YouSaid · the spoken record

Dacie

lines on the record: 218
first: 2013-06-14
most recent: 2018-05-14
sittings or episodes: 10
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“That is yet another indication of how much effort and will still need to be invested in beginning serious and genuine work on reconciliation and in ensuring a proper approach to the problem. In that regard, promises do not suffice; what is needed instead are concrete results so that a clear message is sent to those who obstruct the survival and return of Serbs to Kosovo and Metohija that such activities, harmful to the process of reconciliation, will not be tolerated, and to Serbs and other non-Albanians that they may return and exercise their human rights and freedoms freely and without apprehension. If that is not possible, then the Security Council should send a message to all the Serbs expelled from Kosovo that it has not been able to ensure their safe return.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“The majority of attacks in the reporting period were aimed at the property of returnees and at returnees themselves in the localities of Klina, Pee and Gorazdevac, as well as at religious sites. Also, an explosive device was discovered in the vicinity of the Holy Trinity Monastery at Musutiste, in the municipality of Suva Reka. The incident occurred immediately before a visit of about 100 internally displaced Serbs who intended to mark a religious feast on the ruins of the Monastery. Proper records on ethnically motivated incidents are still non-existent, just as is proper intervention by the competent authorities of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“What is also necessary is to prevent the obstruction of returns, along with full respect for the principle of the responsibility of international and local actors engaged in the process. I therefore call on the United Nations and other representatives of the international Administration in Kosovo to help overcome problems that make the return of internally displaced persons even more difficult and aggravate their already distressing situation, which is replete with constant security incidents, including personal attacks and attacks on property. The situation is further exacerbated by the climate of impunity for crimes committed against Serbs - a reflection of the fact that no legally valid sentence has yet been pronounced against a single perpetrator of any of the more than 1,000 killings of Serbs committed since 1999.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“How can it be acceptable for any country that 1.9 per cent of displaced persons have been able to return? The Council meets daily to discuss various regions. It cannot remain silent in the face of the fact that only 1.9 per cent of the displaced have returned to Kosovo over the past 16 years. Perhaps it is the case that, when it comes to Serbia and Serbs, everything is accepted and allowed. The necessary conditions for return include appropriate security guarantees as well such conditions as the freedom of movement, an effective mechanism for the restitution of property and other appurtenant rights, protection against discrimination, guaranteed access to institutions of the system, documents and justice and support to returnees to regain economic independence.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“According to the statistics, the minimum is 12 per cent, while the maximum can amount even to more than 50 per cent. Out of the more than 220,000 persons who left Kosovo and Metohija since 1999, only 1.9 per cent achieved sustainable return in the past 16 years, while about 204,000 persons continue to be displaced in Serbia. Accordingly, the percentage of sustainable returns in this concrete case is below all world standards and averages. The most recent report on UNMIK bears out the continuity of the descending trend of returns, while Serbia continues to top the list of European countries by the number of internally displaced in protracted displacement. I simply wanted to familiarize the Security Council with that data, as the Council has jurisdiction over such issues.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“It is with regret that I have also to note on this occasion that, even 16 years after the end of the conflict and notwithstanding the years-long presence of the international community, no conditions exist in Kosovo and Metohija for the unhindered and sustainable return of internally displaced persons, as is also noted in regular reports of the Secretary-General on the work of UNMIK and in reports of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. To correctly illustrate my contention and to help explain the magnitude of the obstacles that still hinder the return of displaced persons to Kosovo and Metohija, let me remind the Council ofthe data according to which an average of 25 per cent of refugees and displaced persons in the world return home upon the end of conflicts.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“In that sense, each and every different attitude to the consideration of the question of Kosovo's membership in these organizations would be tantamount to ignoring - that is, violating - the legal rules created under the auspices of the United Nations for the purpose of maintaining international peace and security. When and if such a time comes, these questions should become the subjects of dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina. The Government of the Republic of Serbia attaches special importance to the quest for a solution to the problem of internally displaced persons from Kosovo and Metohija. Creating conditions for their sustainable return is one of the key elements of the process of reconciliation.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“Yet, we continue to be met with Pristina's efforts and requests to be included in the work of international organizations outside the context of the agreement on regional representation and cooperation, which are unacceptable to the Republic of Serbia. The latest such examples are Kosovo's attempts to become a member of UNESCO and INTERPOL. As a territory administered by the United Nations under the valid and mandatory resolution 1244 (1999), Kosovo is not and cannot be considered a State subject to international law and cannot, ipso facto, qualify for admission to organizations such as those to which I have referred.