28 October 2002

CONTENTS

Post-election murder (Zëri)

Zëri carries an editorial by Bardh Hamzaj who says that every human being has the right to express his happiness for victory or sadness for loss, but people should still respect for each other and firearms should be out of question. He says that not only the families of the victims but all of Kosovo lost with the post election killings in Suhareka.

At the moment when Kosovars and internationals were happy about another extremely peaceful and correct election campaign, elections of the highest western standard, the news about the murder of municipal chairman Ukë Bytyçi and his two associates in Suhareka/Suva Reka comes as the worst curse on Kosovo.

What can one say now? If this were a normal society, despite all the praying for the peace of the souls of those who will be berried, we would feel slightly relieved if we understood that a suspect had been arrested, hoping that justice would be set in motion.

But we have to admit that we are still not such a society. Because if we were, we would know that each and every one of us has the right to be happy for victory in any business in his life. Or, the opposite, to be angry when understanding that he has lost something. And in both cases people should be able to respect each other.

But arms have nothing to do with any of these cases, but even this is not clear among us. Therefore, from yesterday, Kosovo no longer has an individual who just a day before was freely elected by the vote of the citizens to lead the municipality. And, of course, besides the loss to their families, this harms Kosovo and the process it is in right now. What happened yesterday in Leshan, Suhareka, is fatal. Nothing could be more fatal.

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Surroi: Elections: A loss for many, a victory for only a few (Koha Ditore)

Koha Ditore carries an op-ed piece by publisher Veton Surroi, who comments on the murder of an LDK leader in Suhareka and the voter turnout for the municipal elections. He asks whether or not Kosovo is entering a grey political zone.

1. Murder that kills

As I am writing these lines with the intention of analyzing the municipal elections, I receive the news on the murder of the LDK activist in Therandë, Ukë Bytyçi, and two of his associates.

I was planning to write about the losers in these municipal elections and a certain victory for all of us, but Ukë Bytyçi's murder is definitively a loss. Not only the loss of his life, but also a collective loss, because there are no elections or election results that can compensate for a human life. There is no party victory worth the sacrifice of a human life and no party loss that can justify taking a life as compensation.

Kosovo has lost with Ukë Bytyçi's murder. It has lost the life of an activist and the rightfully created image of a country that considers elections a technical matter, as if they had been held for a hundred years and had become a routine. Those who killed Ukë Bytyçi and his two associates didn't just kill individuals; they killed their right to live and act politically without fear; they also killed our collective right to perceive elective democracy as a right and not a goal that we have achieve. So that we could consider elective democracy as a tool to reach our collective goals.

2. People that were missing

Over 40 percent of the [registered] Kosovar voters didn't participate in the elections, despite the excellent technical organization by the OSCE. If we simplify this, the biggest political obstacle in the elections was not the political parties, but the number of citizens who didn't turnout for the elections. They turned into a silent majority, which is the biggest negative indicator in our society.

Kosovo is not an old democracy where the citizens have grown tired of the elections. If such a high level of abstentions came after only two free elections, it means that the entire Kosovar political system has become repulsive for the ordinary citizens.

Those who abstained are for the moment the strongest indicator of dissatisfaction with the form of governance in Kosovo, which might be democratic in the electoral process, but lacks efficiency and transparency toward the citizenry.

The biggest political impediment, those who didn't participate in the elections, indicates that things are not going well in Kosovo and that there is no one to vote for.

3. Shutting eyes

Although things are not going well, it is difficult to translate this into election results at another category of the society.

Prishtina is the municipality that serves as the perfect example of an extraordinary negative combination of corruption and lack of efficiency in administration. Kosovo's capitol, the model of a failed municipal government, will be governed by the LDK for the next four years, by the party who won the previous elections and proved completely irresponsible in bringing order to the city.

There will surely be a need to make a special analysis of Prishtina, but what comes to the surface is that the part of the electorate that participated in the elections has previously decided party affinities and doesn't think in terms of government but of party loyalty.

