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On The Peaceful Resolution of The Kosovo Crisis
Statement of the International Scientific Conference Minorities For Europe Of Tomorrow |
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ISCOMET - The International Scientific Conference of Minorities for the Europe of Tomorrow, faithful to its moral and legal principles concerning peace, democracy, human rights, reconciliation between peoples and the protection of minorities, being convinced that the use of violence can not be a means for resolving ethnic conflicts, continuing its activities undertaken since 1990 for the realisation of these principles in the territory of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia and with regard to the relations between them, has adopted the following Statement on the Peaceful Resolution of the Kosovo Crisis: General considerations. The NATO bombing of Yugoslavia has apparently had the opposite effect of that which was intended, that is to prevent the further expulsion of the Albanian population from Kosovo and to make possible a political settlement of the conflict, in line with the requirements of the international community. The continuation of bombing has resulted in a severe deterioration of the situation not only for the population of Kosovo, but also for other parts of Yugoslavia, irrespective of their ethnic, religious or political affiliations. In addition to the humanitarian catastrophe that has been caused by the expulsion or exodus of the Albanians and, proportionally, of members of other ethnic groups from Kosovo, a human catastrophe is emerging that effects the entire Yugoslav population, which is composed not only of Serbs (64 per cent of the total) but also of Albanians, Hungarians, Montenegrins, Romanians, Croats, Slovaks, Ruthenians and other ethnic groups who have their kith and kin in neighbouring countries. It is essential to be aware of the number of civilian casualties, which is increasing day by day (at least 500 killed and even more injured by now), of other "collateral damage" which has now achieved disastrous proportions and of the real danger of a major ecological catastrophe, which could affect the whole geographical area, etc. As things now stand, the final outcome could be the total destruction of the economic, social and cultural foundation of a European nation and of the international infrastructure in this part of Europe, on the one hand, and the additional exodus of Albanians from a devastated Kosovo, who will probably remain for an uncertain time in neighbouring countries which are either unable or are unwilling to host them, on the other hand. The existing regime in Serbia has been reinforced by NATO attacks against Yugoslavia due to the natural response of people to "rally round the flag" at a time of external aggression. Contrary to the NATO's intention, democratic forces in Serbia have been weakened and, in addition, the democratic government of Montenegro finds now itself between the NATO "hammer" and the Serbian regime's "anvil"; it is also confronted with a large pro-Serbian oriented population with the potential for violent conflict between the two groups. Proposals. In order to stop the further deterioration of the situation it is necessary, with political wisdom and human dignity, to undertake the following measures: 1.The immediate and simultaneous cessation of any action by Serbian military, paramilitary and police units which leads to the harassment and expulsion of the Albanian population remaining in Kosovo, a cease-fire between Serbian forces and the KLA , the withdrawal of Yugoslav forces from Kosovo, cessation of NATO bombing of targets in Yugoslavia, and the suspension of economic and symbolic sanctions directed against Yugoslavia and its constituent republics. 2. The immediate sending of humanitarian aid to Kosovo and other parts of Yugoslavia affected by the present conflict and to the approximately half a million refugees from previous conflicts in Croatia and Bosnia Hercegovina who have not received international aid in the past, and whose resentment and unequal treatment could jeopardise long-term prospects for peace in the region. 3.The development of an international peace-keeping force in Kosovo organised and co-ordinated by the UN. 4.The return of the OSCE verifiers to Kosovo and their introduction into other parts of Yugoslavia affected by the war in order to investigate the amount of damage and to identify the urgent needs of the population with the aim of avoiding a further major human catastrophe. 5. The persecution and punishment of persons, whoever they are, who committed, collaborated with the perpetrators of, or instigated the crime of genocide, crimes against humanity, the crime of ethnic cleansing and war crimes. 6.The organisation of the safe return of the Albanian and other peoples of Kosovo to their homes. 7. The immediate start of Serbian/Albanian negotiations under the aegis of the Secretary General of the UN with the participation of all parties involved in the conflict, European neutral states and states who have a connection with the region, leading to the adoption, by the Parliament of Serbia, of clearly worded legislation for the broadly autonomous status of Kosovo within Yugoslavia and a detailed programme of legislative, educational and other measures to be taken to improve inter-ethnic relations within Kosovo and for a better understanding of the culture, history and traditions of Albanians and other minorities living in Yugoslavia. 8. The convening of a donor's conference aimed at discussing and proposing plans for the adoption of economic, social and logistical measures for war affected areas and war affected populations including refugees and displaced persons from the present and previous conflicts, and the restoration of navigation on international waterway, the river Danube. 9. The convening of an international conference within the framework of the OSCE dealing with security, stability, human rights and the protection of ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities in south-eastern Europe leading to the repatriation of all refugees and displaced persons and the development of programmes of assistance for the strengthening of democratic institutions and the culture of democracy. The representatives of the relevant NGOs, religious communities and organisations as well as other entities of civil society should be invited to take part and give their contributions to the deliberations of the conference.
(The list of supporters is continuously being updated with new signatures) Maribor, 5 May 1999
ISCOMET - is an international NGO with about 250 members from all European countries and is enjoying the consultative status with the Council of Europe FUEN - is an international NGO which includes representatives of minorities from all European countries and has the consultative status with the Council of Europe and the UN EBLUL - was established in the framework of the EU with the aim to protect and ensure the development of the lesser used languages within the EU We are trying to present all texts in all languages. However, due to a limited resources we are not always able to achieve this goal. If you would like to translate material for us, please contact us. |
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