| KOSOVO: RESETTLEMENT IS
PRIORITY 14 Jul. 99 – The faster-than-expected return of ethnic Albanian refugees
to Kosovo has increased the need for immediate funds for humanitarian and reconstruction
aid, senior Western officials concluded yesterday, reports the Washington Post in
Brussels. Officials at the inaugural meeting of the US, European and Japanese steering
group that will oversee rebuilding Kosovo agreed the first priority was paying for the
cost of resettling the 800,000 ethnic Albanians, more than 600,000 of whom have gone home.
UN emergency repair kits with frames, plastic sheeting, tools and nails are being used in
some parts to help rebuild the damaged homes, but UNHCR said it cannot afford to spend
more than the US$10m per week that it has laid out since the crisis began. The International
Herald Tribune reports officials stressed this was a preliminary stage, with the
emphasis on helping Kosovo refugees get re-established before winter. AFP reports
the UN administrator for Kosovo, Bernard Kouchner, said aid would have to be provided
"much sooner than expected" as a result of the high number of refugee returns. Deutsche
Presse-Agentur quotes World Bank president James Wolfensohn as saying the first focus
will be to ensure returning refugees "have a decent winter." [Panel Calls for
Speed In Rebuilding Kosovo – www.washingtonpost.com;
West Begins the Kosovo Rebuilding Job – www.iht.com;
Damage in Kosovo less than feared, but reconstruction must accelerate – www.afp.com; Only humanitarian aid will go to Serbia, G7
says – www.dpa.com] KOSOVO: GYPSIES DEMAND SAFE PASSAGE OUT 14 Jul. 99 – A Kosovo
Gypsy leader yesterday demanded safe passage out of Kosovo for thousands of his people who
have sought refuge, reports AP. Many Gypsies, or Roma, have fled Kosovo since
NATO's bombing campaign ended last month and Serb military and police departed. Others
packed into a huge camp outside Pristina, or took refuge elsewhere, out of fear of
persecution by returning ethnic Albanians. "We would even go to the Himalayas to have
freedom and rights," said Ibrahim Hasani, co-leader of more than 5,000 Roma encamped
in Kosovo Polje. If international officials or Kosovo peacekeepers don't provide a safe
corridor for them to leave, "we'll open corridors of our own," he said. Refugee
officials are reluctant to guarantee the Roma passage out. "If their situation
becomes untenable then we'll have to resort to evacuating them," UNHCR spokesman Kris
Janowski said. "But we don't have any particular plan for safe passage at this
stage." The issue of where they would go is difficult, he added, noting that even
Serbia is "very, very wary of accepting anybody, including the Serbs from Kosovo at
the moment." The Daily Telegraph reports the leader made an impassioned appeal
for safe passage to another country for the thousands of gypsies. [Amid violence, Gypsies
demand safe passage from Kosovo – www.ap.org; Gypsies
seek exile to escape retribution – www.telegraph.co.uk]
KOSOVO: BOSNIAN, CROATIAN SERBS ABDUCTED 14 Jul. 99
– Two Serbian refugees have been kidnapped in Pristina, UNHCR said yesterday, reports
Reuters. UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond said the two men, one a Bosnian Serb and the
other a Croatian Serb from Krajina, were abducted from a hotel by five men on Monday. The
kidnappers were dressed in black and carried radio handsets, according to witnesses,
Redmond said. Redmond said the Krajina Serbs were among the people UNHCR was most
concerned about in Kosovo. "If this can happen in the middle of Pristina then it can
happen anywhere," he added. Redmond said UNHCR had reported the abductions to KFOR,
the international peacekeeping force in Kosovo. [Two Serb refugees kidnapped in Kosovo
capital – www.reuters.com]
This document is intended for public information
purposes only. It is not an official UN document. |
Document compiled by Dr S D Stein