Kosovo Syndrome

By James G. Poulos

Published 2/17/2006 12:05:31 AM

Recently, a shadowy armed group called the Army for the Independence of Kosovo ordered Kosovo politicians to declare independence or face a "difficult situation," which people here took to mean death.-- Washington Post, November 22, 2005

Destination unknown, but the train rolls on: the 20th of this month will see face-to-face talks between Serb and Kosovar negotiators in Vienna, point of discussion being the fate of the historic province that we the West preserved by historically bombing Orthodox Serbs on Easter 1999. The posture of the United States regarding full independence for Kosovo -- what is called, in the parlance of our diplomats, "final status" -- should be clear, according to the extraordinary lengths to which America went on the behalf of Kosovars in the first place. From May 2 to May 4, 1999, the International Communist Seminar in Brussels made a number of statements of fact which are indicative: (1) the NATO attack on Yugoslavia was carried out without Security Council approval; (2) the allied bombing runs demolished not just military but "economic" targets, causing deliberate civilian casualties; and (3) the undeclared war against Milosevic and his country was, according to international law, entirely unprovoked......

http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=9428

Contact Group And US Already Decided On Kosovo Becoming Independent

Kragujevac, 16 Feb 06 (Danas) – On Wednesday, in Kragujevac, Cedomir Jovanovic, president of the Liberal Democratic Party, evaluated that the Contact Group and US already decided Kosovo will be independent, He also said that “Serbs have to accept that”.

According to him Serbs from Kosmet need to start looking at Kosovo and Metohija as their motherland, just like Serbs in Bosnia and Croatia. “There needs to be a stop to the use of war politics which were popular in Milosevic’s era and are still used by some politicians,” said Jovanovic.

Slogans In Albanian Written In Serb Part Of Orahovac

Orahovac, 16 Feb 06 (BETA) - Slogans in the Albanian language were discovered in the morning of Feb. 16 on walls of several Serb houses in the Serb part of Orahovac, saying "Vetevendosje" (Self-Determination) and "Fund UNMIKU" (End to UNMIK), stated the Info Service of Kosovo and Metohija.

Local Serbs believe the slogans were written during the night, most probably by members of the Albanian Self-Determination organization led by Albin Kurti, who have been writing similar slogans throughout Kosovo. The slogans have caused serious concern of the remaining Serb population in Orahovac, who said that "they were quite certainly not intended for UNMIK, but for the Serbs."

"In the politically sensitive situation in Kosovo and Metohija, such provocation is causing fear among the Serbs and concern over their remaining in this area," the Serbs from Orahovac said.

Around 350 Serbs have remained in Orahovac, living in the Serb part of the town near the Church of the Assumption.

There Are Secret Police Houses In Macedonia

16 Feb 06(Koha Ditore) – There are no secret prisons in Macedonia but secret Police houses, in which people are being sent for torture from which some get out and some don’t, declared the president of the Helsinki committee in Macedonia, Mirjana Najcevaska.

This declaration came after a debate in Macedonia and the European Council that a German of Lebanese origin, Kaled el Masri was kidnapped by the Macedonian police and after he was tortured for 20 days was given to the CIA.

El Masri in March 2006 will testify among the first witnesses of the commission of the European Parliament, which in public will investigate the possible existence of the secret prisons in some European countries including Macedonia, which are in service of the CIA.

After a request of the European Union about the El Masri case, Skopje authorities denied the claims of El Masri and his lawyer that he was kidnapped in Macedonia, kept for 20 days in some secret prison and then was given to the CIA.

We have only few secret prisons, we have worked in according to the principles of existence of secret houses, declared Najcevska.

Returning Of War Cases From The Hague Very Dangerous

Skopje, 16 Feb 06 (Radio Kosova) – By the request of the Macedonian authorities, the Minister of Justice Meri Mladenovska and Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte have agreed to return to Macedonia four war cases related to former NLA and which the Hague Tribunal did not proceed with until now. Albanian political parties in Macedonia considered this step as very dangerous for the future of the country.

BDI Vice President Rafiz Haliti said that the Macedonian state leadership intends to stain the just war of the NLA. President of PDSH Ilaz Halimi stated that the request to return these cases to Macedonia contradicts the Amnesty Law. He also said that the Hague Tribunal is the only body that is competent to decide about the war crimes, but not Macedonian institutions and courts.

The four cases, which are being requested to return to Macedonian court competencies, are linked to former NLA members for kidnapping of construction workers of Mavrovo firm, shutting down of Likova water dam and graveyard in Neproshten near Tetova. The Hague Tribunal has raised indictment only for the murder of ten Albanian civilians in Luboten near Skopje. Former Interior Minister Lube Boskovski and former Police Commander Johan Tashulovski were accused of this crime.