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“Going forward, in addition to the aforementioned formation of the association/ community of Serb majority municipalities, the key issues for Serbia in the dialogue with Pristina remain those of internally displaced persons and the position of the Serbian Orthodox Church, as well as property issues. As I point out regularly at Security Council meetings on the work of UNMIK, the Republic of Serbia comports itself with full respect and appreciation for resolution 1244 (1999). I have repeatedly stressed the constructiveness of the Government of the Republic of Serbia vis-a-vis the participation of the Provisional Institutions of Self- Government in Kosovo and Metohij a in the work of regional forums without prejudging their status.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“The continuation of the dialogue at a high political level provides the necessary political momentum to the quest for mutually acceptable responses to issues that burden the life of the people of the province and prevent the exercise of their basic rights. Serbia has approached the dialogue with Pristina with a genuine desire to find solutions that will allow all the inhabitants of the province to normalize their lives within the broader process ofthe integration ofthe region into the European Union. It is in this context that the participation of the Serbs in the political life of Kosovo and Metohija is also being evolved.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“Serbia consistently meets all its obligations under the agreements reached thus far in the framework of the First Agreement on Principles Governing the Normalization of Relations, initialled in Brussels in April 2013. I am pleased to note that the formation of the association/community of Serb majority municipalities has been singled out among the key issues in the context of the implementation of the Brussels Agreement and that, equally historic, the visit of Serbian Prime Minister Aleksander Vucie to Albania has been recognized as another clear indication of our commitment to and active engagement in the promotion of the stability and European integration of the region as a whole.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“Bearing in mind that this is his last participation in a meeting of the Security Council on the work of UNMIK in his capacity of Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of UNMIK, I express my special gratitude to Mr. Farid Zarif for his efforts to implement the UNMIK mandate and to coordinate the international presences, notwithstanding the persistent challenges. I take this opportunity to wish him, on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Serbia and in my own name, much success in his new mission. The Government of the Republic of Serbia has confirmed in practical terms its full commitment to the dialogue conducted with the facilitation of the European Union. We expect its continuation to solidify the basis for the implementation of agreements already achieved.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“Accordingly, we expect UNMIK to continue to implement its mandate under resolution 1244 (1999), particularly in the areas that are important to the survival and normal and dignified life of the Serbs and other non-Albanian communities. We appreciate the contribution of other international organizations Whose missions, carried out under the auspices of the United Nations, are constituent parts of international civil and military presences in the Serbian southern province, including as the Kosovo Force, the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Mission in Kosovo.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“An exceptionally important role in this context is played by the United Nations Mission in Kosovo and Metohija, and I shall repeat also on this occasion that a status-neutral and undiminished presence of UNMIK is of paramount importance to stability and the creation of conditions leading to a lasting and sustainable solution for the question of Kosovo and Metohija on the basis of resolution 1244 (1999). I therefore reiterate our strong opposition to any downsizing of the Mission and reduction of its activities. Serbia highly appreciates UNMIK's engagement towards creating the basic preconditions for the peaceful coexistence of the ethnic communities in the province, security and respect for the basic human and civil rights of all its inhabitants.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“It is evident that substantive progress has been made in the region in the fields of peacebuilding and democratization. Exceptional results have been achieved in strengthening regional cooperation and in the process of European integration, to which the Republic of Serbia has made an important contribution. Yet, it is necessary for all countries of the region, as well as relevant international actors, to invest additional efforts in maintaining and promoting stability, all the more as it remains brittle and in view of the challenges that we continue to face.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“Mr. Dacie (Serbia) (Spoke in Serbian; English text provided by the delegation): I am honoured on this occasion to address the Security Council, convened to consider the report of the Secretary- General (S/2015/579) on the work of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) from 16 April to 15 July 2015. I take this opportunity to thank the members of the Security Council for the attention they continue to accord the question of Kosovo and Metohija, which is of priority importance to the Republic of Serbia. Through its proactive engagement and compromise-seeking approach, the Republic of Serbia has made every effort to contribute to the lasting peace, stability and prosperity of the Western Balkans.”
