UNMIK-UNMIK Police-KFOR- Press Briefing, 25 March 2002

UNMIK Spokeswoman Susan Manuel
UNMIK Police Spokesman Derek Chappell
KFOR Spokesman Drew Andersen

UNMIK Spokeswoman Susan Manuel

Today SRSG Michael Steiner meets with the German Minister of Justice, Herta Daeubler-Gmelin. She met Pillar I head Jean Christian Cady and Justice Department director Clint Williamson this morning. They have been and will discuss German assistance to the Kosovo judiciary such as the secondment of judges, prosecutors and correction officers.
The German contribution to the judiciary is extremely valuable and very much appreciated by the mission.

Tomorrow he will meet with the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mr. Wim Kok.
The meeting is at 10:15 in Mr. Steiner’s office. There will be a photo opp and brief press opportunity. There is a media advisory outside on all Mr. Wim Kok’s activities tomorrow.

At 11:30 a.m. tomorrow, SRSG Michael Steiner will also meet with the Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Per Stig Moller. There will be a photo opportunity.

On Wednesday, we expect the visit of Erhard Busek, Special Coordinator of the Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe.

UNMIK Police Spokesman Derek Chappell

Commissioner’s Biography

The biography of UNMIK Police Commissioner Stefan FELLER is now available. A copy is attached.

Smuggling

Increased vigilance against smuggling has led to several recent successes. On March 19th, UNMIK Police and KPS officers discovered a fuel tanker in the Kulina Pass, just inside Kosovo territory.

It was filled with 16 tonnes of fuel, which was being off-loaded to a number of waiting vehicles that would have thus avoided paying the required duty. The truck was seized and the driver was detained.

The next night, officers examined a suspicious vehicle near the boundary and discovered pumps, generators, and hose. The purpose was to set up a pumping station to deliver fuel from Montenegro to Kosovo without paying the Customs duty. The vehicle and equipment were seized and the driver arrested.

Mitrovica

The relations between UNMIK Police and Serbian residents of Mitrovica continue to improve as evidenced by increased reporting of normal crimes.

For example, a K-Serbian male in Zvecan reported his car stolen on the 17th. Within 45 minutes, a patrol spotted the car, arrested the thief, and returned the vehicle to its owner.

This was not a dramatic crime, but its sheer normalcy is in itself remarkable and indicative of the progress UNMIK Police have made in the area.

Arrests Made in Business Dispute

A business dispute between two companies over ownership of a rock quarry led to a public protest on Friday.

The Istok Granite Company has received authority to work the quarry in Lubozda Village, near Peje. 40 workers from a rival company gathered on Friday and blocked the road to protest this decision.

After five hours of negotiation the protestors would not move. UNMIK Police arrested 18 males and reopened the road. No violence was reported. All have since been released.

Grenade Thrown at KPS Officer

Last night in Pristina a KPS Officer found two men acting suspiciously near a home. As the officer approached them to investigate the circumstances, the men offered resistance and a struggle ensued. In the course of the struggle an object was thrown at the policeman by the two criminals.

The object was found to be a grenade that had not detonated.

KFOR attended and recovered the device.

The actions of this officer, in tackling two men on his own in the dark, reflect bravery and service.

He probably prevented the occupants of the house from being robbed or having their belongings stolen.

And the two criminals, they were prepared to blow him up with a hand grenade for doing his job.

Public Defrauded in Lottery Racket

UNMIK Police have made four arrests in the case of a company involved in selling scratch and win lottery cards to the public.
The General Manager and two employees of the ALSIT company are detained for their part in a fraud by which cards containing winning numbers were identified and removed prior to sale to the general public.

The public was paying money to buy cards that could not win. Winning cards were retained by the company.

An investigating judge has detained two of the suspects for 30 days and has closed the ALSIT business while enquiries continue.

Overview

The past week in Kosovo has been remarkable for the lack of serious crime, and the absence of any significant ethnically-motivated crimes. We recorded no murders.

