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million It’s no secret that Kosovo im- PageTwo euro ports far more than it exports. million €4.9 euro March data - the most recent exports to italy €3.3 available from the Kosovo Sta- exports to tistics Agency - showed that Kosovo imported 202.5 million Who million euro, while it exported just 23.1 euro million euro. €3.2 exports Kosovo to albania million €21euro imports from turkey million million €21.3 euro imports from germany trades €23.1euro with total exports million €30 euro imports from serbia million euro from the editor €202.5 How to spice up the elections total imports Going into last fall’s local elections, erning coalition. The reason being conventional wisdom suggested that there’s no unity among the op- that Isa Mustafa would coast to an- position, and just about everyone, From where Where Kosovo other victory and remain Prishti- apart from Vetevendosje, has been Kosovo got its stuff sent its stuff na’s mayor. That, of course, didn’t angling to be in a coalition with PDK. happen. Those recent elections If I were a betting man, I’d probably 1. Serbia €30.0 million | 14.8 percent 1. Italy €4.9 million | 21.2 percent broke a lot of assumptions. Vot- place my money on this scenario. 2. Germany €21.3 million | 10.5 percent 2. Serbia €3.3 million | 14.4 percent ers rightfully ousted incumbents But maybe we’re wrong. The 3. Turkey €21.0 million | 10.4 percent 3. Albania €3.2 million | 13.8 percent throughout the country. Many November elections showed us failed to deliver. Others were ac- that voters are abandoning blind 4. Italy €14.4 million | 7.1 percent 4. Macedonia €2,9 million | 12.4 percent cused of serious crimes. Another loyalty and looking to candidates’ 5. China €12.8 | 6.3 percent 5. India €2.0 million | 8.8 percent surprise: elec- platforms and records. Perhaps 6. Greece €11.9 million | 5.9 percent 6. Montenegro €1.1 million | 5.2 percent toral fraud was this will happen in June, if enough 7. Macedonia €11.6 | 5.7 percent 7. Germany €0.9 million | 3.9 percent kept to a mini- candidates take the cue from the 8. Albania €9.3 million | 4.6 percent 8. Austria €0.5 million | 2.3 percent mum. In short, local elections and present more 9. Slovenia €5.9 million | 2.9 percent 9. Turkey €0.43 million | 1.9 percent the local elec- concrete ideas. (Maybe it’s time for a tions showed certain someone to put Euro-Atlan- 10. Bosnia €5.5 million | 2.7 percent 10. Switzerland €0.41 million | 1.8 percent that democ- Nate tic integration on the backburner.) Did you know: The EU was the biggest exporter to Kosovo in March, totalling €87.4 racy couldn’t Tabak A more crackpot scenario my Editor-in-Chief million. The smallest market: 200 euro of something was exported to Moldova. just function in own, perhaps inspired from watch- Kosovo, it also ing “House of Cards,” involves the could thrive. politicians themselves: that this co- There are some big assump- alition posturing is all just for show, tions being made about the early and in fact there is a conspiracy to national elections, to be held some- unite a PDK-free coalition. Prishtina Balkan Investigative Reporting Network • time in June. Conventional wis- Whether any of these alternate Insight Mensa e Studenteve, first floor, 10000, Prishtina, Kosovo dom suggests Hashim Thaci will scenarios are plausible or would lead • Phone: +381 (0) 38 24 33 58 • Editor-in-chieF: Nate ultimately get another mandate as better government - that’s anyone’s Tabak •Staff: Jeta Xharra, Marcus Tanner, Edona Peci, Petrit Collaku, Prime Minister. His party, PDK, albe- guess. But as we learned from the re- Parim Olluri, Nektar Zogjani and Arijeta Lajka. • Design: Trembelat • Prishtina it weakened, will still win a plurality cent local elections, a break from the Insight is supported by the Norwegian Embassy, Rockefeller Brothers Fund and cobble together another gov- status quo can be a good thing. and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. Prishtina Insight n May 9-22, 2014 n 3

exports to albania • Coppy / Print / Scan • Coppy / Print / Scan • 20 ppm • 28 ppm / Color / B&W • ARDF • ARDF • Duplex • Duplex • Bypass • Bypass • Network • Network 4 n May 9-22, 2014 n Prishtina Insight Nation THE NORTH Serb police adapt 43 to new bosses the maximum number of days in Kosovo until national elections. The integration of cops who formerly took their orders - and salaries - from Belgrade Parliament dissolved has proceeded without a hitch, but - elections to come questions of security and control remain.

