We will stay in these offices until we are told differently by Serb Government whose officials we are," said Bratic.

Serb media evaluated that UNMIK Police action as a failed attempt for closing parallel Mitrovica Municipal Assembly. Head of the Coordinating Center for Kosovo Nebojsa Covic and member of the Kosovo Assembly Oliver Ivanovic also reacted. Both Serb representatives evaluated this to be a provocation by UNMIK Police before the visit of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan foreseen for Tuesday. Covic called Serbs in northern Mitrovica not to fall pray to such provocations and added that he will request from UNMIK chief administrator Michael Steiner an explanation for what happened Thursday. Covic warned that this could postpone talks that would lead to stabilizing the situation in Mitrovica.

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Police raids Serb 'municipality' in Mitrovica; UNMIK says it was a mistake (Zëri)

Zëri reports on the Mitrovica incident last night saying that it is not yet known who indicated the order. "It is clear that something went wrong," says UNMIK's spokesperson Susan Manuel.

Last night at approximately 1100 hrs, around 20 members of UNMIK special police units, with the support of KFOR and a helicopter have surrounded the building of the 'new Mitrovica municipal administration'.

The police told the staff members of this 'administration' to leave the building, and to interrupt the illegal work and the illegal use of the building.

Zëri reports that the staff members of this administration continued their work even after the deployment of international forces in Kosovo, in June 1999. The administration reportedly worked that date from the time of Slobodan Milosevic's regime. On the other hand, UNMIK has tolerated the work of this administration; even though their stance is that applicable laws in Kosovo should be those that date from 1989.

No incidents were reported during the police action. The action was undertaken five days prior to the visit of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to Mitrovica.

UNMIK officials in Mitrovica refused to comment on the operation of the international forces. "I don't have any comment for this operation," said the spokesman of the international administration, Gyorgy Kakuk.

Meanwhile, Soji Idowu, spokesman for UNMIK Police in Mitrovica said that the operation wasn't finished, but he refused to provide further details.

In opposition to the statement of UNMIK Police spokesman in Mitrovica, UNMIK spokeswoman Susan Manuel said that the 'Polish policemen, who are member of UNMIK Police special units, have undertaken an action which was not in line with police rules.'

"They (Polish policemen) have withdrawn from the building and have entered northern Mitrovica. The administration of UNMIK Police are investigating the circumstances in which the police have entered the building," said Manuel.

"Clearly, something went wrong," said Manuel, adding that disciplinary measures would be undertaken against those who worked in opposition with police procedures and rules. "We will determine this after the internal investigations."

Zëri also claims that Manuel didn't want to qualify the action as 'preparing ground' for Kofi Annan's visit to Mitrovica.

Polish special police units were attacked on 8 April this year by rebelled Serbs in northern Mitrovica. 22 Polish policemen were wounded during attacks with hand grenades and stones.

Zëri reportedly tried to talk with information officers of KFOR Multinational Brigade North, who refused to comment on the operation. They said they had to wait until they receive more details.

"We don't want to comment on this operation," was their response to the question on who commanded the operation, in which MNB soldiers are said to have taken place.

Three and a half years after the armed conflict in Kosovo, Mitrovica remains divided into two parts. Albanians in the south and Serbs in the north act with different administrations, and meanwhile UNMIK failed to extend its authority in the 'grey area'.

Commenting on the police action, Oliver Ivanovic, member of the Kosovo Assembly Presidency, was reportedly in favor of the status quo in Mitrovica. Ivanovic said that Steiner's plan doesn't lead Kosovo toward peace and prosperity.

"There was peace in Mitrovica for ten months and it seems that this bothers people who undertake such actions. If such moves would result with victims, tensions could last for months," Ivanovic threatened.

The Serb news agency SRNA said that the shutting down of the Serb municipal administration in northern Mitrovica was 'planned' in UNMIK's strategy to solve the Mitrovica issue and 'this was done on the advice of the International Crisis Group, which in May this year, said that force should be used to interrupt all activities of Serb institutions in the north which are not within the control of UNMIK or the provisional institutions of Kosovo'.

International sources in the meantime inform that this operation was part of UNMIK's fight against parallel structures in northern Mitrovica and Kosovo, especially now a week prior to the visit of the UN Secretary General, who should be shown that 'UNMIK has full control throughout the territory of Kosovo'.

