12 December 2002, Thursday Edition

CONTENTS

Steiner: We are successful in Kosovo (Koha Ditore)

Koha Ditore carries an interview given by SRSG Michael Steiner to the German radio station, Deutschlandfunk, during his recent visit to the US. Steiner said that Kosovo needed a 'wider autonomy' and that the European Union shouldn't forget Kosovo and the Balkans because this could be dangerous for the future of Europe and the region.
Asked what are the most urgent tasks in Kosovo at this time, SRSG Michael Steiner said that the biggest challenges were the fight against organized crime, overcoming the difficult economic situation and forming of a multiethnic Kosovo.

Asked whether he feels sure that the life of people in Kosovo has changed, Steiner said he believed that much progress has already taken place. 'This goes for smaller communities, for Serbs and the minorities, and for the major community, the Kosovar Albanians. And anyone who comes to Kosovo can notice this. We have a major problem and this is huge unemployment,' said Steiner.

Asked what was the position of the people of Kosovo toward him and UNMIK, Steiner said that 'it is something that leaves everyone with eyes wide open … when you see the trust and endless expectations that people have in us'. Asked whether people who once fled from Kosovo are willing to return, Steiner said he believed that the majority of these people were willing to return to Kosovo. 'This is a process which must be carefully organized, especially when it comes to minorities. In this respect, one cannot say that the overall situation is better and that all of them can return. This is a voluntary process in which we must all be engaged. This means that we need water, electricity, schools and we need possibilities for enabling people to survive economically. And this cannot be done overnight. A thing that we must also do is mental peacekeeping. Therefore, people in Kosovo should prove their willingness to allow the return of IDPs. And this requires time. On the other hand, we surely don't face the same situation as before September 11 last year. This means that we have to try through international commitment to enable Kosovo to have a society that will be able to support the expectations and this is a wider autonomy,' he said Steiner.

Deutschlandfunk said there is huge scepticism in the US regarding the concept of 'nation-building' and asked 'what has to be done for this process to be successful in Kosovo?' Steiner replied, 'I think that we have been successful. When you look back at we have achieved last year: we have a government which, despite the difficulties, is functioning and remains united; we have been successful in fighting crime; and we have managed to establish legitimate structures in northern Mitrovica, which was once a grey area. We also have the law on privatization and a trend of refugees returning. In the meantime, there are more people who are returning than those who are leaving Kosovo… I believe that one can conclude that UNMIK is one of the most successful UN missions.'

Responding to Deutschlandfunk's remark that success requires long-term engagement, Steiner said: 'A person could ask whether it is reasonable to intervene in a region where there are human rights violations, as happened in Kosovo…; however, once you have intervened, you are left with no other choice than to finish what you started, and if not, then this can recur. We have seen this happen in Afghanistan where once everyone was trying to get the Soviet troops out of there but, after their withdrawal, the country was left in the hands of the Taliban regime. Therefore, we have no other choice, because one thing is known: the entire region of the Balkans, and this doesn't include only Kosovo, must become part of the European Union. We cannot simply build a fence around there. We, the European Union, want this region to turn into a prosperous area, or else the region will only export insecurity. As the European Union, we must take into account our interests and responsibilities in order to protect ourselves from negative impacts and unexpected turns.'

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Harnish: Time is not right for direct dialogue with Belgrade (Epoka e Re)

Under the ambiguous headline, Harnish doesn't think like Steiner: Time is not right for direct dialogue with Belgrade, Epoka e Re carries an interview with the head the US Office in Prishtina, Reno Harnish, who reportedly said that the time was not right for a direct dialogue between Prishtina and Belgrade on resolving the status of Kosovo.

According to the US Government, including of Kosovo in Constitutional Charter of the Serb-Montenegro Union doesn't predetermine Kosovo's final status. Kosovo's final status is an issue to be dealt with.

Harnish reminded that UN Security Resolution 1244 determines the fact that is up to UN to determine the process of final status. "We know now that SRSG Steiner has not reached the point of starting to resolve the final status. The US agrees with the SRSG that work should be done toward fulfilling the standards that he presented. In our opinion, the statements in the preamble [S+M Constitutional Charter] are not crucial to resolving the final status and the process of standards," said Harnish. He added that Constitutional Charter is an element presented by Serbia and Montenegro with which they are attempting to form a new relationship toward changes in the Balkans. "This is their attempt to form new relations in a another way," he said.

"No, time hasn't come for direct dialogue regarding Kosovo status, and I believe there was a misunderstanding in the media regarding this issue," Harnish said. According to Ambassador Harnish, "What Messrs Covic and Mihajlovic did in the name of the Serb people at the Luzerne meeting was that Mr. Covic only apologized to Prime Minister Rexhepi for earlier calling him a criminal; and Mr. Rexhepi accepted his apology."