2015-08-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7510 (2015) · source
“Persistent efforts are being made by my country to confront the threat of terrorism. Money laundering and the financing of terrorism have long been sanctioned, and the criminal code is now being amended to provide for harsh prison punishment of foreign fighters, their recruiters and financiers. In conclusion, let me also reiterate the readiness of my country to step up cooperation with all countries in the region and beyond and coordinate our activities accordingly.”
2014-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7272 (2014) · source
“The fight against terrorism will be hard and long, and military measures alone will not be sufficient. A multidimensional approach is needed, and we, therefore, welcome the adoption of the resolution today. Banning the recruitment and transport of potential foreign fighters by national laws, controlling money and arms flows and engaging local communities in addressing extremism are just some ofthe multifaceted measures that the resolution provides for. Serbia, too, has faced the problem of foreign fighters. At the end of the 1990s, extremist fighters joined secessionists in the southern Serbian province of Kosovo. Today, radical preachers, in increasing numbers, preach faith in the Raska region in south- western Serbia and in Kosovo in religious centres financed from abroad and recruit young people to fight alleged religious wars.”
2014-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7272 (2014) · source
“We believe that the resolution and our discussion today will strengthen cooperation among all Member States in the fight against terrorism and extremism. Terrorist threats have intensified in the past decade, and extremist activities of any kind and in any place find fertile soil in unstable political situations and a lack of socioeconomic opportunities. The problem of terrorism is complex and calls for the coordination of activities and the allocation of equal attention to all its aspects, both at the national and international levels. The root causes of terrorism are manifold and widespread. They include religious fanaticism; social exclusion, especially of ethnic and religious minorities; uneven access to education and the lack of job and economic opportunities.”
2014-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7272 (2014) · source
“I would like to join previous speakers in thanking you, Madam President, for convening this meeting of the Security Council to discuss the threat to international peace and security posed by foreign terrorist fighters, which is an issue of the utmost regional and global importance. In addition, I would like to express my special appreciation to President Obama for presiding over the Council's business earlier today and for providing thrust and gravitas to the message that we aim to send. Serbia, one of the sponsors of resolution 2178 (2014), welcomes the adoption of this resolution on foreign terrorist fighters, which, we are convinced, will go a long way in addressing terrorism in all its forms and manifestations as the most serious threat to international peace and security.”
