Distrugerea Jugoslaviei constituie, dupa opinia mea, un punct de reper major in istoria Europei. Acest eveniment, ale carui consecinte grave pe termen lung pot fi doar banuite, a modificat geografia politica a sud-estului european si constituie, foarte probabil, un pas important in posibila islamizare a Europei.
Similara prin consecintele sale pe plan istoric este doar Cruciada a IV-a (1202-1204), "deviata" din initiativa dogelui de Venetia spre Constantinopol. In noaptea de 13 spre 14 aprilie A.D. 1204 capitala Imperiului Bizantin a cazut in mana cruciatilor. Trei zile si trei nopti aceasta venerabila asezare, locul de scaun al lui Constatin cel Mare, a devenit "Vogelfrei" - adica a fost scoasa de sub orice jurisdictie. Crime indescriptibile, violuri in masa (sute de calugarite au fost violate in pietile publice), jafuri enorme au marcat aceasta data istorica. Dupa aceasta lovitura Imperiul Bizantin nu si-a mai revenit, fiind deschise larg portile turcilor otomani si islamizarii unei parti a Europei.
James Harff was Director of the Washington-based PR firm Ruder Finn Global Public Affairs. He directed the company's efforts in representing the Yugoslavian republics seeking to secede: Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo (Albanians).Interviul luat de J. Merlino lui J. Harff este, cel putin pentru cei interesati de problematica destramarii Jugoslaviei, un "loc comun". Peste el nu se poate trece, daca vrei sa cunosti unul din factorii esentiali ai alimentarii continue a conflictului jugoslav.
Harrf: For 18 months, we have been working for the Republics of Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, as well as for the opposition in Kosovo. Throughout this period, we had many successes, giving us a formidable international image. We intend to make advantage of this and develop commercial agreements with these countries. Speed is vital, because items favourable to us must be settled in public opinion. The first statement counts. The retractions have no effect.
Marlino: How often do you intervene?
Harff: Quantity is not important. You have to intervene at the right time with the right person. From June to September, we organized 30 meetings with the main press agencies, as well as meetings between Bosnian officials and Al Gore, Lawrence Eagleburger and 10 influential senators, among them George Mitchell and Robert Dole. We also sent out 13 exclusive news items, 37 last-minute faxes, 17 official letters and eight official reports. We placed 20 telephone calls to White House staff, 20 senators, and close to 100 to journalists, editors, newscaters and other influenctial people in the media.
Question: What achievement were you most proud of?
Harff: To have managed to put Jewish opinion on our side. This was a sensitive matter, as the dossier was dangerous looked from this angle. President Tudjman [of Croatia] was very careless in his book "Wastelands of Historical Reality". Reading this writtings, one could accuse him of of antisemitism. In Bosnia, the situation was no better: President Izetbegovic strongly supported the creation of a fundamentalist Islamic state [there] in his book "The Islamic Declaration". Besides, the Croatian and Bosnian past was marked by a real and cruel anti-semitism. Tens of thousands of Jews perished in Croatian camps. So there was every reason for intellectuals and Jewish organizations to be hostile towards the Croats and Bosnians. Our challenge was to reverse this attitude. And we succeded masterfully.
At the beginning of August 1992, New York Newsday came out with the affair of [Serb] concentration camps. We jumped at the opportunity immediately. We outwitted three big Jewish organizations - B'nai B'rith Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, and the American Jewish Congress. We suggested to them to publish an advertisement in the "New York Times" and to organize demonstrations outside the United Nations.
That was a tremendous coup. When the Jewish organizations entered the game on the side of the [Muslim] Bosnians, we could promptly equate the Serbs with the Nazis in the public mind. Nobody understood what was happening in Yugoslavia. The great majority of Americans were probably asking themselves in which African country Bosnia was situated. But by a single move we were able to present a simple story of good guys and bad guys, which would hereafter play itself. We won by targeting Jewish audience. Almost immediately there was a clear change of language in the press, with the use of words with high emotional content, such as "ethnic cleansing", "concentration camps", etc., which evoked images of Nazi Germany and the gas chambers of Auschwitz. The emotional charge was so powerful that nobody could go against it.
