Kosovo: Eternally dependent?

Nice article. Serbia wants the land, without the people living on it. They can't have the cake and eat it too. All the extrapolated legal arguments in the world can not keep two million people part of a 6 million state against their will. It just can not happen. It is not viable. The only option is to use brute military force...and that is something Serbia can not afford to do. So short of sending in the tanks again, Serbia will NEVER control Kosovo, as long as Albanians live there.

Earth to Sidi..
The article is more to do about U.N. and local authourities inaptitude to integrate Kosovo into normal society, and not Serbia's will to destroy the Albanians.

Read the article. It in fact confirms that Serbia hasn't HAD control since troops left. If anything, it should be a self reflection on the fact that it's the K-Albanians and the U.N. that are screwing things up, and the best that you can do is cry that Serbia is holding you back..

I mean, seriously, you've got a talent at using the "copy and paste" function on your keyboard for every comment..

Why do you keep spinning and adding words into the comment board that deviate from the original article.

From one arm chair quarterback to another...
Go to Kosovo, live in the muck and mire that the ordinary citizens have to live (all citizens!!), and you will quickly realize that it's a big dirty hole, regardless of ethnicity. And just because you have Albanian blood running through your veins, you'll quickly see your worlds apart from K-Albanians actually living there..

I'm glad to see that somebody knows the reality in Kosova, there is a failure of the international community to recognize the independence of Kosova. Kosova is three times larger than Montenegro in population and still is depending on UN bourocrats, that means the international law for self-determination is broken by the international community.
Serbian government is unable to accept the independence of Kosova because there is still Milosevic's era going on, if they accept the reality their life is at stake same as Djindjic(ex prime minister), so there(in Serbia) is a poor people who is still living with those dreams on Kosova as their land.
This article tells us how expensive is becoming the Kosova's administration, more advisers than stuff, means that there needs to be some change on the rulers and have more educated people in the government.
Best regards, Qazim Doda

"I'm glad to see that somebody knows the reality in Kosova, there is a failure of the international community to recognize the independence of Kosova."
First, you should know that right of self-determination does not apply to national minorities, only to nations to whom the existing country is domicile country. I'll give you some examples. Italy is domicile country to Italians, other Italians (no matter where they live) cannot start making their own countries (for example in part of France, etc.). This has nothing to do with number of people living there. There is more then 10 million Chineese in Malasiya, but they are not entitled to any self-determination due to a fact that there is a China as domicile coutnry of Chineese ethnic group.
In fact, if you look at former Yugoslavia, it turned out that Serbs were a minority in it (althought, it's obviously a largest ethnic group there), or at least parts of it, and it was their domicile coutry (as there was no country anywhere outside Yugoslavia that would be domicile to this ethnic group).
Even when we look at Albanian rights in Yugoslavia (and Serbia) we can see that they exceed the minimum required by international laws (such as Helsinki Final Act).
Speaking of millions, what would you say about Turkey's largest minority Kurds. They are not a minority in fact, as they are domicile ethnic group, and should have a right of self-determination.
The fact that Turkey had joined bombing of Serbia, while Kurds were thrown in jail for writting a single word in their own language (and just take a look what have Koha Ditore been writting, in Albanian of course, before the bombing), speaks volumes about determination of the West to protect human rights.

Anyone that uses the term "kosova" is not a true historian.

@ Qazim..

I truly think that there's the misconception that Serbia is trying to take over Kosovo.
At this point in time, it's simple to see that Serbia is looking to keep her cultural icons intact, and that nobody from the Serb community leave..It lets Serbia have a dignified face, and that its' tenure throughout Kosovo history wasn't for nothing..

Kosovo is truly unique. Too bad everybody claims it's only his or hers..

Also, there's the misconception that independence will solve all. Many Albanians and Serbs alike are saying that you already WERE independent. The problem is that you can't have INdependence while you're so DEpendent, and you're certainly slowing yourself down by spiting Serbia.

And if and when officialy that day comes, you'll celebrate, wake up with a hangover, and realize that nothing's changed for you. The world stage has changed, borders mean nothing, that Serbia has become economically strong enough that your independence is three generations too late and you'll probably have more in common with Serbia economically than Albania..

Why don't you vote for that party of the young people that want democracy, and they are the ones that understand that Kosovo must be independent.
Why don't you say sorry about the 10,000 Albanians that were killed??? A millions Albanians were deported. And you are saying Albanians are screwing??? Still living with the mentality of milosevic era.

Continual albanian migration into the region, along with the persecution of serbs, resulted in the albanians to be the majority there. Durring world war two the albanians killed tens of thousands of sersb, forced out over a hundred thousand serbs, and tens of thousands of illigal albanian immigrants came. Furthermore, these expelled serbs were not allowed to return after the war. They were put in Vojvodina. These illegals were allowed to live in Kosovo.
Kosovo was given self rule in 1974, one of Tito's planned out policies against the serbs.

The KLA was a terrorist organization. It was out to destabilize the region.

The albanians supported milosevic. If some pro-west candidate was the president of serbia then the albanians could not have done anything. This is why they kept on boycotting elections.

The west was anti-serbian. The inhumain bombing of Serbia was designed to destroy the country. Similarily it had the obvious consequence of life becomming much worse for the albanians. Most of the hardships that the albanians endured came after NATO started bombing.

Prior to the bombing there were other regions in the world with similar problems. Colombia and Turkey. The west did nothing to stop them, but helped the killing and violation of human rights in those places.

The number of people killed need not be 10,000. That's just an estimate, like the estimate in Bosnia which said that 250,000 people were killed, untill after recently Norwegian experts concluded that the number is in fact about 100,000.

The Albanians have one goal, and that is to cleanse kosovo of all non-albanians. They have forced all the jews in kosovo to leave. They have mistreated the bosnjaks there, the roma, the serbs, and the croats. This won't end there. It will continue, to F.Y.R.Macedonia, Montenegro and Greece. This albanian problem is very complex.

