e mërkurë, dhjetor 05, 2007

UN confident of careful steps to Kosovo status

PRISTINA, Serbia, Dec 5 (Reuters) - The United Nations said on Wednesday it was confident Kosovo Albanians would not rush the West into a decision on the territory's fate after a Dec. 10 U.N. report on failed negotiations with Serbia.

"I fully sympathise with everybody who says we now need a solution very soon," the head of the U.N. administration in the territory, Joachim Ruecker, told a news conference. "But I also think it is very, very important to get the next steps right."

Ruecker said leaders of Kosovo's 90-percent Albanian majority understood the need to let the U.N. and European Union draw conclusions from the report, "and then go from there."

Kosovo Albanians say the next step is a declaration of independence, defying Russia and ending eight years of U.N.-imposed limbo since NATO bombs wrested control of the province from Slobodan Milosevic's Serbia.

But Kosovo's prime minister-apparent, ex-guerrilla fighter Hashim Thaci, has stressed the declaration will be made "in close coordination" with those countries likely to recognise it - the United States and major EU states.

Political sources in Kosovo say such a move is unlikely before mid-January, and might have to wait until after Serbia holds a presidential election -- possibly in late January - to avoid boosting the chances of Serb ultranationalists.



NATO BRACED

Mediators from the United States, Russia and the European Union ended four months of inconclusive talks last week in Austria, saying compromise had proved impossible.

Russia insists the issue be decided by the U.N. Security Council. Moscow has already blocked a Western-backed plan for EU-supervised independence by threatening to use its veto.

The mediators say their report, which is due by Monday, will not prescribe a solution, or a way forward. The Security Council is expected to discuss the document on Dec. 19.

Washington and almost all EU member states support Kosovo's independence as the best option for stability in the Balkans.

But they want to coordinate a declaration to minimise the fallout and protect the unity of the 27-member EU, which is preparing to deploy 1,800 police officers and judges.

"I know the people of Kosovo have enough maturity to let those international mechanisms work, let them draw their conclusions and then go from there to the following steps, which have to be decided by governments," said Ruecker.

Kosovo has been run by the United Nations since 1999, when NATO allies bombed for 11 weeks to halt the killing and ethnic cleansing of Albanian civilians - the 90-percent majority.

A 16,000-strong NATO-led peace force is braced for possible unrest or a backlash from the Serb north when Kosovo Albanians strike out alone. Serbia says it is lining up counter-measures, which could include a trade embargo and border closures.

Tension over Kosovo, Russia set to dominate NATO talks

BRUSSELS, Belgium: Mounting tension over Kosovo's drive for independence and the West's increasingly strained relations with Russia are expected to dominate meetings of NATO foreign ministers this week, forcing Afghanistan from its customary place at the top of the alliance agenda.

Alliance ministers are expected Friday to announce a continued commitment to keep NATO's 16,000-strong peacekeeping force in Kosovo if, as expected, the territory's ethnic-Albanian majority declares independence from Serbia after Monday's deadline for an internationally negotiated agreement.

Diplomats at NATO headquarters were hopeful all 26 NATO nations will pledge not to withdraw their troops, despite deep concerns by some allies over Kosovo's separatist plans. They said the allies were likely to agree that the current U.N. mandate for the peacekeeping force will remain valid after any unilateral declaration of independence.

The Kosovo issue comes to a head on Monday when a team of mediators from Russia, the United States and the European Union reports to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on their efforts to broker a deal between Serbia and the Kosovo's ethnic-Albanian leadership.

The last round of talks collapsed in Austria last week and with little hope of a last minute deal, Kosovo's politicians say they will unilaterally declare independence. The province has been run by the United Nations, backed by NATO troops, since 1999 when a bombing campaign by allied warplanes ended a Serb crack down on the separatists.

"No violence will be tolerated," NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said before the ministers' year-end meeting. "Anyone who thinks violence might be a solution to the problem is wrong."

Despite misgivings from Slovakia, Romania, Spain and Greece, most NATO nations have backed a plan for internationally supervised statehood for Kosovo. Russia, however, strongly supports Serbia's staunch opposition to Kosovo's breakaway ambitions.

The dispute is one of a series of disagreements that have seen NATO-Russia relations decline sharply over the past year. Moscow plans to pull out of a key Cold War era arms agreement on Dec. 12 in part in response to U.S. plans to install anti-missile defenses in Poland and the Czech Republic.

