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Dear Madams/Sirs,

I am writing to you in the name of the Serbian Unity Congress, a Serb Diaspora
organization headquartered in the United States, regarding the early release of Dr. Biljana Plavsic from imprisonment.
Dr. Plavsic is 78 years old and in frail health. We are very concerned about her suffering and believe that her survival is at risk while imprisoned in her frailty.
A women’s group within our organization, the American Serbian Women’s Caucus, very actively assisted the ICTY in the early years and were instrumental in making their success in the Celebici case possible as well as providing witnesses and other evidence in other cases. I personally worked with Mr. Graham Blewitt, then Deputy Prosecutor, over a period of four years.
Our information is that all convicted individuals have been released by the Tribunal
within two-thirds of their sentences. Dr. Plavsic surrendered voluntarily unlike most of those convicted. Her health is frail. She is aged. She has asked for forgiveness of the victims of the charges against her. We appeal to your compassion and understanding and believe that an even-handed and fair treatment of her case should result in her release.
Your consideration and humane treatment of this special case are greatly appreciated.
Sincerely yours,
Mirjana Samardzija
President

2311 M Street, Suite 402, Washington, DC 20037
Tel: 202-463-8643 Fax: 202-318-4757 www.serbianunity.net

SERBIAN UNITY CONGRESS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

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The Serbian Unity Congress strongly condemns yesterday’s attack on Regional UNMIK representative Luis Perez in the town of Decani, and calls for the UN and the United States to react swiftly and decisively in what has become a series of escalating events in the region.

Shortly after 10pm on Thursday June 12th, Luis Perez, Regional UNMIK representative for Pec, was attacked while returning to his apartment following a regular prayer meeting at the Decani monastery. This is the latest in a series of events in Decani, all of which serve to clearly demonstrate the unwillingness of local Albanians and the Kosovo government to peacefully coexist with their Serb minority.

Several weeks earlier, another UNMIK official, Patrick Buse, was directly threatened by the local KLA “war-veteran” leader Abdyl Mushkolaj and his bodyguards. After these threats Mr. Patrick Buse has suspended his work in Decani. The Municipality of Decani has declared him a “persona non grata” in the city of Decani.

The reason for these attacks revolves around an overt act of defiance by the Municipality of Decani against the UNMIK authority. In 2001, the Municipality illegally changed the Cadastral record and awarded land belonging to the Monastery of Decani to local Albanian businesses. In May of this year, UNMIK issued and executive directive (ED 2008/21) that the Cadastral record be restored. The Municipality of Decani has refused to carry out this judgment.

It is the opinion of the Serbian Unity Congress that these aggressive and insolent acts against UNMIK are an absolute measure of the failure of local Kosovo authorities to work toward any standard of protection of minorities and provision for their safety.

UNMIK officials are just the latest victims. Last year, a rocket propelled grenade (RPG) was launched at the monastery, fortunately hitting the protective wall. The man accused of the crime (Mr. Jeton Mulaj, a Kosovo Albanian) is under arrest for damaging a historical landmark and illegal possesion of a weapon… however, he has yet to stand trial. His attack was clearly motivated by ethnic and religious hatred and is normally classified as an act of terrorism.

A few weeks ago, Mr. Bozidar Tomic (64) was beaten by a Kosovo Albanian male in the town of Decani. While waiting for the beginning of the reconstruction of his house (which was burned by KLA in 1999), Mr. Tomic dared walk from the Monastery to the town center to see about further procedures on the reconstruction. As he entered the town a Kosovo Albanian male (50 years old approximately) asked him what was his name and surname. He answered – Bozidar Tomic. The Albanian began beating him in the street. It was only after several minutes that others from the pub came out and took the attacker away and called the police patrol. Mr. Tomic sustained injuries in his face and abdominal area. He was taken to the Italian Military clinic in Villagio Italia to do some additional medical tests.

The main issue here is the lack of readiness and awareness of the local Kosovo authorities to implement the rule of law, including proper protection of minorities; something which was one of the conditions for some countries to recognize Kosovo’s independence.

It is vital at this critical juncture, in this overt act of defiance against the UN authority, that the United States, as the nation which led the charge for Kosovo independence, also be the one to remind Kosovo authorities, that they were not issued a blank check, but were rather given a long list of standards which they must implement if they want to retain U.S. support.

The SUC calls on the US State Department to demand that the Executive Directive regarding the Cadastral record be followed through completely, that the Decani Munipality follow the judgement of UNMIK and restore the land to the Monastery of Decani. Such actions, if allowed to go on without reprecussions, will serve only to embolden local Kosovo authorities to continue such efforts targeting Serbs and other minorities in the region. It is clear that these events are organized efforts to prevent the rightful return of property, obfuscate the protection of minorities and foster intimidation of international forces and prevent their presence and oversight in this region.

2311 M Street NW, Suite 402, Washington, DC  20037
Telephone: (202) 463-8643 Fax: (202) 318-4757
www.serbianunity.net

In her recently published book, former Chief Prosecutor of the War Crimes Tribunal, for Yugoslavia, Carla del Ponte, discussed allegations brought to the Tribunal that ethnic Albanian guerrillas killed 300 people and sold their organs at the end of the war in 1999.  Victims also included trafficked women of other nationalities from Albania, Russia and other Eastern European countries.  “We consider the circumstantial evidence she presents to be sufficiently grave to warrant further investigation,” New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a recent letter addressed to various institutions in Kosovo according to the Associated Press article dated 4/11/2008.  According to veteran Balkan issues journalist Chuck Sudetic, “There were credible accounts of abductions and an organ harvesting operation provided to reputable journalists who have had many years of experience in the region.”  However, no legal action has been taken yet, usually on the pretext of mere technicalities.

