Serbia & KiM

Borislav Stefanović, head of Belgrade’s negotiation team, met with Serb delegates from northern Kosovo to discuss the situation in K&M prior to the upcoming meetings in Brussels. Stefanović spoke to the delegates about how to resolve the situation in northern Kosovo through dialogue and negotiation. He also spoke to Serbian Kosovars in Rudar, where the only roadblock remains as of September 1, reminding them about Serbia’s foreign policy situation. According to Stefanović, Belgrade must project and maintain peace and stability in the region so as to avoid any provocation and unilateral 'violent' action by Priština. The only way to resolve the frozen situation in northern Kosovo, said Stefanović, was through dialogue and agreement. Serbian institutions were, however, to remain in the region.

Prior to Stefanović’s negotiation efforts, Serbs blocked the passage between Kosovska Mitrovica and Zubini Potok. The roadblock was erected in reaction to the KFOR and EULEX’s ‘brutal’ search action in Zupža. KFOR and EULEX services had searched private homes in pursuit of evidence for the murder of Enver Zumberi, an Albanian police man, on July 26^th on the Brnjak border between northern Kosovo and southern Serbia. Slaviša Ristić, major of Zubin Potok, assured that nobody opposes the investigation efforts. Yet Ristić stressed that this should be done right. The answer to the question as to whom sent these men (the Kosovar Police forces) to take over the Brnjak border, he said, should be answered in addition to finding the perpetrator of Zumberi’s murder.

President Tadić supported the KFOR and EULEX actions with the condition that they be carried out to find criminal individuals thereby upholding the neutral status of international missions.

Premier Minister Hašim Taći, in a comment concerning the KFOR and EULEX actions, warned that Belgrade should not again become a place where criminals can hide as was the case during the Milošević regime. We will find them (the criminals), said Tadić, and have them prosecuted by the court. Tadić also maintained that Serbia’s illegal parallel institutions were turning into para-military organizations that supported terroristic activities across the region.

“Pretres kuća na severu Kosova”. Radio-televizije Srbije. accessed August 31, 2011.http://www.rts.rs/page/stories/sr.story/9/Politika/948114/Pretres+ku%C4%87a+na+severu+Kosova.html

“Hoti: Blokirani putevi između Kosovske Mitrovice i Zubinog Potoka”. Ekonom East Group. accessed August 31, 2011. http://www.emg.rs/vesti/srbija/162987html

“Stefanović: Sačuvatiu mir i stabilnost”. Ekonom East Group. accessed September 1, 2011.http://www.emg.rs/vesti/srbija/163063.html

“Tači: Paralelne structure Srbije pretvaraju se u parovojne”. Ekonom East Group. accessed 31, 2011.http://www.emg.rs/vesti/srbija/16003.html

Kosovo

The American John Clint Williams has been named head of the special EULEX working group that investigates the potential trade of organs during the war in Kosovo. The investigation is pursued upon the publication of Dick Marty’s dossier that was published earlier this year in January. Dick Marty, as Swiss politician and legislator for the Council of Europe, reported that organs were traded illegally in Kosovo during the war. Chaos was, according to the report, rampant with Kosovar refugees fleeing to Albania while Serbians fled to territories held by the Serbian army. Meanwhile, the Ushtria Çlirimtare e Kosovës (UÇK) or Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) became, in effect, the North Atlantic Tready Organization’s (NATO) ally on the ground while NATO carried out air raids from above. Under such confused circumstances, says Marty, the KLA controlled the situation on the ground and could move freely between Albania and Kosovo. Individuals that fell victim to the illegal organ trade, according to the Marty document, were brought to Albania from Kosovo where they had their organs harvested. The German Bundestag noted that the international community was familiar with the KLA’s activities prior to the war in Kosovo adding that it was known that sources of the group’s funding came from illegal drug and arms trade.

The organized crime in Kosovo, according to the news agency Vesti, is led by former KLA members one of which is allegedly Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hašem Tači. Kosovo’s representatives have rejected such claims adding that they are willing to cooperate in the upcoming investigations that are organized by Brussels (EU headquarters).