Marlino: But when you did all of this, you had no proof that what you said was true. You only had the article in "Newsday"!
Harff: Our work is not to verify information. We are not equipped for that. Our work is to accelerate the circulation of information favorable to us, to aim at judiciously chosen targets. We did not confirm the existence of death camps in Bosnia, we just made it known that "Newsday" affirmed it.
Marlino: Are you aware that you took on a grave responsibility?
Harff: We are professionals. We had a job to do and we did it. We are not paid to be moral.
James Harff, Director of Ruder Finn, Global Public affairs section, in the Jacques Merlino interview, April 1993. (reprinted in a book in Oct. 1993)
Interviul poate fi, desigur, neglijat; iar, in acest caz, se poate apela la colectiile de ziare din toata lumea, inclusiv din Romania, care au relatat cu lux de amanunte crimele sarbilor. Nimic despre crimele croatilor, ale bosniecilor musulmani, ale albanezilor, nimic despre gruparile paramilitare neonaziste italiene, germane, austriene, belgiene, olandeze, nimic despre hoardele de mujahedini iranieni, afgani, libanezi, sirieni, egipteni, iordanieni, etc., care, toti, au luptat impotriva sarbilor. In acest caz, ajugem inevitabil la "demonul" sarbesc Milosevic si "poporul criminal" sarb, precum si la trupele paramilitare cazace, care au venit spre sfarsitul anilor '90 in sprijinul sarbilor. Optiunea itii apartine...
In ceea ce priveste anii 1202-1204 (In anul 1215 a avut loc Conciliul de la Lateran, care nu are nimic de-a face cu problematica aflata in discutie), acestia au fost decisivi pentru soarta Imperiului Roman de Rasarit (vezi aici lucrarea reputatului istoric britanic Steven Runciman cu privire la cruciade). Dupa un scurt interludiu, constituit de Imperiul Latin 1204-1261, care a sleit si mai mult puterea de rezistenta a Bizantului, turcii nu au omis sa-si faca aparitia in Asia Mica. Deja la mijlocul secolului al XIV-lea, deci un secol mai tarziu, parti importante ale sud-estului european se aflau sub dominatie otomana.
In treacat fie spus, intre afirmatiile mele si cele ale lui Huntington cu privire la Jugoslavia nu exista nici cea mai mica discrepanta. Am fost placut surprins, atunci cand, citindu-i lucrarea, am constat confirmarea ipotezelor mele.
S-ar putea ca opinia mea sa fie eronata. In acest caz, as dori sa fiu contrazis prin argumente exacte si verificabile.
Da click aici ca sa vezi totul!
VREI SA-I INTALNESTI? cin s-aseamana s-aduna pe lista de discutii peromaneste
6 comentarii:
THE SERBS IN KOSOVO (I)
Congressional Record -- Extension of Remarks
Thursday, October 20, 1988
100th Cong. 2nd Sess.
134 Cong Rec E 3561
REFERENCE: Vol. 134 No. 150
TITLE: THE SERBS IN KOSOVO
SPEAKER: HON. HELEN DELICH BENTLEY OF MARYLAND IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
TEXT:
Text that appears in UPPER CASE identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the House on the floor.
[*E3561] MRS. BENTLEY. MR. SPEAKER, THE ATTENTION OF THE WORLD HAS BEEN FOCUSED UPON YUGOSLAVIA IN RECENT WEEKS. THAT TROUBLED NATION HAS SEEN ITS ETHNIC POPULATIONS VYING TO THE POINT OF OPEN VIOLENCE FOR DOMINANCE IN THEIR RESPECTIVE AREAS. ONE OF THESE AREAS IS KOSOVO, ABOUT WHICH I HAVE PREVIOUSLY ADDRESSED THIS HOUSE.
