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The Importance of an Internal Dialogue on Kosovo Serb Integration

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The Importance of an Internal Dialogue on Kosovo Serb Integration Policy Analysis No. 07/2020 The importance of an internal dialogue on Kosovo Serb integration - December 2020 1 Group for Legal and Political Studies is an independent, non-partisan and non-profit public policy organization based in Prishtina, Kosovo. Our mission is to conduct credible policy research in the fields of politics, law and economics and to push forward policy solutions that address the failures and/or tackle the problems in the said policy fields. legalpoliticalstudies.org 2 Policy Analysis 07/2020 The importance of an internal dialogue on Kosovo Serb integration Author: Marije Renate Luitjens Tol December 2020 © Group for Legal and Political Studies, December, 2020. The opinions expressed in this report do not reflect those of Group for Legal and Political Studies. For the purposes of promoting and supporting freedom of speech, GLPS publishes this report. In addition it does not reflect those of Group for Legal and Political Studies donors, their staff, associates or Board(s). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any mean without the permission. Contact the administrative office of the Group for Legal and Political Studies for such requests. Group for Legal and Political Studies “Rexhep Luci‟ str. 16/1 Prishtina 10 000, Kosovo Website: www.legalpoliticalstudies.org E-mail: [email protected] Tel/fax.: +381 38 234 456 *Affiliated International Research Fellow, Group for Legal and Political Studies 3 THE IMPORTANCE OF AN INTERNAL DIALOGUE ON KOSOVO SERB INTEGRATION “We want to live in peace with our neighbors – we want to be able to go and visit Pec [Peja] freely” Petar, a Ranilug/Ranillug resident1 This quote shows the deep ethnic divisions that are still alive in Kosovo. Fear of visiting ‘neighbors’ is a clear indication of the poor social integration of the Serb community in Kosovo. Hope for renewed attempts to improve the social integration of Kosovan minority communities arose when Albin Kurti was sworn in as Prime Minister on the 3rd of February, 2020.2 The newly formalized Kurti cabinet3represented a significant change in the political scene of Kosovo. 4 During the election period, Kurti promised to focus on social and economic integration of minority communities, by organizing a bottom-up dialogue with the communities living in the country.5 In line with this, Albin Kurti argued that “we must make our country liveable and persuade more people to stay in our country”.6Kurti aimed at adopting a bottom-up approach by starting an open dialogue with minority communities, with a specific focus on Serb minority communities,7 on their needs for integration. He furthermore explained it is crucial to find common goals that bridge different minority communities, so that joint activities can be realized at grass root level. 8 Research done by Lumezi indicated that people from the Serb community in Ranilug/Ranillug were open to speak to someone ‘from Pristina9’, stating that: “all of them agree that someone from Prishtina should come and talk to them and to see each other’s needs”.10 Despite these promising plans from government of Kosovo, the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic to Kosovo brought them to an abrupt halt. While the government took quick action to curb the spread of the virus, a dispute concerning the imposed measures arose within the government on the 18th of March. A political crisis followed, which rapidly deteriorated as the young coalition lost a no-confidence motion on the 25th of March.11Despite public resistance12, 1Lumezi, A., 2019. Talking Kurti and Dialogue with Everyday Serbs. Kosovo Two Point Zero, [online] Available at: <https://kosovotwopointzero.com/en/talking-kurti-and-dialogue-with-everyday-serbs/> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 22020. Kurti elected prime minister. Prishtina Insight, [online] Available at: <https://prishtinainsight.com/kurti-elected- prime-minister/> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 3 The Kurti Cabinet was formalized following a deal between the political parties: Vetëvendosje, New Democratic Party, Democratic League of Kosovo and Lista Sprska. 4Lumezi, A., 2019. Talking Kurti and Dialogue with Everyday Serbs. Kosovo Two Point Zero, [online] Available at: <https://kosovotwopointzero.com/en/talking-kurti-and-dialogue-with-everyday-serbs/> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 5 Ibid. 6Wintour, P, 2019. EU running scared from fascism, says Kosovo's likely new PM. The Guardian, [online] Available at: <https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/21/kosovo-likely-new-leader-albin-kurti-condemns-eu-balkans-policy> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 7As Serb integration into Kosovo appears to be the main priority in internal integration attempts, this paper will also specifically focus on Kosovo Serb integration. It should however be noted that the integration of other minorities is crucial as well and begs further research. This is especially true as minority rights groups indicate that minority communities in Kosovo are faced with a multitude of problems, as language obstacles, discrimination of on the work floor, lack of access to public institutions and a higher than average lack of security. 