150 route de Ferney, P.O. Box 2100 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland Tel:41 22 791 6033 Fax:41 22 791 6506 Appeal e-mail: [email protected] Coordinating Office Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia), Albania Kosovo Conflict Refugees & Displaced - EUKM91 Appeal Target : US$ 3,075,767 Geneva, March 16, 1999 Dear Colleagues, The conflict and fighting in Kosovo has continued during the winter, despite efforts by the international community to secure a lasting peace agreement between the oppposing sides. The political and social tensions that have long plagued the Kosovo and Metohija regions of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) culminated in armed conflict between Serbian police and members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) in February 1998. The conflict continues to take a heavy toll. Predictably, the civilian population has suffered inordinately; the United Nations now estimates that there are nearly 200,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Kosovo alone, and that up to 135,000 have been forced to seek refuge in neighboring regions and countries including Montenegro and Albania. It is estimated that perhaps 30% of Kosovo’s 200,000 Serbs have fled the province, most to Serbia. Also seriously affected are some 13,000 Krajina Serb refugees who were placed in Kosovo following their flight from Croatia in Aug 95. Local and regional authorities have been unable to recover from the initial shock that accompanied the influx of IDPs and refugees, and have failed to develop mechanisms necessary to cope with the massive number of civilians in need of the most basic humanitarian assistance. ACT members - International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC), Norwegian Church Aid (NCA), Diakonie Agapes (DA), and Hungarian Interchurch Aid (HIA) have provided $1 million USD of ACT emergency humanitarian assistance through ACT appeal EUKA81. Following extensive needs assessments, coordination/consolidation efforts and ACT consultations in the region, they request your urgent attention Kosovo Conflict: Refugees & Displaced - Page 2 Appeal EUKM 91 I. REQUESTING ACT MEMBERS C International Orthodox Christian Charities ACT/IOCC C Norwegian Church Aid ACT/NCA C Diaconia Agapes ACT/DA II. DESCRIPTION OF EMERGENCY SITUATION Context For more than a decade following the abolition of Kosovo’s autonomy by the Serbian Government of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, the province’s estimated 2 million Albanians and some 200,000 Serbs have shared the same space but little else. Political, economic and social interaction between members of the two communities were reduced to minimal levels, due in large part to the until-recently overwhelmingly popular and effective Kosovar Albanian strategy of peaceful resistance to and non-cooperation with the Serbian authorities, structures and services. The political and social tensions that have long plagued the Kosovo and Metohija regions of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) culminated in armed conflict between Serbian police and members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) in February 1998.The fighting has continued in varying levels of intensity, causing extensive destructive to civilian life and property; and increasing the number of displaced persons and refugees to an estimated 335,000. As the fighting continues, humanitarian access to IDPs in Kosovo remains difficult and risky. In 1998, unable to provide adequately for the more than 40,000 Kosovar IDPs already in Montenegro, the authorities there rescinded the republic’s “open border” policy; Montenegro’s policy of non-refoulement remains in place, however. Many of the people displaced have remained in Kosovo, often without any shelter. Recent Background & Situation Update By July 1998, what had initially been sporadic and uncoordinated clashes had evolved into full-fledged military confrontations. Predictably, the civilian population has suffered inordinately; the United Nations now estimates that there are nearly 200,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Kosovo alone, and that up to 135,000 have been forced to seek refuge outside of Serbia. In addition to inflicting incalculable human suffering, the conflict has nearly dismantled Kosovo’s dismal economy; given that UNHCR estimates indicate that a mere 25% of the region’s 1,400,000 inhabitants was gainfully employed prior to the conflict, Kosovo’s macro and micro economies may never fully recover. To compound the economic situation further, it must be recognised that before the armed conflict started, a considerable number of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo were already dependent on international humanitarian assistance to meet their daily needs. Local and regional authorities have