Answer to Sreten.
You ran out of the topic, the article was not about China or Turkey.
You should understand that the reality puts down the hegemonism mentality, you are talking like some SPS people use to talk during the war in Kosova.
With this mentality your people made themselves to feel sorry of their identity. Remember Sreten, when you come in Kosova you have to speak Albanian or English, if you go in Croatia you have to speak Croatian accent and you can't say with proudness that you are Serbian, same happens to you when you go in Bosnia.
Remember that the only sister state like Montenegro split from Serbia because of feeling ashamed for what serbs did during the last decade.
If you are nationalist, you should first thing about yoour Serbian minority in Kosova, you should pray everyday for them to gain some more rights on free life, you serbs from Serbia did so many crimes that you made your Serbian compatriots in Kosova and other countries to feel scared from any possible revenge on them.
I strongly believe on self-determination because that is an international law that has to be elaborated in Kosova too. When you talk on historical aspect, you better thing where you serbs came from and who was there first. History and demography is on Albanian side, also remember that you lost the war in Kosova and I believe that your generation which is my generation too have to work hard on building bridges in Balkans instead of feeding ourselves with hegemonism ideas. Use your brain to love instead of hate! Don't get depressed when Kosova will get recognized by international community as an independent country.
You can also use your real name and last name because thanks to B92 we have a freedom of expression wihtout any censorship.
Best regards, Qazim Doda NY

So Sreten,

Would you then please continue with your elaboration, and explain to us that don't know who can or can't be independent why is Austria Independent, Why is Cyprus independent, Why is Belarus Independent, Why is San Marino Independent, Why is Liechtenstein Independent, Why do Serbs in Republika Srpska want the same Independence.

I agree with you that Kurds deserve Independence, however I think for Kosova there are two options, considering 90% of its population will have its rights. It either becomes independent or it becomes part of Albania from whom it was secceded, now that is being extreme from Albanians to ask and not the right to a referendum for independence that Montenegro just used. Read the Yugoslav constitution from 1974 and you will see that wee had the same rights you did.

While I do have respect for your churches and other religious objects in Kosove, I do respect the right of the people of Kosova and absolutely don't believe that Serbia should be rewarded for its crimes. After all we didn't reward Germans for what they did in the WWII.

May peace prevail.

There is no importance what Russia or Romania thinks, but what is the international regulation codex. And it is that independance of Kosovo is just not possible. It would be crown of violance against laws and international relationships. Just appropriate to the violance against human rights which we can see in Kosovo every day.

Response to Lazar,
I think that you are missinterpreting the history that both of us were living, we are talking about something that was happening just one decade ago where the war in Balkans was the primary option to solve problems. I see that you are telling us the wrong history and praising Milosevic as an angel, but I consider this as an absence of education for you. You have to understand that Milosevic was a criminal who desperately lived and died in a jail, isn't that a shame for you and his supporters that he died in jail being investigated for the crimes against humanity?
I was in KLA side and we never killed any serbian civilian, violated any lady or massacred children. Remember that Serbian army did that to Albanians and broke the Geneva convention, as a result the serbian army was bombed by NATO airplanes. I never heard that KLA was a terrorist organization, wining the war in Kosova it shows who was the real terrorist, KLA or serbian army that killed thousands of civilians. Don't live on those dreams that Milosevic use to tell you, because those dreams died together with him.
Serbian minority in Kosova are the victim of Milosevic's regime and the people who think like you. With your ideas you are going no where, instead you are weakening the serbian minority position to continue with the hope on living some more years in Kosova.
Please don't use the words like you have a power over Albanians in Kosova, because they won the war once and forever and now they want to develop their economy and improving the human rights for the minorities.
Best regards,
Qazim Doda, New York

qazim, you say that the KLA are not terrorists??? Funny, the CIA classified them as terrorists!!!! You albanians have nothing to base your "beliefs" on. All of your "facts" are made up in your heads..Who are you trying to fool when you say that 10,000 albanians were killed? We all know that number is far less.

Also, Kocobo has been Serbian for centuries! Why is it that the oldest buildings in Kocobo are Serbian? As far back as the records show, they show that Kocobo has been inhabited by Serbians. Your identity is a stolen one, as is your claim to Kocobo. If Kocobo is given independence, then so must the Serbs in Bosna be given independence. albaninas have been commiting crimes agains Serbs for decades, ever since Tito allowed them to terrorize the Serbs.

1) Montenegro did not break off of Serbia because of shame. That is a foolish conclusion. They broke off because Djukanovic was saying that their lives would be better if they broke off. It's quite dumb actually, and was fraduelent, because montenegrins outside of montenegro couldn't vote and because an aditional 16,000 foreigners came into montenegro to vote for independence.

2) The albanians were not there first. They have been in kosovo for only a few hundred years. The proof of this is that there is apsolutely no cultural monument or anything albanian in the region that is older than a few hundred years.

3) B92 has censorship and they have blocked several things that I have been posting regarding the west and serbia.

4) The yugoslav constitution of 1974 should not be recognized. It was created by a brutal dictator, Tito, whose goal was to weaken the serbs. That yugoslavia does nto exist no more, that consitution does not exist either.

5) The albanians are being rewarded for their crimes.

To quazim...

6) Milosevic was not a criminal. He was the only one in the balkans that promoted peace. He was the only leader in the former yugoslavia who was not a nationalist. The west was against him because he did not support the western corporate agenda. If he did things would be different. If he did do what the west wanted then things would look much different in kosovo. Furthermore, I prefere to look at it that he was killed, not died. The Hague court is totally illegitimate and biased against the serbs.

7) You were in the KLA... let me tell you this, the KLA was formed in 1993 and they were by all means a terrorist organization. They did attack civilians and if you want to deny that then that's too bad, because it did happen.

