Key Facts -- The Conflict

Key Facts About Kosovo

 

The following points were taken Timeline Kosovo a Project of the BBC News

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/country_profiles/3550401.stm

 

 

12^th Century:  Kosovo was situated at the heart of the Serbian empire under the Nemanjic Dynasty.  During this period many monasteries and Serbian Orthodox Churches were built.

 

1389:  The Epic Battle of Kosovo heralded 500 years of rule under the Ottoman Empire.  This caused an exodus of Christian Serbs.  Today, Kosovo is a Muslim nation and populated by Albanians.

 

1912:  Balkan Wars – The Serbs regained control of Kosovo from the Turks

 

1918:  Kosovo becomes part of Serbia

 

 

Sitting here as I type this, it is amazing to see how Kosovo seemed to be trapped in the circle of Serbian rule.  Over a period of several hundred years they seemed to function independently from Serbia only to be once again absorbed by Serbia in 1918.  World War II resulted in much of Kosovo being under Albanian rule.  I find it interesting how this relatively small country was constantly on the hunt for being autonomous and independent.  Kosovo was absorbed by the Yugoslav Federation in 1946 and they were given de facto self-government in 1974.  The next three decades saw increasing conflict which became more severe after their autonomy was revoked by Slobodan Milosevic in 1989.

 

1990 July - Ethnic Albanian leaders declare independence from Serbia. Belgrade dissolves the Kosovo government.

 

1990 September - Sacking of more than 100,000 ethnic Albanian workers, including government employees and media workers, prompts general strike.

 

1991 - Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia break away from Yugoslavia and declare their independence.

 

 

KOSOVO CRISIS

 

 

1992 - War breaks out in the Balkans.

 

1992 July - An academic, Ibrahim Rugova, is elected president of the self-proclaimed republic.

 

1993-97 - Ethnic tension and armed unrest escalate.

 

1998 March-September - Open conflict between Serb police and separatist Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). Serb forces launch a brutal crackdown. Civilians are driven from their homes.

 

1998 September - NATO gives an ultimatum to President Milosevic to halt the crackdown on Kosovo Albanians.

 

NATO INTERVENTION

 

1999 March - Internationally-brokered peace talks fail. NATO launches air strikes against Yugoslavia lasting 78 days before Belgrade yields. Hundreds of thousands of Kosovo Albanian refugees pour into neighboring countries, telling of massacres and forced expulsions which followed the start of the NATO campaign.

 

1999 June - President Milosevic agrees to withdraw troops from Kosovo. NATO calls off air strikes. The UN sets up a Kosovo Peace Implementation Force (Kfor) and NATO forces arrive in the province. The KLA agrees to disarm. Serb civilians flee revenge attacks.

 

2002 February - Ibrahim Rugova is elected as president by the Kosovan parliament after ethnic Albanian parties reach a power-sharing deal. Bajram Rexhepi becomes prime minister.

 

2003 October - First direct talks between Serbian and Kosovo Albanian leaders since 1999.

 

2003 December - UN sets out conditions for final status talks in 2005.

 

2004 March - 19 people are killed in the worst clashes between Serbs and ethnic Albanians since 1999. The violence started in the divided town of Mitrovica.

 

 

Mitrovica - a flashpoint for inter-ethnic tensions

 

Mitrovica: Symbol of Kosovo's division

 

UN pulls out of Kosovo flashpoint

 

Serbs block Kosovo bridge opening

 

 

2004 October - President Rugova's pro-independence Democratic League tops poll in general election, winning 47 seats in 120-seat parliament. Poll is boycotted by Serbs.

 

2004 December - Parliament re-elects President Rugova and elects former rebel commander Ramush Haradinaj as prime minister. Mr Haradinaj's party had entered into a coalition with the president's Democratic League.

 

2005 February - Serbian President Boris Tadic visits, promises to defend rights of Serbs in Kosovo.

 

2005 March - Mr Haradinaj indicted to face UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague, resigns as prime minister. He is succeeded by Bajram Kosumi.

 

President Rugova unhurt when explosion rocks convoy of vehicles in which he is travelling through Pristina.

 

2005 July - Nearly-simultaneous blasts go off near UN, OSCE and Kosovo parliament buildings in Pristina. No-one is hurt.

 

2005 August - Two Serbs shot dead and two injured when their car is fired at.

 

Former president Ibrahim Rugova fought for independence

 

2006 January - President Rugova dies in Pristina after losing his battle with lung cancer. He is succeeded in February by Fatmir Sejdiu.

