Here are excerpts from SRSG Soren Jessen-Petersen's address to the UN Security Council yesterday:
Levels of serious crime are low – indeed, not higher than comparably populated areas of Europe – and the trend is positive. Crime rates are showing no evidence of ethnic bias in policing and judicial processes. ... Where additional security measures are required for particularly vulnerable areas, these are taken. Two recent trips by the Prime Minister and by the President of Serbia passed off without incident and confirmed the professionalism and good cooperation between KFOR, UNMIK Police, and the KPS. ... Members of minority communities continue to feel insecure. Kosovo’s Serb community is regrettably often the victim of misinformation that is disproportional to the facts on the ground. Fears – whether fuelled by misinformation or intimidatory acts, and even when not borne out by facts – translate into largely self-imposed limits on freedom of movement ... These perceptions of insecurity also prevent many displaced Kosovo Serbs from returning to their homes.
Later he says no Serb has been killed since June 2004. So, as a Serb living in Kosovo, what is your response to his remarks--is there a problem with ongoing ethnic violence or is the problem simply fear based on past actions and current misperceptions?
Mark, the major problem with UNMIK's reports is that they pay attention only to major crimes. Daily intimedation of Serbian and Roma population, if doesn't end as homocide, rape, or kidanpping is "not worth" the paper it's written on. There is an Agency (I'll get back to you later with correct name of the Agency) incharge of transportaion of minorities, that recorder incrise of inter-ethinc incidents for 18% after March 2004.
On the other hand, people do live in fear based from their previous experience, and I wouldn't agree that fear is based on misconseption.
We have a saying "Once you're burned on hot milk, next time you blow into yogurt" (hope you understand it), menaing once you lost trust in people around you, you get even more careful with people you shouldn't fear from.