Doc. 8930

20 January 2001

Cultural situation in Kosovo

Information report

Committee on Culture and Education

Rapporteur: Elena Poptodorova, Bulgaria, Socialist Group

1. Introduction

Kosovo is a territory of 10,887 square Km (half the size of Slovenia) limited by Albania on the West, Montenegro on the Northwest, Serbia proper on the North and East and the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia on the Southeast (see appended map). Estimations of its present population are just above 2 million, making it more than twice as densely populated as the rest of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY). Of these some 2 million are Albanians, 100,000 are Serbs (half of the pre-war population), 50,000 are Muslim Slavs, 10,000 are Rom (one quarter of the pre-war population) and some 20,000 belong to other minorities.

Since the end of the war in June 1999 Kosovo has been administered by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) under Dr Kouchner, Special representative of the Secretary General. He will be replaced by Mr Haekkerup in January 2001.

Culture and education are amongst the first victims in any conflict: the war in Kosovo made no exception to this rule. At the same time, culture and education can be a most efficient long-term remedy for the prevention of such conflicts as they help to eradicate the stereotypes, prejudices and intolerance, which lead to them. On the other hand education can equally be (and has been) used to create conflicts.

In order to prepare this report, I visited Kosovo from 4 to 7 October 2000 in the company of Mr João Ary, the secretary to the committee. I met the Co-Heads of Department of Education and Culture, regional education and cultural officers and representatives of International Organisations, NGOs, the media and of the Albanian and Serb Communities in Pristina, Kosovska Mitrovica/Mitrovica, Pec/Peja and Gracanica/Ulpiana (see attached programme). Unfortunately it was not possible to meet those responsible for the fields of youth and sport. The Office of the Council of Europe in Pristina provided us with logistics and I am grateful to its Head, Ms Isabelle Servoz-Gallucci, for her support.

2. Historical overview

      A brief overview of the history of the region is indispensable to understand recent events and the present situation in Kosovo. For this I used essentially the excellent work by Noel Malcolm “Kosovo: A Short History”.

      The region of Kosovo was settled by Slav tribes between the 7th and 10th centuries and became a permanent part of the Serbian state by the beginning of the 13th century. By that time the Serb population might have outnumbered the Albanians and Vlachs who lived there before the arrival of the Slavs. It was not in this region that the Serbs first settled.

In 1389 the army of the Ottoman Sultan Murat fought that led by the Serbian Prince Lazar in the famous battle of Kosovo-Polje. It is well established that there were both Albanians and Serbs fighting in both armies. The outcome of the battle was not clear and the Serbian state lasted for another sixty years.

During the next five centuries, despite the fact that both the orthodox and catholic religions were tolerated and managed to survive, most of the Albanians (mainly catholic) and many Slavs (mainly orthodox) in Kosovo gradually converted into the religion of the rulers. There were migratory movements of Albanians and Serbs into and from Kosovo but no massive exodus or immigration. Records show Albanians assimilating into Serb communities and Serbs into Albanian communities.

In 1878 Serbia became again an independent kingdom but Kosovo stayed in the Ottoman Empire as an autonomous province. The Prizren League, set up by an Assembly of Albanians from different regions, called for the regrouping of all Albanians in one single province of the Empire. In 1880 the League requested the setting up of an autonomous state and declared itself and started to act as the provisional government of Albania (including Kosovo and western Macedonia).

In November 1912 the independence of Albania (including Kosovo) was declared in Vlora at a time, however, when Kosovo, most of the northern part and large parts of the south of today’s Albania had just been occupied by Serb and Montenegrin troops. In 1913 the Great Powers Ambassadors’ Conference in London recognised the independence of Albania but without Kosovo, part of Montenegro and part of Macedonia and, after these territories having been occupied by Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria in World War I, the Treaty of Saint Germain en Laye (1919) included them in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, which was to become Yugoslavia in 1929.

Established under the 1946 Constitution, the autonomy of Kosovo was considerably extended by the 1963 Constitution. In the 1974 Constitution the federal status of Kosovo was legally sanctioned as a constitutive element of the Yugoslav state. The autonomous province of Kosovo was a political community with many elements of statehood: an Assembly, a Government and it was even granted the right to a Constitution.

The principle of ethnic representation was applied: job hiring and enrolment at higher education institutes and the University were done according to the size of the population: roughly 80% Albanians and 20% Serbs. Communications were easy with Albania, from where textbooks were sent and professors came to the University of Pristina, which was created in 1970 as a bi-ethnic institution.