I HAVE RECEIVED A LETTER FROM THE EPISCOPAL VICAR FOR THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX DIOCESE FOR WESTERN EUROPE, ARCHPRIEST NICOLICH, DATED SEPTEMBER 29, 1988. IT SETS THE CURRENT PROBLEMS IN THEIR PROPER CONTEXT AND IS DESERVING OF CLOSE ATTENTION AND SCRUTINY. FOR THAT REASON, I INSERT THAT LETTER WITH ITS ATTACHMENTS IN THE RECORD AT THIS POINT: SEPTEMBER 29, 1988.
DEAR MADAM, IN THE WESTERN COUNTRIES, THE PROBLEMS FACING THE SERBS OF KOSOVO HAVE NOT BEEN TREATED WITH SUFFICIENT UNDERSTANDING. IN THE PRESS-REPORTS DEALING WITH ETHNIC UNREST IN THAT PROVINCE, IT IS USUALLY STATED THAT THE SERBS ALLEGE PRESSURE BY THE ALBANIANS. MOREOVER, SERBIAN "ALLEGATIONS" ARE OFTEN PRESENTED AS "EXAGGERATED", SINCE FOREIGN JOURNALISTS NEVER HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO WITNESS PERSONALLY AN ACT OF ALBANIAN TERROR OVER A SERB OR OVER A GROUP OF SERBS. THE EXODUS OF SERBS FROM THE PROVINCE IS THUS EXPLAINED BY THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE ECONOMIC SITUATION AND BY HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT IN THAT PART OF YUGOSLAVIA.
I AM TAKING THE LIBERTY OF SENDING YOU A COPY OF THE DECLARATION SIGNED BY FIVE BISHOPS OF THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH IN THE DIASPORA. ITS AIM IS TO BRING TO THE ATTENTION OF THE PUBLIC IN THE WESTERN WORLD THE PLIGHT OF THE SERBS IN KOSOVO AND TO ASK THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE SERBS HAVE BEEN SUBJECTED TO CRIMINAL SUPPRESSION AMOUNTING TO GENOCIDE. THE EXAMPLES QUOTED BY THE BISHOPS SHOULD SHOW THAT THE EVENTS IN KOSOVO ARE NOT SIMPLY THE RESULT OF A DEMOGRAPHIC PROCESS, SOMEWHAT ACERBATED BY THE DIFFICULT ECONOMIC SITUATION, AS THE MAJORITY OF THE PRESS WOULD HAVE IT. THE EXODUS OF THE SERBS FROM KOSOVO IS A HUMAN TRAGEDY WHOSE UGLY BACKGROUND HAS BEEN TOO OFTEN MISREPRESENTED. IT IS HOPED THAT THE PUBLIC WILL LOOK MORE CLOSELY INTO THIS PROBLEM AND THEN REALIZE THAT THE SERBS FROM KOSOVO DESERVE SYMPATHY AND SUPPORT.
IT IS WRONG TO ASSUME, AS IT IS GENERALLY DONE, THAT THE PROBLEM OF KOSOVO STARTED AS LATE AS 1981. A CONSIDERATION OF THE FOLLOWING FACTS MAY ASSIST IN FORMING A CORRECT OPINION ON THE ORIGIN OF THE PRESENT TURMOIL.
IN 1941 FASCIST ITALY AND NAZI GERMANY FORMED A "GREATER ALBANIA" BY ANNEXING THE YUGOSLAV REGIONS OF KOSOVO AND METOHIJA TO THE STATE OF ALBANIA. THIS WAS COMPLETELY IN THE SPIRIT OF THE POLICY OF THE FORMER AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN WHICH, AT THE TIME OF THE COLLAPSE OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE, HAD DONE ITS UTMOST TO EXPAND TOWARDS THE SOUTH-EAST OF EUROPE. AS IS WELL KNOWN, IN THE 19TH AND EARLY 20TH CENTURY THE SERBIAN STATE HAD BEEN A SERIOUS OBSTACLE TO THAT AMBITION. AS STATED IN THE ENCLOSED BISHOPS' DECLARATION, BETWEEN 1941-1945, DURING THE EXISTENCE OF THE "GREATER ALBANIA", 60,000 ALBANIANS WERE SETTLED IN KOSOVO AND OVER 100,000 SERBS WERE EXPELLED. IT IS MOST IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE PROCESS OF ALBANISATION WAS ALLOWED TO CONTINUE AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR. IT SEEMS THAT FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, IN THE POST-WAR PERIOD, THE YUGOSLAV REGIME EXPECTED THAT ALBANIA WOULD EVENTUALLY JOIN YUGOSLAVIA. IN ANY CASE, THE AUTHORITIES OF THE SELF-GOVERNING AUTONOMOUS PROVINCE OF KOSOVO NOT ONLY DID NOT PREVENT, BUT EVEN ENCOURAGED FURTHER INFLUX OF ALBANIANS INTO KOSOVO. THE RESULT WAS THAT IN THE LAST FOUR DECADES 250,000 ALBANIANS MOVED INTO THE PROVINCE WHILE 200,000 SERBS AND OTHER NON-ALBANIANS WERE FORCED TO LEAVE.