The Serbian Unity Congress (SUC) believes It is of paramount importance that this case be thoroughly investigated, and to have all perpetrators and ringleaders identified and prosecuted.  The US government’s active role in the political and humanitarian issues of the area mandate a direct involvement in this process.  Without truth and justice for all, there will be no reconciliation or stability in the region.  We urge the United States government and Helsinki Commission to put immediate and substantive pressure on the United Nations, ICTY (International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia) and local authorities in Kosovo to investigate claims by the ex-chief prosecutor for  war crimes in former Yugosavia According to an article from the Associated Press dated 4/11/2008, most of the victims of these heinous crimes were Kosovo Serbs.

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This act is in direct contravention to the United Nations Charter, the OSCE Helsinki Final Act of 1975 and UN Security Council Resolution 1244. After the cessation of the 1999 NATO bombing of Serbia the United Nations took the step of reaffirming the territorial sovereignty of Serbia by declaring in UN Resolution 1244 that Kosovo would remain a part of Serbia unless otherwise determined by that body.

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have repeatedly reported on the failure of Kosovo’s government and UNMIK to meet basic international standards for the protection and safeguarding of the rights of non-Albanian Kosovo minorities. Throughout the period since 1999 Kosovo’s Albanian majority has perpetrated political violence, common and political crimes, intimidation and discrimination, rape and murder with impunity against the minorities. Its Albanian-dominated government has provided a safe haven center for the by far largest trafficking of illegal drugs, arms and sex slaves in Europe. Under its watch over 150 Christian Orthodox religious sites and monuments have been destroyed, dozens of villages and towns burned to the ground and more than one-half of the Serb population driven out. The necessity to continue to have foreign troops in control of Kosovo after independence (be they UN or European), in order to protect its minorities from violence at the hands of the Albanian majority is full proof that the Albanian majority cannot be trusted not to burn, murder and pillage and that they are in fact by no means deserving of such independence. Unconditionally rewarding independence to an entity with a consistent record of such abuse of human rights of its minorities is equivalent to aiding and abetting such practices.

The Bush administration has repeatedly undermined and intentionally doomed negotiations between Pristina and Belgrade by publicly stating that it would recognize Kosovo’s call for independence regardless of what happened. With this one-sided role it has assured an imposed rather than a negotiated settlement further eroding its already debilitated international image and credibility as an honest broker.

It is clear that the threat of violence by Albanians as a recourse if recognition is not granted is blackmail that the US and other nations recognizing independence have buckled to.

By condoning the severing of a nation’s territory with total disregard for international law or guarantees the US agreed to as a signatory to Resolution 1244, this administration has set a dangerous precedent whose repercussions are being felt already. It has given a green light to the Serbs of Bosnia, the Basques of Spain, Nagorno Karabakh and many others to declare independence and secede from their current nations. It has surrendered its moral authority and right to challenge future calls for independence from other disgruntled groups. Given Kosovo’s dismal human rights record, unconditional recognition by the United States effectively condones the continuation of criminal behavior with impunity by Kosovo’s majority and its leaders.

We call on the US Congress to restore respect for democratic values and respond responsibly, exercise its control of the purse and prevent any future damage by making any future assistance to Kosovo conditional on the fulfillment of human rights and other rule of law standards by its Albanian majority.

SERBIAN UNITY CONGRESS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

The decision of the monoethnic Kosovo Provisional Authorities (KPA) in the UN-administered province of Serbia to declare unilateral independence is illegal and illegitimate. This act is in direct contravention to the United Nations Charter, the OSCE Helsinki Final Act of 1975 and UN Security Council Resolution 1244, and it has been rejected outright by the government of the parent state of Serbia as null and void.  If left unanswered, it can have a dangerous destabilizing effect, with immediate impact based on a clear precedent to numerous potential secessionists worldwide. Even more importantly, it would debase international law and shatter the premises of present collective European and global security, with devastating consequences.

The Serbian Unity Congress (SUC) calls on the government of the United States, as a UN Security Council permanent member and founding state of the OSCE, to live up to its obligation to immediately take active steps enabling the UN to neutralize and reverse this illegal act. Specifically, the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), authorized by UN Security Council Resolution 1244 to administer the province until its peaceful reintegration, must be instructed to promptly annul this act and take active measures to disband the usurper KPA and apprehend its ringleaders. Furthermore, the SUC welcomes yesterday’s statement by President Bush that “[Kosovo’s] status must be resolved for the Balkans to be stable”, and reiterates that status can only be considered “resolved” if mutually agreed between the parties.

2311 M Street NW, Suite 402, Washington, DC  20037
Telephone: (202) 463-8643 Fax: (202) 318-4757
www.serbianunity.net

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Talks on future status of Kosovo under the UN troika mediation have failed to overcome the impasse and produce a workable solution.

The Serbian Unity Congress strongly reiterates its long-held principled position that only a negotiated and mutually agreed-to solution can be lasting, just, and consistent with broadly understood American national interests.

The current US practice of imposing artificial deadlines and advocating extreme outcomes amid talks has effectively disabled meaningful negotiation between the parties and should be promptly substituted by honest brokerage. Furthermore, our government’s apparent readiness to sacrifice international law in deference to a violent foreign special interest would set a dangerous precedent, sending a message worldwide of America’s abandonment of core human rights in the face of terrorist threats, and compromising US national interests as well as global stability.