 

2006 February - UN-sponsored talks on the future status of Kosovo begin.

 

2006 March - Prime Minister Kosumi resigns following criticism of his performance from within his own party. He is succeeded by former KLA commander Agim Ceku.

 

2006 July - First direct talks since 1999 between ethnic Serbian and Kosovan leaders on future status of Kosovo take place in Vienna.

 

2006 October - Voters in a referendum in Serbia approve a new constitution which declares that Kosovo is an integral part of the country. Kosovo's Albanian majority boycotts the ballot and UN sponsored talks on the future of the disputed province continue.

 

INDEPENDENCE PLAN

 

2007 February - United Nations envoy Martti Ahtisaari unveils a plan to set Kosovo on a path to independence, which is immediately welcomed by Kosovo Albanians and rejected by Serbia.

 

2007 July - US and European Union redraft UN resolution to drop promise of independence at Russian insistence, replacing it with pledge to review situation if there is no breakthrough after four proposed months of talks with Serbia.

 

2007 November - Hashim Thaci emerges as winner in general elections.

 

2008 February - Kosovo declares independence. Serbia says declaration illegal. Europe's major powers and the United States recognize independence.

 

I have given you the key facts of the conflict as so aptly put together by the BBC.  My original thoughts are in red.  This blog is going to be about the issues faced by the people of Kosovo during this time…everyday life.

Nicole Kidman visits Kosovo

In 2006, UN Goodwill Ambassador, Nicole Kidman visited Kosovo.  She said the following after her visit, “I was very moved by the many women I met during my Kosovo trip. I learned so much from the experiences that they were willing to share – they spoke about how violence has disrupted their lives and the lives of their children. They talked to me about the tragedy of losing sons and husbands, but they also inspired me with their determination to build a better future for themselves and their families, and to claim their rights as individuals and citizens.”

 

http://www.unifem.org/partnerships/goodwill_ambassadors/nicole_kidman_kosovo.html?

I think it is very important that public figures have taken notice of this area and the plight of the women of Kosovo.  They have fought a continuously uphill battle in a society that has largely given women little than a passing thought or glance.  Hopefully as time goes by, more public figures will visit the area and provide resources for the women of Kosovo the means to provide for themselves and their family.

Conspiracy Theories

When all is said and done…do we really believe everything we hear about September 11, 2001?

They want us to believe what they are telling us, but is it really the truth? We don’t know what is behind the true story and we may never find out. There are a lot of questions out there that the answers just don’t make sense or that aren't answered.

When I was doing my research I found so many theories of what could have actually taken place, and to be honest a lot of the stories could work. Who’s to say it wasn't just a big cover up? Did President Bush really want to finish what his father started when he was in the white house? Did we know the attacks were going to happen but did nothing to prevent them?

All questions that the answer is hard to come by…I highly doubt they would actually release something saying we knew this was going to happen and we did nothing to prevent it…I just don’t see that happening. I don’t believe that the truth will ever come out; I however do believe that signs and warnings were ignored.

The NY Times ran a story that Bush didn't listen to the warnings…I wonder if it’s true or not?

While doing my research what came across as really odd was that many Americans believe that 9/11 was an inside job….that really doesn't surprise me. So if it was an inside job why would al-Qaeda take responsibility? Is that just a cover up from the government to take us to war to show the world what we can do?  

Poverty & Unemployment

Kosovo is a young country that is struggling to emerge from the travesties and the atrocities that occurred during the war.  How does a young country, not recognized by many emerge from poverty and become a thriving nation with a healthy economy?

Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008 and it has been an uphill battle that is still being fought today.

http://setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/articles/2009/05/18/reportage-01

 

The above article tells a compelling story about this situation.  Although these figures are more than three years old, the data is still relevant as the situation has not vastly improved today. The article says that 40,000 out of a total of 2,000,000 (at the time the article was written) have no income and are receiving some sort of government assistance.  This is a staggering figure.  The article says that the amount of aid given is not nearly enough to have a normal way of life.  What is normal for people in a situation as dire as this?  I would think that these people are grateful to have a roof over their head, heat, and food on the table.  We are very lucky, even are most needy people live in better circumstances than some of the people of Kosovo do.