2014-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7272 (2014) · source
“Serbia is also ready to put its maximum effort into further stabilizing and normalizing the situation, for peace is its primary goal.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“As we consider each and every situation report on the province, we should ask ourselves how much we have helped the local population live better lives. I am not sure that the conditions are there for lessening the Security Council's interest in this topic. Regrettably, this has also been confirmed by an incident that took place yesterday in the Ground Safety Zone, in which Stevan Sindelie, a member of the Serbian Gendarmerie, was killed. Great progress has been made, but we are far from being close to our goal. The Republic of Serbia is ready to do everything in its power to contribute, as a responsible United Nations Member State and not just as an interested party, to improving the situation in the province.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Serbia is open to dialogue for the purpose of finding a comprehensive solution to the question of Kosovo and Metohija, first and foremost in the interests of its own citizens. Let us not forget that behind all our speeches, reports and statements are people whose only desire is to have normal living conditions for their families, who want to work, educate their children, provide them a happy childhood and a safe and secure future and enjoy all the rights belonging to them according to the European standards to which our entire region aspires. This is nothing less or more than what we all want for ourselves. Our reports on the situation in Kosovo and Metohija must therefore not be turned into mere numbers.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Similarly, the Kosovo Privatization Agency has decided to liquidate the Hotel Junior in Strpce, which houses a group accommodation centre for 85 lDPs, who would be further displaced if the hotel were privatized. I would like to point out once again that one of the Republic of Serbia's top priorities is to find a lasting solution for the question of Kosovo and Metohija through negotiations and dialogue with the provisional institutions of self-government in Pristina, with the recognition of the legitimate interests of the Albanian, Serbian and other populations of Kosovo and Metohija and full respect for the mandate of the United Nations set out in resolution 1244 (1999).”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“An ongoing big problem is the privatization being carried out by the Kosovo Privatization Agency, formerly known as the Kosovo Trust Agency, which contravenes international and European human-rights conventions by continuing to privatize public and socially owned companies in Serbian communities. The sale of such companies to persons of Albanian nationality leads to a loss of economic resources in Serbian communities and also influences the exodus of the Serbian population. The latest in a series of such events took place on 9 June, when officials of the Kosovo Privatization Agency entered the FDK Lola plant in Strpce, seized its documentation, keys and seals, put in their own security and banned Serbian workers and management from entering the premises.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“The statistical reviews of court decisions and cases conceal the real picture of a large number of decisions that strike down property-damage claims filed by Serbs. That is an enormous problem and appears to be ethnically motivated in view of the fact that the damaged property belongs exclusively to Serbs. I would be remiss ifI failed to note that the report mentions only the number of cases closed. It discusses only the decisions adjudicated by the Kosovo Property Agency and not the number of decisions that have been enforced, which would, practically speaking, reflect the number of owners who have gained possession of their properties. That is only one of the issues that have affected and continue to affect the process of IDP returns to Kosovo and Metohija in more ways than one.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“It also highlights the problem of sustainable return and reintegration, which has continued to worsen, owing to persistent incidents targeting returnees, their property, their religious and cultural heritage and the lack of suitable economic opportunities. It is not only the property rights of returnees that are impossible to exercise and protect in Kosovo and Metohija. Nothing is being done about cases of forged purchase and sale agreements of real estate legally owned by Serbs. Only one report has been published on this issue, the 2009 OSCE Mission in Kosovo report on fraudulent transactions in the Pec' region, the only systematic and detailed review of violations of Serbs' property rights, and that in only one region.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“The conclusion of the OSCE is that the law has been implemented only partially because of a lack of political will and the absence of full understanding of the obligation. In the Kosovo 2013 Progress Report ofthe European Commission, special mention is made, inter alia, of the problem of continued attacks on religious heritage, particularly that of the Serbian Orthodox Church and its graveyards. The report also points to the unsatisfactory implementation of the anti-discrimination law, the numerous unresolved property cases before the courts related to damage compensation, and inter-ethnic disputes.