First Letter from Prishtine/Pristina. 4 July 2004
Friends. I have put off writing in the hope that my
situation would clarify. It has not, so I will no longer procrastinate. One
day, I am sure – my future, my present and perhaps my past will become crystal
clear. For, for the moment, one learns to live with indeterminacy. That puts
me today – 4 July 2004 – in Kosovo.
To those of you not familiar with this part of the world,
Kosovo is a province of the former Yugoslavia which the Serbs insist is an
integral part of Serbia and the Albanians (now about 90% of the population of
Kosovo) are determined to establish as an independent state. There is a long
long history of ethnic conflict, animosity and hatred in this region, but also
one of different communities (not only Albanians and Serbs, but also Turks,
Roma, Ashkaeli, Bosniaks) who did manage to coexist together at different
periods of time. Under the Milosevic regime, the Albanian Kosovars were treated
as the underdogs and there was an attempt by the Serbs to ethnically cleanse
the province of the Albanian population. Enter NATO in 1999 and the scales
turned. The A-Kosovars returned and the Serbs were forced to flee. Since that
time, the province has been governed by a United Nations administration (known as
UNMIK) with security provided by NATO forces, comprised of various national
NATO continents (e.g., the Greek, Italian, Swedish, German, Belgian, French
K-FORs). It has not been a very successful operation. The governing framework –
Security Council Resolution 1244 – tasks the UN administration with creating a
secure, multiethnic, democratic society (achieving “the standards”) – at which
point the future of Kosovo (“the status”) will be decided. Hence the mantra –
“standards before status”. The K-Albanians assert that only an independent
Kosovo can be democratic and stable and that it is time for UNMIK to leave. The
Serbs are equally frustrated with UNMIK as it has not been able to provide
security and freedom of movement for the minorities and an environment that
would permit those Serbs who fled a real possibility of returning to their
homes.
In March of this year (March 17-19) there were riots
throughout the province when Albanians were wrongly informed that Serbs had
been responsible for the drowning death of three Albanian children. All
evidence suggests that political extremists used the occasion to try an
ethnically cleanse the province of the Serbs and other minorities who remain in
Kosovo. The campaign of violence – largely carried out by unemployed youth --
left 19 dead, over 950 injured, 4100 people again displaced from their homes,
550 houses and 27 Orthodox churches and monasteries burned down and many others
severely damaged.
OK – enough history. This is where I enter. When it became
very clear that I was not going to get the post of Chief of Mission of the
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights – though I had served in that
post as “acting” for a year – on the grounds of age – a decision I contested –
and I am still contesting – I reviewed my options. I wanted to work with a
peacekeeping mission. I had applied for a post in Liberia, but nothing much
seemed to be happening on that front, despite promises, So, when I was offered
the post of Minority Rights Advisor with the Office of Returns and Communities
with UNMIK, I decided to take it. I signed the contract, went back to Canada to
do various and sundry things – I bought a house in Toronto the week I went back
– and got a phone call from New York, followed up with an email, offering me a
post in Liberia. But, by then, it was really too complicated to back out of the
Kosovo commitment. And, actually, I think I will find this quite challenging.
So – here I am, in Prishtine/Pristina. To be politically
correct, one refers to town names by their Albanian and Serbian versions. As I look out my office window, in front of
me is a large shopping center, originally built a sports complex. Dominating
the face of the building – three stories high – is a full length poster/bill
board of Adem Jashari – in full battle dress with rifle and cape. Jashari is
one of the founder of UCK – the Kosovo Liberation Army – who, in March 1998 –
was killed in an Alamo-type shoot-out with a Serbian paramilitary unit that
resulted not only in his death but also the death of over 50 of his clan,
including his wife, daughters, brothers. Clearly, hero to the Albanian freedom
fighters – but a bill board hardly intended to give a sense of confidence to
K-Serbs confidence. And why does UNMIK, as the civil administration, tolerate
it? I’m told, if they ordered the bill board taken down, it would be put up
again the next day. The same thing happens here with street signs. A
municipality – or sometimes the local Veterans’ Association – decides to rename
streets after national heroes. Often quite provocatively. Police remove the
signs. They are back up the next day. (I have a personal/private objective – to
see if I can get that poster taken down by the time I leave here. Let’s see.)
Minority rights adviser. What does that mean? When I decided
to take up the position, a colleague said – Go quickly, because if you wait too
long, there won’t be any minorities left
to protect. So what does this lofty title involve?
The first week I arrived, I went out to see an Ashkaeli
community of some 190 people (Ashkaeli
are akin to the Roma, though they claim a different origin) who were being
sheltered at a K-FOR base after their homes were burned down for the second
time in the March riots (first time was in 1999 when they fled to Serbia –
returning in 2001). They had started a hunger strike, demanding asylum in
another country in Western Europe. Unfortunately, no West European country is
prepared to give them asylum. In fact, the West European countries are now
“forcefully returning Kosovars to Kosvo” – deporting them on the grounds that
there is no longer a threat to their safety in Kosovo. Which is correct for
K-Albanians, but not K-minorities. (At this point in time, UNMIK is refusing to
accept forced minority returns – and – until we have a “Repatriations Adviser,”
I deal with some of that as well.) I went out to listen, to see what options
there were for them – perhaps, housing in another area as they do not want to
return to Vushtri (the town they were twice burned out of) – and to convince
them to end the hunger strike, which they eventually did.
