Posted on 12/30/2004 3:29:06 PM PST by Alex Marko
A prime minister who is accused of involvement in war crimes.
RAMUSH HARADINAJ is, at just 36, Europe's youngest prime minister. He may also be its most controversial. That is hard to credit, as he sits calmly in his spacious office in Kosovo's capital, Pristina. His neatly pressed blue shirt, red silk tie and buffed brogues are in stark contrast to the mud-spattered camouflage he wore six years ago, when he was a senior commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army, which fought a vicious war against the troops of Yugoslavia's (and Serbia's) former president, Slobodan Milosevic.
It is Mr Haradinaj's time in the KLA in 1998-99 that causes disquiet. Vociferous Serbs, including Serbia's prime minister, Vojislav Kostunica, claim that Mr Haradinaj was implicated in war crimes in Kosovo. The Serbs have issued warrants for his arrest, and have called on Kosovo's UN bosses to annul his appointment. Investigators from the war-crimes tribunal in The Hague have questioned Mr Haradinaj in Pristina. But the prime minister dismisses all charges as Serb fabrications.
In fact, the charismatic Mr Haradinaj, who hails from the Decane region of western Kosovo, could prove to be just the right man for the job. The KLA was disbanded after NATO and the UN intervened in the province in June 1999, chasing out Mr Milosevic's tanks and gunmen. Kosovo then became a UN protectorate, but it is still technically part of Serbia and Montenegro, the loose union that replaced Yugoslavia in 2003.
Mr Haradinaj duly swapped his camouflage for a business suit, forming his own political party, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), in April 2000. In October's elections the AAK took nine seats, enabling it to form a coalition with the Liberal Democrat Party, or LDK, the party of Kosovo's president, Ibrahim Rugova. Mr Haradinaj became prime minister in early December. Kosovo's UN bosses termed his appointment “democracy at work”. The secretary-general of NATO, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, said only that it was “a complicated situation”.
Mr Haradinaj is clever and tough enough to have survived both war against the Serbs and the infighting endemic to Kosovo's violent politics. That may help him to rein in his more hotheaded supporters, and so stave off any danger of a repeat of last March's anti-Serb violence, in which 19 people died and nearly a thousand were injured. He is also astute enough to pay heed to western interests.
The downside is that Mr Haradinaj's appointment has incensed the government in Belgrade, diminishing any chances of dialogue. And he risks being indicted by The Hague tribunal; the chief prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte, has former KLA leaders in her sights as she prepares to issue final indictments (the agreed deadline for which falls this weekend). Were Mr Haradinaj sent to The Hague, there might be violence by disgruntled ethnic Albanians, especially in his home region.
Talks on the final status of Kosovo are due to begin in 2005, if the province's 1.8m ethnic Albanians and 100,000 Serbs can show progress towards internationally required standards of governance. The UN's secretary-general, Kofi Annan, has said that the economy (unemployment stands at 55%) and security are the two main problems. Kosovo's ethnic Albanians want independence; Serbia is against. The province's UN proconsul, a no-nonsense Dane named Soren Jessen-Petersen, insists that this matter is for the UN and western governments to decide. One official says that Kosovo knows exactly what it has to do before final-status talks can begin; he insists that the talks will not happen if it fails. So it remains essential that Kosovo's people measure up—and that the hotheads keep their cool even if their war-hero-turned-prime-minister is arrested.
Jacob, philosophically in general and specifically for this situation I do believe that decentralization works best. The formerly communist countries are used to a very centralized and nationally controlled system in almost every facet of life. The inherent inefficiencies & unresponsive nature of that system were exacerbated in Yugoslavia by widespread mistrust in its impartiality and fairness when Milosevic took over on the strength of Serbian nationalism. As one result, every consitituent part that could split did so: Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Macedonia, and Kosovo; and now Montenegro is making noise about doing the same. They all just wanted to manage their own affairs and that's what Kosovo wants as well.
Our state & local governments raise taxes, pay for, and control their own schools, colleges, libraries, museums, police, fire departments, parks, public buildings, elections, road building & maintenance, court systems, etc; establish & enforce most criminal, minor offense & traffic laws, set & enforce health ordinances & zoning. What's wrong with letting the Kosovars do that? And then privatize the state controlled businesses so the government cannot a la Milosevic hire & fire based on ethnicity & party affiliation. Giving Kosovo Province a free enterprise system and the equivalent authority we give our states & local governments would solve most of the complaints that led to their declaration of independence in 1992. (BTW, none of their complaints or current plans have anything to do with Islam; contrary to the silliness spouted by Serbs & their apologists seeking ex post facto exculpation for the atrocities they committed under Slobo.)
"Our state & local governments raise taxes, pay for, and control their own schools, colleges, libraries, museums, police, fire departments, parks, public buildings, elections, road building & maintenance, court systems, etc; establish & enforce most criminal, minor offense & traffic laws, set & enforce health ordinances & zoning. What's wrong with letting the Kosovars do that?"
Not a thing.
"And then privatize the state controlled businesses so the government cannot a la Milosevic hire & fire based on ethnicity & party affiliation."
Local Serbs and other ethnic minorities will probably like the idea for the reason you gave above.
