UNMIK ON AIR

30 September 2003

DO POLITICIANS UNDERSTAND THE DIALOGUE

(By Zoran CULAFIC)

Bill Clinton: If you look at the terrible tragedy in the Middle East today, in 1993 leaders of Israel and leaders of Palestinians recognized that after that all their fighting and killing and dieing they would be still interdependent, they could not escape each other, so they’ll build the future together.

Former US president Bill Clinton speaking in Pristina last week about the necessity of building a tolerant and democratic society in Kosovo. A strong message from a man considered a hero by the majority of K-Albanians for ridding them of the Milosevic regime.

Hello and welcome to UNMIK ON AIR with Sputnik Kilambi and Martin Redi

After the recent Contact group meeting in New York it is obvious that initial talks between Belgrade and Pristina is only days ahead. But there is still no consensus on dialogue in the K-Albanian political block - in fact, many suggest there is great confusion amongst political leaders in Pristina.

President Rugova says that we shouldn’t make a big deal over the issue of talks; Prime Minister Rexepi insists on preliminary endorsement by the Kosovo Assembly, while AAK leader Ramush Haradinaj refers to preparations for dialogue as improvisation – this description of the positions of the various political parties from the Pristina daily Zeri.

According to Enver Hasani, Professor of international law at Pristina University, K-Albanian politicians are not prepared for the talks. They are also afraid of the possible negative fallout from taking part in such a dialogue.

Enver Hasani: At the moment there is no consensus amongst political leaders and provisional institutions in Kosovo about the dialogue. I’m sure that is because of a kind of fear, particularly in the provisional institutions, not of dialogue itself but that such a dialogue could lead to the fall of someone’s political career, of some parties or institutions in Kosovo. This is the main reason that there is no consensus as yet.

For Nenad Sebek, executive director of the Center for democracy and reconciliation in Southeast Europe in Thessalonica, both parties are being forced to gather around the table by the international community, and neither Belgrade nor Prishtina has any other choice but to talk to each other.

Nenad Sebek: in the background, there is a huge desire of the international community to finally resolve an issue that has become a hot potato. And this has to be tackled by those able to resolve it, i.e. by Kosovo Serbs and Albanians. So, the talks will be like the ones back in the 90’s in former Yugoslavia, where two sides sit around a table, each with an international behind, forcing him to remain seated and eventually, holds his hand while he signs the agreement.

A major problem for Kosovar Albanian politicians, says Professor Hasani, is that they are scared that the public will see them as a traitor if they are seen talking to Nebosja Covic, Belgrade’s Kosovo point man. After all, he points out, they promised an independent Kosovo and now they are being forced to sit with Belgrade representatives and discus technical issues like transport, energy etc.

Enver Hasani: My impression is that they are not afraid of the dialogue with Serbia itself, but they fear from the results of that dialogue and from public perception, having in mind that elections are scheduled for next year. That is the problem, and surely, they are afraid of meeting Covic too. I think they are not glad that Covic is on Serbian side.

Nenad Sebek agrees with professor Hasani. But he suggests that K-Albanians are not in a favored position today, as was the case during the war or a few years after it. Recent incidents and murders have strongly damaged the image of Kosovo Albanians, he says.

Nenad Sebek: There absolutely exist such kind of fear and there is also the fact that position of K-Albanians in the international community have fallen down in recent months due to the chain of incidents that have occurred many murder cases and some other terrorist acts. Such incidents inflicted the fall of the huge good will that existed toward K-Albanians during year 1999 and 2000 and 2001. So their position today is not the same position they have had just a year ago. On the other words, the international community will ask today much bigger concessions from them, then it would be the case a year ago.

Sebek adds that he would be surprised if talks between Belgrade and Pristina representatives succeed at first, and for him the success would be achieved even if the two sides simply agree to sit together around the same table and talk directly to each other. Professor Enver Hasani believes that in future dialogue Kosovo Serbs should be included in Pristina delegation, if a long-term stable solution is expected from these talks.

Enver Hasani: I think, if we want the dialogue to be successful and not to produce a political crisis in future, then Serbs surely should be on the Kosovo side, as part of the Prishtina delegation. But prior to that, the K-Albanian political block should take a cohesive stance.

With huge distrust between two communities it is difficult to start the process of reconciliation. But the process is inevitable; international official have made this point clear to both sides. And during his recent visit to Prishtina, former US president Bill Clinton sent the same message.

Bill Clinton: you have to be for reconciliation, not to be fair to the Serb minority, but for your own welfare. To be griped by the desire to get even by the negative forces of the hatred is to wake up every single day and to put chains on yourself.

Prominent Pristina publisher Veton Suroi wrote last week in Koha Ditore, “It won’t be long before the only thing that will remain from president Clinton’s visit are pictures, and not his message”. Hopefully the people of Kosovo will prove him wrong – and that along with the pictures, the message also stays.

That does it for this edition of UNMIK ON AIR. Thanks for listening.