Day of Protests

The Kosovo government has put forth a four-point proposal to counter the UN-EU six-point proposal for the continuation of UNMIK and the deployment of EULEX in Kosovo. However Vetevendosje does not agree with the Kosovo government proposal and has called for a demonstration today. In addition to the Vetevendosje protest, 15 different NGOs and local organizations will protest everything from money for widows to recognition as a political party (War Veterans). Plus there will be a demonstration in Mitrovica over the continued tension over the reconstruction of an Albanian house in the village of Brdjani.  The demonstrations are scheduled to begin at 1200 CET and are due to be peaceful. 

MTCowgirl’s Interesting Articles/Commentary

• Oxford: Place of the Year – Kosovo
• All that Jazz in Kosovo
• Kosovo’s alpine lakes
• EU aspirations vary in Balkans
• Kosovo ethnic rivals find common ground in fuel smuggling

Explosion at EU ICO

Yesterday around 1740 hours an explosive device was thrown over the wall and exploded at the EU International Civilian Office in Dragodan.  There were no injuries and minor material damages.  Disagreement over the six-point proposal and doubts over the EU mission in Kosovo has increased tensions in Kosovo and rumored to be a reason for this first attack on EU premise in Kosovo.  Both EU and Kosovo leaders have condemned the attack as well as the US ambassador in Kosovo warned leaders to be cautious of the rhetoric they use.  The Kosovo Liberation Army has threatened war over EULEX if the territorial integrity of Kosovo is threatened.

Kosovo authorities have shut down another health clinic in connection to the illegal kidney transplant clinic in Pristina.  The second clinic was reportedly offering artificial insemination and one person may have died after receiving inadequate treatment.  An Israeli man has been arrested in connection with the case and police are searching for a Macedonian worker who is alleged to have worked at the clinic.

Six Point Proposal

So it’s all over the news and people are probably wondering, what the heck is this six-point proposal thing?!  With Belgade and Pristina bickering of the extent of the EULEX mission, the six point proposal was presented by the UN and EU as a sort of compromise. The six-point proposal is the plan for EULEX to deploy under the umbrella of UNMIK with a neutral status towards Kosovo’s independence.  It also outlines administrative divisions between the North of Kosovo and other Serbian enclaves.  It is said that now the EU and UN are pressuring Kosovo to accept the new plan for EULEX deployment.

Naturally with most politics there are conspiracy theories and lots of opinions.  Today’s I’ll focus on what the news is saying and what opinions are being offered on the six-point proposal.

MTCowgirl’s Six Points Articles & Opinions

• Secret plan: six point proposal like Alto-Adige?
• Vetevendosje will have mass protests if proposal accepted
• Kosovo imposes demands
• UN urges Kosovo to reconsider
• Six point proposal destroys economy of Kosovo
• US rejects UN plan for Kosovo and expects EULEX in all of Kosovo
• Pristina continues to oppose six-point proposal
• Belgrade and Pristina pressed to accept proposal
• Kosovo betrayed, Brussels fails, Belgrade laughs
• A questionable authority
• Divided Europe has lost credibility in Kosovo

UN Security Council Delays Kosovo Debate

The planned debate on Kosovo in the UN Security Council due to take place today has been postponed by the request of two unnamed members. Meanwhile the Kosovo government has rejected the possibility of a “status neutral” in a press conference yesterday.  However former UNMIK SRSG Bernard Kouchner has called on the Kosovo government to accept the plans for the administrative division of Kosovo between EULEX and UNMIK.  It is still expected that EULEX will be operational in December although there are many questions as if the estimate is realistic.

MTCowgirl’s Interesting Articles/Commentary

• Scrap EULEX, it has already failed
• Kosovo boasts Western ways despite Muslim heritage
• Kosovo’s widows and orphans still suffering

Kosovo Hostel – Illegal Organ Transplants

Okay, it’s not as freaky as the movie hostel where rich Eastern Europeans pay to kill poor unsuspecting American backpackers but an illegal organ transplanting facility has been discovered near the Pristina airport. Over the past week following the discovery of the clinic, several arrests have been made in conjunction with the private clinic from the doctors to the Secretary of the Ministry of Health. Donors reportedly were flying in from all over the world as well as patients.  The investigation was started after a Turkish man was stopped at the airport with no money arousing suspicions.

The conflict in Northern Kosovo over the reconstruction of a house belonging to Ai Kadriu, an Albanian, in the village of Suvi Do between Mitrovica and Zvecan continues into its second week with reports of stone throwing on Sunday.  Last week following violent clashes between Serbs and Albanians, police prevented reconstruction of the house and the Kosovo Police detained Kadriu.  Questions in regards to Kadriu needing a permit for the reconstruction have been raised.