"Giving Kosovo Province a free enterprise system and the equivalent authority we give our states & local governments would solve most of the complaints that led to their declaration of independence in 1992."
Maybe, but some of the problems are no doubt rooted in militant ethnic nationalism. THough Milosevic's actions definetely didn't help one bit and only made things worse. Now that more moderate people like Kostunica are in power, the Kosovor Albanians might be more willing to settle for a sort of compromise.
No doubt the Yugoslav security forces in Kosovo would be recruited entirely from local people.
The Serbian government may be more fully responsible for the administration of ethnic Serb majority areas, like Leposavic or maybe Stripce. Also for the sites of historic and religious significance...such as the various monastaries.
True. And that's why I think former KLA leaders Haradinaj & Thaci are better suited to make peace than Rugova. The militants are more likely to listen to them.
Now that more moderate people like Kostunica are in power, the Kosovor Albanians might be more willing to settle for a sort of compromise.
I think so, except that Kostunica has his own domestic political problems on Kosovo. He is in power based on a coalition with the Serb Radical Party. They are hard-liners on Kosovo and would not likely support a compromise.
No doubt the Yugoslav security forces in Kosovo would be recruited entirely from local people.
Again, the U.S. with our National Guard in each state provides a pretty good model. It is trained & equipped by the federal government, but commanded by each state's governor and the state has complete control to use its guard for disaster relief, riot control, etc.
The Serbian government may be more fully responsible for the administration of ethnic Serb majority areas, like Leposavic or maybe Stripce. Also for the sites of historic and religious significance...such as the various monastaries.
They'll have to hammer that stuff out--I'm a big believer in mixed security forces, in this case meaning Albs & Serbs. Helps some to build personal relationships, but even more they keep each other honest & acting professionaly.
I'm sorry, but when did Kosovo become independent? I must have missed that one. Oh, this is the neocon Economist. Yup, Kosovo, another neocon victory.
Dioxine poisoned?
Mark,your logic is based on flawed information and does not work in former Yugoslavia:
In 1948, Yugoslavia got out of Soviet orbit. That was 56 years ago.
In 1956 citizens were encouraged to spend their disposable income
In 1963, 1963 constitution dismantled command ecconomy and introduced federalism. That was 41 years ago.
In 1974 (1974 constitution) dismantled federalism and introduced regionalism.
Simply put, ALMOST NO ONE OF WORKING AGE on the territory of former Yugoslavia remembers firsthand "very centralized and nationally controlled system in almost every facet of life. For many, it existed before they were born. Like segregation in U.S.A.
If you are so interested in the Balkans, perhaps you should read some reputable history books and leave Cold war drill manuals and Albanian propaganda aside.
The fact is that Albanians have ABUSED Regionalism given to Kosovo by 1974 Constitution. Kosovo authonomy was not taken away because Albanians were harrasing and ethically cleansing Serbs but because IMF figured out Kosovo under Albanians will not be able to
1. pay off loans Albanian communists splurged instead of invested
2. control fiscal spending and swelled employment without ecconomic results.
Milosevich the banker merely acted as an agent of IMF. This fact is hidden behinde the barrage of "authonomy stripped from Albanians".
Parasitic culture has taken roots in Kosovo for decades under communism and continued to the present day. Business 'practicess" of graft, sabotage and outright theft are as common as line of credit in the west. Even Westerners who come to Kosovo become part of it.
Out of 100,000+ who were so far in Kosovo, did anyone bothered to ask what happened with the property of 300 000+ citizens who were chased away when NATO entered province? How many refused to rent stolen property?
Because of all this, it is not surprising that after tens of billions of foreign aid spent on 2 MILLION PEOPLE after 1999, there is no 24/7 water and electricity supply in Kosovo. Kosovo would look the same even with Emirates budget.
Kosovo, is not independent. Its a UN protectorate state. In order for it to become independent, it has to have a new UN sec. counsil resolution adopted w/o a veto from Russia or china. Do the words...."yah right" sound appropriate? This is what happens when you have ex-nightclub bouncers(Haradinaj) as influencial leaders negotiating with professional politicians...you get hoodwinked.
He got his training thanks to x42 who spent a few billion aiding and abeting the KLA terrorists..............once GWB got elected, the KLA criminals started getting thrown behind bars.........somehow this killer escaped Kfor's net.
nope - under the MTA and UNSCR 1244 it is part of Serbia
You're right, legally it is serbias under 1244. But, it is run by the UN, Serbia has no say so in affairs as of now.
strictly speaking UNSCR 1244 means that the UN has to enforce Serbian law there
"somehow this killer escaped Kfor's net."
Kofi Annan probably hid him in the basement of the UN building until the coast was clear.
More likely it was Democrats in the US Congress who took 'campaign contributions' from DioGuardia's PAC who intervened
So this Islamic murderer wears a business suit and the EUro liberals are impressed. Is he eating the UN lobster, caviar and champaign yet?
Never bet on black and never bet on Islam
nice nick name...reminicent of uncle enver?
for Kosovo to get independence, a new UN mandate has to pass the security council with russia and china holding veto power. Not likely when you look at chechnya and Taiwan.
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