Russia Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will join his NATO counterparts for part of the talks on Friday. He cranked up the rhetoric Wednesday, blaming the West for hampering efforts to find a solution in Kosovo by encouraging separatists and accusing the U.S. of going back on an offer to cooperate on missile defenses.

Afghanistan will feature on the agenda. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is expected to step up pressure on European allies to provide more troops for the NATO force of 41,000.

Ministers may also discuss plans to appoint a senior international representative to coordinate international military and civilian efforts to stabilize the country. Diplomats say Britain's Lord Paddy Ashdown — a former international representative in Bosnia — has been considered for the post, but stress a final decision must be taken by the U.N.

Ministers from Israel and six Arab nations are also scheduled to join the NATO talks to discuss cooperation in fighting terrorism and wider developments in the Middle East after the agreement in Annapolis, Maryland, last week to resume negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians.

PM's adviser: Legal means include war

BELGRADE -- Prime Ministerial Adviser Aleksandar Simić says that there is still no solution to the Kosovo crisis anywhere in sight.

Simić said that Serbia would defend Kosovo by using all the means it had at its disposal.

"When someone fails to respect the Security Council, the only body that ought to react in times when there is a threat of aggression and war, particularly when someone does not observe Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter and the resolution that was adopted in line with it, then there is nothing else a country can do," Simić said late on Tuesday, in a live broadcast on Radio-Television Serbia (RTS).

Asked what was missing in Serbia’s daily claims that it would fight for Kosovo using all legal and political means, he replied that war was also a legal means, when no other options remained.

“Serbia has had negative experiences from certain armed clashes during the civil wars in the former Yugoslavia, and this is why we are more prudent and cautious now, but, of course, state interests are defended by war as well,” Simić stressed.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party (DS) has called Simić’s comments irresponsible and dangerous.

“At a time when Serbia has pledged itself as a factor of peace and stability in the negotiating process, Simić, in his role as prime ministerial adviser, comes out with these menacing, dangerous comments that jeopardize Serbia’s position before the Security Council, sending the message that warmongering was being conducted in Serbia,” reads a DS statement.

The statement goes on to say that Simić is clearly not aware of the fatal consequences of the wartime policies that drove Serbia to fighting for Kosovo.

Albania’s Gay Flight

05 December 2007 Homosexuals face little choice but to leave Albania or put up with deep-rooted homophobia.

By Ben Andoni in Tirana

“Could I tell my mother that I am gay? She is nearly eighty-years-old now. I would never want to cause her such trauma at this stage in her life. My father - when he was alive - asked me, but I could not admit it to him either,” recalls the man in his forties, too afraid to give his name, too self-conscious, constantly looking over his shoulder.

Getting in touch with Gjerji, as he wants to be called, was not an easy task. A form of underground credibility must be established through a network of intermediaries. Repeated cases in the past have taught the homosexual community that, in a traditional society like Albania, going public with their sexual orientation means losing their jobs, risking threats and possible rejection by their families.

“From what we know, the data that we have, there is a community of nearly 3,500 in Tirana alone,” says Genci Terpo, a lawyer with the Albanian Human Rights Group, AHRG.

Though the Albanian Parliament legalized homosexual relationships in 1995, more than a decade later, gays and lesbians are still heavily stigmatized, and a majority of them are choosing to leave, amidst fears that if their sexual orientation is discovered, their safety will be endangered.

“The attitudes toward homosexuality have not changed much, and they have to protect themselves,” says Terpo. “It’s not that now, in 2007, there is any real difference to what we have seen before. They continue to be subjected to discrimination in all walks of life, and that includes state institutions,” he adds.

In the past the majority of homosexuals leaving the country tended to pass through the illegal smuggling routes that were such a familiar feature of the Balkans during the 1990s. Now a growing number is turning to human rights organizations, like AHRG.

“Our biggest problem is identifying ourselves and the possibility of having a shared space where we can meet without fear. There are gay and lesbian clubs all over the world, even in Arab countries which are historically more traditional than ours, and yet here we live in fear” says S.L., a member of the Albanian Gay and Lesbian Association, ALGA.

S.L. says he has good reason for such fear. “We were sitting in a park when two police vans pulled over. The officers got out of the van and dragged us away. One of the drivers came over to me and kicked me repeatedly, his boot hitting my stomach. When I begged him to stop, he just shouted ‘Shut up you faggot’, and continued kicking me”, adds S.L., recalling the incident.