8) You say what the serbs did broke the geneva convention. Well look, the vast majority of what the serbs did happened after NATO started to bomb the serbs. What happened was an easily predictable consequence of NATO's bombing. Is that difficult to understand? It's just like if arabs attack israel then israel will obviously retaliate against the palestinians.

9) You said that the serbian army was bombed. You do not include what else was bombed. While nato destroyed 14 serbian tanks it also hit 33 hospitals and over 400 schools. And that's just the tip of the iceberg for what the ydid.

10) Human rights for minorities in kosovo do not exist. And not much is being done to fix this. The reason why is because the albanians want to totally cleanse kosovo of all minorities. The jews are gone. The roma are in terrible conditions. The croats are almost gone. The serbs and bosnians are next.

11) It won't stop there. It will continue to macedonia and montenegro.

Response to Lazar,
I see that you are educated by uneducated people, you don't know history and you also are feeding yourself with the propaganda of hegemonism.
1.B92 is the only one who doesn't have a censorship.As you see everybody is expressing its ideas freely.
2. Milosevic was a criminal, you can try to defend him and cry for him, but remember that because of him your people suffered so much.
3. Finally, starting as of today NATO has an office in Belgrade too, this tells that the only way for serbia is to accept the new reality and forget the ugly past.
4. KLA was never a terrorist organization, they fought to gain the freedom in Kosova, but after the war everybody went back in a normal life. The whole world recognized KLA as a Freedom Fighters Army or sometimes Rebel Army which means they fought against organized occupation forces in Kosova.
5. Instead of talking about how many centuries you serbs were in Kosova, why don't you learn where are the Carpatian Valleys, maybe there might be your cousins.
6. Minority rights in Kosova are better than in many other countries around the world, serbs in Kosova have more rights than any minority around the world, they cant lead the government because they are minority but they can work anywhere they want to. Don't expect more for them because the war happened just eight years ago and people still remembers the crimes against civilians that you serbs did.
7. try to understand the reality and think more positively, feel ashamed for what you and your people in general did against the humanity.
8. Lazar,We are talking about Kosova, the country where you have to speak Albanian, also the country where I go freely and you as a criminal can't even imagine to live there.
9. Kosova must be an independent country and respect its neighbors, remember that today(Dec. 19. 2006) the Balkan countries signet Free Trade Agreement.
10. I believe that the serbian people now understood for their bad deeds and changed their minds on a dreaming for the future.
11. This is something that nobody can help you, you lost the war and became a permanent looser, We won the war and became permanent winners. I think that when you meet any Albanian face to face you have different opinion, because all of you crime supporters are scared to death for what you did.
12. I wish you good luck, I was not lucky to meet people like you during the war and I hope that you will never be in front of my eyes because you are just a criminal and low class.
Qazim Doda
New York

uh... heavy, heavy stuff from Mr. Qazim Doda.
I don't intend to reply to his comment knowing it would be pretty useless. I only wish his thinking is more common among New York Albanians than Kosovo Albanians.
If not...

I also must state that Lazar should do better, too. To write like he does about Milosevic is simply ignorant, arrogant and false.

Both of you, Qazim and Lazar... how could this world help people like you?

Qazim and other interested readers,

See attached link re the KLA.

http://hrw.org/reports98/kosovo/Kos9810-10.htm

"Freedom fighters"? Unlikely. Anyone who argues that the KLA were anything less than murderous criminals should take a long hard look at themselves.

Qazim,

I like the part where you say that the minority rights in Kosovo are better anywhere in the world. :)

Of course, nowhere in the world do the minorities have the right to be stoned, anytime they leave their home.

Just a question, why dont you allow the Serbian people in Kosovo for self determination?
I mean give the same right that you have been fighting for.

Response to Ivan,Doug and Olli.
Olli, for you serbs, everything is heavy stuff when it tells anything against the crimes that Milosevi's regime did on humanity, For serbs was heavy stuff NATO, KLA, and what else was not heavy for them, because they thought on doing the crimes against humanity would never get punished, I'm not using any propaganda against serbian people but I'm responding to Lazar and everybody who tries to spread the lies and propaganda, With this kind of people serbs are going nowhere but loosing any war they start.

To Doug,
You can continue dreaming on KLA as a terrorist, but they fought against criminal army and police. Nobody expects respect from serbs because KLA fought for freedom of Kosova.
You can look at these Websites where serbian propaganda against KLA tried to put a bad picture for them, but this doesn't make any sense.

To Ivan,
You should read the number 6. response, you tried to copy and past but you deleted the word -than-.
Next time read better what I write, I'm not a witness that serbian minority doesn't have enough rights in Kosova, I was there recently and I saw how they do normal life.
I think that you should understand that during 1998-99 was a war in Kosova. Occupation forces were forced to leave Kosova and people came back inside. They choosed to live with KLA and NATO forces under the umbrella of UN peace keepers.
I thing that you missunderstood the term self-determination, this concept became in life at the end of 18th century-"every people its own country and every country its own people," Guiseppe Mazinni.
Serbian minority have to get integrated in Kosova and have a special relations with Serbia, so they would have a chance to use their own language, symbols and culture. I wish to serbian minority good luck on their integration in Kosova institutions because they are victims of Milosevic's regime for their crimes against humanity. I see that you have no clue about the reality in Kosova, you should go there and see that nobody hates you because you are a serbian, there are many foreigners who are enjoying living in Kosova.
While me and you are debating for something that doesn't depend on us, Serbia and Kosova already signed the free trade agreement, also Albanians are traveling through Serbia when they drive from the West Europe to Kosova. Accepting the new reality and improving the relationships between our countries is happening nowadays and I hope that it will continue to build bridges in Balkans.
Qazim Doda
New York

Qazim,

Yes I gues you are right, and it is the serbian propaganda that reports on the deaths of serbian civilians in Kosovo and Metohija. Its probably Serbs that are waiting in the albanian villages and throwing stones at buses that are carrying serbian children. Now everything makes sense to me, and I gues for you as well just reading and watching the news from New York.