We call on the United States government to finally begin influencing Kosovo negotiations in a constructive manner through its role in the Contact Group and particularly the UN Security Council, respecting international law. Parties to the conflict must be clearly encouraged to negotiate in good faith, without time limits or preset solutions.  We furthermore call on Congress to provide the checks and balances necessary to promptly implement these policy changes.

The Serbian Unity Congress expresses its strong disagreement with the latest proposals by the Office of the High Representative (OHR) in Bosnia-Herzegovina to fundamentally revise the laws governing the state-level Council of Ministers and Parliament. It is critically important to retract these proposals in their current form for the following reasons:

a) The general attitude of current HR, Miroslav Lajcak, clearly appears to continue, instead of abandoning, the detrimental practice of many of his predecessors in crudely overstepping boundaries of their mandate and thus stifling democracy and responsibility of the local political process, its body politic and elected officials. This threatens to fully discredit the authority of the OHR and their ability to provide any constructive oversight function, concurrently making a mockery of the very democratic institutions that UN presence was meant to facilitate during the past 12 years.

b) The said legislative changes as proposed, irrespective of their source, are clearly unconstitutional in both letter and spirit, as they represent an obvious breach of the US-backed Dayton-Paris accords and their very pillars - the principles of entity and constituent nation parity - that provided the balance between central and regional government needed to end hostilities and usher a prospect of peace for Bosnia-Herzegovina.

c) The said legislative proposals, both in content and method of delivery, have produced in practical terms a very serious crisis that threatens to widen, with unpredictable and grave consequences that directly threaten the very stability that US interests mandate, and its foreign policy has been heavily invested with.

Based on all of the above and the key role that the US has in influencing the OHR, the Serbian Unity Congress calls on the State Department to immediately take positive action to redress the matter, and urges Congress to provide clear guidance and support in this matter.

The Serbian Unity Congress strongly condemns published plans for a November US tour by the Croatian rock-band Thompson, and hereby calls on all branches of the US government to join human rights watchdog organizations in taking necessary action to stop any of their public performances in the US.

The band, led by one Marko Perkovic-Thompson, has a long an indisputable track record of bigotry, racism and even outright fascism, as attested by multiple diverse sources. The New York Times July 2 article on the issue summarized the key points:

“[…] thousands of fans in a packed stadium here in the Croatian capital gave a Nazi salute as the rock star Marko Perkovic shouted a well-known slogan from World War II.  Some of the fans were wearing the black caps of Croatia’s infamous Nazi puppet Ustashe government, which was responsible for sending tens of thousands of Serbs, Gypsies and Jews to their deaths in concentration camps. The exchange with the audience is a routine part of Mr. Perkovic’s act […]”

This echoed the conclusions of the London Telegraph Jan. 10 piece “Nazi salutes to Croatian rock star Thompson”, as well as numerous others.

For these reasons, this performer has been banned from locales including Sarajevo, Amsterdam, and most recently Toronto as part of the their current projected tour. Instrumental in the last cancellation was the Simon Wiesenthal Center, which called for the banning of singers who glorify fascism and racism and expressed “outrage and disgust in the wake of a massive show of fascist salutes, symbols and uniforms at a rock concert by popular ultra-nationalist Croatian singer Thompson.”

It is clear that this act is utterly incompatible with values established in our society, and that positive action by governmental agencies might be needed to redress the matter.

SERBIAN UNITY CONGRESS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

During a recent visit to Portugal, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stated that “we’re committed to an independent Kosovo and we will get there one way or another.”

In the current delicate political juncture, when key international players (including UN Security Council members and EU nations ) involved in helping determine a fair resolution to the Kosovo issue have agreed that a new round of good-faith negotiations between the parties, with no fixed time limits or default solutions, is necessary to move forward from the current stalemate - the present statement amounts to a sabotage that mocks the process and dooms the outcome.

A similar - though less brazen - stance by the State Department at the outset of the 2006 Vienna status talks likewise wiped out any substantive negotiations between the parties and directly led to the current political impasse. With a continuing American responsibility for assisting a just resolution to this political conflict, its ability to act as honest and independent broker is virtually destroyed with such an irresponsible bias towards one particular solution.

Furthemore, the current insistence on this specific outcome compromises US foreign policy on multiple levels. Defying international law by pressing the dismembering of a state that has clearly committed to its territorial integrity is bound to open a Pandora’s box of secessionist claims worldwide, resultant instability and sundry blowback of a kind historically poorly handled by the US. Moreover, the abandonment of the earlier sensible “[human rights] standards before status” policy for the province, in the face of naked threats of violence by a narco-mafia clique with reported Al-Qaeda ties, is certain to bode ill for both our ongoing efforts in the War on Terror and the perceived sincerity of our worldwide human rights agenda.

If there was any question about the effect of the Secretary’s public comments, that was promptly removed when the provincial Prime Minister Agim Ceku stated he will call on the Assembly of Kosovo to have November 28th as the day when the province will unilaterally declare its independence. This plan (called “Plan U” for “Unilateral Independence”) was presented to the Kosovo Albanian delegation in advance of its trip to Washington DC this week, to meet with Secretary Rice.

This is sadly a very predictable outcome of a very irresponsible remark. We now have the Kosovo governmental institutions poised for a declaration of unilateral independence, an outcome feared by all other international factors, but with the explicit support of the United States. While the rest of the International Community is desperatly trying to figure out a sustanable solution and bring lasting peace to the region, the Secretary of State is presenting the United States foreign policy as one where terrorism is not only tolerated, but rewarded.