By Petrit Collaku

By Valerie Hopkins However, a string of recent With 90 votes in favour, PDK, Isa Mustafa, leader violent incidents raises questions four against and three of the LDK, Ramush Ha- A recently painted mural in down- about just how much control the abstentions, members radinaj, of the Alliance town North Mitrovica reads: “Kosovo police have. Last September, a Lith- of the Kosovo Assembly for the Future of Kosovo, “The people is Serbia, and Crimea is Russia.” But, uanian EULEX police officer was dissolved parliament, AAK, and Mimoza Kusari view us the one year since the Brussels-brokered killed. No one has been charged paving the way for early - Lila from the AKR. same way April agreement between Belgrade for his murder. elections in June. At a joint meeting as they do and Prishtina was signed, all of Ko- On March 13, around 50 Koso- By law, elections with President Atifete any police sovo, including its predominantly- vo Serbs stormed a police station must be held between Jahjaga, the leaders dis- - they don’t Serb municipalities in the north, are to demand the release of a suspect 30 and 45 days from the cussed the recent block- like us! … - at least nominally - under the control detained by EULEX for disrupt- date of the dissolution of ade of legislation in the Well, they of the Kosovo Police. ing public order. The man was the Assembly. Assembly. like us a bit The newly integrated officers released. At the session, Arsim The decision to dis- more than have more than doubled the num- Then, on March 30, three Bajrami of the ruling solve the Assembly they like ber of police in northern Kosovo’s members of the Kosovo police Democratic Party of Ko- came after MPs failed to EULEX.” four Serbian-majority municipali- were wounded while conducting sovo, PDK, handed over resolve two key issues: ties to 530. a routine patrol in the Zubin Potok the request for dissolu- the transformation of the – Officer The chief of police for North Ko- municipality. tion on behalf of 57 MPs existing Kosovo Security Miodrag sovo, Nenad Djuric, makes solving On April 25, someone fired 25 who had signed it. Forces into the Kosovo Lekic the problems between Kosovo and bullets at an armoured EULEX ve- Arguing for “political Armed Forces and re- Serbia sound easy. hicle carrying Polish members of stability,” Bajrami asked served seats for ethnic “A decision was made, we were the contingent as they traveled to all 114 MPs present to sup- minorities in parliament. given a deadline, we did our work,” the Brnjak border crossing in Zubin port the motion. Serbian parties in he told Prishtina Insight, when Potok municipality. "We demand that all the Assembly have con- asked how it was possible in only In Mitrovica itself, however, parliamentary groups ditioned their support three months to incorporate 284 po- Kosovo policeman Jovica Drobn- to support this motion in for a vote on the Kosovo licemen who for years had received jak says integration has made his order to move the coun- Armed Forces with the their orders and their salaries from work, and the work of his team, try to early elections," maintenance of reserved Belgrade, into the unit of the Kosovo easier. Bajrami said. seats for minorities. police he runs. “Before integration, there were The largest opposi- A statement by the “The problem is not in Mitrovica, only two or three police officers on tion party in parliament, President said the party it only depends on what is decided in duty at a time who had to cover the the Democratic League leaders had stressed the Brussels,” he added. entire city,” he told Balkan Insight of Kosovo, LDK, said it need to organize early Djuric’s position as regional com- as he patrolled the town. had been calling for early elections "to extract the mander, and that of his Kosovo Alba- “Now, with our recently inte- elections for some time. country from a political nian deputy, Besim Hoti, were spelled grated colleagues,” he says glancing The head of the LDK blockade". out as part of the year-old agreement at his co- patrol officer, Milorad Mitro- parliamentary group, The only dissenting between Belgrade and Prishtina. Dju- vic - who now takes orders from Ismet Beqiri, said it was note on Wednesday from ric and Hoti share office space with Prishtina after 20 years spent under time to "go into elections the opposition Veteven- the local police station and with a Serbia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and send home this gov- dosje Movement. monitoring mission from EULEX, the - “we have up to 14 officers around ernment". Party leader Albin European Union rule-of-law Mission. town, some on pedestrian control, A broad agreement Kurti said parliament Djuric said the increase in per- others on road traffic monitoring.” to dissolve parliament had not been informed sonnel since January had already Hoti, who spent seven years as followed talks between about the content of the lowered criminal activity in the re- the regional spokesperson for the Prime Minister Hashim inter-party agreement to gion. “We can already see the results,” Kosovo police in Mitrovica before Thaci, head of the ruling dissolve the Assembly. he maintained. becoming deputy, said integration Prishtina Insight n May 9-22, 2014 n 5

Briefly

Eleven arrested over priva- tization deal. Kosovo police announced they have ar- rested 11 people suspected of abusing official authority and economic authoriza- tion, and fraud, related to the privatization of Fan, a company based in Podujevo. A The company was sold off by the Privatization Agency of Kosovo, PAK. Naser Osmani, a member of the opposi- tion Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK, a former mem- ber of the PAK board, was amongst the suspects. Since it was established in 2008, the privatization agency has been criticized several times for irregularities that alleg- edly occurred during the sell-offs of socially owned enterprises.