On the part where you were holding a visionary speech of how serbs have to integrate into "Kosova", why dont you question yourself on the boomerang effect. I mean all we are doing at the moment is copying your tactics that you applied in Serbia. Or why dont you pose yourself a question as to whether Albanians should integrate themselves in Serbia. After all Kosovo is Serbian- the resolution 1240 defines it as an integral part of Serbia. even though you call us occupators - which doesent really make sense, for me to be a occupator in my own house- Kosovo is Serbian, so either you albanians integrate into Serbia, or we give all the people the right to self determination. this means that Kosovo Northen of Ibar should belong to Serbia, since over there more than 90% of the population voted in favor to Serbia.

Response to Ivan,
I've never herd about resolution 1240, I don't believe that resolution 1240 ever existed, You made up this number from your low potential thinking, because you always are trying to prejudge things.
You can continue dreamig on Kosova, and you can express yourself on what you think about Kosova because I respect the freedom of speech, but I want to explain to you that you can't copy the Albanian way on gaining the freedom because you serbs spend time on planning how to commit massacres, genocide and agression on civilians. Killing children just because they are not serbs brought to your people an ugly picture toward the civilized world.
Your opinion was very cinical and is not based on reality.
You are using Milosevic's expression that Kosova is Serbia, you better don't go in Kosova to say that because that is considered as an Allien's thought.
Once againg, I worked for so long with the UN, and I never heard that resolution 1240 is about Kosova.
Use your mind because when you try to copy Milosevi's words there might be a lots of mistakes that nowadays sounds funny.
Yes, I go in Kosova because that is my country, but you can't go because you are supporting Milosevic's ideas and normally you can be a stranger in my country.
Be more civilized and accept the reality, I will invite you to be my guest in Kosova.
Qazim Doda, New York

So Quazim says that I am educated by uneducated people, that I don't know history and I'm feeding myself with the propaganda of hegemonism. Quite opposite, I have studied from top intelectuals and scholars. One for example is chomsky. I would recomend that you look into his material. Therea re many more authors and many books published about the former yugoslavia. Let me know if you want a list of them. For now you have shown serious ignorance. Furthermore you ignore most of the things that I say.

The serbs suffered because of milosevic, you're right. But take this a step forward and ask yourself why. It is not because he was a dictator or a bad guy - he wasn't that. He was an economic nationalist and did not want to sell off Serbia for peanuts to western corporations.

Maybe for you the KLA is a freedom fighting organization. For the world and any serious intelectuals abnd experts it is not. You call KOCOBO occupied. By this logic that means that KOCOBO was occupied from 1918 to 1941 and from 1945 to now. I don't think so. That land is serbian and the albanian migrants who have came in over the centuries and abused and systematically tried to eliminate teh serbian population should be punished.

YOu say that minorities have better rights than many countries in the world. Let me tell you this, that is not true. KOCOBO is at the bottom when it comes to rank in minority rights. In fact I don't know any place where minority rights are worse.

Again, you speak of crimes against civilians. You refuse to realize that almost all of those crimes happened after NATO started bombing, and they were an easily predictable consequence of the bombing.

The serbs did nothing against humanity. There's nothing to be ashamed about.

Your point number eight is pointless. You call KOCOBO a country, which it is not. You call me a criminal, yet I have never steped into the place. You say that people there must speak albanian which is just wrong. Nobody should be forced to speak albanian there.

This free trade agreement has nothing to do with KOCOBO's independence. You sya it must be, but you arn't going to be asked in the decision process. In the end it's not up to the serbs or the albanians, it's up to the world powers that decide.

Who lost what war and what perminent loser and winners are you talking about? Nobody benefited in the war in KOCOBO and both the albanians and serbs there are worse off today than they were before the war.

We are not scared to death of anything. We'll do everything we did all over, for we were defending and fighting terrorism. Prior to the bombing we were only fighting in places where the KLA was. Places like Kosovska Kamenica did not support the KLA, and thus there was no fighting there. All crimes after the bombing started are percetly justified because of the bombing.

Olli - what's your problem with Milosevic? He did not go about destroying albanians or anybody. He is a person that wanted peace, stability and prosperity. I srongly suggest that yo uread his book called "the defence speaks", publish by the IAC.

And finally to quazim, I am not spreading any lies. I am spreading the thing that is for you the inconvenient truth.

What are we going to do about the illegal albanian immigrants and the albanian who settled in KOCOBO durring the turkish oppression? What about the Serbs that were forced out of KOCOBO?

It really is a shame that people are blind to reality and simply deny things that are factually correct.

"As some will recall, eight long years ago NATO and the U.N. intervened to stop the war between Serbia and its province of Kosovo"

How could Serbia be at war with itself?

Hi Bob. The west did not intervene to stop a war between serbia and kosovo. Let me explain...

1) Serbia was not fighting Kosovo. It was fighting a group of Albanians that formed the KLA. Fighting was only in places where the KLA opperated, and many places such as Kosovska Kamenica did not experience any violence. They took the logic... do not harm and you won't be harmed.

2) Intervention was not to stop the war or to make the situation better. This is a common patern. In East Timor the West reacted in ways that led to one third of the East Timorian population being slaughtered by the Indonesians. Same for Turkey, where the west reacted in a way that made life much much worse for the Kurds. The pattern in Kosovo made life much worse for both the Serbs and Albanians. The Western intervension was aimed at destroyed schools, hospitals and apsolutely every part of the countries infrastructure. However, western assets in Serbia were not damaged by the western bombs.

3) You ask how is Serbia at war with itself. Well, it is basically the pro west(whom the west financed to come to power) vs the not pro west sides in Serbia.

