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November 30, 1998 Kosova Task Force, USA Action Alert
Holes in the Holbrooke-Milosevic Agreement:
The October 12 Agreement brokered by U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke was hailed as a diplomatic masterpiece. However, after one month of closer analysis, "the agreement fails to address fundamental obstacles to a sustainable peace and end to the humanitarian crisis."
At least 25,000 Yugoslav and Serbian troops remain in Kosova, in spite of U.N. Security Council resolution #1199 demanding the withdrawal of troops "used for civilian repression." No wonder the people in Kosova see the agreement as a sellout.
Albanian Muslims were excluded from the negotiations despite the fact they make up more than 90% of Kosova and voted overwhelmingly for independence.
The agreement gives Kosova less political autonomy than they had ten years ago. A decade ago, the people of Kosova enjoyed full political autonomy and an equal vote, as the other republics did, in the former Yugoslavia. They were successful in managing their own schools, police force, banks, hospitals, etc. After Milosevic came to power with his repressive rule, all these rights were revoked. This agreement does not restore or re-establish these rights. In fact, the people of Kosova have no guarantee that their basic human rights will be protected.
Serbs have already broken the present agreement several times according to diplomatic sources. Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) chairman Bronislaw Geremek, said on Nov. 12, 1998 that Yugoslavia bore primary responsibility for violations of the cease fire in Kosova. "I am concerned by the security situation in Kosova," he told a news conference in Vienna. "The cease fire is being breached on a daily basis, intimidation continues, roadblocks are being erected and still people are killed. Still, I think that we should see the responsibility of the Yugoslav government first of all. The use of violence by a state is a concern for international organizations."
The OSCE plans to send 2,000 unarmed observers to verify Serb compliance with U.N. resolutions, specifically the withdrawal of Serb troops and the return of refugees. However, the international monitors will not be able to intercede if fighting erupts and are weeks or months away from being fully deployed. Presently the situation in Kosova is a shaky cease-fire that might soon dissolve into more violence, repression and resistance. Milosevic, despite agreeing to a troop pullback is showing new defiance of Western Allies by rejecting attempts by the U.N. War Crimes Tribunal to investigate war crimes and atrocities committed against the Muslims of Kosova by Serb troops.
On November 12, a U.N. refugee agency released an initial survey stating that. "60% of the houses surveyed in the villages have been destroyed or heavily damaged."
Since the agreement went into effect, Serbian authorities shut down three independent newspapers critical of Milosevic. Unfortunately this generated little international outrage or protest.
"As in Bosnia, the massive violence against the Muslim population has gone too far to allow a negotiated peace without full independence for Kosova."
The Kosova Task Force, USA is encouraging Muslims and non-Muslims to assist the Kosovar people by writing and faxing letters to your Senators, Congressperson, the Secretary of State, and the President demanding the following:
* Recognize the Kosovar right to self determination. * Allow Kosovars to arm themselves in self-defense. * Conduct extensive and sustained air strikes to force a permanent Serb
army withdrawal from Kosova. * Arrest Serb war criminals in Belgrade.
==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: Kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ====================================
The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community.