Intelligence agency needs reform, MPs say. The Koso- vo's parliament's commis- sion supervising the Intelli- had proceeded without incident. has been more or less successful, gence Agency, KIA, has urged “The respect as colleagues is there. and although the northern munici- authorities to take measures after several scandals hit The trust, of course, will be built, palities participated as stipulated the security institution. Fadil person by person,” he told Balkan in Kosovo-wide elections last No- Demaku, deputy head of par- Insight. vember, there is no official resolu- 284 Serb police B liament's commission for the Unlike Hoti, Djuric drives a tion yet on other key parts of the integrated KIA, said the recent scandals car with Belgrade license plates agreement. concerning the agency had into Kosovo and travels to the Serbian capital These include the composition “had a very bad impact on force regularly for meetings. But he took of an Association of Serbian major- its image among the public.” pains to emphasize that his orders, ity municipalities. The agency came under the salary and all ultimate authority Statements from the EU foreign spotlight again last week when the police arrested emanate from Prishtina. policy chief, Catherine Ashton, and and questioned Isuf Lumi, a from politicians from Belgrade Mitrovic said he had no prob- member of the KIA, on sus- lem accepting a new boss after and Prishtina, indicate that a deal picion of falsifying his high 20 years of working for Belgrade. on the integration of judicial au- school diploma and issuing “Belgrade is not influencing my thorities will be inked at the next 530 documents with false con- work any longer and that’s it,” he Brussels-facilitated meeting, but it Officers tent. Lumi was suspended by told Balkan Insight. “We are profes- remains unknown when that will stationed in the agency, but Demaku said sional police officers.” take place. four mu- that more needs to be done. The process has not been Meanwhile, 350 kilometres from nicipalities "In order to fix problems, things need to start from without delays. The original im- Belgrade, ordinary citizens in Mitro- in northern above (from the top level),” vica are trying to get used to the Kosovo plementation plan set a complete he said. integration date for June 2013, but changes taking place around them. the Serbian government did not Outside the entrance to the der- Landfill cuts off Prishtina. A present a list of its police officers elict Trepca, a complex of mines landfill has stopped accept- who could be integrated until De- that once employed 23,000 peo- ing trash from Prishtina’s cember. ple, Kosovo Police officers Drob- waste-management com- Employees in other sectors njak and Mitrovic, the latter in his pany, Pastime, saying it owes that were less explicitly dealt with new uniform, stop cars with Serbi- 70,000 euro. Prishtina’s Mayor, Shpend Ahmeti, has in the Brussels agreement are still an license plates from Mitrovica. A accused the landfill’s owner teenager in one of the vehicles rais- struggling. Mitrovica’s firefighters of closing the site arbitrarily, have not received a salary for four es the Serbian three-finger salute. C endangering public health. months. Taken off the Serbia-fund- “The people view us the same The Ministry of Economic De- ed payroll and not yet incorpo- way as they do any police - they velopment, which manages rated into Kosovo’s pay structure, don’t like us!” joked officer Miodrag Pastrime, says it will see to they are still awaiting pay cheques. Lekic. “Well, they like us a bit more it that “this problem doesn’t Although police integration than they like EULEX,” he added. happen anymore.” 6 n May 9-22, 2014 n Prishtina Insight Cover Mayor looks to to rescue Gjakova Mimoza Kusari-Lila says former military airfield can help get the impoverished town out of the doldrums - but it’s a long way from take-off.

By Arijeta Lajka of leather and glue. The factory makes leather goods for an Italian The former Gorenje factory in company, The Bridge. Gjakova has known better times. The year-old factory has 25 During the Yugoslav era, the Slove- workers earning an average of nian company made components 250 euro per month. Each of the for washing machines. Today, all Bridge’s high-end bags can cost that’s left are broken windows and far more than that - up to 800 euro rusting machinery. apiece. But Ardiana Muhaxhiri is “Everyone remembers the happy for the work. “People need glory days,” said Dren Pozhegu, a to work, so many want to work Gjakova native and researcher at here,” Muhaxhiri said. Prishtina’s GAP Institute. “There were so many factories that we A mayor’s plan for recovery even had to import labour.” Gjakovars elected Mimoza The factories employed 16,000 Kusari-Lila as their mayor last at their height. December. Formerly Kosovo’s The 1998-99 war in Kosovo hit Minister of Trade and Industry, the western town of Gjakova hard. Kusari-Lila ran on a platform of Serbian forces besieged the city economically revitalizing the mu- and torched its crown jewel, the nicipality of just under 100,000 Mayor Mimoza Kusari-Lila envi- “If we’re not able to make a U- Ottoman-era bazaar. The damage people. sions a fully functional interna- turn for things in Gjakova, we’ve to its factories ran into the millions. Like her recently elected coun- tional airport in Gjakova, while done nothing. The situation as it Gjakova has been a shell of its terpart in Prishtina, Shpend Ah- Prime Minister Hashim Thaci is now is quite desperate,” Kusari- old self ever since. By some esti- meti, she brings a high profile and foresees something a bit less Lila said. mates, unemployment is among equally high expectations to local ambitious: a flight school. The mayor does not envision the worst in Kosovo, and has ex- government in Kosovo - an area photos/atdhe mulla restoring the heavy industry of ceeded 60 per cent in recent years. known more for ineptitude and the Yugoslav era. She wants to see But, across the street from the corruption than progress. more factories like Key One, manu- old Gorenje factory, there’s a small Ahmeti’s challenge is fixing Ko- facturing high-end goods for cus- sign of a more promising future. sovo’s mess of a capital. For Kusari- tomers in the EU. Inside the Key One factory, Lila, the task is to rebuild Gjakova The town has some potential the hum of brand-new sewing as an economic engine with a place advantages. Wages are low by EU machines accompanies the smell in the world of international trade. standards, while skills are high, she Prishtina Insight n May 9-22, 2014 n 7