ALGA and AHGR have been trying to bring to the public’s attention the treatment of homosexuals in Albania. In addition to its publicity work, AHGR also provides legal representation, free of charge, for ALGA members in case of arrest or mistreatment.

According to S.L. a number of members from the organization are currently applying for asylum in EU countries due to the discrimination they face, and a few of them have already left.

The first case registered by ALGA was in 2002, when one of its members was granted asylum in the Netherlands through the assistance of AHRG, after being subjected to repeated psychological and physical violence from police officers.

Human rights reports on Albania concede that ingrained attitudes among the public leave Albanian gays and lesbians on the fringes of society. According to AHRG,
Albanian homosexuals face “intolerance, physical and psychological violence - often from the police - and discrimination in the workplace.”

A.A., another member of ALGA, has been granted asylum in Sweden. After being repeatedly harassed by police, he turned to AHRG to seek a way to leave the country.

“He was not able to go to school, had been stopped, harassed and tortured by the police,” confirms Elsa Ballauri, AHRG’s director. “It was not that difficult for the Swedish authorities to take a decision on his case.”

M.L. is another member of ALGA now applying for asylum.

“His life is in great danger, and he has to leave Albania. His family rejected him totally after finding out that he was gay, they have used violence against him, and now are a threat to his life,” says Ballauri in a written statement.

Another problem that is prompting Albanian gays and lesbians to leave the country - apart from the constant abuse and discrimination - is poverty.

“They are extremely marginalized, have no places where they can meet, and because of constant discrimination, are reduced to poverty,” says Klodian Rrepaj, the coordinator of the National HIV/AIDS program, which has tried to reach out to the community.

Although the position of homosexuals in Albania has been out of the limelight, that issue could come to the forefront as the country begins to get closer to the EU, as a result of its signing of a Stabilization and Association Agreement in June 2006. That agreement envisages Tirana’s eventual membership in the EU.

“If we had a chance for a normal life, we would not be so keen to leave. What’s hard to understand is that the levels of violence and discrimination against us are not changing, even though everything else that surrounds us is in a state of flux,” says Gjergji while sipping his espresso in a crowded, smoked-filled Tirana cafe.

“I don’t know,” he says in a dim voice. “I may be the next one to leave.”

Serbia in New Moves over Kosovo

Photo by FoNet
05 December 2007 Belgrade _ Serbia has launched a fresh diplomatic offensive apparently aimed at strengthening its positions ahead of the formal end on December 10 of the current talks on UN-administered Kosovo’s long-term status.

Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic travelled to London on Wednesday to meet Britain’s Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, and other officials.

On Thursday Jeremic will fly to the United States to meet the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and ambassadors of the countries in the UN Security Council, Serbia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

In his address to parliament on Tuesday Jeremic warned that Serbia had prepared “a set of measures” as a response to Kosovo’s anticipated unilateral declaration of independence and its subsequent recognition by individual states.

Jeremic said that the so-called Action Plan, drafted by his ministry for consideration by the government, envisaged options ranging from “doing nothing” to “recalling ambassadors for consultations” and finally to “severing diplomatic ties with countries that would move to unilaterally recognize the province.”

“We hope that there will be no need for the adoption or the implementation of the measures,” as Belgrade still “wants a compromise solution in the Kosovo status dispute,” Jeremic told lawmakers.

Ethnic Albanian-dominated Kosovo, a UN protectorate since the end of the 1998-99 war, wants full independence from Serbia which is offering it only a broad autonomy.

A number of Kosovo Albanian leaders have said they are ready to unilaterally declare their homeland’s independence shortly after the Troika of international mediators from the United States, the European Union and Russia submits its report about the deadlocked Kosovo talks to the UN Secretary-General on December 10.

Meanwhile, Pavle Jevremovic, Serbia’s ambassador to the UN, has announced that Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica will address the Security Council on December 19, at a session convened to review the Troika’s report on Kosovo talks.

He also urged Italy, which chairs the Security Council in December, to allow Kosovo Albanian leaders to attend the session, but not to let them deliver their speeches, said a statement from Serbia’s foreign ministry.

One of the options Belgrade has publicly ruled out is the use of force.

