Serbia Albanians Scorn Threat To War Memorial
January 9, 2013|
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By Bojana Barlovac
Leaders of the Albanian community in southern Serbia say they doubt Serbia will act on threats to remove a memorial in Presevo to local guerrilla fighters.
Skender Destani, leader of an ethnic Albanian party in southern Serbia, says he doubts the authorities will act on threats to forcibly remove a memorial to ethnic Albanian fighters in the town of Presevo.
“The removal of the monument is not in the spirit of European values so [Serbian Prime Minister Ivica] Dacic will not risk the country’s EU path by removing it,” Destani, leader of the Democratic Union of the Valley, DUD, told Balkan Insight.
Dacic has reiterated several times that if local authorities in south Serbia don’t remove the memorial, the state will do so by January 17.
The monument, dedicated to veterans of the Liberation Army of Presevo, Medvedja and Bujanovac, a guerrilla force that took on the Serbian military, was erected in November in front of the town hall in Presevo, home to 50,000 or so ethnic Albanians.
Leaders of ethnic Albanians in southern Serbia have scheduled to hold a joint session on Saturday to dicuss the controversial monument.
The Albanian guerrilla force launched a brief armed struggle with Serbian security forces in 2000, which ended with the help of international mediation.
They agreed to disarm in 2001 following an internationally brokered peace deal, after which the Serbian military re-entered the demilitarized area near the border with Kosovo with the approval of NATO.
Jonuz Musliu, former political leader of the Liberation Army of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja, also believes that Dacic is “smart enough not to demolish the monument.
“It would not look European, as Europe does not destroy monuments,” Musliu said.
Serbia obtained EU candidate status in March 2012 and hopes to get a date to start the accession talks this year.
4 Responses to Serbia Albanians Scorn Threat To War Memorial
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Author: Balkan Insight
The Balkan Insight (forner the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN) is a close group of editors and trainers that enables journalists in the region to produce in-depth analytical and investigative journalism on complex political, economic and social themes.
BIRN emerged from the Balkan programme of the Institute for War & Peace Reporting, IWPR, in 2005. The original IWPR Balkans team was mandated to localise that programme and make it sustainable, in light of changing realities in the region and the maturity of the IWPR intervention.
Since then, its work in publishing, media training and public debate activities has become synonymous with quality, reliability and impartiality. A fully-independent and local network, it is now developing as an efficient and self-sustainable regional institution to enhance the capacity for journalism that pushes for public debate on European-oriented political and economic reform.
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Dan
January 10, 2013 at 3:58 am
“It would not look European, as Europe does not destroy monuments,” Musliu said.
WOW what a hypocrisy!
What about the hundreds of ancient Orthodox Churches and monasteries that were razed to the ground by the Albanians in Kosovo?!
In this case Serbs living in Kosovo should have every right to build a monument dedicated to their fallen soldiers and civilians in the middle of Prishtina as well!
I cannot believe the audacity these people have! That’s radicalism coming from the Albanians and abuse of their status as a tiny minority living inside another country.
Goes to show you most Albanians are double standard and ignorant.
I sure hope Serbs run that monument down, as there is no need to remind anyone of a ugly past and if these local Albanians don’t like it then go back your country, Albania.
M. M.
January 10, 2013 at 5:53 pm
Whatever next? I memorial to WW2 Balli Kombëtar (ie. the so-called Ballists)? Or one to the SS Skanderbeg Division? Or the man whose power made it all possible, Hitler? It is a disgrace.
Tommy
January 17, 2013 at 3:45 am
They deserve their monument. What most people don’t understand is that these albanians did not go anywhere to seek conflict. They stayed in their backyard and did what they felt necessary to save their language , culture and customs from the same Serbs who are the common denominator in all the balkan wars
As far as the idea of Serbs building a monument in the city of Prishtina where they have never been a majority or have never had a sizable population just shows the oppressive and expansionist agenda they carry.
These Albanians should hold a rally outside around this monument and see what serbia does. If they let it be, maybe this is new democratic Serbia that cares about a group of it’s citizens that aren’t Serbs. If they go in there with an army and kill and destroy in the fashion of the Serbia we all know so well the international community should intervene or the Albanians should just stop all contact with Belgrade.
Best of luck to that part of the world
Dario
January 22, 2013 at 7:42 pm
Tommy by your logic every place in former ex yu where there is a majority should seceede? That would be like 100 mini countrys. Albs are the only ones that have two countryes, one more is not necesery.