What the airport said. At the same time, Gjakova is own AKR party, and of her succes- needs to go facility served as a logistical base close to Western Europe and in the sor in the Ministry of Trade and for the NATO peacekeeping force, same time zone. Industry, Bernard Nikaj. commercial: KFOR. For the time being, things ap- Also on her side: the small air- - Certification from the Civil Aviation The Italian Air Force ran the air- pear to be falling into place for Gjak- port to the north of the city. Authority, which can take years. port until last year, when it handed ova. The government has declared - A runway extension from 1,800 to 2,500 A.M.I.Ko. to the Kosovo govern- Gjakova and Mitrovica free eco- Taking off for recovery meters so commercial jets like Airbus 320s ment. While the Italians wanted to nomic zones, which means busi- On September 29, 1999, not and Boeing 737s can take off and land. save money, Kosovo officials spied nesses pay lower taxes and tariffs long after the war ended, an Ital- - An investor to invest and run the an opportunity. and receive better infrastructure. ian Air Force G.222 transport plane “We couldn’t reject the offer It helps that the mayor has touched down at a newly created airport through a concession from the Italians … Kosovo can friends in high places. The eco- airport called A.M.I.Ko. agreement. benefit from it,” Gazmend Mejzini, nomic free zone was the initiative Built next to an old agricul- - A terminal and other Deputy Minister of Trade and In- of Behgjet Pacolli, the leader of her tural airstrip, the single-runway buildings required for a dustry, said. civilian airport. continueS on page 8 8 n May 9-22, 2014 n Prishtina Insight Cover continued from page 7 Perhaps no one saw a greater Wizz Air and which frequently has opportunity than Kusari-Lila, flights for under 30 euro. who played a key role in the air- Wizz Air has long been report- port’s transfer to Kosovo as a gov- ed to have an interest in serving ernment minister. As mayor of Kosovo, and spokesman Daniel de Gjakova, she sees the airport as a Carvalho suggested that the airline cornerstone of the municipality’s might come to the country if it got prishtina economic revival. a good deal. “Next year, I would like to see “We do not comment on route the airport up and running, with speculations, but I can confirm low-cost airlines operating from that Wizz Air could stimulate air it, cargo to facilitate the free eco- traffic at [Prishtina International] nomic zone, a flying school, plus with our low fares if the costs were gjakova operations and services that are right for creating a low fare offer to not offered at Prishtina Interna- consumers,” he said. The Civil Avia- tional Airport,” Kusari-Lila said. Queried specifically about Gja- tion Authority The goal is ambitious, and tech- kova, De Carvalho said the airline is not sure if nically out of her hands: Gjakova was “always open to receive low Kosovo needs municipality has no official role cost proposals”. two commer- in the public enterprise now in Budget airlines often are at- cial . charge of the airport. But that does tracted to secondary airports, not stop Kusari-Lila from pushing which tend to offer lower fees and her vision. better availability for flight slots. In Kusari-Lila’s Gjakova, goods Albion Idrizi, who trains travel produced in the city could be “an- agents in Prishtina, said Kosovo ywhere in Europe within two to could use a second airport. “You three hours after production” via need to create regional airports the airport. where you can provide alterna- Meanwhile, a steady stream tives to low-cost carriers to fly to al- of investors, diaspora and people ternative airports at a much lower seeking cheaper flights would be cost,” he said. going in and out of the airport, cre- But secondary airports have ating more jobs. “If developed prop- a mixed track record, especially erly, we’ll see a huge difference in in the Balkans. “Usually airports two to three years,” she predicted. outside capitals in former Yugo- While Gjakova clearly needs slavia have been spectacularly economic development, some unsuccessful, with the exception question whether Kosovo needs of Croatia, thanks to its tourism,” another commercial airport. Luka Popovic, who writes the blog Prishtina International Airport, Ex-Yu Aviation News, noted. within an hour’s drive of most of The airports in Portoroz and the country, operates well below Maribor in Slovenia, at Nis in Ser- its annual capacity of 4.5 million bia, and at Ohrid in Macedonia, are passengers per year. The biggest empty most of the year, he added. carrier, Albania’s Belle-Air, stopped flying late in 2013 after filing for Airport a long way from bankruptcy. taking off Lorik Fejzullahu, an official in Gjakova Airport is a long way the Ministry of Finance who helps off from serving any airline. There oversee the public-private partner- is no concrete plan to turn it into a ship that runs Prishtina airport, commercial airport, which would doubts Gjakova’s short-term poten- require a costly upgrade. tial. He said the airport would need This would include extending subsidies and a demand that does the runway from 1,800 to 2,500 not currently exist. “I don’t think meters to accommodate commer- it can compete with Prishtina,” he cial jets like Airbus 320s and Boe- said. ing 737s, the workhorses for short Prishtina’s airport also has a and mid-range flights. several budget carriers, including There is no terminal or other Pegasus, Easyjet and German- commercial facilities needed for a wings. However, the offerings re- fully functioning civilian airport. main limited and not especially Currently there are only small Gjakova’s air- cheap. units for sheltering trucks and port isn’t ready It is often cheaper for people empty runways. for big com- mercial jets. in Kosovo to travel to Skopje, Mac- Facilities such as administra- edonia, which serves as a hub for tion areas, governmental agency Prishtina Insight n May 9-22, 2014 n 9