Dragan Sutanovac, Serbia’s Defence Minister, has repeatedly said that although the military are ready for all contingencies, they will not intervene in Kosovo.

Another top official, Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic, has said that “despite future developments, Serbia will not resort to violence [in Kosovo].”

Speaking at an international conference in Brussels on Tuesday, Delic said that “it would be pathetic to send a message to the world that the use of force is the only way of achieving goals.”

Serbs Ponder Kosovo Options

Goran Svilanovic
Goran Svilanovic
05 December 2007 Belgrade _ Former Serbian ministers said Kosovo’s independence appeared inevitable, on the day the Belgrade government launched a fresh diplomatic initiative to keep the UN-administered entity within Serbia.

As Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic started talks on Wednesday in Britain, ahead of flying to the US, Goran Svilanovic, a former Yugoslav Foreign Minister, said that Kosovo’s independence was a matter of months rather than weeks away, and that it was closely related to events in Serbia and to its relations with the EU. To read more, seehttp://www.balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/6762/

Svilanovic, now an official of the Stability Pact for South-eastern Europe, said that the timeframe for independence was linked in the first instance to the adoption of a report by a Troika of international mediators which is due to be submitted to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon by Monday, December 10.

Four months of talks, mediated by the Troika, ended in deadlock last week, with Kosovo’s Albanians insisting on independence, and Serbia not prepared to go beyond offering broad autonomy.

The independence timetable, according to Svilanovic, was also depended on further international moves, including a session of the UN Security Council on December 19, and in the slightly longer term to Serbia’s presidential vote, tentatively expected in early 2008, as well as the development of Belgrade’s relations with the EU.

Serbia is hoping to follow up its recent initialling of a Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU by signing the document which is an important step on the way to its eventual EU membership.

“If it turns out that there are no avenues for new talks over Kosovo and if they [the Kosovo Albanians] declare independence, the EU will probably only acknowledge that move as a fact,” rather than actively support it, Svilanovic told Balkan Insight.

He also said that “only then…maybe in months…will some countries start to make their moves about what they have heard from Pristina and recognize [Kosovo’s] independence.”

“At some point, gradually, some EU member countries, perhaps the most powerful ones will also do the same, “ Svilanovic added, referring to recognition of Kosovo’s independence.

Another former top official, Serbia’s ex-Prime Minister Zoran Zivkovic, said that Kosovo independence was imminent “regardless of whether happens this December” or later.

Zivkovic, who served as prime minister after the assassination of his predecessor, Zoran Djindjic, in 2003, told Balkan Insight that “the only avenue is a partition of the province either through open or secret talks.”

“Kosovo’s north and some areas in the east may stay within Serbia, and the rest can be independent and that’s clearly negotiable. This is not the best nor the most democratic solution, but it offers both sides something so they can achieve some of their goals,” he said.

Zivkovic warned that “when Kosovo declares independence”, Serbs from the province’s northern and eastern parts “may opt to unilaterally declare they want to stay within Serbia, using exactly the same arguments as Kosovo Albanians” about their right to self-determination.

According to official data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, more than 200,000 Kosovo Serbs and other non-Albanians fled Kosovo following the end of the 1999 war, fearing reprisal attacks from extremists.

Many of the 100,000 Kosovo Serbs live in the northern and eastern areas, just outside Serbia, while the rest remains scattered in enclaves throughout Kosovo.

Serbia has insisted on its right to retain Kosovo as part of its territory, but Zivkovic described “Belgrade’s hiding behind the principle of sovereignty” as “lame”.

He added that it was “insufficient to provide for the survival and security of Kosovo Serbs.”

Albania President in Property Row


05 December 2007 Tirana _ Albanian President Bamir Topi has voiced harsh criticism of local institutions that handle the restitution of property confiscated during the communist regime.

In remarks made on Tuesday, Topi accused the property restitution commissions of corruption and illegal practices.

“At this very moment when we are discussing this, I can assure you that somewhere property is being usurped, that somewhere an administration employee has started a day’s work with the thought in mind of making a personal profit, to get some kind of a deal,” Topi told a conference on property restitution..
The president’s remark came after a series of arrests of local officials in the village of Kashar, just outside the capital Tirana, on charges of embezzlement and falsification of property deeds.

Albania’s former communist regime did not allow private ownership of land. Since the collapse of the last communist government in 1991, a process for the restitution of confiscated property to the former owners has been under way.