The vast majority of crimes now being reported are of the kinds typical of any area: thefts, burglaries, robberies, and assaults resulting from personal disputes.

We now have the time and resources to set up road checks on roads throughout Kosovo every night in which vehicles and persons are being searched, leading to the recovery of stolen goods and weapons.

The criminal pattern for the past week would be considered quiet by the standards of any agency responsible for policing a population of two million.

CV: Stefan Feller, Police Commissioner

Stefan Feller took up his appointment as Police Commissioner of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) on 15 March 2002. The UNMIK Police is the UN’s first executive authority policing mission. Up to 4700 international police officers (from 50 nations) and more than 4500 local Kosovo Police Service (KPS) officers make up this unique law enforcement agency.

Mr. Feller’s current rank in the German Police is Leitender Polizeidirektor, equivalent to Brigadier General. His previous assignment was Director of Operations in the Ministry of the Interior for North Rhine-Westphalia, an area of some 18 million inhabitants. He was responsible for the development & implementation of operational police strategies designed to increase public safety and improve community policing. He also directly supervised various Special Operations police units.

Mr. Feller began his police career when he joined the Dortmund Police in 1976. He graduated from a course in criminal investigation in 1979 as a Police Inspector and earned a college degree in Public Administration. In 1989 he graduated from the Federal Police Academy for Senior Management with an advanced degree in Public Administration

Assigned as a Police Detective in 1979 he investigated juvenile delinquency, gangs, drugs, and homicides. He also developed expertise in fraud and internal investigations. From 1984 to 1987 he was involved in establishing structures to fight organized crime. From 1987 to 1994, he was engaged with additional training and progressively more responsible administrative & technical duties in North Rhine-Westphalia.

From 1994 to 1997, he was a Regional Commander, responsible for all policing within four cities of the Ruhr Industrial Region. The assignment included handling exceptional operational cases and developing concepts for improving security, community policing, and anti-crime methods.

In 1997 Mr. Feller was assigned to the Inspector of the Constabulary for North Rhine-Westphalia. In that capacity, he was responsible for the management of police personnel and the creation of a career management concept as part of a police reform program

From May 2000 until May 2001, he served in Kosovo as the UNMIK Police Deputy Commissioner for Operations. His accomplishments include pushing forward the transition from military to civil law enforcement; integrating the KPS into patrol, community policing, and investigations duties; establishing and extending close cooperation between the military (KFOR) and UNMIK Police; increasing security in minority areas; increasing the investigative success rate; and initiating efforts to fight organized crime.

His hobbies include jogging, mountain biking, swimming, physics, and computers.

Questions:

Q: Susan, how many Serbs are in prison in Kosovo?

SM: I don’t have the exact figure: it is approximately 40.

Q: What the charges against them? Why have they been arrested? When were they arrested?

SM: There are various criminal charges on which we have held Kosovo Serbs since summer of 1999.

Q: Who arrested them?

SM: In the beginning it was KFOR, then it was UNMIK Police.

Q: Who signed on UNMIK’s part the Agreement between Belgrade and UNMIK on Exchange of Prisoners? Kosovo Serbs with Albanians from Serbia.

SM: There is no agreement that has been signed between UNMIK and Belgrade regarding prisoners at this point. We have the Common Document, but that is the only document we have so far on this issue…

Q: So that is Haekkerup’s document?

SM: It was signed by Haekkerup for UNMIK, yes.

Q: Is it the kind that exchanges prisoners or what?

SM: I advise you to read the Common Document, if you have not read the Common Document of 5th November 2001. It was an important document that all journalists working here should have read. In the Common Document it calls for the return of all Kosovo Albanian prisoners: both sides agreed to the return of all Kosovo Albanian prisoners. There is also a clause calling for the review of cases of Kosovo Serbs who have not yet been before an international judge.

Q: How many Serbs are you going to hand over to the Serbian authorities, the Serbs who are now in the Kosovo prisons?

SM: There is nothing concrete on this.

