KOSOVO: THE ROAD TO PEACE
Publisher: ICG Balkans
Volume: 24 pages, pdf
Description:
While last spring saw conflict erupt in Kosovo's central Drenica region when Serbian security forces attacked and killed residents of the villages of Prekaz and Likoshan, this spring brings the possibility of peace. The proposed deployment of a 28,000-strong international force for Kosovo will dramatically and immediately halt the sporadic low-intensity battles between Serbian security forces and ethnic Albanian rebels that have displaced 300,000 people. This peace will allow refugees to return to their homes, and provide the day-to-day sense of security on the ground that will enable Kosovo's transition to self-government. Since the October 1998 cease-fire, fewer than 1,000 unarmed civilian verifiers in Kosovo have won over the trust of much of Kosovo's population, assisted displaced people, helped communities get water, heat and electricity turned back on, negotiated the release of kidnapped people, monitored court trials, intervened in disputes, and provided Kosovo's population with an underlying sense that the international community is engaged. However, these monitors have lacked the muscle to enforce the cease-fire, and have been forced at times to witness killings, mass displacements, and even massacres.