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“The programmes aimed at strengthening confidence that have been devised by UNMIK and other missions active in Kosovo and Metohija are, no doubt, useful in the process of reconciliation among communities, yet they do not suffice. In order to create a sustainable atmosphere of tolerance, political will and a comprehensive approach on the part of the provisional institutions in Pristina are needed. Our assumption is that, with the support of competent international organizations, the authorities in Pristina will seriously take into consideration the recommendations contained in the assessment of the implementation, at the municipal level, of the law on the use of languages, published by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) this past June.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“According to the report before us, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees registered as few as 49 voluntary individual returns by members of non-Albanian communities in the period from April to June. This has been taking place despite the presence of the international civil administration, one of the main responsibilities of which under resolution 1244 (1999) is to assure the safe and unimpeded return of all refugees and internally displaced persons. The creation of conditions for Serbian and other non-Albanian populations to enjoy fundamental human rights and the rights that belong to them as non-majority populations would surely contribute to the improvement of the general atmosphere for the return of IDPs.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“In practice, instead of facilitating the IDPs' return, the required documents and procedures constitute insurmountable obstacles for any returns, let alone sustainable ones. In that way, implicit pressure is being brought to bear on the IDPs to integrate into local communities outside Kosovo and Metohija, the end result of which is a forced change in the demographic picture of the province. The Republic of Serbia is the country with the largest number of IDPs in Europe - 230,000, with 18,000 of them in Kosovo and Metohija. In our estimation, between 2,000 and 4,000 IDPs have realized a sustainable return to Kosovo and Metohija. The low level of returns is caused preponderantly by the failure to ensure the basic conditions for return and normal life, which has also been confirmed by the Secretary- General's reports to the Security Council.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“In June 2014, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons Chaloka Beyani presented a report to the Human Rights Council on his visit to Serbia in October 2013. The Special Rapporteur called on the authorities in Pristina to invest efforts in ensuring effective implementation of legal solutions and to increase the political will to find a lasting solution for the IDPs. He also pointed to an urgent need to solve property issues. The creation of real conditions for IDPs to return to their homes is one of the key factors in the process of reconciliation. The return of the IDPs to Kosovo and Metohija has been obstructed by administrative impediments, to the point that the Administration in Pristina cannot honestly claim to continue to espouse democracy and multi-ethnicity.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“We expect Pristina to complete the post-electoral processes in the foreseeable future in order to make it possible to establish the community, that is to say, to adopt the legal framework necessary for the implementation of its competencies. That would be a true indicator of the commitment of the Pristina side to the implementation of the agreements that have been reached, contribute to the strengthening of confidence in provincial institutions, and represent an important step in the direction of achieving progress in mutual dialogue. Let me particularly draw the Council's attention to the situation of the IDPs and the fact that the solution to their situation largely depends on the actions of political actors in Pristina.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Some provisions of the draft general elections law downgrade outright the voting rights of members of the minority communities in Kosovo and Metohija. I believe that we all can agree that setting conditions for dialogue and the participation of Serbian community members in the work ofprovincial institutions in which the scope of their rights has been reduced cannot be politically justified. In the municipalities in the northern part of the province with a Serbian majority, conditions have been fulfilled for the establishment of the association/ community of Serbian municipalities, as provided for in the Brussels Agreement.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“The fact that as many as 20,000 deceased persons were inscribed on the voters' lists and that, even after the removal of their names, the number of registered voters has continued to be greater than the population of Kosovo and Metohija is indicative all by itself. The new general elections law was being discussed in Parliament at the time that the early elections were called; the law was not adopted. Absent a new elections law, the Central Election Commission decided to invoke the provisions of the constitutional amendments of 2012, with negative consequences for a number of the mandates of the Serbian community. Specifically, the Civic Initiative Serbia list was thus left short of six additional Parliament seats.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Regrettably, in their attempt to exercise their voting rights, persons of Serbian nationality, in particular the IDPs, encountered numerous obstacles all over again, from a questionable legal interpretation of electoral provisions to challenges to the recognition of their right to be entered into voters' lists. Overall, 30,000 IDPs, 26,000 of them from the central parts of Serbia, sent their voting applications to the Central Election Commission. Out of 26,000 applications, less than half were accepted, while the rejected ones were directed to an appellate procedure. The Central Election Commission adopted 200 out of 9,000 appeals. The number of Serbs with the right to vote has diminished in comparison with their number at the local elections in November 2013.