On the other hand, Nebojsa Covic, chief of the so-called Coordination Center of Kosovo seated in Belgrade, said he was against UNMIK operations in northern Mitrovica and referred to them as 'dangerous provocations'. Covic also linked this with Annan's upcoming visit to Mitrovica.

"All those who try to forcefully establish something in Mitrovica will bear responsibility for eventual consequences. We are fed up with saying one thing and doing another," said Covic. He also added that he would demand further explanations from the Kosovo international administrator on what happened in Mitrovica on Thursday.

During the previous meetings he had with Steiner, the Serbian Deputy PM said he was in favor of dissolving parallel structures in Mitrovica.

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UNMIK special police ends work of Serb municipality in Mitrovica (Bota Sot)

Sources within UNMIK police in Mitrovica have confirmed that special UNMIK police forces have intervened in Serb local administration, which are operating illegally in northern Mitrovica since the end of the war until today. Soji Idowu said that the action is continuing and that police will release a communiqué Friday afternoon. According to him there was no incident and no one was arrested.

Sources from the Serb side inform that police demanded from the Serb employees to stop their illegal activities and not come any more there until this moment they worked without being stopped by police, KFOR or other international officials in Mitrovica. This intervention is tied with the visit of the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to Kosovo and evaluations that northern part of Mitrovica is not under UNMIK administration.

Are parallel structures at end in Mitrovica? (Kosova Sot)

UNMIK police special forces entered the premises of the parallel Serb municipality in northern Mitrovica that has been functioning as a parallel structure for the last three years. UNMIK spokesperson for Mitrovica Gyorgy Kakuk said shortly: "I don't have any comment, this is a police action". On the other hand Mitrovica UNMIK Police spokesperson Soji Idowu confirmed that this was a police intervention in the northern part of Mitrovica however he did not give any details saying that this an UNMIK issue and that the action is still continuing. "We will release a communiqué Friday afternoon to inform you about this," said Idowu.

Sources from the Serb side inform that special police forces of the UNMIK Polish battalion demanded from the Serb employees to leave the building however more than 100 employees of this parallel structure refused to leave. According to the same source the municipal employees did not want to leave the building because "we do not recognize any agreement unless is an agreement between UNMIK and Belgrade," said Serbs to Polish police officers.

The situation in northern Mitrovica is calm. Serb media have also reported about this intervention. Head of the Municipal Board Zoran Bratic told B92 "Members of the special police unit entered the Municipal Assembly building arrounf 11:00 and demanded from employees to leave the building. Soldiers entered angrily however after our explanations they left and bid us farewell," said Bratic. He stressed that Serb members had to leave the municipal in August 1999, which is situated in southern part of the town. After this we formed the independent municipality in the building that belonged to Road Company.

Covic evaluated that the action by UNMIK Police and KFOR is a dangerous provocation. He places this intervention with the planned visit by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to show that the situation is graver than in reality.

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Polish UNMIK Police entered Serb parallel municipal building in Mitrovica (Epoka e Re)

Polish UNMIK Police entered Thursday the building where Serb municipality is situated in northern Mitrovica. They demanded that employees leave the building however the employees refused to do so. Special police unit left the building after 20 minutes and Serb employees remained inside. Around 11:30 polish police forces were seen again in front of public enterprise "Direkcija" where Serb municipal administration and Executive Board of the parallel Serb assembly is seated. President of the board Zoran Bratic told Serb news agency Beta "They (municipal administration) have no information if they are to leave the building neither by UNMIK or Belgrade". He said that they would accept any agreement achieved "by federal government and UNMIK chief administrator Michael Steiner". Bratic said that he has no knowledge that Yugoslav and Serb authorities have compiled a plan for Mitrovica. "We will stay jeer until someone form the Serb government informs us differently, for whom we actually work," said Bratic.

Municipal administration is controlled by Serbs and according to previous municipal administrator they were transferred from southern part of the town inhabited mostly by Albanians to the northern side inhabited mostly by Serbs. According to Beta the streets of northern Mitrovica are calm and there are no signs of nervousness. There are no groups gathering or reinforcements of patrol by international forces.