Political analysts say this process has been marked by corrupt practices.

It is estimated that nearly 70% of the former owners have not yet had their land returned or been compensated for their former properties.

“People who have been directly affected by the abuse of power with the right of ownership are still uncertain whether justice is to be meted out to those who abuse their position,” the president said.

“There are people who for years have been smartly dressed, in fashionable suits, yet who have operated as real butchers when it comes to dealing with the properties of the citizens. It’s a disease which has unfortunately become a chronic ailment,” he added.

Jozefina Topalli e kënaqur me mbështetjen që po i japë Turqia pavarësisë së Kosovës

Jozefina Topalli e kënaqur me mbështetjen që po i japë Turqia pavarësisë së Kosovës

Kryetarja e Kuvendit të Shqipërisë, Jozefina Topalli po qëndron për vizitë zyrtare në Turqi, me ftesë të Kryetarit të Asamblesë Kombëtare të Turqisë, Köksal Toptan. Zonja Topalli, e cila është takuar me kryetarin e parlamentit turk, kryeministrin dhe presidentin, shprehu mbështetjen e plotë për pavarësinë e Kosovës dhe anëtarësimin e Shqipërisë në NATO.
"Çështja e ditës, në fakt, është Kosova dhe ne i jemi shumë mirënjohës Turqisë që mbështet paqen dhe stabilitetin në rajon dhe baza që siguron këtë paqe është "Plani Ahtisaari" dhe pavarësia e Kosovës. Unë, në fakt, i kërkova Kryetarit të Asamblesë Kombëtare edhe ushtrimin e të gjithë influencës së njohjes të tyre personale, të fuqisë së tyre diplomatike, të influencës që kanë në zonë, si vend lider që është Turqia për të marrë të njëjtën mbështetje edhe nga vendet e tjera. Jam shumë e kënaqur që Kryetari tha se ne do të bëjmë çdo gjë për të mbështetur paqen dhe stabilitetin në rajon", ka thënë Zonja Topalli.

"Turqia është e gatshme të bëjë të gjitha përpjekjet e pafundme për vendosjen e stabilitetit dhe paqes finale në rajonin ballkanik. Urojmë dhe shpresojmë që brenda një kohe shumë të shkurtër do të zgjidhet çështja e Kosovës në formën që e gëzon të gjithë popullin e Kosovës, sigurisht, duke e kaluar në Këshillin e Sigurimit të OKB-së", ka thënë Kryetarit të Asamblesë Kombëtare të Turqisë, Köksal Toptan. /d. ndrenika/

Serbia says Kosovo Albanians should not speak at U.N.

Serbia has asked the U.N. Security Council to ensure Kosovo Albanian leaders cannot speak at a critical December 19 meeting on the future of the breakaway province, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

The council meeting that day will take up a report due to be submitted on Monday on international mediators' efforts to bridge the gap between Serbia's offer of broad autonomy and the Kosovo Albanian demand for full independence.

Leaders of Kosovo's 90-percent ethnic Albanian majority, backed by Washington and EU member states, say they will declare independence within months now that last-ditch talks have failed to reach agreement.

Serbia's main ally Russia, which opposes independence and has blocked previous Security Council action on Kosovo, insisted this week the council should have the final word on the future of the province.

In a letter to the Italian president of the council dated Tuesday and obtained by Reuters, Serbian Ambassador Pavle Jevremovic officially requested that Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica attend and make a statement at the December 19 meeting.

In the letter to Italian Ambassador Marcello Spatafora, Jevremovic said that under existing constitutional arrangements for Kosovo, its representatives could attend Security Council meetings but without the right to speak.

"I would appreciate if you ensured full respect for the provisions," he said.

Washington and most EU states see Kosovo's independence from Serbia as the best option for stability in the Balkans.

Russia, which holds a veto in the Security Council, has already blocked one Western-backed independence plan.

Kosovo has been under U.N. rule since 1999, when NATO bombs expelled Serb forces accused of the killing and ethnic cleansing of Albanian civilians while battling separatist rebels.

Almost 18 months of negotiations, led first by U.N. envoy Martti Ahtisaari, have failed to produce compromise.

Spatafora told a news briefing on Tuesday that council members would wait until they see the December 10 report on the most recent U.S., Russian and EU mediation efforts before deciding on the next steps.