The Serbian Unity Congress strongly condemns such destructive statements, especially coming from a key player in the ongoing discussions on the future of this province. Furthermore, the Serbian Unity Congress calls on members of Congress and Senate to come out strongly against such acts, exerting their mandated oversight of the State Department, raise the level of scrutiny of the Administration’s policy regarding Kosovo-Metohija, and its implications on US security and national interest.

For those of us who are born or living abroad, on Vidovdan we all remember our roots. It is a
focal point of our identity as people tied together by our ancestors, their actions and their
values. While we remember Tsar Lazar and the loss on Kosovo Ravno, we are also proud of
the outcome.

In the early summer of 1389, our ancestors went bravely forth from their castles and
fortresses, their wooden huts and farms to face a vast and powerful enemy. They knew fullwell
that they might not return. But they went in defense of their homes, their families, their
pleme and their Holy Orthodox Christian faith. This would be the second major and awful
encounter between Serbs and the Ottomans after the Battle of Marica in 1371. The short time
between these battles was not even adequate to raise a new generation of warriors to bolster
the losses sustained in 1371. Nonetheless, when faced with a choice of submitting to tyranny
or fighting for freedom, our ancestors chose the latter. They chose to do what is right and
honorable regardless of the cost.

More than six hundred years later, we gather to remember and honor the actions of all of our
ancestors - from the Battle of Kosovo to the 1804 uprising, from two Balkan wars to two
world wars, from their fights against tyranny to their struggle to survive today in Kosovo and
Metohija. We thank them for their deeds of chivalry and valor. We thank them for their
willingness to fight and die for what is right. We thank them for setting an example for us to
follow every day of our lives. We thank them for showing by their deeds what it means to be
a Serb - not so much a matter of genetics but, rather, a matter of moral values and conscious
choice, the choice of the Kosovski zavet.

The battle of Kosovo in 1389 and today is both internal and external. Each of us has a daily
struggle to do what is right, to live true to the values of our shared culture and our faith.
There is also the external battle. Today our people in Kosovo and Metohija face daily
terrorism and occupation. Today we openly stand with them and work towards justice and
fairness for all. While we may lose in the short-run, in the long-run doing what is right is
always a victory. In this we are no different from our ancestors.

Jasmina Theodore Boulanger
President
Serbian Unity Congress

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On the occasion of the public comments made by President George W. Bush on his recent trip to Albania, the Serbian Unity Congress (SUC) strongly objects to a number of statements regarding the forced secession of the Serbian province of Kosovo and Metohija based on artificial deadlines and unilateral solutions, and calls again on the Bush Administration to reconsider its position on this issue, with a focus on facilitating a negotiated solution to be reached in direct good-faith talks between the parties.

The SUC continues to maintain that support for unilateral secession represents an incoherent and deeply flawed policy that contravenes broadly understood US national interests. It undermines respect for both the multilateralism, which America requires at this delicate global policy juncture, and the international law, which it is expected to champion. Furthermore, the rush to grant independence, despite the Kosovo Albanian leadership’s continued and patent disregard of basic humanitarian standards would spell a clear defeat of the very rationale behind direct US involvement in this conflict. Finally, it would signal a dangerous American weakness in the face of violent threats and would create a seminal precedent eagerly awaited by destabilizing factors worldwide.

President Bush’s endorsement of Kosovo Albanian separatism and independence of Kosovo uproots sovereignty as the basis for peace - not only in the Balkans, but around the globe. It also clearly signals a cold indifference to dispossessing the Serbian people of their ancestral home, thus succeeding where previous aggressors (none of whom were allies of the United States) failed.

President Bush’s desire to “make sure that Serbia hears that the United States supports their aspirations for closer integration with the West [which] means working with the United States in a bilateral fashion” requires basing such bilateral ties on true mutual respect, including that of Serbia’s clearly stated insistence on (and right to) its territorial integrity.

Briefing to Serbian Congressional Caucus

Washington, D.C.

March 27, 2007

Remarks of Jasmina Theodore Boulanger

President, The Serbian Unity Congress

Introduction

I am Jasmina Theodore Boulanger, President of the Serbian Unity Congress. We are one of the largest organizations in the world that consists of Serbs and persons of Serbian ancestry principally resident in the United States.

Thank you for inviting me to speak here today.

I am especially happy that Congresswoman Bean is a co-chair of this Caucus since she is from Illinois; I was born in Wisconsin, just north of “the Land of Lincoln.”

American Values

Speaking of Lincoln, he is considered one of our greatest presidents because he saved the Union and thereby freed a people and laid the foundation of our prosperity in the modern era.

Ironically (not to mention tragically), today, our country’s policy toward Serbia is directed at supporting a forced secession of territory, thereby condemning a people to fear and oppression, and laying the foundation for future instability.

The United States — not unlike Serbia itself — has a tradition of liberation of the oppressed and of standing up for what is right — even in when we stand alone. We have a tradition of not bowing to tyranny and not rewarding gratuitous violence.

Unfortunately, our current policy is not consistent with our values. With respect to Kosovo and Metohija, today the US is cooperating with Western European nations and trying to force Serbia - a sovereign nation (with whom the US has had diplomatic relations for 125 years) - to cede nearly 15% of its territory and to abandon its people who still live there: people who have not (yet) been forced out through killing, violence and other forms of intimidation; people who still live there in ghettos surrounded by barbed wire and “protected” by soldiers from UMNIK or K-FOR; people who are prevented, both by Albanian separatists and the intervention of the international community, from getting protection and basic civil services from their legitimate government. Moreover, while the United States expressly became involved in Kosovo to prevent the internal displacement of populations, there remain hundreds of thousands of refugees denied the right of safe return to their homes in Kosovo.