UNMIK Spokeswoman Susan Manuel said Thursday that disciplinary measures would be undertaken because of the intervention by the UNMIK police special unit.

UNMIK Police enters Serb parallel municipal building in Mitrovica (24 Orë)

UNMIK Police forces entered Thursday the building of the parallel Serb municipal in northern Mitrovica that has been functioning for the last three years. UNMIK spokesperson in Mitrovica Gyorgy Kakuk did not have any comments. He said briefly that this was a police action. While UNMIK Police spokesperson in Mitrovica Soji Idowu only confirmed that an operation is going on in northern Mitrovica however he could not give any details, stressing that this issue concerns UNMIK.

According to sources from northern Mitrovica, UNMIK special police forces demanded from Serb employees to leave their offices, around 100 Serb employees refused to do so. According to the source the employees said they would leave the office only if there is an agreement between UNMIK and Belgrade. This action is continuing.

Shala: Rebellion and illegal authority (Zëri)

Zëri carries a column by editor Blerim Shala who comments on yesterday's action of special police forces in northern Mitrovica. Shala wrote:

The frequency of news coming from northern Mitrovica in the recent days is proving that this town is once again in the center of political developments in Kosovo.

The latest news is the intervention of UNMIK Police is in the building that serves like the center of 'The municipality of northern Mitrovica'. It is known what were the reactions of Serb politicians from Mitrovica and Serbia after the action of the police.

It is difficult to understand what indeed happened in northern Mitrovica on Thursday, but it is very easy to say what should happen there or what shouldn't have happened there. Tolerance for a parallel authority is a huge mistake of the international administration. No justification is good in this respect.

Now, after the 26 October local elections, the situation in Mitrovica is even clearer. The sole legal authority is the one that derives from the free vote. Any other authority in Mitrovica is illegal.

This is a basic lesson of democracy and not much time should be spent in explaining such things. Whether this action is related to the arrival of the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in Kosovo is not important. What is important is the fact that based on all indicators, circumstances are being created in which there will be no more tolerance for parallel authorities which have the form of a rebellion against UNMIK and Kosovar authorities.

Whether this action is related to the arrival of the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in Kosovo is not important. What is important is the fact that based on all indicators, circumstances are being created in which there will be no more tolerance for parallel authorities which have the form of a rebellion against UNMIK and Kosovar authorities.

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These are the achievements of Kosovo justice system (Kosova Sot)

Kosova Sot carried an interview with head of UNMIK Pillar I Jean Christian Cady.

Mr. Cady according to local experts the main challenge for police authorities is the lack of two laws, Law on Penal Procedure and Kosovo Penal Law.
We have been working for a long time in Kosovo Law on Penal Procedure and Kosovo Penal Law and before the end of the year these two documents will be finished. This will be a big improvement because judges, prosecutors and police will one single text that will refer to, given the fact that that for the moment the legal situation is very complex. We have UNMIK regulations and former Yugoslav applicable laws and they are very compatible with standards on human rights.

There are some that say that political decisions have intervened in the judicial system.
The system is not different from the one in Denmark or Switzerland. They also have a police and justice minister and it has to be clear that they never give an order to a judge or a prosecutor. All our efforts are concentrated in forming an independent judicial system from influencing from political circles and other independent persons. This is the essence of our mandate, to have an independent jurisdiction and capable of doing its job.

What has been achieved in consolidating judicial system?
We can say that we have achieved a lot, because we have individual Prosecutor and Judicial Councils, which are in charge of hiring judges and prosecutors and at the same time cab start disciplinary measures against them. I have to remind that local judges handle 90% of penal cases and 100% of civil cases. We have 340 local judges and prosecutors, internationals are a limited number. We have 26 international judges and prosecutors who deal with organized crime, war crimes and crimes that are tied with entities.

What is the map of organized crime in Kosovo?
We are investigating organized crime spread in these fields: Weapon smuggling, cigarette smuggling, prostitution, narcotics and money laundering. These are main fields where organized crime is included. We attempting to gather precise information so they can be used as evidence and bring the criminals before a court. However people should not forget that fight against organized crime is a process that takes time and if we are successful in one field we move on to the other. We have signed agreements with Albania, Macedonia and Serbia in fighting organized crime, and we also are included in Interpol in exchanging information. Because in most of the cases their criminals are also our criminals. Crime doesn't have borders, doesn't recognize ethnic differences. Criminals recognize one thing only the money the get from criminal activities.