administration areas, baggage would be the largest of its kind The mayor areas, outlets and parking lots all and the highest quality in our hopes that need to be created to accommo- region, in the Balkans,” he said at the airport will date international civilian traffic. the time. help bring in All of this, officials say, would Kusari-Lila knows the future of more foreign require money from an outside in- her airport rests on support from investors and companies like vestor who would run the airport the government, whose composi- Key One, which through a concession agreement. tion is likely to change after June produces The airport also would need elections. leather goods certification from Kosovo’s Civil “I’m not sure after the elections for Italian Aviation Authority, which could what will happen, but anyone with company The take years to obtain. The agency a sound mind would want to have Bridge. has yet to conduct a feasibil- this operational,” she said. ity study to decide if Kosovo even Meanwhile, the owner of Key needs a second airport. One, Mirco Tattini, wants to ex- However, Kreshnik Gashi, Dep- pand his operation from 25 to 300 uty Director General of the CAA, workers to serve more European believes that the potential exists. companies. “Kosovo does not have a long So far, he has not found the tradition in aviation, we haven’t right premises. “The factories here been able to be a part of an aviation are no good,” he said, visibly frus- system, but Gjakova Airport is our trated. big chance,” he said. The factory manager, Gezim Prime Minister Hashim Thaci Qurdina, is confident that expan- recently toured the airport with sion will happen one day: ”I keep Kusari-Lila. “A flight academy saying- slowly, slowly.” 10 n May 9-22, 2014 n Prishtina Insight Region From the latest news and analysis Bosnian teaching from around the Balkans, visit www.balkaninsight.com reflects ethnic splits The Latin Bridge in Sarajevo where Archduke Franz Ferdinand was shot. World War I history divides In ethnically divided Bosnia and Herze- BIH govina, there is no commonly held view either about Princip or about the origins of World War I. For Bosnian Serbs, the murder served only as a schoolchildren pretext for Austria-Hungary and Germany to commit military aggression against Serbia. In Bosniak areas, By Denis Dzidic, Marija Ristic, Milka Domanovic, like Sarajevo, the Bihac region in the northwest and the Josip Ivanovic, Edona Peci, Sinisa Jakov Marusic central Zenica-Doboj area, school textbooks highlight Princip’s links to Serbia. “Those people were terrorists – Gavrilo Princip and The Sarajevo textbook says that Princip’s group, the rest of them,” said Salih Mehmedovic, standing Young Bosnia, was “supported by secret organisations at the spot by the Latin Bridge in central Sarajevo from Serbia,” while the Bihac textbook states more di- where the young Bosnian Serb Princip shot dead “We will never have rectly that the plotters were “supported by Serbia.” Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary agreement on this Zeljko Vujadinovic, a history professor from Banja 100 years ago – an assassination that sparked four Luka in Republika Srpska, said “The characterisation years of devastating conflict. issue. The views of Young Bosnia and Princip as terrorists is an attempt As Balkan countries prepare to mark the cente- are too far apart. to place the blame for huge worldwide events on ‘Ser- nary of the outbreak of World War I this summer, There will never be a bian territorial expansion policies,’ which is evidently each of them is teaching their children a different common truth.” flawed,” Vujadinovic said. interpretation of the killing that started the conflict. Sarajevo history professor Zijad Sehic agreed that Princip is portrayed in the history textbooks the past had been redrawn in the aftermath of the 1992- of the various former Yugoslav countries either — Zijad Sehic, 95 conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina where he was as a terrorist or as a rebel with a cause – percep- history professor now described as a Serbian nationalist rather than as tions that reflect contemporary divisions from the a fighter for Yugoslav unity, he noted. deadly conflicts of the 1990s. While they were part of Yugoslavia, children in all these countries were taught the same history. Now they all have their Serbia’s Princip: own versions of the truth. “Now the past is being adjusted to fit whatever A great hero discourse the ruling elites in these countries want at the present moment,” said Nenad Sebek, ex- A new monument to Gavrilo Princip is also ecutive director of the Centre for Democracy and SRB due to be installed in the Serbian capital, Reconciliation in Southeast Europe.At the Latin Belgrade, where schoolchildren are taught that the bridge in Sarajevo some locals said they were not killer was struggling for a just cause. concerned about what schoolchildren were taught “In Serbia, there is still the old narrative from the about WWI. former Yugoslavia, which says that the First World War “I don’t know and I don’t care,” said Adnan happened because there was this great hero called Tepic. “We should just forget such a distant past.” Gavrilo Princip,” Sebek noted. Others argued that only the facts should be “He assassinated the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, taught, “We should teach children the fact that the who was the personification of the occupying forces assassination happened, but we should leave it to of Austria-Hungary, and then Austria-Hungary and the each individual to find their own interpretations German Empire invaded Serbia, and the brave Serbs for themselves,” said Atija Masic. struggled and suffered during the war but were on the But as the centenary approaches, there is little right side,” he said. hope that rival ethnic and political groups in the On Gavrilo Princip Street in Belgrade, many people Balkans will find a shared view of the causes of the insist that Serbia did not cause the war. 1914-18 war, said history professor Zijad Sehic. “Serbia was exhausted after two Balkan wars [in “We will never have agreement on this issue. School children in Serbia learn that 1912-13] and didn’t want war in 1914. The Great War was Gavrilo Princip, top, was a hero. The views are too far apart,” he said. “There will a result of the imperial aspirations of Austria-Hungary never be a common truth.” and Germany,” said Aleksandar Dasic, a web editor. Prishtina Insight n May 9-22, 2014 n 11

Croatia blames Macedonia accuses Serbian expansionism ‘imperialist’ great powers

“Kosovo school textbooks are full inaccuracies, lies and falsifications, which very much increase suspicions amongst schoolchildren regarding Serbia.”

— Shkelzen Gashi, political scientist

A Croatian textbook (left) teaches that Serbia is to blame for the war, while a Macedonian textbook (right) accuses Bulgaria of aggressive expansionism.