It should be born in mind that the Albanians in Kosovo cooperated fully with Mussolini and Hitler. They provided a full-fledged SS Division, the 23rd "Skander-beg", to help the Nazi war effort. In contrast to the post-war situation in Germany and in other countries where the Nazis and their collaborators were fully exposed, this simply did not happen in Kosovo. While elsewhere in the world the young generations were informed about the crimes committed, in Kosovo no steps had been taken to expose the collaborators and to call them to justice. It should not be surprising therefore that the racist demand for an ethnically pure Kosovo remained very much alive among the Albanian inhabitants of the region. It led to countless acts against humanity as the text of the Bishops' Declaration illustrates. To make situation even more complex and indeed absurd, while the perpetrators of crimes against non-Albanians in Kosovo remain unpunished, in contrast, many young Albanians are imprisoned following some of their alleged "anti-state activities". The Amnesty International is very active in defending Kosovo Albanians imprisoned for "political" reasons. However, it seems that because the attacks on Serbs and on other non-Albanians are carried out by Albanian individuals and presumably not by officials under a direct instruction by the authorities, these crimes are outside the Amnesty's interests. Yet the fact that Kosovo autonomous authorities take no steps to protect their non-Albanian citizens and unofficially condone and encourage their persecution, is ignored.
It should be remembered that the Yugoslav Constitution gives full autonomy to the Serbian regions of Kosovo (incorporating Metohija) and Vojvodina. The Serbian government cannot interfere in their provincial Parliments, while both Kosovo and Vojvodina can block decisions in the Parliament of Serbia in which they are fully represented.
The fact that the federal police and army have been brought into Kosovo during this year has not yet made any significant difference. Attacks on non-Albanians and on their property as well as on their clergy and church property continue.
It must be stressed that is not impossible for Albanians and non-Albanians in Yugoslavia to live peacefully together. Many Albanians live and work in other parts of Yugoslavia, particuarly in Serbia. On Sunday 25th September 1988 the BBC news-bulletin included a report from Kosovo. A young Albanian from Kosovo was asked whether he had any Serbian friends. He answered that he had had Serbian friends while he was serving in the Army, but not in Kosovo.
When dealing with the question of the future of Kosovo, some elementary principles governing human relations must be taken into account; they are the right of any person to be allowed to live in peace on his or her land, to be let to maintain freely the traits of his or her national identity and to practise without fear his or her religion, including the respect for the dead. Kosovo is the cradle of Serbain Christain culture, the cradle of the Serbain nation. Innumerable historic monuments, whether still standing or in ruins, speak of it.
The injustice which is being done to the Serbs of Kosovo should shock the whole civilized world and urge its indignation.
Yours truly,
Archpriest M. Nikolich,
Episcopal Vicar.
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THE SERBS IN KOSOVO (II)
[From the London Times, Oct. 1, 1988]
YUGOSLAV UNITY
(From Mr. Aleksa Gavrilovic)
Sir, A major disturbance in Yugoslavia would have a destabilising effect in that [*E3562] part of Europe. Your leading article (September 13) visualises some Western influence in connection with economic aid, but the weakness of the federal government gives cause for concern.
