In response to the newest waves of state and political repression in Kosovo, we want to publicly pose a few questions:
Did you know that the Serbian regime is more intensively violating the human rights of the Albanian population in Kosovo?
Did you know that since November of 1996, when Serbia experience by waves of citizens’ protests in response to Slobodan Milosevic's attempt at electoral fraud, hundreds of local Albanians have been deprived of freedom in Kosovo? Many of them experienced the most difficult forms of political torture (which were recorded as ’mortal accidents’). They also experienced extortion and false criminal charges, accusing individuals of terrorism, were brought against more that ten individual.
Did you know that ethnic segregation and discrimination in different parts of public life continues in Kosovo? It is especially prevalent in education. Additionally, discriminatory legal standards, illegal apartment searches, imprisonment and maltreatment continue. Political rights, such as the right to peacefully assemble, are limited and even sports matches are banned.
An encouraging fact is that the Kosovar Albanians, the victims of this illegality and violence, remain committed to their nonviolent methods of struggle for their human, citizen’s and ethnic rights despite all of the regime’s provocations. Also, we consider that the situation in Kosovo is not interethnic conflict, but the Serbian regime’s attempt to incite war there, in order to homogenize the Serbian nation with the justification of defending ‘the threatened national interest.’ The Serbian regime uses the military and police to ‘protect Serb life.’ Such ‘protection’ is not freedom. It is a form of repression that provokes other forms of repression and conflict. We are confident that Serbian citizens are beginning to realize the intentions of the regime and will - in keeping with of our own nonviolent response to the regime of Slobodan Milosevic - accept that the struggle for human rights is indivisible and that the interests of the citizens of Serbia are not in opposition to the interests of the citizens of Kosovo. With these ideas in mind, Serbian citizens will accelerate the process of creating a different Serbia - a civil and democratic Serbia.
We, Women in Black, will organize a protest against human rights violations in Kosovo on Wednesday April 2, from 3:30pm to 4:30pm in Republic Square in Belgrade.
Women in Black
Belgrade, April 1, 1997
