Kosovo: A Northern View

Here follows a view of the current situation in north Kosovo from the northern Serb perspective. It does not necessarily represent my view but is, more importantly, an authentic voice from those on the barricades. They deserve to be heard too.
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DAY 136
 
New record in civil disobedience in Serbia. Milosevic made it only for 78 days against NATO, while protest of citizens against his regime in ‘96 and ‘97 lasted 88 days and students made it more then 117 days.
 
It is a first winter morning with snowfalls, here today. It all started one hot July night when someone’s plan was to ignite the crises with possible outcome of permanent 'resolving' of 'problem' of North and its criminals, about 50,000 of them. Fortunately, the plan apparently approved and coordinated with Uncle Sam has failed and criminals have only become hoodlums. During these few months people in the North, or let’s say hoodlums in that time, have become core of interest of regional and international media and politicians. Some of their own compatriots have even tried to make them look as non-democratic, politically motivated smugglers who only care about their own profits. This has then changed in past two months and most of the international and local media have finally started to present the crowd, who was obviously just scarred about their own future and careful about all of the pranks coming from south of the Ibar River, as Northerners – ordinary people tired of trying to defend themselves from something they don’t see as their choice.
 
Well, exactly the question of choice is the core of the ‘problem’ Northerners feel here. Nobody from international community or any other party have ever asked themselves what do the Northerner think about this apparent ‘reality’ they are under constant attack from to be assimilated in. They, who send the reports to their mission headquarters in Brussels, New York, Washington and maybe to the Moon, sit comfortably in the nice offices in Pristina, close to a fancy restaurant probably built from the funds with unknown origin and have never come north of Ibar River and spoke directly with people, probably because of the lack of respect. This is the problem which is now chronic for the past 12 years. The very same people send a report that ‘problem’ of the North are few insurgents, probably members of the nationalistic parties and some criminals who work closely with criminals from south and once these people are discredited, the majority will be able to live normal life under the framework of the plan which I do not like to name here. If they are so right then they would not need to throw down the Ibar River so much money of European and American tax payers, who do not live in prosperity these days and would probably not be very happy when they would be aware of this fact. It would be much more profitable for all if they would pay this money first to fund a proper survey data in order to hear and understand what the Northerners really think.
 
However, maybe the true should not be set out and it is not their real plan to have the outcome which is not the one they would like. If that would be the case then the Northerners will on their own have to find the best possible way out to resolve this question above all other questions. Maybe a simple referendum based in accordance with effective legal framework would be possible way out of this situation when two sides claim different reality, or not.
 
Whatever the case would be, some of us are bit tired of UAV’s flying low in the middle of the night and the arrogance of the heli pilots sending their own messages by flying low above the downtown. Accidentally, most of these vehicles are US KFOR property. They refuse to understand and accept the soberness/stubbornness of the Balkan people. Maybe they still need to try ‘Sljivovica’.
 
Latest development over the brand new deals from Brussels is new worry for Northerners and another test of their trust. The removal of barricade in Jagnjenica Village has been presented as people hearing reason and beginning of obedience to call from Belgrade to withdraw. The additional argument was removal of some barricades near Gate 1. This was however just a set of practical steps to allow better movement possibilities. The Northerners are still pretty much on the same positions regarding the barricades and will wait to have presentation of final or at least semi-final agreement for the north gates, as the one available through media is just a skeleton for further arrangements. Maybe, they will just have to trust, to a trust Belgrade got verbally in Brussels, which leaves new maneuver space for Pristina to enforce set of regulations to which the EULEX will be bound to in accordance to its mandate. At the end of a day it will be another headache for a mission who failed to stay status neutral and provide Rule of Law under the provisions of UN SC Resolution 1244, and will apparently completely fall apart as a consequence of a status positive virus disease. It looks like that the pieces of EULEX mission are self-removing in order to keep the benignity status. This is just a roomer, but wherever there is a smoke, there must be a blue hat (not helmet), too.
 
As a simple people, the only thing we can do is to stay calm, wait and see how the things will develop after the 9 December 2011, a day when Serbia should get its candidacy, the one which looks like a candidacy to become a member of region in Germany, rather then a member candidate to European Union. Maybe we should propose the status of Euro-Autonomy of the North. It looks like everything is possible in EU these days. To some there are more conditions than you can type words in one minute, while for the others the same word is spelled ‘welcome’. Maybe they see us the same eyes we see their mess-up mission in Kosovo, but still most of us feel like Europeans who, looks like, have better manners then those flying in Kosovo in past few months and those sitting in mission head offices in Pristina.
 
In the meanwhile, everybody should hold their breath in Serbia, including the south part (Serbian Province) until the COB 9 December 2011. Then we can continue drinking ‘rakija’ 1 peacefully until someone comes to our table to see where we live and how our reality realy looks like. We are famous to be good hosts and we invite them to join us.
 
By the Northerner,
in Kosovska Mitrovica,
8 December 2011
 
1 - It is a period of family name celebrations, ‘Slava’. Coincidently, tomorrow is St. Alypius the Stylite day, who was famous to be firm to live alone and escaped to a dilapidated pagan temple in Greece, where he spent 53 years on a pillar he placed on this site. He died at the age of 118. As he placed the cross there and remove the pagan signs, people started to visit this place and built two monasteries on the site after his death.