During the 1980s, a crucial period of economic and political deterioration inYougoslavia, relations between Albanians and Serbs worsened in Kosovo.

In February 1989 a general strike in Kosovo prompted Belgrade into declaring the region under status of exception. In March the curfew was imposed and the Constitution was changed to weaken the autonomy of the region. A year later the Federal Army was deployed in Kosovo, the political institutions were dissolved, the Serb police occupied the radio and television, schools were closed and Albanian newspapers were forbidden.

What happened in the next decade, the build up for the Serb aggression of 1998/99 and the reaction of the international community, have been discussed by the Assembly time and again and there is no need to repeat what was then said.

Despite historical evidence the history of this particular region has been often distorted for nationalistic purposes. Serbs often consider Kosovo as the cradle of their civilisation and some of the best (but not the oldest) examples of orthodox churches and monasteries were to be found there. Yet, as we saw, it was not in Kosovo that the Serbs first settled and it was not in Kosovo that the Serb Orthodox Church had its first seat. Also the battle of Kosovo-Polje of 1389, which most Serbs view as the direct cause of the annexation of the Balkans by the Ottoman Empire and of the annihilation of their own kingdom, is far from having had such consequences. Claims of massive exodus of Serbs from Kosovo or massive immigration of Albanians into Kosovo during the Ottoman period are also not confirmed by historical evidence.

3. Present situation

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999) calls for “substantial autonomy and meaningful self-administration for Kosovo” while reaffirming “the commitment (…) to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia”. The future status of Kosovo is yet to be discussed and agreed upon but it is pretty clear to anyone visiting the area that the Albanians will never accept to go back under Serb control. The Serbs we met did not feel concerned by the municipal elections in Kosovo and the Albanians were even less concerned with elections in Serbia. It should be noticed that all the political parties in Kosovo have independence as their top priority.

The two communities live completely separated with KFOR armed forces in between them. The regional education officer in Mitrovica told us that it was “impossible to move an Albanian across the bridge (into the Serb area) as he would be killed in less than five minutes” and we were told that if the soldiers protecting the Serb enclave of Gracanica/Ulpiana were a little less vigilant the Albanians “would come and kill the Serbs”. The Serbs can leave their enclaves only under heavy military protection. The situation of members of other minorities - Bosniaks, other Slavs, Roma (of whom there are at least three distinct groups known as Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians), Turks and Hungarians - who stayed in Kosovo differs from one region to the other and from one community to the other.

The international administration led by the UN which acts as the “de facto” government of Kosovo, is organised in three sectors called “pillars”. Pillar I, which was led by the UNHCR, dealt with humanitarian assistance and is no longer part of the administration, pillar II, under UNMIK itself deals with civil administration, pillar III, led by the OSCE, deals with democratisation and institution-building and pillar IV, managed by the EU, deals with economic reconstruction (the Council of Europe is not mentioned). The UNMIK Administration comprises 20 Departments, each one headed by a pair of co-heads and a pair of deputy co-heads. Each pair comprises an “international”, who is responsible for decision-making and a “local”, who acts as a consultant. Four of the 15 departments in pillar II deal with matters for which the Committee on Culture and Education is competent: Education and Science, Sports, Youth and Culture.

Many international and non-governmental organisations are present in Kosovo (we were told that 99 NGOs were active in the area of Kosovska Mitrovica/Mitrovica) and their relations are not always the best. Co-operation and co-ordination between them is not always as good as it should be.

4. Education

      During the times of former Yugoslavia Kosovo, which was an autonomous province in the republic of Serbia, had the same independence to organise its education as any of the republics of the federation. Albanian and Serb language education co-existed until 1989. After that education in Albanian went underground and for ten years there was a parallel (and illegal) education system in Albanian, which ranged from primary school to university and which functioned mainly in private homes and often in very difficult situations. Many teachers did not receive salaries and for ten years there was virtually no teacher training. School teaching is still very much about a teacher copying to the blackboard for half an hour and then pupils copying from the blackboard to their exercise books for another half hour.

      Both systems were disrupted in 1999 and the parallel system served as the basis to re-construct the new education system in Kosovo. UNMIK’s Department of Education and Science was set up in March 2000 and is headed by Michael Daxner, a former member of the Bureau of the CDCC’s Higher Education and Research Committee. Its medium term aim of a “multi-ethnic education system based on one unified curriculum taught through different language streams” seems very far away and will certainly not be implemented in the foreseeable future. Its first priorities were the re-habilitation or reconstruction of school buildings, their equipment and a rapid and incomplete revision of Albanian, Bosniak and Serb textbooks. This allowed for the school year 1999/2000 to go through without major problems. The role of UNICEF in coordinating the successful operation of getting so many schools opened and functionning in the aftermath of the conflict should be acknowledged even if current provisions fall some way below “European Standards”. Reconstruction will continue this year.