Do you believe that there are adequate mechanisms for fighting economic crime?
We are in the last phase of compiling a regulation of money laundering. Such a regulation would enable more success in fighting economic crime. I have to stress that fighting organized crime isn't the duty of UNMIK police officers we want these competencies are carried to KPS. However we have to have in consideration that this is dangerous work especially for Kosovars, thus we have to be very cautious regarding this issue so KPS members or their families become subject of threats.

Have there been such threats?
Not that I know. We know of the existing danger and thus we do not want to take chances.

Which will be the activities of the unit Guardia di Financia?
This is a unit that that will do financial inspections. If we notice administrative irregularities then this unit will raise indictments in local courts. This will be the main unit in fighting corruption. We want that future Kosovo administration and authorities are on the right path. We want for them to be fully respected by the people of Kosovo and public funds are used properly. This is how we have to fight corruption every single day because this is one the plagues that has hit every nation in the world.

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Kosovar leaders say they will represent Kosovo with dignity (Zëri)

Zëri reports that Kosovo Prime Minister Bajram Rexhepi, Assembly Speaker Nexhat Daci, AAK leader Ramush Haradinaj and Skender Hyseni, advisor to Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova have left yesterday afternoon from Prishtina Airport to Luzerne, Switzerland, where they will participate in the conference 'Albanians and their neighbors: is status quo acceptable? Alternative for the future', organized by the US institute Project for Ethnic Relations.

US Head of Office Reno Harnish will accompany the Kosovar delegation to Luzerne.

Zëri reports that Fatmir Limaj will represent the Kosovo Democratic Party (PDK) in Luzerne, since party leader Hashim Thaçi has some immediate obligations.

Before flying for Switzerland, PM Rexhepi said that due to the concept of the conference in Luzerne there would be talks on the relations between Albanians and their neighbors and there would be an assessment on tensions between ethnicities in Kosovo and the region.

Assembly Speaker Nexhat Daci was quoted as saying, "Kosovo has a joint project, and we will try to represent the cause of Kosovo with dignity. This is the first time that Albanians are presenting their most powerful formation and we will try to do our job," said Daci.

Zëri reports that Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Nebojsa Covic is already in Switzerland, and the representatives of Kosovo Serbs, Rada Trajkovic and Oliver Ivanovic, have confirmed their participation.

Based on the material offered by the organizer, the conference will tackle the way of how to approach a solution for Kosovo's final status, the creation of an integrated multiethnic society in Macedonia, the role of Europe and the US in supporting and developing peace in the region, the status of Albanians in Montenegro, the role of Albania in the region as well as the Euro-Atlantic integration of the region.

The sessions of the two-day conference will be closed for the media, while once a session is over there will be a press briefing.

The conference will be chaired by Allen Kassof, chairman of the Project for Ethnic Relations.

Kosovar experts and UNMIK officials discuss decentralization (Zëri)

Zëri carries a report from the debate organized by the Center for Political and Social Studies on the topic 'Decentralization in Kosovo'. The debate was held at the National Library in Prishtina.

Zëri claims that human rights activist Adem Demaçi, Bernard Zeneli, chief of the Department of Political Sciences and Arsim Bajrami, professor of Constitutional Law, said that chief administrator Michael Steiner was not so clear in the presentation of his plan on decentralization.

"The concept that Steiner presented was not very clear, especially its fourth point," Bernard Zeneli was cited as saying.

Arsim Bajrami said that it should be taken into consideration whether decentralization will be implemented according to the European concept or the Kosovar concept, whether there will be decentralization or enclavization and which concept of decentralization will be more functional in Kosovo.

UNMIK spokeswoman Susan Manuel, who also participated in the debate, said that 'this plan will not be something that the international community wants to impose on Kosovo'.

Bajrami, on the other hand, said that decentralization was being imposed prior to the solution for the final status. According to Bajrami this could be perceived as a concession for the Serb minority in Kosovo, 'which lately are very destructive and have boycotted the elections, which leaves one to understand that there can be peaceful discussions on the issue'. Bajrami also said that the concept of decentralization has ethnic rather than civic nuances.