Nice article. Serbia wants the land, without the people living on it. They can't have the cake and eat it too. All the extrapolated legal arguments in the world can not keep two million people part of a 6 million state against their will. It just can not happen. It is not viable. The only option is to use brute military force...and that is something Serbia can not afford to do. So short of sending in the tanks again, Serbia will NEVER control Kosovo, as long as Albanians live there.

Earth to Sidi..
The article is more to do about U.N. and local authourities inaptitude to integrate Kosovo into normal society, and not Serbia's will to destroy the Albanians.

Read the article. It in fact confirms that Serbia hasn't HAD control since troops left. If anything, it should be a self reflection on the fact that it's the K-Albanians and the U.N. that are screwing things up, and the best that you can do is cry that Serbia is holding you back..

I mean, seriously, you've got a talent at using the "copy and paste" function on your keyboard for every comment..

Why do you keep spinning and adding words into the comment board that deviate from the original article.

From one arm chair quarterback to another...
Go to Kosovo, live in the muck and mire that the ordinary citizens have to live (all citizens!!), and you will quickly realize that it's a big dirty hole, regardless of ethnicity. And just because you have Albanian blood running through your veins, you'll quickly see your worlds apart from K-Albanians actually living there..

I'm glad to see that somebody knows the reality in Kosova, there is a failure of the international community to recognize the independence of Kosova. Kosova is three times larger than Montenegro in population and still is depending on UN bourocrats, that means the international law for self-determination is broken by the international community.
Serbian government is unable to accept the independence of Kosova because there is still Milosevic's era going on, if they accept the reality their life is at stake same as Djindjic(ex prime minister), so there(in Serbia) is a poor people who is still living with those dreams on Kosova as their land.
This article tells us how expensive is becoming the Kosova's administration, more advisers than stuff, means that there needs to be some change on the rulers and have more educated people in the government.
Best regards, Qazim Doda

"I'm glad to see that somebody knows the reality in Kosova, there is a failure of the international community to recognize the independence of Kosova."
First, you should know that right of self-determination does not apply to national minorities, only to nations to whom the existing country is domicile country. I'll give you some examples. Italy is domicile country to Italians, other Italians (no matter where they live) cannot start making their own countries (for example in part of France, etc.). This has nothing to do with number of people living there. There is more then 10 million Chineese in Malasiya, but they are not entitled to any self-determination due to a fact that there is a China as domicile coutnry of Chineese ethnic group.
In fact, if you look at former Yugoslavia, it turned out that Serbs were a minority in it (althought, it's obviously a largest ethnic group there), or at least parts of it, and it was their domicile coutry (as there was no country anywhere outside Yugoslavia that would be domicile to this ethnic group).
Even when we look at Albanian rights in Yugoslavia (and Serbia) we can see that they exceed the minimum required by international laws (such as Helsinki Final Act).
Speaking of millions, what would you say about Turkey's largest minority Kurds. They are not a minority in fact, as they are domicile ethnic group, and should have a right of self-determination.
The fact that Turkey had joined bombing of Serbia, while Kurds were thrown in jail for writting a single word in their own language (and just take a look what have Koha Ditore been writting, in Albanian of course, before the bombing), speaks volumes about determination of the West to protect human rights.

Anyone that uses the term "kosova" is not a true historian.

@ Qazim..

I truly think that there's the misconception that Serbia is trying to take over Kosovo.
At this point in time, it's simple to see that Serbia is looking to keep her cultural icons intact, and that nobody from the Serb community leave..It lets Serbia have a dignified face, and that its' tenure throughout Kosovo history wasn't for nothing..

Kosovo is truly unique. Too bad everybody claims it's only his or hers..

Also, there's the misconception that independence will solve all. Many Albanians and Serbs alike are saying that you already WERE independent. The problem is that you can't have INdependence while you're so DEpendent, and you're certainly slowing yourself down by spiting Serbia.

And if and when officialy that day comes, you'll celebrate, wake up with a hangover, and realize that nothing's changed for you. The world stage has changed, borders mean nothing, that Serbia has become economically strong enough that your independence is three generations too late and you'll probably have more in common with Serbia economically than Albania..

Why don't you vote for that party of the young people that want democracy, and they are the ones that understand that Kosovo must be independent.
Why don't you say sorry about the 10,000 Albanians that were killed??? A millions Albanians were deported. And you are saying Albanians are screwing??? Still living with the mentality of milosevic era.

Continual albanian migration into the region, along with the persecution of serbs, resulted in the albanians to be the majority there. Durring world war two the albanians killed tens of thousands of sersb, forced out over a hundred thousand serbs, and tens of thousands of illigal albanian immigrants came. Furthermore, these expelled serbs were not allowed to return after the war. They were put in Vojvodina. These illegals were allowed to live in Kosovo.
Kosovo was given self rule in 1974, one of Tito's planned out policies against the serbs.

The KLA was a terrorist organization. It was out to destabilize the region.

The albanians supported milosevic. If some pro-west candidate was the president of serbia then the albanians could not have done anything. This is why they kept on boycotting elections.

The west was anti-serbian. The inhumain bombing of Serbia was designed to destroy the country. Similarily it had the obvious consequence of life becomming much worse for the albanians. Most of the hardships that the albanians endured came after NATO started bombing.

Prior to the bombing there were other regions in the world with similar problems. Colombia and Turkey. The west did nothing to stop them, but helped the killing and violation of human rights in those places.

The number of people killed need not be 10,000. That's just an estimate, like the estimate in Bosnia which said that 250,000 people were killed, untill after recently Norwegian experts concluded that the number is in fact about 100,000.

The Albanians have one goal, and that is to cleanse kosovo of all non-albanians. They have forced all the jews in kosovo to leave. They have mistreated the bosnjaks there, the roma, the serbs, and the croats. This won't end there. It will continue, to F.Y.R.Macedonia, Montenegro and Greece. This albanian problem is very complex.