Earlier this month, we marked the 3rd anniversary of Kosovo’s “Kristallnacht” when the multi-day rampage by Albanian rioters resulted in 35 Serbian Orthodox churches being destroyed, 22 people killed, 600 others wounded, 561 Serbian homes burned down, an additional 218 homes damaged, 6 Serbian villages destroyed, and over 4,000 Serbs and other non-Albanian minorities forcibly expelled from their homes.

Just a few weeks ago, one of the churches damaged in the riots, which had been rebuilt and restored, was again badly damaged. Christian monastics cannot leave their monasteries without the protection of armed UNMIK or NATO escorts. People in Orahovac are dangerously short of food since their thin supply-lines are constantly disrupted. I could go on like this for a considerable time ….

The perpetrators of these atrocities have not been held accountable. And, meanwhile, the drumbeat of United Nations Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari, of certain Western European countries and of the State Department is “independence” for Kosovo — on an artificial and short deadline. There has been hardly any progress in ensuring elemental human rights, standards which include, at a minimum: safety in one’s home, freedom of movement and the right of refugees to return to their homes, freedom of worship. The concept of “standards before status” is now revealed as an empty cliché. Instead, we hear the Chamberlain-esque notion that the West can do business with the Albanian leadership in Kosovo; and, if we do, there will be “peace in our time.”

Instability
The Ahtisaari Plan for resolving the conflict in the UN-administered Serbian province of Kosovo and Metohija, denies a key premise: ultimate Serbian sovereignty over its whole territory. The UN Charter, the EU Charter and the Helsinki Final Act of 1975 (among others) all clearly spell out the importance of territorial integrity in international relations.

In addressing Kosovo and Metohija specifically, UN Security Council Resolution 1244 stipulates the importance of this principle. Mr. Ahtisaari’s plan violates these values in a fundamental way.
Our recent ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, has strongly criticized the attempts by the international community to impose deadlines and a pre-conceived settlement for resolving the problem of Kosovo-Metohija. According to him, “this complicated situation can be resolved through pursuing negotiations and a definite agreement between Serbs and Kosovo Albanians.” He also noted that the UN must remain unbiased and create the conditions for pursuing negotiations, contrary to the position being taken by its envoy Martti Ahtisaari.

If the international community can force the redrawing of national boundaries in Serbia, then why stop there? Thinking that this is a “unique” case and will not be precedent setting is naïve at best. Forced partition of Serbia will lead the way for the ad hoc redrawing of boarders elsewhere. If Albanian separatists are seen to get special rewards for their violence, then why not others?

For over six years now, Serbia has been led by a new government, universally acknowledged as democratic and committed to redressing grievances of the Albanian and other minorities in Serbia regarding violations of human and democratic rights under its predecessor. The concerns of the Kosovo Albanian community can be legitimately resolved within broad autonomy solutions, following European standards and without compromising Serbia’s territorial integrity or forcing it to abandon its people. That is the only basis for a real compromise. The Serbian Unity Congress calls upon the United States government to facilitate direct talks to that effect. We believe that any other course would threaten to destabilize the Balkans and set precedents with serious international consequences.

Rewarding violence

After almost eight years of sustained efforts and billions of dollars, the United States and the European Union are determined to create an independent state of Kosovo. “What they are ushering into existence, however, looks set to become a heavily criminalized state in the heart of Europe,” according to Svante E. Cornell and Michael Jonsson writing in The International Herald Tribune (March 22, 2007). Messrs Cornell and Jonsson also note that

“Much of what ails Kosovo today stems in part from the failure to deal with the side-effects of the [1999 armed ] intervention [by the international community] and with the continued power of the now-disbanded KLA [Kosovo Liberation Army]. The war gave the KLA increased legitimacy, following and funding. But the KLA was hardly a poster child for high-minded guerrilla warfare. Considered a terrorist organization by the United States and other Western governments … It [has] received extensive funding from drug trafficking and engaged in serious human rights violations. In spite of this track record, once the war finished, the KLA was allowed to reinvent itself into a political party, the PDK, and to form most of the Kosovo Protection Corps as well as the police force.”

“Albanian organized crime cashed in on alliances created with leading Kosovar Albanian politicians and today control much of the heroin traffic to Western Europe.
Remnants of the KLA - and its funding network - were involved in fomenting unrest in southern Serbia and northern Macedonia, twice bringing the latter to the brink of full-blown conflict. Members of the Kosovo Protection Corps have also been arrested on charges of killing civilian Serbs.”

It has also been reported that Albanian separatist groups in Kosovo have threatened extensive riots if their demands for independence continue to be frustrated. This source of potential instability pales in comparison with the consequences of granting such wishes. It would effectively mean caving-in to terrorists.

It is lonely at the top - the actions and reactions of the sole superpower are scrutinized by friend and foe alike. State Department pronouncements about Kosovo being “unique” aside, the precedent-setting value of such an action would not be lost on anyone - least of all on those whose interests diverge from our own. However, the international community and the State Department show no reluctance to yielding to this type of blackmail and continue to push for independence regardless of international law or the elemental legitimate aspirations of Serbs and other religious and ethnic minorities for a dignified survival.

American Serbs

American Serbs are a diverse group. We have been in the United States for more than 150 years and live in every state of the Union, though primarily in Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and California. We or our parents and grandparents came to America for many reasons - seeking freedom from foreign occupation, religious freedom, freedom from communism (like my father), and/or seeking economic opportunity. We can be found in many walks of life - medicine, science, the arts, the military, small business, and proud labor working in America’s factories. We are Republicans and Democrats. We are passionate in our beliefs, in our agreements and disagreements. Regarding the importance of Kosovo and Metohija, however, we are solidly united. We firmly and unequivocally desire the protection of the cradle of Serbian history and culture, of our religious monuments and of our distant brothers and sisters.

