EXTENSIONS of REMARKS July 17, 1991 EXTENSIONS of REMARKS the TRAGEDY of KOSOVO to the Federal Army, Mr

18790 EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS July 17, 1991 EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS THE TRAGEDY OF KOSOVO to the Federal army, Mr. Milosevic also em proval for unarmed European Community CONTINUES ploys the Chetniks, the ultraright wing Serbian observers to monitor a truce between the na militia, to help him build his Greater Serbia. Al tional army and the militias of the two secesionist republics.] HON. WM. S. BROOMFIELD ready, the Chetniks are urging the Serbian mi The situation here in Kosovo became more OF MICHIGAN nority in Croatia to declare independence from tense-and drew fury from neighboring Alba IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Croatia. The Serbian army in Croatia, now nia-with the announcement by Serbian au dominated by nationalist Serbs, is also helping Wednesday, July 17, 1991 thorities that freshmen enrollment at the in this effort and would side with the Serbs if University of Kosovo will be cut by more Mr. BROOMFIELD. Mr. Speaker, in recent serious fighting broke out in Croatia. than two-thirds to 3,000. Half of those places years, I have called the attention of my col Is it surprising that the people of Croatia will be reserved for Serbo-Croat speakers, leagues to the human rights tragedy in the and Slovenia declared their independence on even though about 90 percent of Kosovo's 2 Yugoslav Province of Kosovo. Today, the situ million people are ethnic Albanians who June 25 after Milosevic had convinced them speak Albanian. ation there remains terrible. While the world that he and his Serbian followers would use all Albanians here say the Serbians aim to watches the democratic forces in Croatia and means necessary to gain total control of Yugo force them out of the university and, eventu Slovenia fight for self-determination, the ethnic slavia? Earlier in the year, supporters of de ally, out of Kosovo. Until now, the univer Albanians in the Province of Kosovo continue mocracy in Serbia held massive demonstra sity was the heart of what remained of to suffer under the harsh rule of Serbian na tions in Belgrade protesting Milosevic's fool Kosovo's Albanian culture and freedom dur tionalism and the destructive policies of Ser hardy policies. He is playing a dangerous ing an era that the locals view as military bian President Slobodan Milosevic. game, and it is directly contributing to the dis occupation. It was also the place the Serbian The human rights abuses in Kosovo are officials pointed to when they told human solution of the country. Milosevic's efforts to rights .investigators that ethnic Albanians well documented. In its "Country Reports on carve greater Serbia out of today's Yugoslavia were not being repressed. Human Rights Practices for 1990," the Depart are leading to blood and destruction. "It is the center of our culture and spirit," ment of State reported the following: While we monitor developments in Croatia said Jusuf Buxhovi, a leading politician and In the Province of Kosovo, Serbian au and Slovenia, Milosevic proceeds with his war historian. thorities continued and intensified repres against the ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. I want At the end of June, Serbia's government in sive measures that featured in 1990 thou to share with my colleagues in the House the Belgrade took direct control of the univer sands of political arrests, tens of thousands sity and replaced its rector with a non-Alba of politically motivated job dismissals, and following article that appeared in the Washing nian, who has begun firing Albanian profes widespread police violence against ethnic Al ton Post July 15 concerning the latest devel sors. According to Gazmend Pula, an Alba banians. This violence included the use of ex opments in Kosovo. nian engineering science professor and mem cessive force by the police to disperse peace SERBIANS PRESSING ETHNIC ALBANIANS IN ber of the Yugoslav Helsinki Watch Commit ful demonstrators, including random and at UNEASY Kosovo tee, about 30 of the university's most promi times unprovoked shooting by police, result (By Peter Maass) nent Albanian professors were fired last week, and more dismissals are expected. ing in at least 30 deaths and hundreds of in PRISTINA, YUGOSLAVIA.