Dr. N. Grisogono expressed the hope (September 19) that the proposals made in March, 1988, by Serbian intellectuals for abolition of the one-party system offer hope for the future. However, the democratisation of the country in the present situation would not easily lead to a united and strong Yugoslavia.
The first Yugoslavia started in 1918 as a centralised state, but in 1939 Croats negotiated a considerable measure of autonomy. Serbo-Croat relations worsened during the war due to the atrocities of Croat Ustasi. One of the reasons for Western powers supporting Tito was the belief that he would resolve ethnic and religious differences. Today's reality is that such disagreements are more numerous than ever before, the problem of Kosovo being the most acute. Had the consequences of the creation of Great Albania by Italy and Germany in 1941-45 been tackled on time, the Kosovo problem would have been solved, or at least contained.
The second Yugoslavia has developed into a confederation of almost independent states which are being led away from each other. Dessa Trevisan pointed out (report, September 12) that according to the last census in 1981 there were only 1.2 million Yugoslavs out of a population of 22.4 million.
However, until recently the Yugoslav nationality was not even officially recognised. The Constitution, which lays emphasis on separate nationalities, is having a greater effect than the much-quoted. Partisan slogan, "fraternity and unity".
At present there are no signs of meaningful discussions which could lead to a pro-Yugoslav atmosphere. The Western powers' support of Tito influenced many Yugoslavs to join him. The West still can influence Yugoslavs. Many of them listened to Western broadcasts, particularly to the BBC. A firm British attitude in favour of a united Yugoslavia could prove effective. Serbs are aware that other republics dislike the fact that the federal capital is in Belgrade. Serb intellectuals gathered mainly around the Association of Serbian Writers and Philosophical and Sociological Societies of Serbia and acting as an (unofficial) opposition, have suggested that parts of the federal administration could be moved out of Belgrade. The West could offer to finance the creation of a new federal capital in any area outside the jurisdiction of any republic, away from any large town and religious centre.
A third, democratic Yugoslavia which would be acceptable to all should be the aim of the present generation. Difficulties are enormous and the people need sympathetic help to come out of the impasse.
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THE SERBS IN KOSOVO (III)
DECLARATION OF THE BISHOPS OF THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH AGAINST THE GENOCIDE INFLICTED BY THE ALBANIANS ON THE INDIGENOUS SERBIAN POPULATION, TOGETHER WITH THE SACRILEGE OF THEIR CULTURAL MONUMENTS IN THEIR OWN COUNTRY
In Yugoslavia, ever since the end of the Second World War and up to the present day, persecution of the Serbian population and of their religion continues in Kosovo and Methoija, regions of their ten centuries' old homeland. This persecution is being administered by the Albanians, who, after the Second World War, were given Home Rule as an ethnic minority by some of the highest policy-makers in Yugoslavia. In this way, the pre-conditions for the furtherance of the persecution of the Serbian population, and of the Serbian Orthodox Church, were created.
During the war, the Albanians were the allies of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. They committed untold atrocities against the Serbian population. Mussolini, in the framework of his plan to create a "Great Albania", transferred 60,000 people from Albania into the regions of Kosovo and Methohija while expelling at the same time more than 100,000 Serbs from that territory.
After the war, the highest authorities in Yugoslavia did nothing to correct that injustice. Moreover, the process of migration of Albanians from Albania into Yugoslavia, into the regions of Kosovo and Metohija, continued. Thus, during the last four decades, 260,000 such immigrants arrived and in order to make room for them, the Albanians drove out, by various terrorist methods, more than 200,000 Serbs.
Here are some facts about this situation:
Today there are 700 villages and towns where not one Serb remains, and yet these places were formerly populated exclusively by Serbs. In the areas which were populated by mixed nationalities, Albanians and Serbs, only 10 percent of the Serbs are still there, but the persecution continues.
Contrary to the foregoing facts, however, the western world is given false information and outright lies are told about alleged persecutions of Albanians by Serbs.
