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22 October 1998 Edition

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Kosovo, a war by massacre

As the massacres continue and hundreds of thousands of Albanian refugees flee their destroyed villages, NATO hypocrisy and diplomatic bellydancing continue.

By Mary Maguire

As the diplomatic moves continue in Belgrade, the world sits silently as slaughter by Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic continues at a stone's throw from the EU.

On Monday, the United Nations cancelled two aid convoys because of renewed heavy fighting and shelling. Despite so-called ceasefires after the Belgrade agreement was struck last week, regular Yugoslav army units with tanks and artillery, as well as paramilitary death squads moved into the capital Pristina. NATO air-strike threats may smooth the conscience of its member states, but the confirmed lack of political will has encouraged the war dog Milosevic to act more freely than ever.

According to the agreement, the Serb death squads should have withdrawn their forces from the region or face NATO air-strikes. A 2,000-strong unarmed international monitoring force is to be sent to the province to verify that both sides abide by the peace agreement. But where access is denied to humanitarian aid workers, massacres continue on a scale yet to be discovered. The trickles of information brought by the international media are only the tip of the iceberg. And the available reports speak for themselves: last week, an 18-month-old toddler was shot through the head at close range. A pregnant mother was tortured before being shot between the legs. Men aged between 15 and 60 are systematically targeted by Serb death squads. Officially designated as policemen, the loyalist militias carrying out the killings and looting are `Arkan's Tigers', who openly brag about how they slaughtered Muslim and Croat civilians in Bosnia.

It is no surprise that the name of Arkan's Tigers rings a bell in our heads. The similarities between the war in Bosnia and Kosovo are numerous. The ethnic cleansing orchestrated by Milosevic in Kosovo is aimed at forcing the 90% ethnic Albanian population across the borders into neighbouring Macedonia, Albania. As for Milosevic's objectives, they couldn't be clearer: cleanse the so-called Kosovo `province' and rehouse Serb refugees that were forced out of Kraijina by the Croats during the war in Bosnia.

The fact that the Dayton peace agreement did not deal with Kosovo had already sent shock waves. From 1991 to 1995, Kosovo Albanians had watched, trembling, as the massacres unfolded in central Bosnia. They knew they would be next on Milosevic's bloody list. His jigsaw of a Greater Serbia, pure from any form of religion apart from the Orthodox would be incomplete without their land. Also, it had been years since Milosevic had made his intentions clear. In 1989, just after rising to power, he stripped Kosovo of the full autonomy that it had been granted in 1974.

Since then, the Kosovo Albanians lived under the iron fist of Belgrade. The Serbian army and police continually raided houses of political activists. Albanian schools and cultural centres were ordered to shut down, as the Serbian language and orthodox religion was imposed. Civil rights became a thing of the past. Young men opposing the regime were arrested and jailed after marionette-style trials.

The failure of Kosovar pacifist leader Ibrahim Rugova to win any concessions from Milosevic on issues such as partial autonomy or civil and cultural rights these past years laid the ground for the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). Since it first appeared in 1996, it has grown relentlessly. Its commanders on the ground have been quick at improvising while its leading strategists live in Germany and Switzerland. As a guerrilla army, although seriously lacking coordination and communication means, it has had some successes. Its men, drawn from the local population have got basic arms training. No more. Faced with death squads equipped with heavy artillery and a bloody desire to kill, they seem trapped. But their true strength and endurance may yet to be discovered, as this war is far from over.


New Anti-Racist group formed



Last Saturday a new Federation of Anti-Racist Campaigns was formed consisting of the Anti-Racist Campaign (Dublin), Mid-West Against Racism (Limerick/Galway) and Immigrant Solidarity (Cork). Each of these campaigns will enjoy local autonomy but the Federation will pursue a national strategy against deportations and new anti-immigration legislation.

The Federation has called on all anti-racists to attend a demonstration at the new government refugee centre on Mount Street, Dublin on Friday 23 October at 1pm. This demonstration has been called by 47 Roma men, women and children at present appealing a unilateral dismissal of all their asylum cases. If their appeal is dismissed they face instant deportation.

UN supports Cuban resolution



The UN General Assembly has approved a resolution demanding the lifting of the blockade of Cuba, which has been maintained by the United States for almost 40 years. The resolution urges states in which coercive legislation and measures against Cuba are still being applied to take the necessary steps to repeal or annul them as rapidly as possible.

The text was approved by an overwhelming majority, with 157 countries voting in favour, two against (the US and Israel) and 12 abstentions. This is the seventh time that the UN has passed a resolution against the blockade. On each occasion the voting has reflected the international community's rejection of Washington's Cuba policy.

Just before the resolution was submitted to the General Assembly, a report to the UN members containing numerous criticisms of the blockade was made public by Koffi Annan, its General Secretary.

The report notes that at least 58 countries - including Britain, as current president of the Council of ministers of the European Union (EU) - and seven of the UN system's agencies and bodies rejected the aggressive Washington policy.

Pinochet arrested in UK


The arrest of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet in London - on foot of warrants from a Spanish court - has brought hope for the relatives of those who were tortured and killed in Chile and also to those who had to leave the country fleeing from repression during the dictatorship era. But it is also awakening the memories of all those that directly collaborated, supported and allowed Pinochet's crimes.

Pandora's box is open. The first reaction of Chilean PM, Eduardo Frei - who was visiting Spain at the time of the arrest - was to attack the Spanish magistrates Garzón and Castellón, reminding them that no action was taken against any of those responsible for repression and crimes after Franco's death. A sympathetic José María Aznar - the Spanish PM - spoke of understanding the ``particular characteristics of Chilean and Argentinian democracies''.

Meanwhile, Chilean refugees in the UK, supported by human rights groups, are preparing their own court case in England.

The order of extradition for Pinochet has been challenged by the Spanish Attorney General, Eduardo Fungairiño. The attorney maintains that the Spanish judges have not jurisdiction, so they cannot arrest and judge Pinochet, because the crimes that he is accused of took place in Chile. Just a few months ago, Fungairiño described repression in Chile during the dictatorship as ``a small, unimportant mistake''.

The arrest has caused opposed reactions in Chile. Cars with chauffeurs brought 200 demonstrators to the gates of the British embassy in Santiago de Chile. Hours later, public transport was used by left-wing demonstrators and human rights activists, who partied in the centre of the city celebrating the detention of the former dictator. No more tea for Pinochet with Baroness Maggie Thatcher for a while.

By Soledad Galiana


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