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“We hope that, even though the budget has been reduced compared to that of the past year, the UNMIK budget adopted this past June will not negatively affect the realization of the Mission's concrete tasks, including verification of the number of returnees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) and the protection of minority communities. The Government of the Republic of Serbia is fully committed to the normalization of relations with Pristina, which was confirmed by its call addressed to the Serbs with residences registered in Kosovo and Metohija to participate in the early general elections on 8 June.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“The trust that Serbian and other non-Albanian communities have in the Mission as guarantor of their survival is of paramount importance. In that context, we must not allow the role entrusted to the United Nations Mission, which is the guarantor and the basis for the activities of all other international missions in Kosovo and Metohija, to be weakened. It is with concern that we look at attempts to marginalize UNMIK - that is, reduce its size, both in the number of substantive international personnel and its activities in the field.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“The fact that those competencies were entrusted to EULEX does not diminish the powers and responsibility of the Special Representative. The incidents around the bridge in Kosovska Mitrovica during this past June have served as a reminder of the distance that the communities in Kosovo and Metohija still need to traverse to achieve reconciliation. The removal of the barricades on the northern side of the bridge over the Ibar River was an act of goodwill on the part of the local Serbian population. Unlike that act, the reaction of their Albanian fellow residents did not show good faith and only added to the deepening of intolerance. One of the reasons that Serbia insists on the unreduced presence and engagement of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo and Metohija is precisely because of the volatility of the situation in the province.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“In that connection we stress the importance of the continued oversight over and assessment of the work of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government, and the judicial and other organs, and adequate appraisal of their readiness to assume the executive competencies that EULEX currently holds, as provided for by the EULEX reconfiguration decision of this past June. I would like to remind the members of the Security Council, the body that adopted resolution 1244 (1999), which established UNMIK with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General at its head, that the competencies held by the Special Representative may be transferred to the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government only with his authorization.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Bearing in mind the importance of the implementation of the EULEX mandate, in particular the part related to the proper investigation, trial and enforcement of sentences for war crimes, terrorism, organized crime, corruption, inter-ethnic crime, financial-economic fraud and other grievous offences, the question of the readiness of the judicial organs to carry out impartially, conscientiously and professionally the tasks entrusted to them is very pertinent indeed. I emphasize this because the Kosovo 2013 Progress Report of the European Commission highlights the need for improved enforcement of decisions regarding human rights violations and the many unresolved property cases related precisely to damage compensation and inter-ethnic disputes, which have been unjustifiably delayed.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“I would like to point to another question raised in the report relating to the adoption of the law amending the laws on the mandate of the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo. The new law changes the composition of the chambers of courts that hear the criminal and civil cases that fall within EULEX competency, to the effect that the number of judges of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government is always greater than that of EULEX judges. I especially mention that situation because the cases tried in the Special Chamber of the Supreme Court of Kosovo in connection with the Kosovo Privatization Agency and the cases before appellate panels relating to decisions of the Kosovo Property Claims Commission have continued to be cases in which mostly Serbs and non-Albanians are the aggrieved parties.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Since beginning the work of the special court depends in part on the decisions that ought to be taken in Pristina, we call on all political actors in Kosovo and Metohija to bear in mind that their conscientious work will be a linchpin to the service ofjustice for the crimes that have been committed. It is with concern that we have followed the trial of the so-called "Drenica Group" initiated last May before the Basic Court in Kosovska, Mitrovica, for reasons stated in the report before us. Three out of seven indicted members of the former KLA managed to run away from the institution in which they were being given medical treatment. EULEX assessed the results of the internal investigation in this case as bad and without information of key importance.