4. The two affinities

There are two kinds of party affiliations among Kosovar Albanians. On the one hand, these elections were largely dictated by the leaders. Although we came out to elect our municipal assemblies, the party leaders came out during the election campaign and took the debate on roads and sewers out of context. With its electoral system, OSCE supported this phenomenon, by presenting the party lists and not the individuals we would be voting for. Thus, in Sunny Hill in Prishtina, an LDK voter was thinking how Rugova would get the water-supply system to function; in the town of Kaçanik, the PDK voter was thinking of how Hashim Thaçi would keep his promise and build an asphalt road to Korbliç; and the AAK voter in Peja was thinking how Ramush Haradinaj would guarantee that two hundred illegal constructions would be demolished. With this kind of a campaign system, there wasn't much chance for the citizen to find out to whom he could he address his concerns.

On the other hand, these elections brought a certain regional categorization of the opposition parties. PDK increased its image as a force that will rule in poor rural areas, while the AAK expanded its influence in the Dukagjin region.

5. Serbs: face the reality

If Albanians had few victories and many more losses in these elections, then the losing factor should be multiplied among Kosovo Serbs. Without a clear political line on their future, Kosovo Serbs, in Kosovo and in Serbia, abstained from these elections in big numbers. In doing so, they created three issues that will dictate the future of political life in Kosovo.

First, they lost the opportunity to take a step forward toward integration through integration into the municipal assemblies. This was a golden opportunity for them to become a governing factor in numerous Kosovo municipalities, such as Prishtina, Peja and Prizren.

Second, in political confusion, they created room for the future political rhythm to be dictated by the radical line of Vojislav Kostunica. The victories of the Democratic Party of Serbia in two municipalities, the victory of Milan Ivanovic in one municipality and the victory of Milosevic-Seselj's socialists in another municipality are indicators of the mood that is thriving in Serb politics in Kosovo, which is at the same time the address of future Serb interlocutors. And these interlocutors still insist on the territorial division of Kosovo as the solution for the future status.

Third, and as a consequence, it is very likely that the chapter of decentralization, which was a precondition for Serbs to be integrated in the Kosovar political system, will be closed.

6. UNMIK and partners

After the elections, UNMIK has weaker partners; therefore it has grown weaker itself. The abstainers, the strongest block in Kosovo, have no representation address. Albanian parties that won the elections have less legitimacy and, although they organize new municipal governments, they have a weaker position at the central level. Serb partners need to reposition themselves and bring an end to the Povratak Coalition. If Povratak didn't score a single victory, how can it claim to represent the Serbs?

This isn't a good situation either for Kosovars or for UNMIK. With such a political situation, it is difficult to determine a more powerful rhythm for developing institutions and relations in Kosovo.

If this is so, then the municipal elections should serve as a reason to sit down and think, hold collective talks and decide on further steps.

7. Grey area

Chief administrator Steiner once again described northern Mitrovica as a "grey area', where buildings have different colors from other parts of Kosovo.

I don't think I'm mistaken when I say that, politically, Kosovo may have entered the grey area, characterized by the monotony and infertility of political life. And it seems that this area will be exist until next year at least. Year 2003 will pass without election campaigns and with working commitments at both the municipal and central levels.

As was seen during the two rounds of previous elections, the election enthusiasm erupted faster than soap bubbles and left room for apathy.

These elections don't promise big changes, despite an honest campaign by many individuals, parties and local initiatives.

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Janjic: Decentralization doesn't depend on Steiner (Koha Ditore)

Dusan Janjic, chairman of the Forum for Ethnic Relations, claims that UNMIK chief administrator Michael Steiner is trying to avoid decentralization in order to hold onto as much power as possible in Kosovo, reports Koha Ditore.

Steiner said Saturday that preliminary results on the local elections haven't laid the basis for a successful meeting to be held on 1 November on the issue of decentralization. Janjic said, "We are used to Steiner giving such statements. He defined democracy in Mitrovica on the principle of take it or leave it."

"The statement that there is no basis for talks on decentralization is his personal perception of democracy," said Janjic. He added that Steiner does not have the mandate to decide on any conditions; his mandate is only to implement UN SC Resolution 1244 with all Kosovo citizens, including the Serbs. "He cannot place some special conditions for Serbs when it is evident that the Albanian turn out was not very high," said Janjic. He stressed that Steiner did define the percentage of Serb participation in elections, but that "he has no right to define this percentage".