It is impossible to list all the crimes against the Serbian population committed by the Albanians through the centuries. Many books have been written about the atrocities practised during the occupation of the Serbian territories by the Ottoman Empire. Under the pressure of the Albanians, who adopted Islam, a considerable number of Serbs were driven out from Kosovo and Methohija in two great migrations during the 17th and 18th centuries. It was at that point in history that the Albanians appeared, for the first time in greater numbers, on those territories. The same process was repeated during the First and Second World Wars as well as in the following period when even without a war we have been witnessing a renewed exodus of the Serbian people from their homeland.
We are aware that we cannot enumerate all acts of terrorism of the Albanians against the Serbain people in Kosovo and Metohija. Only the Almighty God knows the sum-total of the suffering inflicted upon them. We are only quoting a number of examples of different forms of pressure which have been used to force out the Serbs, to destroy their culture and to desecrate their sacred monuments on their territory.
In 1974 the Albanians expelled the brothers Vojin and Velimir Soskic, together with 17 members of their family, from the village of Papracani near Decani; having beaten them up at the well, they forced them to leave with threats and violence. Velimir Soskic now lives in Montenegro while Vojin Soskic settled in the village of Vrncani near Gorni Milanovac (Serbia).
In 1971 Ljubomir Vucinic was forced out of the village of Ljubovac near Srbica in Kosovo. Another 80 Serbian families were driven out and only six families remained there. They were all forced out by threats, barrages of stone-throwing and the firing of guns around their houses at night.
In the same way, the whole village population was forced to leave the village of Gornja Prekaza near Srbica. The most respected Serb, Aleksandar Milosevic, was the last to leave the village with his large family. He is now employed as a labourer in Belgrade. While the Serbs, were still there, the Albanians destroyed the Christian Orthodox cemetery. It is known that in that village since 1960, the Albanians from neighbouring villages were practising the kind of lawlessness reminiscent of the Turkish Rule: under threat the Serbs were obliged to surrender to them a quarter of the yield from their fields. Milan Scepanovic from the village of Dasinovic near Decani refused to abandon his land. On the 18th July 1971 his neighbour, an Albanian, shot Milan in the head. The wound caused Milan to lose an eye and an ear but the assailant was never punished. Milan Scepanovic had to leave his home even though he was a war veteran who had been decorated for his bravery. He is now living in the village of Jelenac, near Topola (Serbia).
When left without any males in her family Stanica Pesic of Donje Ratiste near Decani had her house and 12 acres of land appropriated by her Albanian neighbour. At the end of three years of long court proceedings, the court's decision was most baffling: Stanica Pesic was to receive 150.000 Dinars from the village council and the Albanian neighbour was to keep the house and the land in his possession. That sum was just sufficient for Stanica to buy the train tickets for herself and her four daughters.
On the land of the brothers Djurisic, near Decani, several Albanian houses were built without the consent of the owners. Following that, the Djurisic brothers were expelled from the remaining land.
The village authorities cut down three times the orchards of Mirko and Mirka Stefanovic in the centre of Decani under the pretext that it was necessary for the planning of the motorway. Three more houses of their neighbours, also Serbs, were knocked down.
THE SERBS IN KOSOVO (IV)
On the 28th of October 1982, a 12-year-old boy, Dejan Antunovic was set upon by some Albanians who grabbed him in the street at mid-day, doused him with petrol and set him alight. His anorak helped to save his life but he received severe burns.
There is a long list of evil deeds, torments and crimes to which the nuns from the Serbian monasteries in Kosovo are being subjected. In 1981, in the monastery of the Holy Trinity in Musutiste the Albanians blinded a bull belonging to the monastery. They rammed a rake into the stomach of a cow which was in calf and killed her. The same year they drove nails into the testicles of the rams belonging to the monastery; they also cut down the monastery's forest. The Albanians of the village Grazdel waited in ambush for the nuns to beat them up. The nuns dared not go about freely with their work on their land. The Albanians forcibly removed building material from the yard of the monastery. Nuns Vera and Angelina were viciously beaten. Albanian youths beat up nun Stanka and attacked and attempted to rape nun Heruvima, aged 50.