Conclusion

At this time, there really are no easy or clean solutions to the Kosovo quandary. Among the remaining ones, independence is the worst from the perspective of legality, morality and a sensibly defined American national interest. Having the parties engage in real negotiations, without artificial time limits or preordained outcomes, with the United States as an active and honest broker, is the only course, taxing as it may be in the short-run, that can lead in the long-run to an outcome that is fair, stable, and one that the US will not come to regret.

We also believe that it is more than time for the international community to stop holding the current government of Serbia accountable for the crimes and other short-comings of its predecessor communist regimes. We call upon the United States to support the nascent democracy in Serbia so that it takes firm root, so that this historic ally of ours can swiftly become a full partner of progress in the world.

Thank you.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 8, 2007

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On the occasion of the publication of the Ahtisaari Plan for resolving the conflict in the UN-administered Serbian province of Kosovo and Metohija, the Serbian Unity Congress (SUC) reiterates its commitment to a negotiated solution that would address the basic concerns of both parties, in agreement with International Law and accepted practices. In its current form, the Ahtisaari Plan cannot serve as a basis for achieving this, as it clearly denies a key premise: ultimate Serbian sovereignty over its whole territory.

The UN Charter, the EU Charter and the Helsinki Final Act of 1975 (among others) all clearly spell out the importance of territorial integrity in international relations. In addressing Kosovo and Metohija specifically, the UN Security Council Resolution 1244 stipulates the same importance upon this principle. Mr. Ahtisaari’s plan violates these values in a fundamental way.

For over six years now, Serbia has been led by a new government, universally acknowledged as democratic and committed to redressing grievances of the Albanian and other minorities in Serbia over violated human and democratic rights under its predecessor. The concerns of the Kosovo Albanian community can be legitimately resolved within broad autonomy solutions, following European standards and without compromising Serbia’s territorial integrity. That is the only basis for a real compromise. The SUC calls on the United States government to facilitate direct talks to that effect, as any other course would threaten to destabilize the Balkans and set precedents with serious international consequences.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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Secretary-General Kofi Annan
United Nations Secretariat
New York, NY 10017
By Fax: 212-963-7055

Your Excellency:

The Serbian Unity Congress strongly condemns the recent statement made by UN Special Envoy Marti Ahtisaari asserting that “the Serbs are guilty as a nation” for crimes against Albanians in 1998 and 1999. He articulated this offensive view at a meeting with the Belgrade negotiating team on the 8th of August. The President of the Coordination Center for Kosovo and Metohija, Sanda Rashkovic-Ivic, correctly assessed the situation when she stated in an interview that Ahtisaari “has debased and insulted the Serbian nation.”

UN Secretary General spokesperson Brandon Varma has said that Ahtisaari’s words were “taken out of context” and that “he only wanted to say that historical heritage cannot be ignored.” This is a wholly unacceptable statement, as well as a transparent and a very poor attempt at spinning what can only be categorized as an egregious offense. Mr. Ahtisaari’s explanation that “Every nation carries a burden for which it has to pay” is just further proof of his demonstrated biases. He has unquestionably disqualified himself and demeaned his assignment and can no longer lead serious and substantive discussions about the future of Kosovo. Considering the gravity of the Kosovo problem, attitudes like those of Mr. Ahtisaari are only counterproductive and may produce serious consequences for peace and stability in the Balkans.

It is incomprehensible that Mr. Ahtisaari be allowed to remain in a position of such importance, given his obvious lack of impartiality and his disdain for the people sitting across the table. In this delicate time of discussions about the future status of Kosovo, one-sided comments by a UN Special Envoy are deplorable and should be avoided at all costs. The United Nations continues to demonstrate questionable judgment in its efforts in these discussions by allowing Mr. Ahtisaari to keep his job.

The Serbian Unity Congress asks you to disassociate the United Nations from the offensive, irresponsible and destructive position advocated by Mr. Ahtisaari and remove him from his post effective immediately. A suitable and effective replacement for this important position should be found as soon as possible.

Your Excellency, the situation in Kosovo and Metohija needs to be handled by people with a genuine interest in finding a real solution who will approach the ongoing discussions with a fair and unbiased mindset. The ongoing war on terrorism has had a growing front in the Balkans, and victory will not be possible without a viable and stable solution for Kosovo and all of its people.

Sincerely yours,

Jasmina Theodore Boulanger
President
The Serbian Unity Congress

cc: Ambassador John R. Bolton

Eleven years ago, Croatian armed forces began Operation “Storm” or “Oluja”, the single largest campaign of ethnic cleansing in the history of the recent Balkan wars, resulting in the forced expulsion of more than 300,000 Serbs, the majority of whom remain refugees to this day. While the EU and the US have engaged in rebuilding and restoring the countries of the former Yugoslavia, inexplicably they have neglected to address the continuing human rights violations of Serbs forced out and still living outside of Croatia.

As a perfect example of this apathy, the Croatian government still celebrates this day as a “Day of Victory”, while the EU and US stand by silently. It is inexcusable that these two pillars of the international community have done nothing to stop this horrific celebration. Ironically, the Croatian government celebrates ethnic cleansing while also commemorating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Nikola Tesla; Tesla’s family home and monuments were razed during Operation Storm, along with countless other Serb homes and villages, a testament to the ethnic hatred that fueled this campaign.

