Serbian Military And Ethnic Albanians example essay topic

1. Introduction 1.1 Topic For the past ten years, ethnic Albanians and Serbians have been battling over the control of Kosovo. Both sides demanded control of Kosovo for cultural reasons; reasons that would eventually cause 848,000 ethnic Albanians to either flee the region or be killed. In 1998 a UN lead NATO force began the systematic elimination of Serbian armed forces occupying Kosovo villages.

After 78 days of sustained bombardment, armed forces from England, US, Pakistan, France, Germany and Russia moved into Kosovo and the extent of atrocities committed by the Serbian army was apparent. Mass graves of over 1000 Albanians were unearthed, and reports of systematic ethnic cleansing of Albanians from refuges became more evident. As the peacekeepers began to gain control of the escalating situation, Serbian terrorist attacked troop convoys and refugee camps and started skirmishes with NATO troops in villages and small towns. For the next decade, UN forces have been continuously harried with terrorist attacks and bombings in Albanian populated areas. To this day there are over 4000 peacekeepers in the Balkans and over 3000 UN personnel.

During NATO occupation, light has been shed on the many thousands of 'disappearances' of Albanian men women and children. Documents show a multitude of war crimes committed including: looting of homes and businesses, use of human shields, rape, violations of medical neutrality and identity cleansing (destruction of all pieces of identity such as licence plates, identification papers and birth certificates). Unfortunately, these and many more undiscovered crimes against humanity have been continuing despite NATO efforts. 1.2 Definition (See Appendix 1) Kosovo is located in the southern end of the Balkans, north of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and has seen countless centuries of religious and racial warfare. Its centrality has subjugated many different cultures, and wars have been commonplace for the Serbian and Albanians for many generations. These two groups consider Kosovo as their religious crux and would be no more willing to leave their religious locations, as Jews would be to abandon Jerusalem.

Ethnic cleansing is defined as: The systematic elimination of an ethnic group or groups from a region or society, as by deportation, forced emigration, or genocide (1). The Serbian Government, (Currently declared a Rogue State By the UN) and many East Bloc (2) trained terrorist groups orchestrated the forced removal of Ethnic Albanians and systematic destruction of Albanian identity. 1.3 Aims o Reduce conflict and skirmishes in Kosovo. o Establish stability in resident government Gradual withdrawal of NATO armed personnel over time. o Reduction in street riots and terrorist activity. o If civil unrest cannot be accomplished, division of land similar to that of Jordan should be attempted. Disarmament and prosecution of terrorist minorities. o Reestablishment of refugees into Kosovo. o Redevelopment of destroyed villages and buildings. o Police and other Kosovo legal forces strengthened. 2.

Findings The following War Crimes (Outlined by the Geneva Convention) were committed by Serbian armed forces (3) o Forcible Displacement of Kosovar Albanian Civilians: Serbian authorities conducted a campaign of forced population movement. In contrast to actions taken during 1998, Yugoslav Army units and armed civilians joined the police in systematically expelling Kosovar Albanians at gunpoint from both villages and larger towns in Kosovo. o Looting of Homes and Businesses: There are numerous reports of Serbian forces robbing residents before burning their homes. Another round of robbery occurred as Serbian forces stole from fleeing Kosovars as they crossed the border to Montenegro, Albania, or Macedonia. o Widespread Burning of Homes: Over 1,200 residential areas were at least partially burned after late March 1999. Kosovar Albanians have reported that over 500 villages were burned after March 1999. o Use of Human Shields: Refugees claim that Serbian forces used Kosovar Albanians to escort military convoys and shield facilities throughout the province. Other reporting indicates that Serbian forces intentionally positioned ethnic Albanians at sites they believed were targets for NATO airstrikes. o Detentions: Serbian forces systematically separated military-aged men from the general population as Kosovars were expelled.

These men were detained in facilities ranging from cement factories to prisons. Many of these detainees were forced to dig trenches and were physically abused. At least 2,000 Kosovar Albanians remain in detention in around a dozen Serbian prisons today. o Summary Executions: There are accounts of summary executions at about 500 sites across Kosovo. o Exhumation of Mass Graves: Serbian forces burned, destroyed, or exhumed bodies from mass graves in an attempt to destroy evidence. Some were reinter red in individual graves. o Rape: There are numerous accounts indicating that the organized and individual rape of Kosovar Albanian women by Serbian forces was widespread. For example, Serbian forces systematically raped women in Djakovica and Pec, and in some cases rounded up women and took them to hotels where they were raped by troops under encouragement of their commanders. Rape is most likely an under reported atrocity because of the stigma attached to the victims in traditional Kosovar Albanian society. o Violations of Medical Neutrality: Kosovar Albanian physicians, patients and medical facilities were systematically attacked.