In the same monastery, in 1982, a Roman Catholic nun from Croatia came to stay with the nuns as their guest. She wanted to see the ancient altar screen and some ancient holy books preserved in the convent. One day, while returning to the monastery from a visit to two of her acquaintances, also Catholic nuns, she was stopped by three young Albanians who raped her, beat her up and robbed her. She obtained a medical certificate from a Ugandan doctor, Dr. Sirijaza, who was practising there. However, no action was taken against the thugs who were from the village of Rakovac. The police chief inspector there declared that, in his opinion "the rape of a nun is not a rape at all". He merely took the gold chain and [*E3563] cross which the thugs had taken from the nun and returned them to her.
In the ancient city of Prizren, renowned for its numerous churches and remains of a long and brilliant Christian tradition, Milorad Sredic, student of the Prizren College of Theology, was stabbed twice by some Albanians who wanted to stop him from entering the College. Another Serbain student was beaten up while walking with other students through the town. Bishop Pavle of Raska-Prizren was three times attacked and beaten in the street.
In 1982, the Albanians set fire to the building of the Patriarchate in PEC. The old living quarters were burnt down and part of the old library and treasury room also suffered. The authorities failed (refused) to send the fire-brigade. For eight hours the nuns had to fight on their own, not only the fire but also the arsonists themselves.
It is not possible to enumerate all the sufferings inflicted upon Paraskeva, the Abbess of the monastery of Devic. Mother Paraskeva has only one arm; the Albanians broke that arm so she can no longer make the sign of the cross. They are continuously ravaging the monastic estate, threatening the nuns on killing their cattle.
On the 3rd June 1982, in the village of Samodreza near Vucitrn, an Albanian killed Danilo Milincic, aged 22. Three Albanian youths drove his cattle away, knocked Danilo down and spread him on the ground. Then their father Mujo Ferat, who had moved in from Albania only in 1972, knelt on Danilo's stomach and shot him through the heart. Danica, Danilo's mother, tried in vain to shield her son with her own body. On the same spot, ten years earlier, the Albanians had killed Danilo's father, Slavoljub and twenty years before, exactly in the same spot they killed Danilo's grandfather, also called Danilo.
The church of Samodreza was desecrated many times. It is a well-known Serbian shrine: according to tradition, it was to that church that Prince Lazar brought the Serbian army to Holy Communion on the eve of the battle against the Turks in Kosovo in 1389; it was there that after the battle, the body of the hero-warrior Milos Obilic was laid to rest. The priest from Vucitrn cannot attend the church in Samodreza not even in the daytime. Until 15 years ago 200 Serbian families lived in this area and much greater numbers lived their in the past. Nowadays there remain only six of them and these are all households of elderly people. As recently as August 1988 the frescoes of the church in Samodreza were damaged by the Albanians. Graves were dug out and bones scattered around the church yard.
Countless cemeteries in Serbian villages and towns in Kosovo and Metohija are being continuously demolished.
At the end of July 1982 in the village of Mece near Djakovica, Miodrag Saric was killed in his own back yard at the thirtieth attempt on his life. He left a widow and four children who could bear witness to the crimes against their family committed by the Albanians and most of all by the local Chief of Police, Djerdjo Bibljekaj and his Deputy, Causi. The Albanians appropriated Saric's land of 17 acres, poisoned the well in the yard and even the dog that guarded the well. They killed their last horse with a chain. Two months after the murder of Miodrag Saric, the Albanians shot his eldest son, Aleksander. The younger son, Mitar aged 14, was struck on the head by a stone thrown by a Albanian in the middle of the street in Djakovica, causing grievious bodily harm. The Saric family now lives with the assistance of the Church and people of good-will who collect for them. They are the last remaining Serbian family in that part of the country. They have nowhere else to go.
At the University of Pristina, in 1971, Serbian students were beaten up during an escalation of the Albanian nationalism; a recurrence of the incident took place on the 2nd April 1981.