Janjic argues that decentralization of the government is part of institution forming and since Kouchner was SRSG, UNMIK hasn't done anything to form autonomous institutions at the local level. Decentralization isn't only a demand made by Serbs but also by Albanians, because citizens want taxes collected to go to the municipality and the former local communities.

Janjic believes that decentralization of power in Kosovo will still take place, and that Steiner will only be able to decide whether UNMIK wants to be active participants in the process or if he wants the UN Security Council to do it in his stead. "His statement on decentralization is an effort to strengthen his position, which is not so powerful either at the Security Council or in Kosovo," said Janjic, who says he supports Steiner's message to Kosovo Serbs "to think about who their leaders are".

Serbs have understood they shouldn't trust international community (Koha)

Koha Ditore reports that SNC chairman for northern Kosovo, Milan Ivanovic has justified the small turnout of northern Kosovo Serbs in the elections and added that the UNMIK chief Michael Steiner's plan on decentralization was fake.

"This plan is a fake because Steiner is offering municipal units which are, in fact, local communities within the municipality," said Ivanovic. "I am satisfied with Serb participation in the local elections in Kosovo, because the stance of the Serb National Council has been respected. It was our position to boycott the elections in northern Mitrovica," stressed Ivanovic and added if Serb voted in municipal where they are a minority the decisions will be brought by Albanians.

"It seems that Serbs have understood that they should not trust the international community and they have decided not to take part in elections until concrete steps are taken; to me, this is a righteous decision," said Vladimir Rakic, a political representative of the so-called "Bridge Gangs" of north Mitrovica.

Rakic says the elections proved that the Serb Coalition Povratak doesn't have any credibility or legitimacy and that Serbs have never respected Povratak, which he called "imaginary and artificial."

"We will continue our work. We have not and will not work with parallel structures, but we work with Serb state structures, which, according to UN Security Resolution 1244, still has authority over Kosovo. We only ask that Serb institutions remain in these parts, not to create parallel structures," he said.

"I believe the time has come for Steiner to start thinking about our proposed decentralization plan and that he should start fulfilling that plan," stressed Rakic.

Northern Mitrovica had the lowest Serb turn out. According to preliminary reports, 59 Serbs voted for three Serb political entities, or less than one percent of the registered Serb population eligible to vote.

Palokaj: Western Europe and Kosovo have different reasons for not voting in local elections (Koha Ditore)
Koha Ditore carried a commentary by Brussels based correspondent Augustin Palokaj, who compares the reasons why Western Europeans and Kosovar turn out in such low numbers for local elections. Palokaj wrote:

We have seen another mistake in making comparisons in the past few days that gives Kosovo and Kosovars the illusion that that they are the same as Western Europeans. Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo Ambassador Fieschi compared the low turn out in Kosovo with Europe when he said, "This participation corresponds with European standards." Fieschi wants to convince us that we are true Europeans because we do not turn out for elections in large numbers, just as Ibrahim Rugova wants to convince us that we are in the EU because we use the euro. It is true that half the citizens of Kosovo didn't vote, which is the same as in Western Europe. However, people in Europe do not vote because they have a good life and do not want to lose a day of rest, while Kosovars didn't vote because they are disappointed and do not believe that elections will bring positive changes. The elections in Kosovo marked the end of autumn elections in the Balkans and, according to preliminary results, are similar to the ones in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, which were characterized with a low voter turnout. Most of the international media were concentrated on the fact that Serb voter turnout was very low, while some of them mentioned that this was the lowest turnout for Albanians, who in the first two elections were very eager to vote.