MTCowgirl’s Kosovo News
Articles here are more political in nature in regards to the UN/EU Missions or Kosovo Government

• Brussels wary of delay in EULEX
• Both sides (Serbia/EULEX) deny striking deal on EU mission
• Thaci blames judiciary for lack of strategy on organized crime
• Intensive consultations on UNMIK reconfiguration
• Kosovo to have first battalions of Kosovo Armed Forces in Jan 2009
• Kosovo regional recognition near complete

MTCowgirl’s Interesting Articles/Commentary
Disclaimer (as always!): These articles do not necessarily reflect my personal opinion regarding Kosovo and/or independence. These are cultural articles or opinion pieces printed in regards to Kosovo and the region which are of interest.

• Silent Transformation – Arta Dobroshi
• Albanians and Muslims targetting in occupied Voivodina and Sanjak
• UN’s Ban tries to outsource Kosovo questions
• Bloggers Unite! Refugees and IDPs in the Western Balkans
• Kosovo businessmen complain about bribery
• Who is UNMIK working for? – Albin Kurti

EULEX to be operational by December (?!?!?!)

Could Kosovo be on the UN Security Council agenda this Friday? If it is, EULEX just might possibly have a fighting chance to be operational by early December.  With less than half of it's expected force deployed, EULEX will likely need to deploy at least a couple hundred people per week, send them through a week-long induction session, get them to their jobs, and perform a "hand-over" of the work from UNMIK to EU (or maybe it will just be a handing over of the files and a "good luck" handshake?!)  For some time EULEX has been struggling not only with deploying staff but also filling positions...only two weeks ago it was reported that EULEX still needs to fill four of five posts! 

Meanwhile the European Parliament might move to block funding for EULEX if it is not fully deployed through all of Kosovo.  There have been talk of a "watered down" version of EULEX in the north of Kosovo as part of an agreement between EU and Serbia.  Serbia has stated that EULEX would be acceptable under certain conditions such as being "status neutral" and dropping the implementation of the Ahtisaari package.

Today's recommended article is called Tourism in Kosovo? Ha ha ha?  I have to put in my two cents on the article...the author is pretty much right on the money!  After a nice day in Gjakove this past weekend, I find it a shame that Kosovars are letting go of traditions like the traditional "Plisa" (Smurf hats, I know that will get some hate mail but hey, that's what outsiders call them folks!) makers in the old city.  The architecture of Gjakove's old town could easily be compared to that in Sarajevo's Ba�ar�ija but the Plisa makers have gone and been replaced by shop after shop of modern clothing...or worse gaudy formal dress peddlers who take high fashion to an extreme and beyond to a place where it no longer looks nice but just like someone has simply become a "serial fashion victim" (but I digress!  Back to the wiping out of cool old culture!).  Honestly Kosovars, there's nothing interesting about seeing those modern shops or having a coffee in some hip, smoke-filled cafe in the old city but bring back the traditional Plisa makers or women selling hand-knit table linens and you just might bring in people from outside who would enjoy Kosovo's culture!  But alas, it's a lament that probably will never come to fruit as the younger generations don't seem to give a flying rat's buttocks about their slowly disappearing culture...so cheers, enjoy your macchiato in the cool new cafe, and did you see that fantastic dress down the street (yeah, the leopard print one with all the ruffles and sequins?!  To die for...literally!) :P

Been Saying It For Awhile!

Nah, nah, nah! :P I've been saying it for a while and finally one of the local new sources has caught on to the fact that "Rich Foreigners Keep Kosovo Rental Prices Soaring" and talks about the difference between the "local" rate and "international" rate for apartments particularly in Pristina.  Since the arrival of people from EULEX, it actually has only gotten worse because it seems that some locals believe that EULEX people were just born yesterday and will pay whatever they ask (and as it seems, some will!)  But thankfully some of you have read the information and experiences here and know the three important questions to ask and the approximate reasonable prices for Pristina :o)  So remember to negotiate and don't get suckered in by unscrupulous landlords looking to make a quick profit off your ignorance!

MTCowgirl's Interesting Articles/Commentary
Note: These articles do not necessarily reflect personal opinion but are relevant to Kosovo and the current situation and/or cultural information.

• EULEX, UN, and the mess-up in Kosovo
• Serbian life in Kosovo increasingly worse
• Miss Kosovo attends Miss Earth beauty pageant
• FIFA rejects Kosovo application
• Standard of Living, an American living in Kosovo