Many health care facilities were used as protective cover for military activities; NGOs report the destruction by Serbian forces of at least 100 clinics, pharmacies, and hospitals. o Identity Cleansing: Kosovar Albanians were systematically stripped of identity and property documents including passports, land titles, automobile license plates, identity cards, and other forms of documentation. As much as 50 percent of the population may be without any sort of documentation. By systematically destroying schools, places of worship, and hospitals, Serbian forces sought to destroy social identity and the fabric of Kosovar Albanian society. Kosovar Albanians have reported that over 500 villages burned from late March 1999. The following villages are confirmed as having been mostly burned or entirely destroyed. BajcinaBajgora BanjaBatlava Bela CrvkaBradas CelinaCrebnikCrni LugDobr Do Do nja PenduhaDonja Lapis tica Donzi StreociDumos Gajrak Gene GodisnjakGorane Gornji ZakutGornje Pakistica Gornji Crnobreg Gornji Stre oci Jablanica Jovi c Kacandol Klin cina LetanceLipovac Lu zane Mam usa Mad are Mala HocaMalisevo Mir usa Neprebiste Novo Selo Belovo Ostrozub Pakistica PantinaPasoma RadosteRandubravaRetimnje Rog ovo Skorosnik S latina SmacSopnicStanica Done Ljupce Suv i Do V laski Drenovac Vucitrn VujitunZrze Zy mo Numerous reports by Kosovar Albanian refugees reveal that the organized and individual rape of Kosovar Albanian women by Serbian forces was widespread.

According to Kosovar Albanians, Serbian forces systematically raped women in Djakovica and Pec. Kosovar Albanian women reportedly were separated from their families and sent to an army camp near Djakovica, where Serbian soldiers raped them repeatedly. In Pec, Kosovar Albanians said that Serbian forces rounded up young Kosovar Albanian women and took them to the Hotel Karagac, where they were raped repeatedly. The commander of the local base was said to have used a roster of soldiers' names to allow all of his troops an evening in the hotel. A victim who escaped her captors reported that Serbian forces used a second hotel in Pec, the Metohia, for raping Kosovar Albanian women. In addition to these three specific accounts, numerous Kosovar Albanians claim that during Serbian raids on their villages, young women were gang raped in homes and on the sides of roads.

There are probably many more incidents than have not been reported because of the stigma attached to the survivors in traditional Kosovar Albanian society. Medical facilities have reported abortions among refugee women who reported being raped by Serbian forces. o Since June 10, between 200 and 400 Serb residents of Kosovo have been killed, thousands of Serb homes and apartments have been torched, destroyed, or looted, and according to Serbian Orthodox Church officials, more than 40 Serbian Orthodox churches and monasteries have been damaged or destroyed. In one of the worst incidents, on July 23, 1999, 14 Serb farmers were killed while working their fields near the village of Grads ko. On August 11, an international forensic team completed a site investigation at Llapushnica and confirmed finding a mass grave containing seven bodies. While none of the bodies had been positively identified at that time, preliminary indications suggest that the victims were Serbs. This map shows the Albanian majority in 1997, the year before the Kosovo War.

This is the current distribution of Albanians in Kosovo. This shows the extent of the genocide and forced removal of Albanians committed by the Serbian Army. o On November 10, 1999, ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte told the U.N. Security Council that her office had received reports of more than 11,000 killed in 529 reported mass grave and killing sites in Kosovo. The Prosecutor said her office had exhumed 2,108 bodies from 195 of the 529 known mass graves. This would imply about 6,000 bodies in mass graves in Kosovo if the 334 mass graves not examined thus far contain the same average number of victims. To this total must be added three important categories of victims: (1) those buried in mass graves whose locations are unknown, (2) what the ICTY reports is a significant number of sites where the precise number of bodies cannot be counted, and (3) victims whose bodies were burned or destroyed by Serbian forces. Press accounts and eyewitness accounts provide credible details of a program of destruction of evidence by Serbian forces throughout Kosovo and even in Serbia proper.