      The Albanian and Serb education systems are completely separated and independent. Some faculties of the University of Pristina seem to have moved to Serbia and some others function in a clandestine way in the north of Kosovska Mitrovica/Mitrovica. Mr Daxner told us that Albanians would never admit a Serb university and no Serb would survive in an Albanian university. When we were in Kosovska Mitrovica/Mitrovica we were told that it was very difficult to work with the Serbs because Belgrade had threatened any Serb who would co-operate with UNMIK with loosing his job and any rights to social security and pension. The new situation in Belgrade will no doubt ease co-operation with Serbs but certainly not between Serbs and Albanians. It was reported to us that the Serbs refused school certificates issued by UNMIK on the grounds that those certificates were printed in paper with a map of Kosovo as a watermark.

      As far as the other minorities (or what is left of them) are concerned situations vary from acceptance to intolerance but tensions are never as bad as between Albanians and Serbs.

      In Kosovska Mitrovica/Mitrovica there are Bosniaks on both sides attending Albanian schools in the South and Serbian schools in the North. In the region of Pec/Peja live important Bosniak and Roma minority groups. Roma children were victims of much violence caused by Albanians and parents were reluctant in sending their children to school. As a result it was estimated that less than half of Roma and Bosniak children attended school in 1999/2000. We were told that the situation had improved.

      In the region of Pec/Peja there are Bosniak schools which are attended also by Roma and Albanian children (in Bosniak language) but other Roma and Bosniak children are integrated in Albanian schools. There is a single Serb enclave of about 1000 inhabitants (protected by the KFOR) and its 150 children attend the village school in Serb. Local Albanian children however “attended school at home”. UNMIK education officers told us that education in the region of Pec/Peja was normal and the best in the whole Kosovo as far as segregation was concerned.

      The Council of Europe has been active in the field of education in Kosovo ever since the end of the war. Co-operation with Civitas in primary education was envisaged but had to be halted due to differences in approach of the two organisations. Earlier this year it signed a contract with UNMIK, sponsored by the World Bank, for technical assistance for the development of the University of Pristina.

In general, more progress has been made in the higher education sector than in the school sector, for a number of reasons. One is the role played by the Pristina working group of the Academic Task Force in coordinating action - uniting in particular the Council of Europe, the European Rectors Conference, the German Rectors Conference and a number of key governments. Another is the successful approval in October 2000 of an interim university statute, which is a concrete example of a tangible, achievement of the Council of Europe and provides an important basis for future development.

Nevertheless, the lack of certainty about the future status of Kosovo continues to be reflected in differing claims as to the legitimacy of the University of Pristina. The Kosovo Albanians maintain that they have recovered the institution (including property) which was legally theirs in the first place, while for the Serbs there is a view that they have been unlawfully driven out. UNMIK no longer pretends that a multi-ethnic university in Pristina can be (re)established in the foreseeable future.

The legal basis for the university is to be determined by an UNMIK regulation, drawn up in the course of the Council of Europe project, and currently in the process of being adopted through regular UN procedures. A higher education law will also be developed in the next stage of the project. This should be passed by the authorities in place (presumably either through the existing UNMIK structure, or by a future "Ministry of Education" within a Kosovo level quasi-autonomous government). However, developments in Serbia will also undoubtedly affect the situation.

      The educational system in Kosovo needs urgent, massive and continued support, not only because of the destruction of facilities and the lack of teachers but, above all, because of the ongoing segregation of children and students of different ethnic origin and because of the potential risk of developing educational policies based on nationalist rhetoric and hate speech. Other problems are the high drop out rate from primary to secondary education, in particular among girls and in the countryside, the inadequacy of teaching methods, the very low level of pre-school attendance, the lack of parental involvement since the end of the conflict.