"Afterwards there was an informal conversation between Mr. Rexhepi, Mr. Daci, Mr. Mihajlovic and Mr. Covic and they discussed practical issues for the people of Kosovo. For example, if we look at Kosovars who live in Germany and Switzerland, it is very expensive for them to travel around indirectly and not through the territory of Serbia when they come to Kosovo. Therefore a practical issue is that Serbia would accept Kosovo travel documents, so they can travel freely through Serbia. This could be one of the practical issues…[that] are also important to every day lives of the people. The time hasn't come to discuss the status, but it is time to discuss practical issues that influence people's everyday lives," said Harnish.

"One [such issue] is restructuring of the KPC, which is an ongoing process that is under the authority of the SRSG with operational support from KFOR. This process has the aim of forming the KPC into a true professional civil emergency corps, which will have its own duties. There has been progress in this respect. In a competition in Prague, it achieved very good results," he said.

He said 'some KPC members have been accused of criminal activities' but that every society or organization has people that commit crimes or that are corrupt. "The only thing a democratic society can do is to maintain law and order and charge them and see what they have really done. If they are guilty, they should be incarcerated. I see KPC restructuring as something separate from the arrests of some of its members," he said.

"The first four months after constituting the assembly were very difficult, but now things are moving along better. The ministries have started to employ the necessary personnel and this is very important because the work cannot be finished without the necessary people. The assembly has started to discuss several laws that are very important for economic development of Kosovo, such as the bill on Telecommunications and a bill on mortgages," said Harnish.

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Shala: Power and justice (Zëri)

Zëri carries an editorial by Blerim Shala who says that if Kosovars are not strong and if they don't have Western support, their chances for self-determination will be very small.

There is big misconception in the way we understand the term, 'international community'. When we mention the notion of the international community, the first reaction of western diplomats who wish us well is that such a notion is not real and it is more of a metaphor. There are concrete institutions, such as EU, Council of Europe, European Parliament, NATO Pact and western governments, but there is no "International Community".

The second misunderstanding, perhaps even greater, concerns our conviction that "International Community" is the instrument that should provide political justice. Thus, it is perceived as a supreme court that blindly undertakes decisions based on the scales of justice. This illusion has cost us too much during our entire history.

Thus, we have identified the right of self-determination with international justice, while Serbia knew very well that self-determination is worthless without power and connection to the West, which legitimizes this power.

More precisely, without international power, without the intervention of the NATO Pact, joint war, sacrifice and our right, Serbia would never be forced to leave Kosovo. Even under new postwar circumstances, the majority of us don't understand that our fate can be properly determined only if we become strong, first of all politically strong. Our weakness will prevent the chance of fulfillment of self-determination.

Will Rexhepi keep his promise given in Brussels? (Epoka e Re)

Epoka e Re carries an article, saying that the Serbia and Montenegro Union has already been given the green light and is now counting days. Epoka e Re wonders whether Kosovo's PM Rexhepi will stick to his statement made in Brussels, that if international community recognizes the S and M Union with the preamble that says that Kosovo is part of Serbia, then the Kosovo Assembly will proclaim Kosovo an independent state. This daily says it is difficult to believe that PM Rexhepi will keep his promise.

Epoka e Re says that PM Rexhepi resembles Rugova more and more. One of the examples of this comparison is Rexhepi's recent statement that if Kosovo's status is not defined within two or three years, then radical groups will gain credibility and there will be the danger of new conflicts. It is well known that Rugova considers KLA a 'radical group', but whom does Rexhepi consider radical? The proclamation of Kosovo as independent state, under present circumstances, would be considered among the other things a radical act. Thus, Rexhepi's engagement to prevent radical forces from gaining power is against his statement made on Kosovo's independence, says Epoka e Re.

The time for Rexhepi to proclaim independence is at the final stage. Maybe this time he will not resemble Rugova, says Epoka e Re.

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Serbia wants to destabilize Kosovo and the region once again (24 Orë/Zëri)

24 Orë and Zëri reported on an AAK press release issued yesterday after the party's Presidency meeting, which dealt with the situation created by the approval of the Serbia and Montenegro Constitutional Charter that mentions Kosovo. AAK considers this an attempt by Serbia to destabilize Kosovo and the region once again.

The transitional phase, foreseen in UN SC Resolution 1244, is ending and it has yielded positive results. Local and central democratic institutions have already been created in Kosovo and the preconditions for political stability and for preparing the circumstances for the final solution of Kosovo's political status, foreseen in the Resolution 1244, have been fulfilled, according to the AAK communiqué.

The other democratic, economic and security achievements cannot be achieved due to the main obstacle - non-definition of Kosovo's final status. Serbia is misusing the present situation of Kosovo to destabilize Kosovo and the region yet again.