Q: For KFOR and UNMIK. Recently several countries have announced that they will have troop reductions in Kosovo. Will this affect the job that KFOR is doing here and will it affect the security situation in Kosovo, and how does UNMIK see a possible reduction of KFOR troops bearing in mind the fact that elections are coming and there is a year full of events ahead, including return of Serbs. Will the reduction of KFOR troops affect UNMIK’s job?

KFOR: Perhaps I can start with that one: Last week I made a statement about the perceived reduction in KFOR troops. Yes, the international papers have highlighted a number of comments. Again, these are all speculation at this present time. We have an ongoing six months review; that paperwork has gone though Allied Forces South and I believe is it is up now. It is an ongoing process that we do every six months, and as I suggested last week what we are doing is looking at rationalization, looking at efficient and effective measures in which we can rationalize certain measures across the Balkans. But I would reiterate the point I made last week: Lord Robertson made a comment two weeks ago, when he said if, and only if, troop reductions can take place then it would be considered; and that would be no different from any other company, for want of a better word, actually doing their job. I would say this though, if, and only if, troops reductions do take place, that will be in line with the current security situation, and a robust force would remain in Kosovo.

SM: Does that answer your question?

Q: Given the fact that for example Bosnia is not in the same situation as Kosovo: in Bosnia there is police, a local police force, while in Kosovo we have the UN police and local police who are not trained at the same level. They are not ready to take up their job. How do you see possible reduction of KFOR troops here?

SM: Well, first of all I think that Drew explained the background whether and what kind of reduction might take place. I think that we heard that initially reductions would be in the administrative aspects of KFOR. Nevertheless there is no planned reduction of UNMIK Police; and they are building up the Kosovo Police Service all the time. Derek can tell you the numbers we are shooting for. But, in general, some day, all this international protection will leave, and there will be a gradual reduction some day, and this is why I think our message has been constantly that in order for Kosovo to enter the Community of Europe, it must be multiethnic; and that is the message for every single person to take on as they live their lives, conduct their business. So even if this sounds vague, we don’t have any set information about KFOR reduction at this point. Derek, do you want to add to this?

DC: I think Susan has made the point that this is not a permanent presence; there has to be a process of transition towards a final state for Kosovo; I don’t mean in the political sense, but in a social sense. We are doing our part for that within UNMIK Police by evolving the KPS so that they can take over responsibility for domestic policing. There is the transition process; it is on track. We are hoping that probably before the end of this year there will be police stations in which the KPS are functioning independently; we already have independent KPS patrols; many of the road checks that are mentioned earlier are done buy the KPS officers on
their own. These KPS officers are working with a high degree of independence.

Q: Susan, you said that there are 40 Serbian prisoners here. Are they citizens of Serbia or are they Kosovo Serbs?

SM: I would have to check for you the exact number; and they are all Kosovo Serbs.

Q: So what is the aim of transferring of exchanging them?

SM: I am not going to comment on transferring or exchanging. We are working on the return of Kosovo Albanian prisoners and I can’t comment any further today.

Q: And do you have any mechanism if this transferring is to take place…

SM: I cannot comment any further on the issue today, OK. I am very sorry.

Q: Can I finish my question?

SM: You can, but the answer will be the same.

Q: For UNMIK and KFOR: Are you going to prosecute members of the NLA, those fighters from Kosovo who went over to Macedonia and are now back here since the recent amnesty in Macedonia. Are you looking to find and prosecute these people in Kosovo?

KFOR: I have no information on that. I am sorry but I will have to come back to you on that.

Q: Susan, you say that you don’t have comment today. Is it because Mr. Covic reacted to your comments of a few days ago? And you don’t want to make more problems with Serb authorities?

SM: Right now we are working on the issue of return of the Kosovo Albanian prisoners, and that is all I can say for today.

Q: This issue has been raised by high officials of Serbia/

Q: I’ve said all I can say on that today, Arber, sorry.

SM: OK, everybody; thank you very much.