 

One thing that I have witnessed is that the people of Kosovo are more likely to reach out and help one another.  Last winter, they have more snow than they had ever seen.  The snow fell faster than it could be cleared away.  Yet, once the snow did stop, everyone came out and it was a joint effort to get the neighborhood shoveled out so they could resume their day to day comings and goings.  People did not charge their neighbors; they just extended a helping hand (or shovel).

 

This is a direct quote from the article to which I have included the link to at the beginning of this blog entry,

 

“According to reports from the UNDP and other international organizations, about 37% of the population lives in poverty -- below the line of 1.42 euros a day -- and over 17% lives in extreme poverty -- below the line of 93 euro cents a day.”

 

I can’t even begin to imagine.  Unemployment in this country is a real problem.  In 2011 the unemployment rate was estimated to be 45.3%.  This is almost half of the workforce.   Young people are finishing their education but are entering a job market that has nothing to offer them.

Before and After Twin Towers

Before

Image found on Creative Commons Search

           

The world trade center opened April 4, 1973 and was sadly destroyed on September 11, 2001. The twin towers were a landmark in lower Manhattan. The buildings each had 110 floors and were tube frame structure design. Over 50,000 people worked in the trade centers each workday and it seen nearly 200,000 visitors.  

            The buildings are a work of art. I’m sure the view from the restaurant on the 106 and 107 floor of the north building was absolutely breath taking.  The twin towers were known all over the world. its such a shame that they are now gone.

After

\

     The picture of ground zero is a cross constructed from the rubble of the building. It’s sad to see that so many innocent people lost their lives on what they thought would be a normal day in New York. It’s heartbreaking that such a tragedy can affect people all over the country. I didn't know anyone personally that was in New York, but my heart goes out to everyone who lost friends and family.

     It angers me to look at a picture like this because it’s so sad to see something like this happen to our country. Something that caused our country a great deal of pain, sent our troops overseas to protect our freedom and to try to get us to break down, but we stood tall and fought back.

The man behind 9/11

     September 11, 2001 was believed to be caused by terrorist attacks. It is believed that Osama bin Laden is responsible for the attacks that have changed our lives. It sent America into war with Iraq and we were on a hunt for bin Laden.

     Osama bin Laden was the leader of al-Qaeda, the organization that claimed responsibility for 9/11.  Bin Laden was a billionaire, he had everything he needed, what I don’t understand is why on earth would he want to set up such an attack?

     Interesting fact in 1998 he was involved in the U.S embassy bombing….really?  We did nothing from 1998 until Bush declared war, except put him on the FBI most wanted list? Maybe it’s just me but that irks me a little bit that a man so powerful in his country can torture our country the way he has. What has the government or official agents do?

1998-2001 three years 2001-2011 ten years. A man was in hiding for 13 years and no one could find him? We have troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, we searched high and low this man was wanted for a million dollars.

     Finally we conquered bin Laden on May 2, 2011 members of the United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group and Central Intelligence Agency operatives in a covert operation ordered by United States President Barack Obama May 2, 2011, bin Laden was shot and killed inside a private residential compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

     This really gets me; pictures were not shown to the public! We were never shown proof. I know they may have been morbid but at least give us some proof!! And then to go bury him at sea out of respect?!  What respect has he shown us?  All the men and women who have sacrificed their lives for our freedom…and we give this man the respect?

Getting A Passport

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7534306.stm

My niece Ellen is a legal permanent resident of Kosovo and a citizen of the United States of America.  She is married to a citizen of Kosovo.   When she gave birth to her son in 2010, her child had dual citizenship, both of Kosovo and the United States by virtue of his parents’ birth.  Amazingly, they had no problems obtaining his Kosovo passport, but getting his United States passport proved to be a nightmare that took several months for them to resolve and prevented them from traveling to the United States for a family wedding.

 

In 2010, Kosovo was still sharing the services of consulate officials with the country of Montenegro.  Many countries have been slow to embrace and accept Kosovo’s declaration of independence and thus have been slow in providing consular support which would be indicative of their acknowledgement of Kosovo’s independence.  For whatever reason is has become increasingly difficult for citizens of Kosovo to leave Kosovo for other places, especially the United States.  Ultimately, my sister had to contact Senator Brown for guidance in helping my niece obtain a passport for the baby.  When she went to the consulate to finally pickup his passport, she was told by the clerk that this had “congressional intervention.”

 

I found this article on the BBC quite interesting.  It made the process seem so easy.  This is proof that the news agencies tell only the details that they want known.  They fail to let anyone know of potential wrinkles such as those encountered by my sister and her family.