8 Ilse, S. “I want this state to succeed first”. Heinrich Böll Stiftung, [online] Available at: <https://rs.boell.org/en/2019/12/09/i-want-state-succeed-first> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 9In order to preserve neutrality, English spelling is used throughout this paper to refer to Pristina. 10Lumezi, A., 2019. Talking Kurti and Dialogue with Everyday Serbs. Kosovo Two Point Zero, [online] Available at: <https://kosovotwopointzero.com/en/talking-kurti-and-dialogue-with-everyday-serbs/> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 11Walker, S., 2020. Kosovans look on aghast as government falls while coronavirus bites. The Guardian, [online] Available at: <https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/26/kosovo-government-falls-in-vote-of-no-confidence> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 4 the Constitutional Court approved the installation of a new government led by AvdullahHoti at the beginning of June.13Since the creation of the new government, the focus on social integration of the Serb minority community in Kosovo has faded. It is especially in these times of crisis that divisions between the Serb and Albanian communities in Kosovo become more visible, and the necessity to bridge these divides therefore become more evident. With this in mind, this paper sheds light on the possibilities for establishing a successful internal integration dialogue. The main question therefore is: If an internal integration dialogue is pursued by a future Kosovo government, what key obstacles should it address and how can a bottom-up approach improve prospects of long-term success? Over the course of five months from February - July 2020, the author conducted 25 semi- structured in-depth interviews with people14from the Kosovo Serb community, living in different areas of Kosovo. In these anonymous interviews, three topics were central: personal experiences in regard to integration, the (personal) trust in the government, and the willingness to engage in a bottom-up dialogue as proposed by Kurti. Despite the relatively small number of interviewees, a number of important conclusions can be drawn from the interviews, which will be presented in this paper. In order to present an analysis of the possibilities for a successful internal dialogue, this paper is divided in three parts. First, the paper will briefly explain the origins of the integration debate, after which the current integration status of the Serb community in Kosovo is presented. Lastly, the most important obstacles to the internal integration of Kosovo Serbs will be presented. The paper concludes with a number of recommendations, based on data gathered from the interviews, which could be useful for a new attempt to initiate a bottom-up dialogue on internal integration. 1. INTERNAL INTEGRATION: ITS ORIGINS In April 2007, a year before Kosovo declared independence from Serbia, UN Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari submitted the Comprehensive Proposal for the Kosovo Status Settlement (the "Ahtisaari Plan") to the UN Security Council.15 As stated by the US Department of State, the Ahtisaari Plan is “primarily focused on protecting the rights, identity and culture of Kosovo's non-Albanian communities, including establishing a framework for their active participation in public life”.16Along the lines of the Ahtisaari Plan, and in close cooperation with the US and major European states, Kosovo’s Declaration of Independence followed on the 17th of February, 2008.17 The Declaration of Independence stated that Kosovo would fully commit to implementing 12 Travers, E., 2020. Prishtina protests from its balconies. Prishtina Insight, [online] Available at: <https://prishtinainsight.com/prishtina-protests-from-its-balconies/> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 13Sopi, A., Taulant, O., Bami, X., 2020. Kosovo Parliament Confirms New Govt Under Hoti. Balkan Insight, [online] Available at: <https://balkaninsight.com/2020/06/03/kosovo-parliament-confirms-new-govt-under-hoti/#gsc.tab=0> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 14The interviewees fall in the age group between 20-60 and roughly come from Rahovec/Orahovec, Mitrovica/Mitrovicë, Štrpce/Shtërpca, Kamenicë/Kamenica and Gračanica/Graçanica. Names have been changed to protect anonymity. 152008. Summary of the Comprehensive Proposal for the Kosovo Status Settlement. U.S. Department of State, [online] Available at:<https://2001-2009.state.gov/p/eur/rls/fs/101244.htm> [Accessed November 8 2020]. 16Ibid. 17
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