Macedonian school textbooks describe the MKD conflict as “the first world imperialist war” and focus on the division of Macedonian territory that followed. However, Macedonians blame neighbouring Bulgaria in particular for aggressive expansionism, not Schools in Croatia however teach that Ser- Serbia. CRO bia was to blame for helping to spark the Macedonian historian Novica Veljanovski was also 1914-18 conflict, by seeking to expand its territory and keen to exonerate Serbia. “It has been proven that the supporting a terrorist. Serbian state had no intention or plan to kill the Arch- A fourth-grade secondary-school textbook says duke Franz Ferdinand,” he explained. “Serbia cannot that Serbia “sought territorial expansion over areas that be blamed for the start of the war.” were under Ottoman rule up until the [1912-1913] Balkan Wars, and was unsettled with the Austro-Hungarian an- nexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, due to Serbian ter- ritorial pretensions towards Bosnia and Herzegovina.” Kosovo stays neutral despite 1990s war Parents in the capital Prishtina, with recent memo- ries of Belgrade’s violent repression of Kosovo Alba- nians, insisted that Serbian aggression was a factor behind the outbreak of World War I. “The whole world has suffered because of Serbia,” said one Prishtina local, Ajvaz Abazi. Macedonian school But Kosovo’s schoolchildren are actually taught a textbooks describe version of history that still closely resembles the nar- rative in the old Yugoslav textbooks. the conflict as “the The passages on WWI, written after the 1998-99 first world imperialist conflict between the Kosovo Liberation Army and Bel- war” and focus grade’s forces, describe Princip as a “Serbian national- on the division of ist” rather than a Yugoslav one – but they do not accuse Macedonian territory Serbia of responsibility for the conflict. Shkelzen Gashi, a political scientist who specialises that followed. in history, argued that Kosovo schoolbooks are full of “inaccuracies, lies and falsifications, which very much increase suspicions amongst schoolchildren regard- ing Serbia”. 12 n May 9-22, 2014 n Prishtina Insight

Four stars: Perfection Three stars: Superb Two Stars: Good One Star: Just OK No Star: Don’t Bother SUPERB piguide « « « « Taverna Greke gets meze right By Nate Tabak

I came to know Greek food as a boy growing up in Chicago. Venturing into the city’s Greektown meant one thing to me: “Flaming Cheese” - the more pronounceable version of saganaki. As such, i judged a res- taurant's promise by the scorches on the ceiling - battle scars of the theatrical saganaki service, which involved towering flames and a waiter exclaiming “Opa!” Taverna Greke, on the road to Sunny Hill, does not have much of that over-the-top Greek kitsch. On my first three visits I only heard dition of tangy tabbouleh and a Hours: Ouzo along with its relatives, smooth jazz. Only on a recent hearty chicken soup, it was lunch 7am to midnight Turkish raki and French pastis, evening did I hear actual Greek that satiated for hours. daily. have never been among my fa- music. But it’s just as well. The food Things got more serious the Phone: vorite spirits. But with the right — the meze in particular — is really next day when I delved into fried +377 (0) 44 153 914; meze, it all makes sense. In the case good and distinctive. zucchini. It seemed to be the off- +386 (0) 49 153 914 of Taverna Greke, it means an en- In full disclosure, I haven’t re- spring of potato chips, french fries chanting cabbage and fennel slaw, Location: ally strayed from the meze list at - and the vegetable that bore its Rr. Eqrem Qabej no olives, feta, several yogurt dips, Taverna Greke. It’s not that I didn’t name. In other words, it was great. 9, Prishtina. (On roasted eggplant - and the weak want to try the souvlaki and The same, however, could the road to sunny link, a crab salad. All of them tasted the other nice-looking main not be said for the hummus, hill, across from better with the ouzo. They, in turn, the Salle 1 Tetori dishes, but the meze was which tasted of little more auditorium) made the ouzo better. just so damn good. EAT than mushed chickpeas. We closed with the fried cheese Even as something as basic A few days later, I graduated Online: coated in sesame seeds and honey, as kidney beans, which probably to dinnertime meze. facebook.com/ which may be the best way to eat tavernagreke came from a can, were delectable One item had caught my eye: cheese. thanks to generous amounts of the meze for ouzo. I had avoided it One of these days I will get good olive oil and herbs. I wiped because ordering it without ouzo around to trying the main courses, up every last drop of that oil with would have been as inappropriate which do look tasty. But I’m in no the homemade rolls. With the ad- drinking ouzo during a work day. rush with all that great meze.

EAT DRINK EDS SHOP

Te Lali > There is no set menu at Te Lali. It all depends on friends. There’s no fancy nonsense or guys in bowties making the whims of the owner, Lali. Most of the time you can get a you feel like a snob. Regular readers might remember that steak, which is the best we’ve had in Prishtina. On a recent we only wrote up Te Lali in the fall. We were so blown away A visit Lali topped the meat with asparagus and hollandaise by this last visit, we felt a duty to remind you what sauce. It was served with his unbeatable spinach you’re missing. and beet salad — also a standing offer — and a berry mustard. The whole package was Location: On a side street near the Qendra unbeatable. But quite frankly, his steak Tregtare (Trade Center) in Sunny Hill. Consult is so good, he could have served with the map on the facing page, and if you’re nothing else and we would have still having trouble ask someone, “Ku eshte been happy. Even better, Te Lali is restoranti "Te Lali"? (Where is restaurant a casual neighborhood joint that Te Lali?) Hours: 8am to 10:30pm, Monday seems to primarily serve the owners through Saturday; 12pm to 8pm on Sundays. Prishtina Insight n May 9-22, 2014 n 13

Green, delicious - and from here > Unfortunately there’s a lot of feeble-looking produce around. But not the newly introduced Kosovo-grown asparagus. It’s crisp and fla- FYI vorful - and starting to make the rounds in supermarkets. It’s also a great way to support domestic producers.