been unable to recover from the initial shock that accompanied the influx of IDPs and refugees, and have failed to develop mechanisms necessary to cope with the massive number of civilians in need of the most basic humanitarian assistance. Kosovo Conflict: Refugees & Displaced - Page 3 Appeal EUKM 91 The United Nations Security Council passed two resolutions (UNSCR 1160 & UNSCR 1199) designed to bring about a cease-fire and force the Serbian and Kosovar Albanian political leaderships to actively pursue a peaceful political solution. In October 1998, approximately 2,000 unarmed members of the Kosovo Verification Mission (KVM) arrived in the region under the auspices of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to monitor both parties’ adherence to the cease-fire. Since October, the international community has become increasing dependent on the KVM to monitor the delivery of humanitarian assistance to affected populations in areas where the security situation is unknown or unstable. Although the KVM’s presence is responsible for only a marginal increase in the number of returnees (mostly returnees from Albania), the overwhelming majority of IDPs and refugees in Kosovo still depend on the OSCE’s presence as an indication of safety. ACT member response is based on the assumption that IDP families will begin returning to their homes in the spring and continuing throughout the summer months. However, it must also be recognised that many will unable or unwilling to return for a variety of reasons. Therefore, the scope of ACT’s humanitarian response is to facilitate basic rehabilitation and return assistance to IDPs who choose to return to their homes, as well as to provide life-sustaining assistance to IDPs who will remain displaced. Affected Population All ethnic groups, including the lesser-known pockets of Montenegrins, Muslim Slavs, Turks, and even Roma, have been affected. According to the UNHCR, an estimated 280,000 people have been displaced as a result of the on- going conflict: 190,000 within Kosovo; 35,000 to Montenegro; 20,500 to Albania; 20,000 to Serbia, and approximately 15,000 to neighbouring countries. Kosovo and Metohija The situation continues to be unstable, with considerable population movements occurring in a matter of days or even hours. Although the international community does attempt to assist those IDPs that manage to return to their homes, the thousands of civilians - both Albanian Kosovars and Serbs - that are uprooted each month prevent any substantial demographic gains from occurring. Most of the estimated 200,000 IDPs have secured shelter, either with relatives or friends, in their immediate region, but it is estimated that as many as 30% of Kosovo's 200,000 ethnic Serbs have fled Kosovo altogether. Also seriously affected are some 7,000 Krajina Serb refugees who have been living in squalid collective centres throughout Kosovo. Most of these refugees were accommodated in Kosovo following their mass August 1995 exodus from (present-day) Croatia. Given the likelihood that the international community will continue to channel its attention and financial resources on the (larger number of) Kosovar IDPs, these Krajina Serb refugees represent Kosovo Conflict: Refugees & Displaced - Page 4 Appeal EUKM 91 damaged public buildings, such as schools, public health clinics, and libraries. Serbia Serbia is home to 95% of the 548,000 refugees registered in FRY - more than twice as many refugees as any other country in the region. More than 40,000 refugees are currently housed in Serbia’s 491 collective centres (excluding the 140 collective centres Kosovo), even though 1998 was proclaimed the “year of durable solutions” by national and international humanitarian agencies. The sudden and massive shift of international resources to Kosovo (and therefore, away from these “old caseload” refugees in collective centres), and the continuing decline in Serbia’s economic standards, have clearly exasperated the refugees’ situation. An increasing number of refugees in Serbia – especially among the elderly - are turning to the international community for their daily subsistence, due in part to the lack of employment opportunities, the relatively isolated collective centre locations in which they live, the lack of land on which to raise livestock and cultivate crops their own, and their generally depressed psychological state. In effect, this target group has been pushed down the “priority list” without a prospect for improved living conditions in the future. The provision of basic food and hygiene parcels for families and individuals, in addition to providing specialised kits for infants and the elderly, will have the greatest and most direct impact on these target groups. Montenegro Following the closure of the border between Serbia and Albania in May 1998, the Montenegrin authorities