The recent violent incidents in Kosovo were expected by those who have been monitoring the situation and have seen the dark clouds gathering on the horizon for some time. On the other hand, those who were completely absorbed by the events in Iraq and the front of international terrorism considered that, more or less, the problems in the Balkans had been resolved.
“The burned churches and mosques, the dead, as well as the events of the past few months, require us to seriously reconsider what is happening in our neighborhood as a whole.”
The resurgence of violence was inevitable in Kosovo, a country with an unclear legal status, devastated by bombings, under the administration of the UN since 1999, without strong democratic institutions, with networks trafficking women, weapons, and drugs operating almost unchecked, and with two communities—Albanians and Serbs—divided by abyssal hatred.
The burned churches and mosques, the dead, as well as the events of the past few months, require us to seriously reconsider what is happening in our neighborhood as a whole. In Serbia, in March 2003, the pro-Western Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić was assassinated, while last December, individuals who have been accused of war crimes were re-elected to Parliament. In Croatia, the electorate brought back to power the same nationalist party whose leadership had engaged in ethnic cleansing in Bosnia a decade ago. In Bosnia-Herzegovina, the same bleak picture. The Dayton Agreement ended the massacres in 1995, but it created a weak government, two deeply divided communities, three peoples, ten cantons in half the country, and three armies. Some others talk about the Albanian issue in the Balkans.
It became clear very quickly that building peace and democracy is much more difficult than starting a war. This troubling situation in the Balkans was the reason that motivated some of us, a month ago, to take the initiative, together with a photography exhibition on the old bridge of Mostar, to once again discuss peace, reconciliation, and the European prospects of the Balkans. “I am Bosnian and Muslim. I hate no one,” said Harry S. Iljazic, former Prime Minister of Bosnia from 1993-96, while signing the Olympic Truce at the Zappeion.
In the Yugoslav war, at least 150,000 men, women, and children were killed. More than two million former Yugoslavs were displaced from their homes by other former Yugoslavs. In this former country, the horrific sight of an
Within this ethnic, linguistic, religious, historical, and political complexity, newspapers and television reports focused on a few simple stories: mutilated bodies, elderly women crying, ruined mosques, destroyed churches, and cities. In reality, each part of this story would require a book to explain.
Certainly, the future of the Balkan countries will depend on solving the horrific problems left behind by the war. Europe cannot be peaceful and secure as long as violence, nationalist hatred, and conflict persist within its borders. Greece has given its unwavering support to the European orientation of the countries in the Balkans. The conclusions of the European Council in Thessaloniki in June 2003 emphasize that “it is determined to fully and effectively support the European perspective of the countries of the Western Balkans, which will become an integral part of the Union once they meet the established criteria.”
Anna Karamanou
In other words, the Balkans are called to establish functional and resilient democracies. This requires the creation of new social relationships, the promotion of dialogue, and the participation of citizens to build societies with a common vision, that will respect individual and social rights, gender equality, the principles of the rule of law, the rights of minorities, societies that will respect national, religious, sexual, and other differences. What happens in the Balkans concerns and affects the vital interests of our country. PASOK made Greece an active geopolitical player and a pillar of peace in the region. We expect to see whether ND will continue on the path charted by Simitis-Papandreou.
*PASOK MEP www.karamanou.gr
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War and Peace in the Balkans
“The burned churches and mosques, the dead, as well as the events of the past few months, require us to seriously reconsider what is happening in our neighborhood as a whole.”
Anna Karamanou