01 Pallet Lounge WHERE Pallet lounge is an newly opened, exquisite cafe restaurant that offers TO PICK UP a variety of multicultural dishes and drinks. It is located right across the AUK University in the outskirts PRISHTINA of the city, surrounded by nature. Gërmia Road (across AUK) +386 INSIGHT (0)49 880-777 palletlounge@ gmail.com facebook.com/Pallet Hotel Prishtina 06 Hotel Prishtina’s 43 charm- Lounge Papillon Bistro Bar ing guest rooms and suites are 02 Papillon offers more than 60 types reminiscent of a small hotel in of wines from France, Italy, Spain, the European tradition. The hotel and Kosovo with great prices and offers free, fast wifi internet, com- delicious dishes. You can also try plimentary breakfast, conference different types of local or interna- room, swimming pool, sauna and tional beers. Mother Teresa Str. Nr. laundry service. Hotel Prishtina, 51 A [email protected] St. Vaso Pasha nr. 20, +381 38 / 044 103 310 22 32 84. Hotel AFA 03 Pizza Napoli Located in a quiet neighbourhood 07 A taste of Napoli in Prishtina. just outside the city centre, Hotel After ten years of making pizza Afa can guarantee guests a peace- in Napoli, and with only love to ful night while being within walking blame, Fatmir, the head chef, distance of all the action. Rooms returned to Prishtina. His pizzas, start at 45 euro for a single, and made in a woodburn stove, are luxury rooms and apartments are definitely genuine napolitanas. available. The hotel’s rooms are Fatmir also has several delicious well appointed and comfortable. pastas on offer, a true joy for the 15, Rr Ali Kelmendi, Sunny Hill, taste buds. Pizzeria Napoli off Prishtina +381 38/225 226 www. Luan Haradinaj, opposite hotelafa.com Newborn. 044/409-402402

04 Hotel Gracanica A place to relax in the calm and clean air of the countryside, just 15 minute sfrom Prishtina city center, 500 m from the center of Gracanica and its UNESCO World Heritage monastery and a short walk to the archeological site of Ulpiana. The boutique hotel 07 combines contemporary architec- ture with traditional elements to create a unique atmosphere that will make you feel at home. +381 06 (0)38 729 888 (landline) +386 02 (0)49 764 000 03 [email protected] www.hotelgracanica.com www.facebook.com/HotelGra- canica EAT

A

04 14 n May 9-22, 2014 n Prishtina Insight

OpinionSend us your thoughts to [email protected]. A love for tech and Kosovo

hat if you could use regulate temperature for low-carbon cost your mobile phone wood pellet boilers. Elizabeth to control the heating And according to Noble, this is just the Gowing in your house while beginning. He is a tech-sector evangelist, Wyou were out? What passionate about the potential for this if 60 per cent of the workforce could be kind of light industry to be the means for women? What if Kosovo had a thriving a young and adaptable workforce here to the audience that if they could see his technology industry? transform Kosovo’s tepid economy and heart they would find “Kosovo” writ- In the world of Glenn Noble, all three offer quality products for export at com- ten there, and his commitment to the of these dreams are coming true here in petitive prices. country he first came to in 2003 is clear Kosovo. Glenn, from Idaho, founded the But Noble is frustrated with the poor in his work here. So what does he think Genesis Technology Center, an NGO, in preparation offered for engineers in Ko- he’s achieved so far? He says, “I came to 2010 and his company, TekFuze, the fol- sovo university courses and the empha- Kosovo to start a technology industry’. lowing year. Both are based in Veternik, sis on theoretical rather than practical He hasn’t done that yet, but ‘I guess I’ve on the outskirts of Prishtina, and together training. He hopes his Genesis Technol- shown that it’s possible to do something.” they are nurturing an emerging technol- ogy industry for Kosovo. The Genesis Technology Center began offering technical training for young engineers, usually recent gradu- ates from the University of Prishtina’s Faculty of Engineering. However, Noble saw a reluctance among Kosovo engi- neers to improve their skills – as he says, people didn’t see the point in working to become a better engineer “if they’re just going to work in a coffee shop anyway.” He realized that the motivation for creat- ing better engineers would be to demon- strate that there could be jobs available for them. And thus TekFuze was born. The company is currently Kosovo’s only electronic hardware firm. As the name suggests, it fuses disparate groups and ideas. The workforce benefits not only from Noble’s training from the US, but also an ethnically mixed workforce of Glenn Noble has high hopes for Kosovo’s tech sector. photo/Etrit Haxhiu, TEDxAUK over 20 Kosovo Albanians and Serbs, and a gender balance rare in any enterprise - let alone in the technology sector – as 60 ogy Center can help to change that. per cent of the staff are women. The fu- So far, 60 people have completed Elizabeth Gowing is a founder sion seems to have brought success – as courses at the center and he hopes that of The Ideas Partnership, a Noble says, ‘‘We try to find things that we people like these, with good technical Kosovo NGO. She is also the have in common; we focus on the work.” training, and inspiration and support author of “Travels in Blood One of TekFuze’s products is fitted for innovative ideas, will be the building and Honey; becoming a into boilers enabling remote control of blocks for a technology industry in Koso- beekeeper in Kosovo” (2011) temperature. It means that wasteful elec- vo. The dream is not yet realized, and he and “Edith and I; on the trail tric boilers can be made more efficient recognizes that he’ll need donor support of an Edwardian traveler in because there’s no need to leave the heat from others to make it happen. Kosovo,” published last year. on while you’re out of the house - you It’s clear that not only does Noble love She can be reached on the can just set it using your mobile phone to technology, but he also loves Kosovo. At [email protected]. warm up just before your return. It helps the recent TEDxAUK talk he gave, he told Prishtina Insight n May 9-22, 2014 n 15

Kolegji Riinvest Rruga Lidhja e Prizrenit nr 42 10 000 Prishtinë, Kosovë Tel: +381 (0) 38 224 322 [email protected]