The Serbian Unity Congress calls on the US government and the EU to strongly condemn the continued “Day of Victory” celebration by the Croatian government. All statements of reconciliation made by Zagreb in recent years are brought into question each August when that nation remembers and celebrates the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of its own citizens. Moreover, it is the US and EU and their deafening silence on the issue that brings into question their sincere desire to bring lasting peace to the region.

The Serbian Unity Congress (SUC) is deeply disappointed in the regrettable decision of the U.S. State Department to have Secretary Condoleezza Rice meet today in Washington with Mr. Agim Ceku, “prime minister” of the PISG in the UNadministered Serbian province of Kosovo-Metohija.

The SUC welcomes constructive multilateral engagement as well as direct political contacts of the U.S. government with all relevant parties in the post-Yugoslav fragmentation, in search of necessary stability and prosperity. However, the present choice of negotiator on behalf of the Kosovo Albanian body politic is a deeply flawed and dangerous political precedent.

As has been repeatedly pointed out by the SUC, Mr. Ceku is an indicted war criminal and mass murderer, sought in his native country on major charges from wars in both Croatia and Kosovo. The latter indictment alone includes 687 murders, 518 counts of inflicting serious bodily harm (including torture) and wounding, and 584 counts of abduction against loyalist population in Kosovo. He was wanted on Interpol warrants on which he was twice arrested, though inexplicably never extradited.

The influential Jane’s Defense Weekly called Mr. Ceku a “mastermind” of the worst ethnic cleansing of the Balkan wars for his 1995 role in the massacres and expulsions in the Krajina. In 1993, Canadian UNPROFOR troops witnessed and eventually confronted the mass slaughter of over 200 Serbian civilians of the Medak Pocket led by Ceku, then a colonel of the Croatian Army. During the last 7 years of UNMIK administration, he mostly headed KPC, a “civil emergency organization” operated as an illegally militarized successor to the “disbanded” terrorist KLA. The KPC has organized and fomented terror and violence within Kosovo (e.g. the March 2004 pogrom of its loyalist population) and has exported it outside its boundaries, maintaining proven ties to groups (ANA) labeled as terrorist by UNMIK.

Legitimizing such individuals is entirely incompatible with the principles of U.S. foreign policy as laid out by this and previous administrations. It clearly contradicts the stated goals of multi-ethnicity and stability for the province. Former U.S. Ambassador W. Montgomery succinctly summarized this recently:

“The former KLA got reorganized into the Kosovo Protection Corps, under the leadership of general Ceku and other higher KLA commanders. Members of this organization have been found responsible for violence in Kosovo and Macedonia. It could not be clearer that the ultimate goal of general Ceku is to have it become the army of an independent Kosovo. He frequently states this publicly. It is equally clear that no Serb could feel secure or comfortable with such an army. Everybody really knows that, but nobody is ready to grab the bull by the horns and disband this organization. Nevertheless, prolonging the life of the KPC dooms the idea of a multi-ethnic Kosovo.”

It is high time to take the “bull by the horns”, break with the likes of Mr. Ceku and all other bigots in the Balkans, and thereby promote true stability while facilitating the reconciliation and reconstruction that their peoples sorely need.

Re: Kosovo and Metohija Negotiations

[ PR 329 - printer-friendly version ]

Dear Madam Secretary:

On behalf of our nationwide membership, which takes a keen interest in the situation in Kosovo and Metohija, I am writing to urge that the United States use its influence to ensure that representatives of the Contact Group Negotiation Team refrain from showing bias during the ongoing negotiations by stating or implying that independence is the “only” or “best” option for Kosovo and Metohija. UN Envoy for Negotiations on Kosovo Future Status Martti Ahtisaari also made such statements in the recent past but seems to have finally recognized the damage they caused.

I also would appreciate your clarifying certain recently published comments attributed to Ambassador Wisner and Undersecretary Burns. These comments, which display and effectively promote a one-sided pro-independence view, are especially troubling since they are contrary to what U.S. State Department officials conveyed to the Delegation of the Serbian Orthodox Church and to our organization in meetings only last month. In view of these comments and the lack of concrete results in the ongoing negotiations, we strongly recommend that you support a fair and practical approach, like that recently advocated by Dr. Sanda Raskovic-Ivic, head of the Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija. She believes that further negotiations should be carried out directly by Serbs and Kosovo-Albanians.

Moreover, Dr. Raskovic-Ivic contends that imposition of independence in Kosovo would be in violation and total disregard of international law and would set a precedent for other destabilizing processes throughout the world. If one internationally recognized border in the Balkans is changeable at will, why not others? There would be no reason for Albanians in western Macedonia, northern Greece and Montenegro not to ask for the very same thing sought by the Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija. Further, Serbs in the Republika Srpska and Croats in Herceg-Bosna would have just cause to seek selfdetermination for their peoples as well. An argument could be made that if two Albanian states can exist in the Balkans, then so could two Serb and two Croat states. It is not at all clear that such an evolution would be in the best interests of the United States or of the minorities resident in those regions.

Based on current developments in Kosovo and Metohija, I am also compelled to bring to your attention the continuing and escalating danger facing Decani Monastery. This ancient and unique UNESCO-protected monument of incomparable religious, architectural and aesthetic value is increasingly at risk of destruction. The safety of the monastic brotherhood depends entirely on KFOR troops stationed in Decani. Attacks against non-Albanians are a regular occurrence, and their escalation is only kept in check by the international presence. Based on clear daily evidence, we must all recognize and admit that the PISG in Kosovo is either unwilling or unable to provide security on its own. We request in the strongest terms that the United States and the international community remain fully committed to their promises of safety and security rather than seeking an ephemeral quick fix.