Answer to Sreten.
You ran out of the topic, the article was not about China or Turkey.
You should understand that the reality puts down the hegemonism mentality, you are talking like some SPS people use to talk during the war in Kosova.
With this mentality your people made themselves to feel sorry of their identity. Remember Sreten, when you come in Kosova you have to speak Albanian or English, if you go in Croatia you have to speak Croatian accent and you can't say with proudness that you are Serbian, same happens to you when you go in Bosnia.
Remember that the only sister state like Montenegro split from Serbia because of feeling ashamed for what serbs did during the last decade.
If you are nationalist, you should first thing about yoour Serbian minority in Kosova, you should pray everyday for them to gain some more rights on free life, you serbs from Serbia did so many crimes that you made your Serbian compatriots in Kosova and other countries to feel scared from any possible revenge on them.
I strongly believe on self-determination because that is an international law that has to be elaborated in Kosova too. When you talk on historical aspect, you better thing where you serbs came from and who was there first. History and demography is on Albanian side, also remember that you lost the war in Kosova and I believe that your generation which is my generation too have to work hard on building bridges in Balkans instead of feeding ourselves with hegemonism ideas. Use your brain to love instead of hate! Don't get depressed when Kosova will get recognized by international community as an independent country.
You can also use your real name and last name because thanks to B92 we have a freedom of expression wihtout any censorship.
Best regards, Qazim Doda NY

So Sreten,

Would you then please continue with your elaboration, and explain to us that don't know who can or can't be independent why is Austria Independent, Why is Cyprus independent, Why is Belarus Independent, Why is San Marino Independent, Why is Liechtenstein Independent, Why do Serbs in Republika Srpska want the same Independence.

I agree with you that Kurds deserve Independence, however I think for Kosova there are two options, considering 90% of its population will have its rights. It either becomes independent or it becomes part of Albania from whom it was secceded, now that is being extreme from Albanians to ask and not the right to a referendum for independence that Montenegro just used. Read the Yugoslav constitution from 1974 and you will see that wee had the same rights you did.

While I do have respect for your churches and other religious objects in Kosove, I do respect the right of the people of Kosova and absolutely don't believe that Serbia should be rewarded for its crimes. After all we didn't reward Germans for what they did in the WWII.

May peace prevail.

There is no importance what Russia or Romania thinks, but what is the international regulation codex. And it is that independance of Kosovo is just not possible. It would be crown of violance against laws and international relationships. Just appropriate to the violance against human rights which we can see in Kosovo every day.

Response to Lazar,
I think that you are missinterpreting the history that both of us were living, we are talking about something that was happening just one decade ago where the war in Balkans was the primary option to solve problems. I see that you are telling us the wrong history and praising Milosevic as an angel, but I consider this as an absence of education for you. You have to understand that Milosevic was a criminal who desperately lived and died in a jail, isn't that a shame for you and his supporters that he died in jail being investigated for the crimes against humanity?
I was in KLA side and we never killed any serbian civilian, violated any lady or massacred children. Remember that Serbian army did that to Albanians and broke the Geneva convention, as a result the serbian army was bombed by NATO airplanes. I never heard that KLA was a terrorist organization, wining the war in Kosova it shows who was the real terrorist, KLA or serbian army that killed thousands of civilians. Don't live on those dreams that Milosevic use to tell you, because those dreams died together with him.
Serbian minority in Kosova are the victim of Milosevic's regime and the people who think like you. With your ideas you are going no where, instead you are weakening the serbian minority position to continue with the hope on living some more years in Kosova.
Please don't use the words like you have a power over Albanians in Kosova, because they won the war once and forever and now they want to develop their economy and improving the human rights for the minorities.
Best regards,
Qazim Doda, New York

qazim, you say that the KLA are not terrorists??? Funny, the CIA classified them as terrorists!!!! You albanians have nothing to base your "beliefs" on. All of your "facts" are made up in your heads..Who are you trying to fool when you say that 10,000 albanians were killed? We all know that number is far less.

Also, Kocobo has been Serbian for centuries! Why is it that the oldest buildings in Kocobo are Serbian? As far back as the records show, they show that Kocobo has been inhabited by Serbians. Your identity is a stolen one, as is your claim to Kocobo. If Kocobo is given independence, then so must the Serbs in Bosna be given independence. albaninas have been commiting crimes agains Serbs for decades, ever since Tito allowed them to terrorize the Serbs.

1) Montenegro did not break off of Serbia because of shame. That is a foolish conclusion. They broke off because Djukanovic was saying that their lives would be better if they broke off. It's quite dumb actually, and was fraduelent, because montenegrins outside of montenegro couldn't vote and because an aditional 16,000 foreigners came into montenegro to vote for independence.

2) The albanians were not there first. They have been in kosovo for only a few hundred years. The proof of this is that there is apsolutely no cultural monument or anything albanian in the region that is older than a few hundred years.

3) B92 has censorship and they have blocked several things that I have been posting regarding the west and serbia.

4) The yugoslav constitution of 1974 should not be recognized. It was created by a brutal dictator, Tito, whose goal was to weaken the serbs. That yugoslavia does nto exist no more, that consitution does not exist either.

5) The albanians are being rewarded for their crimes.

To quazim...

6) Milosevic was not a criminal. He was the only one in the balkans that promoted peace. He was the only leader in the former yugoslavia who was not a nationalist. The west was against him because he did not support the western corporate agenda. If he did things would be different. If he did do what the west wanted then things would look much different in kosovo. Furthermore, I prefere to look at it that he was killed, not died. The Hague court is totally illegitimate and biased against the serbs.

7) You were in the KLA... let me tell you this, the KLA was formed in 1993 and they were by all means a terrorist organization. They did attack civilians and if you want to deny that then that's too bad, because it did happen.