The number of victims whose bodies have been burned or destroyed may never be known, but enough evidence has emerged to conclude that Serbian forces killed probably around 10,000 Kosovar Albanians. o Death represents only one facet of Serbian actions in Kosovo. Over 1.5 million Kosovar Albanians -- at least 90 percent of the estimated 1998 Kosovar Albanian population of Kosovo -- were forcibly expelled from their homes. Tens of thousands of homes in at least 1,200 cities, towns, and villages have been damaged or destroyed. During the conflict, Serbian forces and paramilitaries implemented a systematic campaign to ethnically cleanse Kosovo.

The following is a partial list of war crimes, violations of international humanitarian law, or other human rights violations reported throughout Kosovo: Forcible Displacement of Ethnic Albanian Civilians Serbian authorities conducted a campaign of forced population movement on a scale seldom seen in Europe since the 1940's. They drove the vast majority of the ethnic Albanian population from their homes. The Serbian regime's claim that this population outflow was the result of voluntary flight in fear of NATO airstrikes is not supported by the accounts of victims. Victims consistently reported being expelled from their homes by Serbian forces at gunpoint, in contrast to the fighting of 1998, when the bulk of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees fled to escape the crossfire or to avoid reprisals by Serbian security forces. Many victims were herded onto trains and other organized transport and expelled from the province.

In addition, Serbian forces expelled the majority of Kosovar Albanians from urban areas such as Djakovica. Refugees say that those forced to remain behind were used as human shields. Serbian forces also disguised themselves as refugees to prevent targeting from NATO aircraft. Refugees claimed that on May 6, Serbian forces dressed in white hats and jackets with Red Cross and Red Crescent logos moved with convoys of IDPs between Djakovica and Brekovac. In order to conceal their military cargo, Serbian forces covered their wagons with plastic tarpaulins taken from NGOs. In contrast to 1998, when Serbian security forces attacked small villages, Yugoslav Army units and armed civilians this year joined the police in systematically expelling ethnic Albanians at gunpoint from both villages and the larger towns of Kosovo.

Serbian authorities forced many refugees to sign disclaimers saying they were leaving Kosovo of their own free will. Victims also reported that the Serbian forces confiscated their personal belongings and documentation, including national identity papers, and told them to take a last look around because they would never return to Kosovo. Many of the places targeted had not been the scenes of previous fighting or UCK activity. This indicates that the Serbian expulsions were an exercise in ethnic cleansing and not a part of a legitimate security or counter-insurgency operation, but instead a plan to cleanse the province of a significant proportion of its ethnic Albanian population. Looting of Homes and Businesses There are numerous reports from victims and the press of Serbian forces going house-to-house robbing residents before burning their homes. In addition, Kosovar Albanian victims claimed that Serbian forces robbed them of all their personal belongings before they crossed the borders.

Widespread Burning of Homes Over 1,200 residential areas, including over 500 villages, were burned after late March, 1999. Most Serbian homes and stores remained intact during the conflict, and Serbian civilians in many towns painted a Cyrillic 'S' on their doors so that Serbian forces would not attack their homes by mistake. The destruction is much more extensive and thorough than that which occurred in the summer of 1998. Many settlements were totally destroyed in an apparent attempt to ensure that the Kosovar Albanian population could not return. Serbian forces reportedly burned all houses previously rented to the OSCE in Vucitrn, Stimlje, and Kosovska Mitrovica. Mass burnings of villages waned towards the end of the campaign, by time many Kosovar Albanian homes had been abandoned.

Those homes that were still intact were sometimes taken over by Serbian security forces. Use of Human Shields Serbian forces compelled Kosovar Albanians to accompany Serbian military convoys and shield facilities throughout the province. The extent to which civilians were used to shield military assets is difficult to measure, because Serbian units also escorted or herded Kosovar Albanians in the course of military operations. Beginning in mid-April, Serbian forces used Kosovar Albanian men to shield military convoys from NATO airstrikes. Serbian forces reportedly removed young Kosovar Albanian men from refugee columns and forced them to form a buffer zone around Serbian convoys. Numerous Kosovar Albanians claimed to have witnessed and participated in this activity on the roads between Pec, Djakovica, and Kosovska Mitrovica.

In at least one instance -- Kori sa -- Serbian forces intentionally positioned ethnic Albanians at sites that they believed were targets for NATO airstrikes. In other instances, unconfirmed reports say Kosovar Albanians were kept concealed within NATO target areas apparently to generate civilian casualties that could be blamed on NATO. In addition, Kosovar Albanian reports claimed that Serbian forces compelled Kosovar Albanian men to don Serbian military uniforms, probably so they could not be distinguished by NATO and UCK surveillance. Detentions Kosovar Albanians have claimed that Serbian forces systematically separated military-aged ethnic Albanian men -- ranging from as young as 14 to 59 years old -- from the population as they expelled Kosovar Albanians from their homes.