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“It must not be allowed, as has been the case in court proceedings so far, that because of the intimidation of witnesses, responsible individuals are acquitted due to the lack of evidence. All those involved in the intimidation must also be tried. At the same time, we must join forces to establish the fate of the missing persons. As stated in the statement (S/2014/558, annex II) of Chief Prosecutor Williamson, not enough has been done in that regard, and additional efforts must be made. As it has done in the past, Serbia will do its utmost so that additional evidence can be provided with regard to organ trafficking. It is necessary that other countries too make efforts in order to make it possible for evidence of organ trafficking to find its way to the special court.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Serbia therefore expects that a special court be established soon - not later than the beginning of 2015 - in which it will be possible to indict the leaders of the KLA suspected of, among other things, crimes against humanity and war crimes. We are convinced that all countries that respect international law will insist on it. The widespread nature and magnitude ofthe crimes mentioned in the statement (S/2014/558, annex II) of the Chief Prosecutor call for a judicial epilogue, for only that can bring justice and peace to a great number of victims and their families. In that connection, we address a strong appeal to key actors in the international community to do, for their part, all that is necessary so that a special court is established by the beginning of the next year.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“That resulted in a large-scale ethnic cleansing of the Serbian and Roma populations from parts of Kosovo and Metohija south of the Ibar River. We concur with the assessment that the widespread and systematic nature of those crimes constitutes a basis for the prosecution of crimes against humanity and war crimes. Surely, the statement of the Chief Prosecutor (S/2014/558, annex II) on the results of the investigation so far is an immense contribution to the establishment of the responsibility of the KLA leaders for the crimes committed against the population, particularly the non-Albanian population of Kosovo and Metohija. However, justice will be served only if those who committed and ordered the heineous crimes - the KLA commanders who still walk free today - are tried in courts.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“We are not surprised by the fact that they faced numerous obstacles during their work, mostly the intimidation of Witnesses and the destruction of evidence. It is with appreciation that we accept the conclusion of Chief Prosecutor Williamson that enough evidence has been gathered to indict the KLA leaders responsible for the persecution of Serbs, Roma and members of other non-Albanian communities, as well as the Albanians of Kosovo and Metohija. As we understand from the statement of the Chief Prosecutor (S/2014/558, annex II), the campaign of persecution included killings, abductions, enforced disappearances, illegal detentions in camps both in Kosovo and Metohija and in Albania, sexual violence and other forms of inhuman treatment such as forced displacement, and the destruction of churches and other religious sites.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Serbia has therefore followed attentively the investigation of the EULEX Special Investigative Task Force and its Chief Prosecutor Clint Williamson of the allegations of the 2010 report of Swiss Senator Dick Marty, adopted in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, entitled "Inhuman treatment of people and illicit trafficking in human organs in Kosovo". First of all, let me recognize the efforts of Chief Prosecutor Williamson and all other members of the Special Investigative Task Force invested in the detailed investigation of the allegations from the report of Senator Marty regarding the crimes committed against the Serbs, Roma and Albanians of Kosovo and Metohija by the members of the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA).”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“The persons who took part in the ethnically motivated violence in March 2004 - the only pogrom committed on European soil in the twenty-first century - were tried for offences against public peace and order under the civil procedure. At the same time, no public records are available on ethnically motivated attacks on members of Serbian and other non-Albanian communities. The scope and type of those attacks are concealed by being catalogued as general crimes. The message thus sent to Serbs and other non-Albanians, in particular the returning ones, is that they are not welcome. The ethnically motivated crime is thus de-personalized, while offences against members of non-Albanian communities are tolerated. The perpetrators of killings, abductions and attacks on Serbs committed since June of 1999 have not yet been discovered and tried.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source
“Oliver Ivanovie continues to be detained, while he was indicted only in mid-August. The Government of Serbia has given guarantees that he will attend the trial, so the refusal to release him from detention is disrespectful of the Government of Serbia, which has contributed so much to the normalization of relations. We demand that Oliver lvanovie be released from detention. The data on the number of ethnically motivated crimes against members of non-Albanian communities remains incomplete, without explanation, as no investigation of the attacks on Serbs and their property has been successfully brought to an end. The percentage of perpetrators of attacks on members of Serbian and other non-Albanian communities discovered and tried in the past 15 years is well nigh zero.”
2014-08-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7257 (2014) · source