Why western Europeans do not participate in large numbers in local elections
Local government is very important in Western Europe. Because of the everyday integration within the EU, the process of decentralization and local government has the main role in the everyday life of the common citizens. Belgium, perhaps the most decentralized country in the EU, lets the municipalities have most of the power. For example, since I have been in Belgium, only once did I have to deal with the federal government, when I asked for accreditations to work as Koha Ditore's correspondent. From that day on, all administrative issues have been dealt with by the municipality, from my work extension to paying illegal parking fines. Even though local elections are very important, many European citizens do not vote. Only elections for deputies for the European Parliament has a lower turn out than local elections. For this reason, Belgium, as a country that must form local institutions, has placed a fine on citizens who do not participate and in this manner do not fulfill their obligation as a citizen. For some European countries, this measure is considered undemocratic because boycotting elections is considered to be citizen's right to express in this manner his dissatisfaction. The reason why western European citizens do not participate in local elections is their good social and economic conditions. Most family members work, the standard of living is very high, and they do not want to lose a half-day's rest to vote. Even though the government is trying to make voting possible via the Internet, voter turnout in local elections has not shown a marked increase in European countries. This situation has resulted in the success of extreme radical parties, whose electorate is very disciplined and thus is having more and more success every day in local elections. Belgium, Holland and Austria are the freshest examples of this phenomenon. Small voter turnout is blamed on economic and social development of, which de-politicizes the citizen.

Why half of Kosovar voters did not vote
In Kosovo half of citizens decided to stay aside during local elections, not because they are busy working or had more important things to do, but because they were disappointer with the current situation, because of more disillusions on possible positive changes and with disappointed with current political structures that have promised what they know that cannot be delivered. Kosovo did not become EU and NATO member, and it has not become independent, Kosovo jam, cheese from the Sharr has not been promoted, let us not talk about failures of the local government to build airports and factories in every corner of Kosovo. Nevertheless Kosovar voters did participate in larger numbers than in Europe, however the only remark is that the fact since Kosovo's liberation voter's turn out is dropping in a drastic manner. Turn out in first local elections was very high, unseen before in Europe. This was because Kosovo citizens had the chance for the first time to vote in freedom for their own people. A year later in general elections, Kosovars participated in lesser numbers. And now we have marked the lowest turn out with a tendency that in the future it will drop under 50 percent. The above-mentioned reasons for citizen's disappointment and demoralization and loss of confidence that these elections can change something; another aggravating element that could have effect voter turn out is the reality of international administration of Kosovo where one international administrator within seconds can annual any law that it is approved by the ones elected by the people. Therefore, Kosovo citizens might have comprehended that Kosovo institutions, be they local or central in this system of administering remain only a décor of the political life and an illusion of self administering when decisions on their everyday life issues are made in New York, Moscow, Washington and Brussels and not in Deçan, Rahovec, Shtime or Leposaviç.

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Regional Update

Macedonia

New incidents make the situation in Macedonia difficult Zëri

Zëri reports that a bomb blew up the vehicle belonging to ex-NLA member Myzafer Haruni, who was an unsuccessful National Democratic Party (PDK) candidate for deputy of the Macedonian Parliament. In a separate incident late Saturday night, unidentified persons demolished Naim Frashëri's statue in the center of Tetovo.

The two incidents are part of a series of events in Macedonia, including "killing youngsters, protests and attacks on passers by, explosions, debates on school names or demolishing of statues", says Zëri.

These incidents occur while Macedonian society is in a transitional phase, and before the new government is approved by the Parliament. By the end of the week, says Zëri, Social Democrat Branko Crvenkovski is expected to take over the government and this transitional phase will come to an end.

We will kill ten Albanian students and teachers (Zëri)

Zëri also reports on escalating tensions in Macedonia. Yesterday, the director of the high school in Tetovo received an anonymous letter saying that for each Macedonian killed, ten Albanian students and teachers would be killed. The article also describes various anti-Albanian graffiti in Macedonia. BDI vice president Teuta Arifi was quoted as saying that these incidents destabilize Macedonia and that the students should be educated on [peaceful] coexistence. Criticizing the endangerment of the fragile peace in Macedonia, an AFP journalist was cited as saying, "Only equals can live together in a multiethnic country, reports Zëri.

Albania

OKB international award for Edi Rama (dailies)

Dailies reports that Mayor of Tirana Edi Rama travels today to New York to receive an award for "special contributions toward the war on poverty and for the improvement of quality of life". UN bestows awards on six officials from six continents for such contributions each year, report all dailies.

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