Lectureship Opportunities at the Department for Staffordshire University MBA Programme at Riinvest College

Background of the Department Staffordshire University

Staffordshire University is a well-known institution Strategy / Managerial Finance in Kosovo. During the last decade more than International Finance seventy Kosovan economists have completed their Qualifications: PhD, DBA or equivalent degree Masters and PHD studies in the UK (at Stafford- in the relevant field required. Previous teaching shire), creating a critical mass of well-educated experience and experience in business management economists in this country. These graduates can is preferred. Qualified candidates should have be found in all walks of life, in private and public excellent verbal and written communication skills, sector, creating a difference in our society. Riinvest strong interpersonal skills and a commitment to and Staffordshire University developed coopera- high-quality teaching for Staffordshire University tion in education and research since 1998, which at Riinvest College. The candidate should also leaded to the establishment of the department for demonstrate commitment to helping our students Staffordshire University Programmes at Riinvest succeed in their studies. The level of engagement College through franchise agreement for business is 18-24 hours delivered in the time-frame of 4 to management Bachelor and MBA awards. These 5 days. Also, there is a possibility for supervising programmes are taught in the English language MBA thesis. and lead to a UK award.

The MBA courses are taught on intensive basis Availability: Through current and next semester It’s hip not to be over a short period of time. Candidates from any European country, as well as those in Kosovo, may Application Process: Please submit a motivation/ square (or a rectangle). apply. The programme will cover the travel and cost cover letter along with a copy of your CV/Resume, of stay and pay a competitive fee per hour. transcripts and a list of publications and references to this e-mail address: [email protected] Responsibilities: For more detailed information regarding the program Let PI design an ad Teach courses at MBA level in the following areas: and other related questions, please feel free to People Management and Development / Marketing contact me at the above e-mail or call 038 224 322 / Managing Strategy / Corporate and Global to meet your needs. 16 n May 9-22, 2014 n Prishtina Insight cultureWATER LEMON Çaj - a simple What is it? A dark, black tea brought to Kosovo by the arrival of the Ottoman Empire 500 how to guide years ago, still served in many households across the country Coffee is king in Kosovo. But it wasn’t always that way. - and the Balkans, for that matter. Çaj directly translates For most of the past 500 years or so tea - or çaj - has to tea, but is a commonly been the hot beverage of choice. If you’re not really up used shorthand for black tea. for a macchiato or cappuccino, you can head to one of the çajtores in Prishtina and other cities like Mitrovica and Vushtrri, which is very famous for its huge number of çajtores, serving black, invigorating caj.

By Edona Peci and Nektar Zogjani

Where to drink it How it’s made At dedicated tea houses Typically prepared using called cajtore (pronounced chai- two stacked kettles specially de- tor-e). They serve tea, and only signed for tea preparation. Water TEA one kind - çaj. Typically they don’t is brought to a boil in the larger serve any food either. lower kettle and then some of the water is used to fill the smaller ket- When to drink it tle on top. Several spoons of loose SUGAR Typically any time during the tea leaves are allowed to steep and day. It’s the type of hot beverage brew, producing a very strong tea. meant for watching the day go by. Cajtore Favorites If you’re a woman across Kosovo How it’s served The çajtore is the realm of old, Çaj is usually served in a tulip- retired men. To avoid stares or shaped glass of hot amber tea with unwanted questions, we suggest sugar and a piece of lemon on a going with a male acquaintance or Te Graniti, Prishtina Te Sabiti, Prishtina Menta, Prizren saucer and a little spoon to stir. a group of friends. “O bring me a çaj”, a custom- The neat and tidy Te The Menta çajtore in Prizren er at the Te Graniti çajtore Sabiti teahouse is close to is an institution, for both When you’ve had enough shouted, while competing the Green Market in Prishtina Prizren locals and visitors. with his chess opponent. - we said in the “how to” sec- Located close to the Sinan Tell your waiter you don’t want Chess is the prefered tion that çajtore do not serve Pasha mosque, the Menta anymore, because otherwise he’ll game of çajtores, including food with few exceptions, teahouse fills the street with be serving you a new çaj after each Te Graniti, a hard-boiled, and Te Sabiti is one of those tea lovers during the warm glass you’ve finished. For example, barebones teahouse close to exceptions. months, and is patroned stress “S’du mo” (I don’t want any- the Elena Gjika elementary The owner, Sabiti, by young men and women, school in Prishtina. also serves eggs on the six along with a regular, steady more), or put your spoon horizon- Te Graniti is a meeting or seven tables inside his crowd of pensioners. tally on top of your glass. point where many pension- çajtore. “Many of the people Ardian, a 19 year-old ers and unemployed people coming prefer to have eggs,” student and his friends usu- hang out, probably because he says. ally hang out there to pass of the low 20 cent price of the time playing chess and a tea. drinking tea. 20 year-old Hajrizi is the “We did an ‘experi- How to order owner of Te Graniti, and says ment,’ because we thought When ordering keep in mind he serves about they don’t change their to specify if you want a “strong”, 200-300 cups of glasses (between servings). “medium” or “light” çaj. When tea per day. So we ate the slice of lemon served and put it on the sau- served, the remaining water in cer to see if the same glass the lower kettle is used to dilute would be served again”, he the tea on an individual basis, let- said. As it turns out, Menta ting each customer choose how serves every order of tea in much a punch they want their tea a clean glass - with sugar to taste. to pack. For example, “Birma nje çaj te forte” (bring me a strong tea) or “nje çaj te lehte” (one light tea).

Photos/Atdhe Mulla