Statement by the Head of OSCE Mission to Serbia on developments in South Serbia
BELGRADE, 8 September 2011 – The Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Ambassador Dimitrios Kypreos, made the following statement today:
“The OSCE Mission to Serbia as well as others in the international community has been engaged in South Serbia since 2001. The main principle of this engagement has been the development of this area according to best international standards and, in this context, ensuring that the rights of Serbia’s Albanian minority are fully respected.
“The situation in South Serbia is considerably more stable than it was in December 2000, when the Co-ordination Body between the government of Serbia and Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja was created. Much work still remains to be done, however, in promoting the region’s economic development. The role of the Co-ordination Body continues to be essential in facilitating contacts between the central authorities and the ethnic Albanian community.”
“The involvement of the international community, and the OSCE in particular, in co-operation with the Serbian authorities and local politicians in South Serbia has produced positive results, as exemplified recently by:
- continued efforts for greater inclusion of ethnic Albanians in state institutions;
- the creation of the Albanian National Minority Council in 2010 through a direct election, as an additional instrument for facilitating dialogue with the government and advancing the rights of the ethnic Albanian community in its mandated areas;
- strong involvement in the development of a bilingual higher education facility in Bujanovac;
- the establishment of a multi-ethnic local government in Bujanovac;
- finalization of the plans for the establishment of a maternity ward in Presevo;
- strong engagement for the provision of textbooks to the ethnic Albanian pupils at all levels of education.”
“The Co-ordination Body remains the necessary forum for further work in areas related to the full implementation of the rights of the Albanian minority. Recognizing that many of these issues have seen long delays, we hope to see increased efforts by Belgrade to hire ethnic Albanians for positions in state institutions, the provision of all textbooks for grades 1 to 4 in the Albanian language, the establishment of the Bujanovac Higher Education Unit of Economics by mid-October of this year, and the establishment of the maternity ward in Presevo before the end of 2011.
“We also consider that the participation in the coming census of citizens of all ethnicities in this country is consistent with their rights and duties. Participation will assist government decision makers in better planning development projects for the region.
“Full respect for minority rights must proceed in parallel with respect on the part of the citizenry for the legal environment of the state, in a spirit of civic participation.”