-Serbia, the domi jured. Serbian officials announced that the uni nant republic of the Yugoslav federation, is versity's name is to be changed, and they say Amnesty lnternational's rep<;>rt is equally crit bolstering a crackdown on ethnic Albanians it probably will be named after St. Sava, a ical of Serbian violations of human rights in in Kosovo by sending more security forces Serb. It is a gesture that Albanians view as that province. into the volatile province and excluding stu an intentional insult, an act of what one pro The chief architect of the problems in dents and professors from the main univer fessor calls "Serbian triumphalism." Some Kosovo is Milosevic. As a crypto Communist sity here, according to Serbian officials. Albanian-language books are said to have and Serbian nationalist, he is determined to Although Croatia and Slovenia have cap been removed from the library shelves. tured international attention, Kosovo is also "Tensions have been running very high and rebuild the Serbian Kingdom of old at the ex an ethnic hotbed of antiSerbian sentiment pense of ethnic Albanians and other groups. will be even higher in September," said Pula, and could become a second front if full referring to the start of the school year. "If In response to ethnic Albanian efforts toward fledged combat occurs in the northern repub this trend continues, it won't be long until self-determination in 1990, Milosevic dissolved lics. Ethnic Albanians here are just as deter things explode into an open conflict." the 188-member Provincial Assembly, took mined as the Croats and Slovenes to find a Igic, the Serbian socialist, said the changes over the organs of the Kosovo Assembly and way out of Serbian-dominated Yugoslavia, are part of a "rationalization" program shut down Albanian language news media. He but they are far weaker, politically and mili aimed at bringing the university closer into tarily. the Serbian educational system. Asked if the cruelly suppressed the ethnic Albanians in Serbia's moves appeared to be aimed at Kosovo, who represent over 90 percent of the shifts amount to a stepped-up Serbianization stemming secessionist pressures in a prov of Kosovo, he replied, "Absolutely." province's population, arresting hundreds and ince where the vast majority clearly is dis The moves come at the end of a decade killing many in the process. Thousands later satisfied with the status quo. long crackdown in which more than 80 ethnic lost their jobs, becoming second-class citizens Zivorad lgic, a senior official of the ruling Albanians have been killed and 11,000 sen in their own land. The provinces of Kosovo Socialist Party of Serbia, said additional tenced to jail terms, according to Helsinki and Vojvodina lost their autonomous status in forces and police have entered Kosovo since Watch, a human rights group. A Special Cir clear violation of the Yugoslav Constitution the independence declarations by Croatia cumstances Law passed by the Serbian As and Slovenia last month, although he would and were absorbed by Serbia against their sembly in June 1990 created an undeclared not say how many or from what units. state of emergency, according to a Helsinki people's wishes. Armed patrols and roadblocks have in Watch report, and led to the disbandment of Milosevic cleverly engineered a deadlock in creased, becoming as prevalent as stop signs the Kosovo legislature a few days later. the Federal Presidency in May by blocking a and traffic lights, according to ethnic Alba In practical terms, that meant the end of Croat, Stipe Mesic, from assuming the presi nians here in Kosovo. Kosovo's autonomous status within the Ser dency. Milosevic also exercises significant in [In Croatia, the Associated Press reported bian republic. Serbians now run the local fluence over the Yugoslav Federal Army. As from Zagreb, the republic's militia and Ser government, the police force and virtually Jacques Bacic recently reported in the New bian militants battled Sunday in clashes all key factories and businesses, according to that left at least two dead and many wound Serbians and Albanians. More than 70,000 York Times, "Under Milosevic, the Yugoslav ed in the Banija region, about 30 miles south ethnic Albanians have been fired from their People's Army whose officer corps is predomi of the Croatian capital. jobs, said Pula of Helsinki Watch. nantly Serbian, and other Federal institutions [The violence came after the federal gov The roots of the Kosovo conflict extend far lost their all-Yugoslav orientation." In addition ernment, Croatia and Slovenia gave final ap- into the past, which is the direction many •This "bullet" symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. Matter set in this typeface indicates words inserted or appended, rather than spoken, by a Member of the House on the floor. July 17, 1991 EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS 18791 Yugoslavs look at when discussing modern Mr. Speaker, family reunions offer a special week for the 32d year in a row, we look for problems. Serbians regard Kosovo as their time for families to come together for celebra ward to the day when this commemoration will historical heartland, the seat of a great me tion and renewal of the ties that bind them. Al be a thing of the past. dieval kingdom that Serbian children learn though the Bagley family has endured trials about in grade school. Even though Alba Despite the great strides in recent years, we and tribulations over the years, the family has nians have lived here for centuries, and few must remember the people of those nations maintained their love, devotion, and commit Serbs now call it home, Kosovo is portrayed still under the heel of totalitarian communism.

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