The Same Troubles and Fears

(Exclusively for VREME from K. Mitrovica)

The Serbs from Kosovo assert that they can recognise each Albanian citizen among hundreds of Serbs. Although a similar view is held by some Albanians, the foreigners are not yet quite familiar with such a physical distinction between the members of these two ethnic groups.

The most striking barrier between the two confronted sides in the province is language. Apart from the muddy Ibar, the different languages and politics, Kosovska Mitrovica is also divided by an enormous amount of hatred. Due to all that, the life in such a divided city has become a real nightmare.
The southern (Albanian) part of town is, according to the official information of UNMIK, inhabited by 90,000 Albanians and only seven Serbian families (the report No.20, November 17, 1999). The brave group of seven are actually three priests with their close families, which are constantly guarded by KFOR. The archpriest of the church of Saint Sava, which is surrounded by armoured transporters, Velimir Stojanovic said to VREME that 'the Serbs have never lived worse in Mitrovica'.
'Can you imagine what our life is like. Empty churches, provocations by the Albanians and the Italian troops. They search us when we travel, although they know we are priests', adds Stojanovic.

He thinks that 'the last thing his family would do' is to go to Albanian shops or unplanned walks in town. The last time they actually walked through the centre was in May 1999.
'I have no intention of leaving the church', says archpriest Stojanovic. Until February 2, he could visit the northern part of town only accompanied by KFOR soldiers, but ever since that date, they only move around in armoured vehicles of the international forces.

Apart from him, there are only priests Borislav Kekic and Svetislav Nojic in the southern part of town. Their houses are only about 10 m away from the church and that is their longest relation to walk freely. About fifteen Serbs, in seven households, do not hide their affinity towards Italian soldiers which are constantly shielding them. They are also content with the French. They are their only protection. The archpriest Velimir Stojanovic claims to have received many threats so far and that, by the end of February, the armoured transporter in which he was sitting was thrown stones at.

In spite of everything, he says that he would 'remain in the southern part of town as long as he is alive' and that he still 'hopes that the return of the displaced Serbian population to Kosovo is probable'.

Before the first escalation of violence in February, the Albanian part of town had been inhabited with about 6,000 Serbs. According to the data of the UN civil mission (UNMIK), at the same time, about 2,000 Albanians and 14,000 Serbs had lived in the northern part of Mitrovica. The High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has recently notified that 1,500 Albanian civilians fled to the Albanian part of town. The remainder of them have found it even more difficult to cope with the situation. While the circumstances seemed to be calmer, they often went shopping in the southern part of town. Now, they reduced all their necessities in order to avoid going out into the streets.

'I cannot leave behind everything I have built up for forty years. We are older and, therefore more stubborn. So far, no one has come to knock on my door, and even if they did, I would tell them that I would not go', says the sixty-year-old Albanian, asking to remain anonymous. He and his wife are among the very few who lingered in the centre of the northern part of Mitrovica. He says that they do not lack elementary provisions and that he goes out 'at least once a week'. The door of his apartment is blocked from the inside with a massive kitchen table. Only when he makes sure that he knows his visitor well does he open the door. His wife explains that, before they decided to run away, their Albanian neighbours used to lean the stove and other heavy objects against the door every evening.

'Our two daughters who live in Turkey put pressure on us to leave this place. But where?', our interviewee asked. He still thinks that 'he has some good Serbian neighbours with whom he has never had any problems'.

Another Albanian also wanted to maintain his anonymity. He showed his freezer full of various stuff: milk, vegetables, meat... 'There is no need to go out', adding that he 'cannot forget the 'Trepca' factory where he had worked to secure his retirement income'. He too, shows resoluteness to 'stay in the city, no matter what government comes to seize the power'. Concerning the fact in the northern part of Mitrovica, bread gets sold out early in the morning, so his wife is obliged to make baked products for the family:
'I have nothing else to do, and this American flour which we receive from UNHCR is excellent.'

Albanian apartments are easily recognised. In 90% of the cases, even during the Summer, wooden doors were replaced by those made of metal. Each of them contain at least two locks, one of which is necessarily 'one touch lock' in order to inspire security. Some families even succumbed to such preventive measures that they stressed famous Serbian names on the door in cyrillic, and the girls would cut their hair shorter or dye it differently...

During the last month, the French soldiers were visiting the apartments and making a list of all names. Although there is no official information about the number of remaining Albanians in the northern part of Mitrovica - some estimate that there are about 500. The majority of them are in Bosnjacka Mahala (nearby the Ibar) and in a suburb on the other side of the town hospital. Both of these areas are ethnically combined and the Albanians somehow feel more secure in them. Even though they live under some kind of house arrest; the curfew, which is in effect for almost a month, could be said to have brought them a partial relief. With the beginning of curfew at dusk, all front doors and backyards are getting shut. Fear and insecurity which now mark the life of both the Serbs and the Albanians, is identical only when they are subject to the same kind of suffering. Frequent shortages of water and power supply make their lives unbearable, no matter to which ethnic group they belong.