Alabanians burned down the forest adjacent to the house belonging to Dusan Bijelic from the village of Gornji Ratis. He was set upon at home when Albanians broke down the doors and smashed in the windows and took away the chickens the bee-hives and all the money that was in the house.
Milan Vlahovic and Batric Perovic, from the village of Pozar, fared in the same way; their children were beaten up inside the house and the haystacks were set on fire.
Hundreds more examples could be given. Bratimir Toskovic of Pristina had a "Molotov Cocktail" twice thrown in over his balcony and through the window of his home.
THE SERBS IN KOSOVO (V)
In the village of Dolac, near Klina, the Babic brothers were first stabbed with knives, then, as they were returning from the fields, some Albanians ambushed them. First they dug a spade into Bogosav Babic's ribs and split open his skull with an ax; his brother, Bozidar, was killed on the spot and the third brother Bogoljub, although wounded, managed to escape into the village.
Seventy wounds were counted on his body. Despite the injuries which Bogosav sustained, he survived. Sometime later Bogolujb too was killed. The Babic brothers have been the prize-winner in agriculture in Kosovo so the Albanians hacked down their vine-yards and orchards, destroying them completely. The one remaining brother Bogosav Babic is still being subjected to attacks and his house was raided by Albanian militia-men as well.
A 15-year-old girl from the Rajic family was raped, according to the testimony of Bogosav Babic. In Dolac and its neighbourhood alone, 15 Serbian girls were raped by Albanians in the course of 8 months.
In a nearby village, in broad daylight, from their open gate, Albanians shot Milan Petrovic, a high-school pupil as he was returning from school. He was wounded in the hip, but as the bullet was of the "Dum-Dum" type, Milan remained permanently crippled in both legs. In Klina, a 70-year-old woman was raped. The press did not reveal her name in order to protect the family's honour.
On the 1st May 1985 Djordje Martinovic, aged 50, was impaled in his own field, just outside the village of Gnjilane. The Albanains first stunned him drove a wedge through his anus and then pushed a beer bottle up through the colon to the stomach and rib-cage. This is reminiscent of the punishment meted out to the Serbs by the Turks in earlier times. Djordje Martinovic survived but the attackers have not been brought to justice.
The daughter of Milosav Lazic of Batusa village near Pristina, was raped. This 14-year-old girl was dragged away in broad daylight by Albanians in front of the school in Donje Dobrevo village.
The 7-year-old daughter of M. Rancic, originally from the Batusa village, was raped. The family was living in great poverty in Pristina, next to the hospital, in a toolshed which was left there after completion of the building. The girl described her most frightful ordeal on television but the public soon forgot about it under the onslaught of new assaults and rapes which followed within the next days.
In the village of Palez, near Vitina, 14 Serbian girls from 11 Serbian families were raped by Albanians in one year.
In PEC, in 1983, Albanians set fire to the studio of the artist Radoslav Miketic.
At the end of June 1986, the whole Serbian village of Batusa fled from the village to seek refuge in front of the unabated terror. Batusa had been a Serbian village for centuries. Among the refugees were children, old people and the dying. Serbian families from other villages joined them. Their attempt to save their lives was thwarted by the local Militia who pillaged the belongings which the refugees were carrying, and beat them up. The refugees were told that they could move away, but only one by one. They were not allowed to leave in groups as that would have constituted a political provocation.
The persecution of our people and our church continues. In August 1988 Mother Tatiana, the Abbess of the 14th century monastery of Gracanica was twice attacked and assaulted.
We must emphasise that the Serbian and other non-Albanian population in the Kosovo and Metohija regions are not protected by law. Albanians committing crimes against them have not been prosecuted nor punished. We, Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, will condem any misdeeds by the Serbs against the Albanians, should they happen. At the same time we do appeal to the civilised world to show more understanding for the real suffering of our people and to show concern for their endangered church and tradition in Kosovo and Metohija.
Serbian Orthodox Bishops:
Dr. Firmilijan: Diocese of Midwestern America.
Lavrentije: Diocese of Western Europe.
Hristofor: Diocese of Eastern America.
Georgije: Diocese of Canada.
Longin: Diocese of Australia and New Zealand.
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