8) You say what the serbs did broke the geneva convention. Well look, the vast majority of what the serbs did happened after NATO started to bomb the serbs. What happened was an easily predictable consequence of NATO's bombing. Is that difficult to understand? It's just like if arabs attack israel then israel will obviously retaliate against the palestinians.

9) You said that the serbian army was bombed. You do not include what else was bombed. While nato destroyed 14 serbian tanks it also hit 33 hospitals and over 400 schools. And that's just the tip of the iceberg for what the ydid.

10) Human rights for minorities in kosovo do not exist. And not much is being done to fix this. The reason why is because the albanians want to totally cleanse kosovo of all minorities. The jews are gone. The roma are in terrible conditions. The croats are almost gone. The serbs and bosnians are next.

11) It won't stop there. It will continue to macedonia and montenegro.

Response to Lazar,
I see that you are educated by uneducated people, you don't know history and you also are feeding yourself with the propaganda of hegemonism.
1.B92 is the only one who doesn't have a censorship.As you see everybody is expressing its ideas freely.
2. Milosevic was a criminal, you can try to defend him and cry for him, but remember that because of him your people suffered so much.
3. Finally, starting as of today NATO has an office in Belgrade too, this tells that the only way for serbia is to accept the new reality and forget the ugly past.
4. KLA was never a terrorist organization, they fought to gain the freedom in Kosova, but after the war everybody went back in a normal life. The whole world recognized KLA as a Freedom Fighters Army or sometimes Rebel Army which means they fought against organized occupation forces in Kosova.
5. Instead of talking about how many centuries you serbs were in Kosova, why don't you learn where are the Carpatian Valleys, maybe there might be your cousins.
6. Minority rights in Kosova are better than in many other countries around the world, serbs in Kosova have more rights than any minority around the world, they cant lead the government because they are minority but they can work anywhere they want to. Don't expect more for them because the war happened just eight years ago and people still remembers the crimes against civilians that you serbs did.
7. try to understand the reality and think more positively, feel ashamed for what you and your people in general did against the humanity.
8. Lazar,We are talking about Kosova, the country where you have to speak Albanian, also the country where I go freely and you as a criminal can't even imagine to live there.
9. Kosova must be an independent country and respect its neighbors, remember that today(Dec. 19. 2006) the Balkan countries signet Free Trade Agreement.
10. I believe that the serbian people now understood for their bad deeds and changed their minds on a dreaming for the future.
11. This is something that nobody can help you, you lost the war and became a permanent looser, We won the war and became permanent winners. I think that when you meet any Albanian face to face you have different opinion, because all of you crime supporters are scared to death for what you did.
12. I wish you good luck, I was not lucky to meet people like you during the war and I hope that you will never be in front of my eyes because you are just a criminal and low class.
Qazim Doda
New York

uh... heavy, heavy stuff from Mr. Qazim Doda.
I don't intend to reply to his comment knowing it would be pretty useless. I only wish his thinking is more common among New York Albanians than Kosovo Albanians.
If not...

I also must state that Lazar should do better, too. To write like he does about Milosevic is simply ignorant, arrogant and false.

Both of you, Qazim and Lazar... how could this world help people like you?

Qazim and other interested readers,

See attached link re the KLA.

http://hrw.org/reports98/kosovo/Kos9810-10.htm

"Freedom fighters"? Unlikely. Anyone who argues that the KLA were anything less than murderous criminals should take a long hard look at themselves.

Qazim,

I like the part where you say that the minority rights in Kosovo are better anywhere in the world. :)

Of course, nowhere in the world do the minorities have the right to be stoned, anytime they leave their home.

Just a question, why dont you allow the Serbian people in Kosovo for self determination?
I mean give the same right that you have been fighting for.

Response to Ivan,Doug and Olli.
Olli, for you serbs, everything is heavy stuff when it tells anything against the crimes that Milosevi's regime did on humanity, For serbs was heavy stuff NATO, KLA, and what else was not heavy for them, because they thought on doing the crimes against humanity would never get punished, I'm not using any propaganda against serbian people but I'm responding to Lazar and everybody who tries to spread the lies and propaganda, With this kind of people serbs are going nowhere but loosing any war they start.

To Doug,
You can continue dreaming on KLA as a terrorist, but they fought against criminal army and police. Nobody expects respect from serbs because KLA fought for freedom of Kosova.
You can look at these Websites where serbian propaganda against KLA tried to put a bad picture for them, but this doesn't make any sense.

To Ivan,
You should read the number 6. response, you tried to copy and past but you deleted the word -than-.
Next time read better what I write, I'm not a witness that serbian minority doesn't have enough rights in Kosova, I was there recently and I saw how they do normal life.
I think that you should understand that during 1998-99 was a war in Kosova. Occupation forces were forced to leave Kosova and people came back inside. They choosed to live with KLA and NATO forces under the umbrella of UN peace keepers.
I thing that you missunderstood the term self-determination, this concept became in life at the end of 18th century-"every people its own country and every country its own people," Guiseppe Mazinni.
Serbian minority have to get integrated in Kosova and have a special relations with Serbia, so they would have a chance to use their own language, symbols and culture. I wish to serbian minority good luck on their integration in Kosova institutions because they are victims of Milosevic's regime for their crimes against humanity. I see that you have no clue about the reality in Kosova, you should go there and see that nobody hates you because you are a serbian, there are many foreigners who are enjoying living in Kosova.
While me and you are debating for something that doesn't depend on us, Serbia and Kosova already signed the free trade agreement, also Albanians are traveling through Serbia when they drive from the West Europe to Kosova. Accepting the new reality and improving the relationships between our countries is happening nowadays and I hope that it will continue to build bridges in Balkans.
Qazim Doda
New York

Qazim,

Yes I gues you are right, and it is the serbian propaganda that reports on the deaths of serbian civilians in Kosovo and Metohija. Its probably Serbs that are waiting in the albanian villages and throwing stones at buses that are carrying serbian children. Now everything makes sense to me, and I gues for you as well just reading and watching the news from New York.