5. Culture and cultural heritage

Another area of great concern, where urgent action is needed, is the protection of the rich cultural heritage. Some Orthodox churches and monasteries have been damaged or destroyed, not so much by the NATO bombing campaign but as a result of criminal acts by returning Albanians. We were told that these were aimed at modern orthodox churches rather at the ancient (and more valuable from the heritage point of view). The Islamic religious architecture has also been damaged and is still at risk and not only from the Orthodox side. We were told that a Saudi NGO involved in the building of 30 new mosques had bulldozed a 17^th Century mosque and Muslim cemetery (in Djakovica/Gjakova) and had white-painted ancient frescoes elsewhere. Precise figures are difficult to give, especially for the Islamic heritage for which there are few records, but any assessment of damage and destruction must cover both the Serbian and Albanian cultural heritage (religious buildings and historic architecture as well as libraries, archives and museums).

Cultural heritage is only one of the four areas of activity of the Cultural Department and is not seen as a priority either by the international community or by the local population (who is much more interested in reconstructing their own houses). As a result those responsible for the Cultural Department of UNMIK complain about their lack of means while the other actors in the field complain about the lack of policy from the part of the Cultural Department. During our visit we were informed about initiatives in the areas of performing arts (funded by the Soros Foundation), visual arts, cinema, radio, municipal libraries and also a project to make an assessment and then reconstruct the “kulas” in the region of Pec/Peja. It was quite clear however that these projects were isolated; there was no cultural policy, no overall view and no agreement on how to change the situation. We also had the impression that the Cultural Department was only interested in Albanian, but not in Serb culture and heritage: the responsible for culture in the Serb enclave of Gracanica/Ulpiana (6 Km from Pristina) complained that the Head of the Cultural Department had not visited the enclave.

In 2000, the Council of Europe started its activities in the field of cultural heritage in May, as part of an agreement signed with the European Commission to assess the situation of the cultural heritage in Kosovo. This study should be regarded as a contribution to assist the authorities (international and local) in defining priorities and guidelines for a future heritage policy. The recommendations proposed are in the perspective of an improved co-ordination between international partners and aim at engaging rapid legal and administrative reforms through a middle term action plan of transition.

      Several actions were carried out within this framework, namely three pilot actions in Pristina, Pec/Peja and Prizren with the view to initiating a survey of the built heritage in the perspective of reconstruction, rehabilitation and sustainable development. These actions mainly involved local experts. The Council of Europe, together with other partners, also supported an exhibition on the architectural heritage of Prizren to raise public awareness. The exhibition was presented in Prizren and Pristina and then it will travel across Europe.

6. Media

      After having been banned for a decade, Albanian language media are again present in Kosovo. However, according to journalist Arber Aliu (AIM Pristina), who analysed how seven dailies, three television stations and five radio stations were covering the electoral campaign, “journalism in Kosovo is facing a very significant test of survival in conditions of transition”. In Kosovo, only the Bota Sot paper (printed in Switzerland, but sold in Kosovo) declares itself as Right-oriented. The other media outlets claim to be independent. On the other hand, the broadcast media are still budding, the reason why many outlets do not carry editorials in their news. This is how they differ from the press, which does not hesitate to publish editorials.

Two types of donations are currently being given to the media in Kosovo. One segment of the media is definitely receiving party donations, the other foreign. The former defend their benefactors, while the latter pay little heed to the interests of political parties, their reporting being visibly freer. In general, the political differentiation of the media should be viewed as analogous to that of political parties. The Democratic Alliance of Kosovo, led by Ibrahim Rugova, enjoys the support of Bota Sot, whose circulation and market position are at the top. This paper, so to speak, has confrontations with politicians and public figures every week owing to its reports, often denied later. It is believed that exactly such articles were responsible for increasing the Democratic Alliance's electorate. The Alliance's biggest opponent, the Democratic Party of Kosovo, led by the former Kosovo Liberation Army leader, Hashim Thaci, is supported by three dailies: Dita, Rilindija and Epoka e Re. The Democratic Party is striving to equate its influence through the media via these three papers, though their combined circulation is still less than that of the Bota Sot. The other papers that claim to be independent, but depend on foreign donations, such as the Koha Ditore of Veton Surroi, the Kosovo Sot, published by Ruzhdi Kadriu and the Zeri, published by Blerim Shale, have almost equal circulations. They try not to give prominence to any particular party and hold a moderate position.

On the other hand there are no local Serbian media in Kosovo and certainly no mixed media. On this respect we were told of a joint Albanian and Serb initiative for a joint radio in Mitrovica, Radio Y, through which 12 young people broadcast in Serbian and in Albanian. Unfortunately this is the single example of co-operation between the two communities and its impact is limited.

7. Conclusion

The recent conflicts in the Balkans have clearly shown that the existing problems there cannot be tackled on the local level only. The Council of Europe commitment to the revival and the democratisation of processes in the field of culture and education in Kosovo should go alongside efforts in the same direction in Montenegro and Serbia.