There are quite a lot of individual cases I have to monitor
– though we have people in the field in the five major regions – who are the
first to deal with the situations on the ground. The cases vary from instances
where minorities have their electricity cut off for non-payment -- often they
are unable (or sometimes unwilling) to pay – and one has to intercede with the
Electric company to reconnect them; people needing transportation to get to
court or to a hospital and unable to travel for security reasons (Serbs can’t
go into Albanian areas, etc.); problems of people unable to access their
property – although there is an entire agency that deals specifically with
property claims; monitoring ethnically-motivated crime. We also review relevant
legislation to try to ensure that human rights standards are incorporated.
Right now, there is an Anti-Discrimination Law which has been in the drafting
process for over 3 years that I am reviewing; the Serbs have problems with
certain sections of the law (in fact so
do I) – so a panel is being created to see if there is a way to break the
deadlock. As always, I go to a lot of
meetings – e.g., I have just helped create a small Working Group to share information
on what is being done by the Justice System, by the police, by the Ombudsman,
by NGOs, by other international organizations regarding minority protection.
And UNMIK is in the process of institutionalizing a mechanism to monitor
progress of “the standards” for Kosovo – something like 90 different activities
that must be undertaken before “the status” of Kosovo can be actively taken up.
There is no lack of work. How effective one can be is an entirely different
issue.
One of the other challenges of the job is the acronyms.
Consider the following sentences from a report on my desk: “Regarding the
container installation in Frasher/Svinjare, RRU has contacted KTA with
regarding the electrical connections. IDPs and LCO have confirmed that ICRC has
performed water analysis….. On 22 June, 5 RAE UDPs took part in a GSV to Roma
Mahalla … The meeting was well attended an all significant parts in the return
efforts were present including RRU, UNMIK A/MR and LCO, UNHCR, KFOR and UNMIK
police…..” So it goes.
Meanwhile, I have rented a small apartment 5 minutes from
the office. I have, however, recently learned that UNMIK HQ (all our offices)
is going to move to the outskirts of the city for security reasons. A bummer
but … It was only after the Baghdad bombing that the security of UN missions
has been given the serious attention that it should have had from the outset.
So, I will see what I do when that happens. Meanwhile, the very ineffectual
SRSG (read as Special Representative to the Secretary General) – a Finn, Harri
Holkeri – left for health reasons and a new SRSG – a Dane, supposedly sharp,
committed, competent – will shortly be assuming the post. That may involve
other shake-ups.
From a living point of view – the situation here is not bad
– in fact, its actually quite good. So far, the electricity has been
functioning pretty well. In the winter – when everyone is dependent on electric
for heating – it may prove to still be a problem (I’m told it used to be a very
serious concern). Water – well, where I live, there is no water from about 11
p.m. until 7 a.m., which is a nuisance because, even if you wake up at 5 (with
the sun, as I do these days), you really can’t get an early start on the day if
you like to start the day with a shower. But, it has not so far proved to be a
hardship.
Entertainment: UNMIK shows films 2-3 times a week; OSCE has
films twice a week – cost 1-2 Euro, so that’s quite good. You can also buy
pretty much any movie in DVD format, even before they hit the theatres, for 6-8
Euro. Music CDs are 1-2 Euros each. Piracy clearly flourishes under this UN
regime. There is also a UN gym which I joined and where I do class once or
twice a week. (I know I should do more.) There are also weekend excursions with
transportation organized by UNMIK – to Greece (Thessalonika or some of the
beach towns); to Budva (in Montenegro); to Belgrade; sometimes to Sofia I am
told though not since I’ve been here.
One can also drive to Skopje – which is only a little over an hour away,
in Macedonia. That is the only place outside of Kosovo we are allowed to take
UNMIK cars, which is sad. I had thought we would be able to use them more
widely in the region. I am on a car roster – now that I passed my UNMIK
driver’s test – so I get access to a jeep pretty much whenever I want it.
Still, I have not yet been very adventuresome. Yesterday,
for the first time, I took the car and drove out of town. Actually, I went to
the US military base (Bondsteel) – apparently, “the largest single project
undertaken by the US since the Vietnam war” – according to a 2001 guidebook
which I found – though I imagine that facilities in Iraq must now be bigger. ….
To do some shopping at the PX. I was able to buy such essentials as Crest
toothpaste, Irish Spring soap, Q-tips, Kleenex and hotdog relish. I passed up
on the frozen Wonderbread but couldn’t resist the Reese’s Pieces.
There are, apparently, some nice places – particularly in
the north – to go hiking. I will have to find someone to introduce me to the
terrain. I have not yet really taken my camera out to do much shooting, so I
look forward to that.
As regards the future – I have a contract here until the end
of November. I am trying to get that changed into a different contract that
will permit me to stay on beyond that date – as, by November, I will perhaps
have rounded the top of the learning curve and just be up to speed on my work.
But – I will see. If that does not work, I will return to Canada (Toronto,
where as I said, I have just bought a little house – not too far from where Jesse
and Rox are living) and see what is possible from that base.
So – if any of you are in the area, there is always a bed. I
actually have several sofas that convert into beds – so I will be happy to
offer hospitality.
I will try to write a little more frequently. I still do not have a cell phone (I need to
return by Serbian phone chip tomorrow, but UNMIK has not yet assigned me one
here. A bit ridiculous, as one cannot function here without a cell phone.) But – I append my other key coordinates. Do write me. It really is nice to get your
news and to keep in touch.
Warmest regards
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