Refugees reported early in April that Serbian forces used the Ferro-Nickel factory in Glogovac as a detention centre for a large number of Kosovar Albanians. According to refugees, a cement factory in D eneral Jankovic had also been temporarily used as a detention centre for Kosovar Albanians. The prisoners reportedly were released in late April. From May 21 to early June, some 2,000 Kosovar Albanian men entered Albania after being detained by Serbian forces for three weeks in a prison in Smrekovnica near Srbija.

Serbian authorities were apparently looking for UCK members and sympathizers among the prisoners. While detaining the men, the Serbian authorities forced them to dig trenches and physically abused many of them. After interrogations, the detainees were loaded on buses and driven to Zhu re, from where they walked to the border. Summary Executions Kosovar Albanians have provided accounts of summary executions and mass graves at about 500 sites throughout Kosovo. In just one example, Serbian security forces reportedly locked an entire family into a house in the Dre nica area and burned them alive. In addition to random executions, Serbian forces apparently targeted members of the Kosovar Albanian intelligentsia including lawyers, doctors, and political leaders.

Survivors reported that Serbian forces burned bodies exhumed from mass graves in an apparent attempt to destroy forensic evidence of war crimes. Exhumation of Mass Graves Kosovar Albanian refugees claim that Serbian forces exhumed bodies from mass grave sites from the outset of the conflict, apparently in an attempt to minimize evidence of atrocities. Reports indicate that in some instances Serbian forces re-interred bodies of executed ethnic Albanians in individual graves, while in others corpses were burned. Moving bodies from mass graves to individual graves has impeded the location of execution sites and hampered the ability of forensic investigators to discriminate between 'regular' graves and graves containing massacre victims. One of the most egregious examples is also one of the best documented.

In April, Serbian forces massacred Kosovar Albanian civilians in a field near Izbica, in north-central Kosovo. After the massacre, local Kosovar Albanians buried the victims in individual graves, an event videotaped by a local dentist from a nearby village. The videotape was smuggled out of Kosovo by the UCK. In May, the Department of State showed how the location of the videotape could be corroborated from overhead imagery. Serbian forces, during their retreat from Kosovo in early June, destroyed the graves at Izbica along with other graves of their victims -- a fact that the Department of Defence confirmed through imagery at a press briefing in June. According to Kosovar Albanian reports, Serbian forces in Lipljan, probably in early May, exhumed the bodies of ethnic Albanians who had been executed on April 18.

After moving the bodies to a building in the village, Serbian forces reportedly ordered the surviving family members to rebury them in individual graves. Similarly, Serbian forces exhumed the bodies of at least 50 ethnic Albanians in Glogovac and transported the bodies to the nearby village of Cikatovo on May 15, according to refugee reports. The bodies were then buried in individual graves. Kosovar Albanians reported in mid-June that Serbian police excavated bodies from a mass grave in Kacanik and moved them to a local cemetery. Residents indicated that the bodies might be those killed by Serbian police in early April.

Rape Numerous reports by Kosovar Albanian refugees reveal that the organized and individual rape of Kosovar Albanian women by Serbian forces was widespread. Medical facilities have reported abortions among refugee women who reported being raped by Serbian forces. Violations of Medical Neutrality Serbian forces systematically attacked Kosovar Albanian physicians, patients, and medical facilities. Violations of medical neutrality by Serbian forces include killings, torture, detention, imprisonment, and forced disappearances of Kosovar physicians. In March and April, Serbian health care providers, police and military expelled Kosovar Albanian patients and health care providers from health facilities as protective cover for military activities.

The NGO Physicians for Human Rights has received reports of the destruction of at least 100 medical clinics, pharmacies, and hospitals. Identity Cleansing There are multiple reports of Serbian forces confiscating identity and property documents including passports, land titles, automobile license plates, identity cards, and other forms of documentation from Kosovar Albanians as they were forced out of villages or as they crossed international borders into Albania or Macedonia. Physicians for Human Rights reports that nearly 60 percent of respondents to its survey observed Serbian forces removing or destroying personal identification documents. Physicians for Human Rights also reported that the intent to destroy the social identity of Kosovar Albanians is also reflected in the number of places of worship, schools, and medical facilities that were destroyed by Serbian forces. 3. Report findings The findings show that despite the UN efforts, the majority of crimes committed by the Serbian Army are still un remedied.

