Posted on 06/11/2004 10:48:10 AM PDT by Jane_N
18:40 GRACANICA , June 11 (Tanjug) - The Pristina-Gnjilane road, which passes through Gracanica, will be blocked between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. every weekend, the Swedish KFOR battalion said in a statement on Friday. The statement, a copy of which was sent to Tanjug, said that Swedish KFOR units had restored checkpoints at the access road to Gracanica and were searching all vehicles entering the village.
The checkpoints were restored after the recent murder of 17-year-old Dimitrije Popovic, a Serb from Gracanica.
Kosovo’s Democratic Party Leader Wants UN’s Mission Out
11 June 2004 | 20:19 | Beta, Serbia
The UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) didn’t achieve success and should be withdrawn of Kosovo in the following months, the leader of the Democratic Party Hasim Taci said quoted by Beta. Taci, who was one of the leaders of the disbanded Kosovo Liberation Army, stated that UNMIK is no longer being confided in and that after parliamentary elections in October its mandate has to be limited to a counseling role. Taci said that the representatives of the UN only are working for the preservation of the status quo in Kosovo and that all the authorities should be turned over to Kosovo’s institutions now.
UNMIK, not KFOR. The KFOR Swedish unit has responsibility for the sector in the original post.
UNMIK is part of the UN and enthusiastically disliked in Kosovo. KFOR is a NATO-commanded organization (which also includes numerous non-NATO contingents) and fairly well respected; particularly because of its connections with the USA and UK.
UNMIK is "running" Kosovo and, by most measurements, not doing very well. Unemployment is high. Minority returns are low. Security for Serbs is problematic in most of the country and Albanians can't return to their homes in Mitrovica. After 5 years of UN control, electricity is still sporadic in many areas, roads need repair, the privatization process has stalled, and lots of well-paid UN foreigners are hanging around the cafes with no indication that they want to depart from Kosovo and leave their "bwana" lifestyle.
The Kosovar Albanians know it was NATO that saved their butts from the Serbs, not the UN. And they know the UN is running Kosovo right now and life sucks. And that explains who they like and respect and who they would rather toss out of the place.
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