AAK reiterated its strong support for Kosovo Assembly Resolution, approved on 7 November 2002, in which inclusion of Kosovo on Serbia and Montenegro Constitutional Charter is considered unacceptable and 'a constitutional aggression'.

FRY, which was the object of UN SC Resolution 1244 and which was unjustifiably recognized as having authority over Kosovo, practically ceases to exist with the approval of the Constitutional Charter. Once FRY ceases to exist, so does the formal right over Kosovo's sovereignty and integrity, claims the AAK presidency.

From now on Kosovo's sovereignty, both factually and legally, should belong only to the people of Kosovo. AAK appealed to all legitimate Kosovo's institutions to become engaged more strongly and to act as fast as possible to fulfill the will of the people of Kosovo for the independent state of Kosovo.

Kosovo's legitimate institutions should ask EU not to recognize the Union of Serbia and Montenegro until this state in the making recognizes the right of Kosovo's population to decide their own fate.

Kosovo's legitimate institutions should also ask the UN SC to approve a new resolution for Kosovo, which would also recognize the legal right of Kosovo's population to have sovereignty over Kosovo and to decide on their future.

AAK calls all the political subjects in Kosovo, especially LDK and PDK, to cooperate more closely and resolve Kosovo's 'capital issue'.

AAK appeals to the entire Kosovo population to strongly support the project for the independent state of Kosovo, as it did during the entire twentieth century, because the phase of the creation of this state has already started, the AAK press release concludes.

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Ibrahim Rexhepi: Funds are pouring out of Kosovo (Koha Ditore)

Koha Ditore ran a commentary by economy writer, Ibrahim Rexhepi, who says that the money is pouring out of Kosovo. Rexhepi writes:

A statistic for macro-economic movements prepared by the Ministry of Economy and Finances should activate the entire alarm system in Kosovo: funds that are created here or that come from the Diaspora, donors and lenders, end up in other countries. This means that a huge transit of funds takes place in Kosovo.

Until September this year, imports were 50 times higher than exports. According to economic logic, no country in the world would be able to survive such a huge imbalance of payments. The deficit is over 884 million euros! This is a figure that would upset any government and any country with the highest level of economic development.

And although it seems an absurd, there is an reason for all this: Kosovo is in the reconstruction phase, forming institutional and legal mechanisms and a free and open market.

This situation suits the European Union, which uses 24 percent of Kosovo's overall imports, followed by Macedonia and Serbia with 17 percent, Turkey with 9 percent, and Albania and Montenegro with six percent.

The idea that imports should be stopped, or become severely restricted, and that banks should keep their money in Kosovo is similar to 'anachronistic current circumstances for the transformation of Kosovo'.

However, what is happening now cannot be called an anachronism but rather anarchy. First, there have been no measures taken to stimulate or facilitate production. In a word, no enterprise has been skilled enough to face competition no matter where it comes from. And shutting down imports would create monopolies of local manufacturers, but it would also destroy them in a very short period of time. Under such circumstances, the manufacturers would be crippled and incapable of competing.

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This is what Jo Trutschler said (Koha Ditore)

In the economy supplement, Koha Ditore printed some statements made by former KEK international manager Jo Trutschler during interviews he gave to the daily newspaper. [Trutschler is currently being held in detention in Germany on suspicion of misusing 4.5 million euros that were earmarked for the Kosovo Power Corporation.] The following are quotes attributed to Trutschler, as they appeared in the paper:

'I was in Spain when the article, Jo Trutschler Go Home, was published and my phone must have rung a thousand times. My friends told me about the article and asked me when I was going back home. I said that I would go back to Kosovo in two weeks time. I'm thinking of buying a house here.' (September 2001).

'We could, for example, make the KEK food sector independent and then it would become a chain of restaurants, such KEK China Restaurant, KEK Thai Restaurant, etc.' (September 2001).

'I don't have the donor money. I can't tell how much funds they gave and when they gave them.' (September 2001).

'Coal is the gold of Kosovo…' (September 2001)

'I have inherited huge wealth from my father… I am here for career purposes.' (October 2001)

'A part of UNMIK has a colonialist approach toward KEK. I support the restructuring of KEK and then privatization.' (October 2001).

'Someone used my phone while I was away' [on his unpaid telephone bills] (October 2001).

'I have not transferred funds into my personal account… Once it was confirmed the company did not do its job in Kosovo, the funds were returned to Kosovo,' [referring to the transfer of 220,000 euros into the bank account of a private company in Gibraltar] (March 2001).

'I transferred the funds there in order to keep them for other needs,' Trutschler told the prosecutor in Bochum, regarding the 'transfer' of 4.5 million euros to an offshore bank in Gibraltar.