Despite the peace treaty forced upon the Serbians by NATO, many Serbian elements have 'indirectly' hindered UN efforts in restoring Kosovo's stability. The current ceasefire is continuously ignored and forces on both sides continue to skirmish in the country. The UN peacekeeping force has had to introduce new police departments, restore businesses, maintain civil order, appoint new heads of state, and reintegrate the expelled Albanians into Kosovo. UN inspectors also have had to continue inspecting potential mass graves, locate terrorist cells, identify thousands of bodies and determine their cause of death and prosecute Serbian authorities. Statements by high-ranking military officials have applauded the use of such atrocities as mass rape and genocide on the Albanian population. The Serbian army's hierarchy will therefore be investigated and tried for multiple accounts of war crimes.

The identity cleansing has crippled the Albanian population severely, as the refugees' homes have been destroyed and no record of them even existing can be found. This poses two major problems. Firstly, family members that have been separated are almost impossible to identify, and secondly, many bodies will remain unidentified and the majority of these will never be determined. The Serbian government did not approve the peace agreement proposed by the Albanians. It was given to a junior official and publicized by the media.

This is also a contributing factor as to why skirmishes take place in NATO controlled provenances. The reluctance of pro-Serbian minorities to lay down arms and continue a racially tolerant life is becoming more apparent as an increasing number of attacks occur daily. Finally, there is a further set of human rights issues stemming from Serbian authorities' actions in Kosovo. According to Amnesty International, as many as 23,000 conscientious objectors, draft evaders, and deserters from the Yugoslav Army during the Kosovo war may face trial before former Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) military courts. At least several hundred conscientious objectors reportedly are imprisoned in the FRY, along with draft evaders and deserters. Meanwhile, at least 2,000 ethnic Albanians, and perhaps a significantly higher number, are reportedly held in Serbian detention facilities - some without formal charges against them.

While Belgrade has released the names of approximately 2,000 of these detainees and released a few hundred in the past few weeks, ethnic Albanians claim that thousands more could be held in Serbian prisons. NGOs have documented that these detainees include women and children. The United States Government called upon Serbian authorities to "release all imprisoned conscientious objectors, account for and unconditionally return detained Kosovar Albanians to their families in Kosovo, and suspend legal proceedings against both groups immediately". These demands are yet to be acted upon.

4. Conclusion In 2000, a soccer match was held between the Serbian military and ethnic Albanians. Actions like these are strengthening the bond between the two cultures. Tony Blair, the Prime Minister of the UK commented on the game afterwards, .".. It was peace that won today... ".

Many groups such as Amnesty International and World Vision have participated in relocating the thousands of Albanians forcibly removed form their homes. The Kosovo Police Force has been established along with a law system to mend the shattered country. The President of the United States at the time (Bill Clinton) addressed the population: .".. it will take many decades for the Balkans to become stable... yet it is because of the labour of the UN and NATO that we can call this... a victory for human rights". 5. Appendices Appendix 1: Appendix 2. Convention against Genocide This convention bans acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group.

It declares genocide a crime under international law whether committed during war or peacetime, and binds all signatory of the convention to take measures to prevent and punish any acts of genocide committed within their jurisdiction. The act bans killing of members of any racial, ethnic, national or religious group because of their membership in that group, causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group, inflicting on members of the group conditions of life intended to destroy them, imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group, and taking group members' children away from them and giving them to members of another group. It declares genocide itself, conspiracy or incitement to commit genocide, attempts to commit or complicity genocide all to be illegal. Individuals are to be held responsible for these acts whether they were acting in their official capacities or as private individuals.

Signatory to the convention are bound to enact appropriate legislation to make the acts named in Article 3 illegal under their national law and provide appropriate penalties for violators. People suspected of acts of genocide may be tried by a national tribunal in the territory where the acts were committed or by a properly constituted international tribunal whose jurisdiction is recognized by the state or states involved. For purposes of extradition, an allegation of genocide is not to be considered a political crime, and states are bound to extradite suspects in accordance with national laws and treaties. Any state party to the Convention may also call upon the United Nations to act to prevent or punish acts of genocide. The remainder of the Convention specifies procedures for resolving disputes between nations about whether a specific act or acts constitute (s) genocide, and gives procedures for ratification of the convention. 5.

Bibliography

1: Oxford Dictionary Definition 2: Former Soviet Union Countries Such as Georgia and Poland 3: UN official Statement Regarding War Crimes committed by Serbian military forces. 6. Bibliography web web faculty / gresset /kosovo crimes. htm web web.