On the part where you were holding a visionary speech of how serbs have to integrate into "Kosova", why dont you question yourself on the boomerang effect. I mean all we are doing at the moment is copying your tactics that you applied in Serbia. Or why dont you pose yourself a question as to whether Albanians should integrate themselves in Serbia. After all Kosovo is Serbian- the resolution 1240 defines it as an integral part of Serbia. even though you call us occupators - which doesent really make sense, for me to be a occupator in my own house- Kosovo is Serbian, so either you albanians integrate into Serbia, or we give all the people the right to self determination. this means that Kosovo Northen of Ibar should belong to Serbia, since over there more than 90% of the population voted in favor to Serbia.

Response to Ivan,
I've never herd about resolution 1240, I don't believe that resolution 1240 ever existed, You made up this number from your low potential thinking, because you always are trying to prejudge things.
You can continue dreamig on Kosova, and you can express yourself on what you think about Kosova because I respect the freedom of speech, but I want to explain to you that you can't copy the Albanian way on gaining the freedom because you serbs spend time on planning how to commit massacres, genocide and agression on civilians. Killing children just because they are not serbs brought to your people an ugly picture toward the civilized world.
Your opinion was very cinical and is not based on reality.
You are using Milosevic's expression that Kosova is Serbia, you better don't go in Kosova to say that because that is considered as an Allien's thought.
Once againg, I worked for so long with the UN, and I never heard that resolution 1240 is about Kosova.
Use your mind because when you try to copy Milosevi's words there might be a lots of mistakes that nowadays sounds funny.
Yes, I go in Kosova because that is my country, but you can't go because you are supporting Milosevic's ideas and normally you can be a stranger in my country.
Be more civilized and accept the reality, I will invite you to be my guest in Kosova.
Qazim Doda, New York

So Quazim says that I am educated by uneducated people, that I don't know history and I'm feeding myself with the propaganda of hegemonism. Quite opposite, I have studied from top intelectuals and scholars. One for example is chomsky. I would recomend that you look into his material. Therea re many more authors and many books published about the former yugoslavia. Let me know if you want a list of them. For now you have shown serious ignorance. Furthermore you ignore most of the things that I say.

The serbs suffered because of milosevic, you're right. But take this a step forward and ask yourself why. It is not because he was a dictator or a bad guy - he wasn't that. He was an economic nationalist and did not want to sell off Serbia for peanuts to western corporations.

Maybe for you the KLA is a freedom fighting organization. For the world and any serious intelectuals abnd experts it is not. You call KOCOBO occupied. By this logic that means that KOCOBO was occupied from 1918 to 1941 and from 1945 to now. I don't think so. That land is serbian and the albanian migrants who have came in over the centuries and abused and systematically tried to eliminate teh serbian population should be punished.

YOu say that minorities have better rights than many countries in the world. Let me tell you this, that is not true. KOCOBO is at the bottom when it comes to rank in minority rights. In fact I don't know any place where minority rights are worse.

Again, you speak of crimes against civilians. You refuse to realize that almost all of those crimes happened after NATO started bombing, and they were an easily predictable consequence of the bombing.

The serbs did nothing against humanity. There's nothing to be ashamed about.

Your point number eight is pointless. You call KOCOBO a country, which it is not. You call me a criminal, yet I have never steped into the place. You say that people there must speak albanian which is just wrong. Nobody should be forced to speak albanian there.

This free trade agreement has nothing to do with KOCOBO's independence. You sya it must be, but you arn't going to be asked in the decision process. In the end it's not up to the serbs or the albanians, it's up to the world powers that decide.

Who lost what war and what perminent loser and winners are you talking about? Nobody benefited in the war in KOCOBO and both the albanians and serbs there are worse off today than they were before the war.

We are not scared to death of anything. We'll do everything we did all over, for we were defending and fighting terrorism. Prior to the bombing we were only fighting in places where the KLA was. Places like Kosovska Kamenica did not support the KLA, and thus there was no fighting there. All crimes after the bombing started are percetly justified because of the bombing.

Olli - what's your problem with Milosevic? He did not go about destroying albanians or anybody. He is a person that wanted peace, stability and prosperity. I srongly suggest that yo uread his book called "the defence speaks", publish by the IAC.

And finally to quazim, I am not spreading any lies. I am spreading the thing that is for you the inconvenient truth.

What are we going to do about the illegal albanian immigrants and the albanian who settled in KOCOBO durring the turkish oppression? What about the Serbs that were forced out of KOCOBO?

It really is a shame that people are blind to reality and simply deny things that are factually correct.

"As some will recall, eight long years ago NATO and the U.N. intervened to stop the war between Serbia and its province of Kosovo"

How could Serbia be at war with itself?

Hi Bob. The west did not intervene to stop a war between serbia and kosovo. Let me explain...

1) Serbia was not fighting Kosovo. It was fighting a group of Albanians that formed the KLA. Fighting was only in places where the KLA opperated, and many places such as Kosovska Kamenica did not experience any violence. They took the logic... do not harm and you won't be harmed.

2) Intervention was not to stop the war or to make the situation better. This is a common patern. In East Timor the West reacted in ways that led to one third of the East Timorian population being slaughtered by the Indonesians. Same for Turkey, where the west reacted in a way that made life much much worse for the Kurds. The pattern in Kosovo made life much worse for both the Serbs and Albanians. The Western intervension was aimed at destroyed schools, hospitals and apsolutely every part of the countries infrastructure. However, western assets in Serbia were not damaged by the western bombs.

3) You ask how is Serbia at war with itself. Well, it is basically the pro west(whom the west financed to come to power) vs the not pro west sides in Serbia.