The scope of the challenges that the Council of Europe has to face is unprecedented, yet its long experience in co-ordination and in providing expertise both in terms of technical assistance and in mediating complex questions of educational and cultural rights places it in a very strong position. It could for instance help to improve coordination of governmental, non governmental and inter-governmental organisations.

The successful work in higher education already accomplished in Kosovo through the World Bank funded project should be further developed and the Committee of Ministers should ensure that adequate means are made available to ensure that such action continues to be effective.

A response to dramatic educational needs in Kosovo - particularly in the school sector - is urgently required if the foundations of a democratic culture are to be laid. The wealth of experience of the Council of Europe in dealing with complex questions of educational rights - notably with regard to educational provision for minority populations, and inculcating respect for human rights throughout the education environment - should be fully utilised in developing and implementing a coordinated strategic plan involving the main International Community organisations (notably UNESCO, EU, UNICEF, World Bank).

      The Council of Europe should pursue its activities in Kosovo as a priority, taking full account of the evolving political environment in the region. Opportunities for regional and wider European cooperation in the education field should be further promoted and developed. Such academic partnership and exchange offers not only educational and professional benefits for individuals and institutions, but can also play a vital role in reconciliation between peoples, and in generating hope in the region that the future will be constructed upon common European values. The Council of Europe, as the only truly pan-European organisation existing to promote and safeguard human rights and fundamental freedoms, has a moral and political imperative to promote and lead such action.

      A thorough assessment of the needs for assistance to culture, education, media, cultural heritage, youth and sport issues should be made.

Appendix I

Appendix II

Programme of the visit

Mission of Mrs Poptodorova, Rapporteur, and Mr Ary, Secretary,

Committee on Culture and Education

Wednesday 4 October

15.10 :       Arrival in Skopje’s airport (Mrs Poptodorova).

15.55 : Arrival in Skopje’s airport (Mr Ary).

Transfer to Pristina by CoE car

19.30 :       Meeting with Ms Isabelle SERVOZ-GALLUCCI, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Pristina (Grand Hotel)

Thursday 5 October

08.00 : Departure from Grand Hotel for Kosovska Mitrovica/Mitrovica :

- Meeting with Mr Patrick DUONG, Regional Education Officer (together with Mr Mazza, Education Director, Council of Europe, and Mr Husain, Unesco)

- Meeting with Ms Svetlana PENCHEVA, Regional Culture Officer, and representatives of international and Albanian and Serb non-governmental organisations

12.00 : Departure for Pec/Peja :

- Meeting with Mr Taro KOMATSU, Regional Education Officer, Mr ASLANI, Kosovo Centre for Human Rights and representatives from two ethnic minorities (together with Mr Mazza and Mr Husain)

16.30 : Meeting with Ms Chantal LE HOUEROU, Regional Culture Officer

17.30 : Departure for Pristina

20.00:       Meeting with the Ambassador of the USA (Mrs Poptodorova)

Friday 6 October

08.30 :       Meeting with Mr Gonzalo RETAMAL, Head of Department of Culture and Mr GUEDDES,

      Department of Culture

10.15:       Meeting with Mr Michael DAXNER, Head of Department of Education, Mr BURKE, Deputy Head, and others (together with Mr Mazza and Mr Husain)

      Department of Education, Eximkos Building

12.30:       Meeting with Mrs Edita TAHIRI, Foreign Policy Advisor to Mr Rugova

14.30:       Departure for Gracanica and meeting with Ms Pascale DELPECH, Regional Cultural Officer, Pristina and with local representatives for Education, Culture and Sport.

 19.30:        Return to Pristina and meeting with representatives of UNICEF, Ms Caroline FORD, Programme Co-ordinator, Ms Noala SKINNER, Ms Aferdita SPAHIU and Ms Véronique HECKMANN

Saturday, 7 October

10.00:       Participation in the OSCE Conference “Women in Politics: an agenda for Kosovo’s Communities”

12.00:       Lunch with Mr Victor RUFFY, Head of the Council of Europe Election Observation Mission.

13.00:       Departure to the Airport (Mr Ary)

Meeting with Mr Veton SURROI, Director of the newspaper “Koha Ditore”

Reporting committee: Committee on Culture and Education

Reference to the committee: Doc. 8602, and Reference No. 2474 of 28 January 2000

Approved by the committee on 13 December 2000

Secretaries to the dommittee: Mr Ary, Mrs Theophilova-Permaul and Ms Kostenko