“Amerikanac na čelu za iztragu navoda o trgovini organima”. Ekonom East Group. accessed August 29,2011. http://www.emg.rs/vesti/srbija/162856. html

“Nehumana postupanja sa ljudima i ilegalna trgovina ljudskim organima na Kosovo”. Politika Online.accessed September 2, 2011. http://politika.rs/rubrike/dosije-Hasim-Taci/Dokumenti/Nehumana-postupanja-sa-ljudima-i-ilegalna-trgovina-ljudskim-organima-na-Kosovu.lt.html

“Deutscher Bundestag Drucksache 17/6036 – 17 Wahlperiode 30.05.2011”. Deutscher Bundestag.http://dipbt.bundestag.de/dip21/btd/1706036.pdf

“Početak istrage o trgovini organima u Septembru”. Vesti Online. accessed August 31, 2011.http://www.vesti-online.com/Vesti/Srbija/161304/Pocetak-istrage-o-trgovini-organima-u-septembru

Sandžak

On September 2^nd, the Bosniak National Council held Bayram (Turkic word referring to national and/or religious holidays) days of Bosnian culture in Prijepolje. Jahja Fehratović, president of the Bosnian Cultural Society (BKZ), launched the festival by analyzing the media’s ‘aggression’ against the Islamic Community. The media, Fehratović stated, is a great boon that is given by god. There are, however, two ways of utilizing the media. One such way can be used to bring to light great injustices that are done to people by authoritarian regimes as seen in the Arabic world. The media, however, has been used as a propaganda tool to create stereotypes in the four years in which the Islamic Muslim community has struggled for unity, he said. He thus applauded the bravery with which the Muslim community stood by its principles.

Meanwhile, Effendi Muamer Zukorlić, head of the Islamic community in Serbia reminded attendants about the importance of the upcoming elections. They are, said Effendi Zukorlić, not simple political elections. Instead, they symbolize two differing ways: One being the pro-Belgrade way that led to standing in humility before the Belgrade desk while the other, pro Sandžak-Bosniak way led toward decent development.

In an interview with the agency Elektronske Novine Sandžak Press, Bosnia’s Reisu-I-Ulema Mustafa Cerić echoed Effendi Zukorlić’s words stating that, with regard to Serbia’s Bosniaks, the biggest victory was that they overcame their fear of tyranny. He stated that Bosniaks have the same rights as do other Peoples in the Balkan noting that they do not account lesser in number or importance comparatively. Asked whether or not he had ‘certain objections’ regarding relations between Turkey and Serbia concerning Bosnia and Herzegovina, he answered that Turkey was more than a friend and he thus welcomed any visit by Turkish officials.

In an interview with Politika Online, the Turkish Ambassador to Belgrade Ali Riza Čolak commented on the economic, cultural and religious situation in Sandžak. Čolak noted that Sandžak had greater problems than the falling out of Adem Zilkić and Muamer Zukorlić. Instead, Čolak stated, economic and infrastructural problems should be resolved. Turkey does not support or promote either faction over the other and anything that is done in Sandžak should be done within the framework of Serbia’s laws. Turkey pledged do donate 10 million Euros to Sandžak to realize infrastructural projects there.

“Problemi između muftija nisu jedini problem Sandžaka”. Politika Online. accessed September 4, 2011.http://www.politika.rs/rubrike/Politika/Problemi-izmedju-muftija-nisu-jedini-problem-Sandzaka.lt.html

“Bošnjaci su pod jarmom neznanja, tiranije i korupcije”. Elektronske Novine Sandžak Press. accessedSeptember 3, 2011. http://sandzakpress. net/bosnjaci-su-pod-jarmom-neznanja-tiranije-i-korupcije

“Bajramska akademija u Prijepolju: ‘Bošnjaci, preuzmite odgovornost’”. Elektronske Novine SandžakPress. accessed September 2, 2011. http://sandzakpress.net/bajramska-akademija-u-prijepolju-bosnjaci-preuzmite-odgovornost