A just and viable solution to the status of Kosovo and Metohija would undoubtedly put the region on a more stable footing that would benefit all. Surrendering to or seeming to abet demands for independence, instead of providing a workable milieu for productive negotiations, will only exacerbate the problem of survival for the minority population in Kosovo and Metohija, will increase the refugee count above the current 250,000 and will make finding a fair and lasting solution more difficult, if not impossible.

Respectfully yours,
Jasmina Theodore Boulanger
President
Serbian Unity Congress

cc:
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, R. Nicholas Burns
Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs, Daniel Fried
Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, Rosemary DiCarlo
Senator George Voinovich
Senator Sam Brownback
Members of the Congressional Serbian Caucus

CONTACT: Andy Verich
202-463-8643

[ PR 326 - printer-friendly version ]

Two years ago, in March of 2004, Kosovo Albanian mobs some 50,000 strong wreaked havoc on Serbian and other non-Albanian communities in Kosovo, destroying whole villages, churches, schools, hospitals and successfully erasing any vestige of these people’s history and obliterating chances of return. This was a clear acceleration of an ethnic cleansing campaign Kosovo Albanians had been carrying out since the NATO intervention in 1999. Looking back over the last two years, we see the following:

• Of the nearly 250,000 non-Albanians driven out since 1999 more than 95% have been prevented from returning;
• Whole communities have been forever obliterated, their homes gone or vandalized;
• Religious edifices dating back to the 14th century have been vandalized and some later destroyed, their community infrastructure ravaged, never to be made available to those residents again;
• Reconstructed homes and religious shines have been vandalized again.

The landscape of fear and repression has not changed.

Those responsible for, and complicit in, the cleansing campaigns and destruction are free today. For the destruction and murder in the March 2004 pogrom and all other violence by Albanians against the Kosovo non-Albanian minority, they have gone virtually unpunished.

In 1999, the international community took over the administration of the Serbian province of Kosovo and Metohija. The International Criminal Tribunal (ICTY) was set up to bring to justice the perpetrators of violations of human rights in the territories of former Yugoslavia. However, while the ICTY was quick to indict Serbs alleged to have perpetrated crimes in Kosovo and Metohija, Albanian perpetrators continue to roam freely throughout Kosovo, stand for election, and even take political office. Most notable among these were Ramush Haradinaj and Agim Ceku. Last year, Haradinaj was appointed to the post of Prime Minister. His appointment was quashed after receiving an indictment from the ICTY for war crimes. Ironically, after turning himself in and going to the Hague, he was quickly allowed to return, not only a free man but one with ICTY clearance to re-renter the political arena. Agim Ceku was appointed in early March to the same post. This despite the fact that his war crimes are well known to the U.N., U.S. State Department and the ICTY as evidenced in their public statements. Ceku was a general in the Croatian army and, was responsible, together with Croatian general Ante Gotovina, for the worst ethnic cleansing campaign in the recent Balkan wars. Despite claims of the ICTY that its interest is to bring to justice all those responsible for the brutal wars of secession, two war criminals somehow manage to not only be politically active, but inexplicably be even elected to internationally recognized positions in U.N. administered Kosovo and Metohija.

The international bodies entrusted with the protection of the province, whose responsibility it is to maintain peace and justice in the area, have utterly failed in carrying out their mandate at the cost of billions of dollars to tax payers around the world. The ICTY’s biased and ill informed approach has not contributed to peace and reconciliation but has fueled instability and ethnic hatred throughout the region. Nowhere is this flawed approach more evident than in the ICTY’s own chief prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte, who, throughout the Balkans, is perceived as bringing politically motivated indictments that are timed to maximize self-promotion, and which worsen resentment and fear throughout the region. The ICTY no longer provides any real or visible service and the cost/benefit of continuing its operation can no longer be justified.

The Serbian Unity Congress believes that, despite any high ideals extant at its creation, the ICTY has become morally vapid and obsolete. The continued existence of the ICTY serves no purpose. In fact, it serves to needlessly lengthen the time for regional reconciliation and prosperity. Therefore, the Serbian Unity Congress urges that the ICTY close its doors, that its prisoners be extradited and their trials be carried out in their countries of origin.

CONTACT: Andy Verich
202-463-8643

[ PR 325 - printer-friendly version ]

The SUC anticipates that the passing of Slobodan Milosevic, together with the passing of two other leaders responsible for the Yugoslav carnage, Croatian president Franjo Tudjman and Bosnian president Alija Izetbegovic, will lead to the final closing of an unfortunate chapter in Serbian, Yugoslav and world history.

While his trial kept the spotlight on the dregs of a failed regime, Serbia and Montenegro has seen a restoration of democracy which began with his removal from power by popular revolt. A heart patient with obvious needs, Milosevic was denied the level of treatment he required. The Serbian people wanted to see him stand trial for his crimes, and his premature and preventable death denied this. Unfortunately, the Tribunal lost the chance for a historical reckoning in the Balkans. Meanwhile, the suffering of Serbs and other minorities in Kosovo and Metohija and elsewhere continues.

The validity and impartiality of the Hague war crimes tribunal is called into serious question when it allows alleged Kosovo Albanian war criminals Ramush Haradinaj and Agim Cheku not only remain free, but hold internationally recognized political positions. Having closed Milosevic’s trial, we trust the Tribunal will now focus on prosecuting war criminals still posing a danger to the stability of the Balkans.