(english)
La epurazione etnica dei rom kosovari, dal 1999 ad oggi
(terza parte)
1. NEW YORK, OCT. 25TH: Benefit for the Roma people of Kosovo - 7pm
2. FIVE YEARS OF ETHNIC CLEANSING of Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians and
others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo (ERRC, June 2004)
=== 1 ===
Da: actioncenter.balkan
Data: Dom 24 Ott 2004 17:14:32 Europe/Rome
Oggetto: [IAC] Benefit for the Roma people of Kosovo- Mon. 10/25 7pm
Rispondere-A: actioncenter @ action-mail.org
The International Action Center presents:
An Evening with the Ansambl Teodosievski -
A Romani (Gypsy) Band from the former Yugoslavia- a 5-piece band -
trumpet, clarinet, dumbek-drums, keyboard and accordion.
Music & Dance For the Survival of Roma
Monday, October 25
(United Nations Day)
7:00 pm
39 W. 14th St. #206, Manhattan
A benefit event for the Roma people of Kosovo and their struggle to
survive under NATO occupation of Serbia.
***This meeting will be in place of the regular Tuesday night IAC
volunteers & activists meeting.
Introductory remarks by:
*Sani Rifati, Voice of Roma
*Ramsey Clark, former US Attorney General
*Barry Lituchy, CUNY Professor and contributing author to NATO in the
Balkans
*Sara Flounders, IAC, co-editor of Hidden Agenda: U.S./NATO Takeover of
Yugoslavia
Come to learn about the Roma people (know as "Gypsies," a term that is
both inaccurate and often used in a derogatory manner), and their
struggle to survive persecution in the NATO occupied Kosovo and other
parts of the world.
In the past 5 years more than 100,000 Roma were driven out of Kosovo,
along with Serbs, Turks, Gorani, Jews and others. Today Kosovo is
governed by UNMIK - the UN Interim Administration. Hundreds of NGOs,
thousands of 'peace-keepers (40,000 NATO/U.S. soldiers) and 5,000 UN
police looked on while a massive ethnic cleaning was committed.
The talk will be followed with a concert by the world-renown Romani
band, Ansambl Teodosievski from the former Yugoslav republic of
Macedonia. This virtuoso group was founded by a great Romani singer
and the two-times Nobel Peace Prize candidate, Esma Redzepova. Everyone
is invited to dance! (If you don't know how, just let this music lead
you in the right direction!)
Donation requested.
INTERNATIONAL ACTION CENTER
39 West 14th St, #206, (between 5th & 6th Ave in Manhattan)
New York, NY, 10011
212-633-6646, http://www.iacenter.org
=== 2 ===
http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=servis/z_en_2004_0081
Five Years of Ethnic Cleansing of Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians
and others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo
Budapest, 10. 6. 2004, 16:00, (ERRC)
Today marks the fifth anniversary of the beginning of the ethnic
cleansing of Roma, Ashkaelia, Egyptians and other persons
regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo. In the wake of the
cessation of NATO action against the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia in June 1999 and the subsequent return of
predominantly ethnic Albanians from abroad, ethnic Albanians violently
expelled approximately four fifths of Kosovo's pre-1999 Romani
population -- estimated to have been around 120,000 -- from their
homes. In the course of the ethnic cleansing campaign,
ethnic Albanians kidnapped Roma and severely physically abused
and in some cases killed Roma; raped Romani women in the presence
of family members; and seized, looted or destroyed property en
masse. Whole Romani settlements were burned to the ground by
ethnic Albanians, in many cases while NATO troops looked on. A number
of Romani individuals who disappeared during the summer months of
1999 remain to date missing and are presumed dead.
Today, most Kosovo Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians are refugees outside
Kosovo, or are displaced within the province. To date, according to
international administrators in Kosovo, not one single person has
been brought to justice for anti-Gypsy crimes occurring since
1999 as part of the on-going ethnic cleansing campaign. A number
of EU governments have disregarded international arrest warrants
for persons wanted in connection with crimes of ethnic cleansing
in Kosovo.
International policy toward Kosovo, endorsed by the UN Security Council
specifies that Kosovo must become "a multi-ethnic society where
there is democracy, tolerance, freedom of movement and
equal access to justice for all people in Kosovo, regardless of
their ethnic background." As if to emphasise how far from
that target today's Kosovo is, in March of this year, Kosovo's
ethnic Albanians redoubled efforts to rid the province of
minorities including Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians. During the upsurge
in violence, nineteen people were killed, around 4,100 people
were forced to leave their homes, and for the most part are
currently displaced either in Kosovo itself or in neighbouring
Serbia and Montenegro. Around 360 of those forced to flee
during recent violence were reportedly Romani or from another
group regarded as "Gypsies".
The latest wave of violence in Kosovo brought international media
attention to the province. However, even prior to the recent
violence, all was not well in Kosovo. The international
administrators of Kosovo had not managed to end once and for all
grenade attacks and other extreme forms of assault against
minorities and their property. The destruction of building sites
targeted for minority returns was frequent enough not to be listed as a
major crime for the purposes of tracking racially motivated
crime. Racial discrimination was then close to total and is still
so today. And, as noted above, the organs of justice in
Kosovo have been extremely inefficient with respect to
bringing to justice those responsible for wholesale ethnic
cleansing. At the same time, in an effort to maintain the fiction that
all was well in Kosovo, as well as due to intense pressure for
returns exercised by a number of governments of EU Member States,
international administrators downplayed persistent indications
that ethnic Albanians intend an ethnically pure province.
Thus, the events of March 2004 frequently referred to as "renewed
violence", are more properly regarded as an intensification of an
ethnic cleansing campaign ongoing since June 1999. The ethnic
cleansing by ethnic Albanians of Roma, Ashkaelia, Egyptians and
others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo is the single
biggest catastrophe to befall the Romani community since World
War II.
The ERRC urges that:
· Without delay, the security situation of Romani and Ashkaeli
communities throughout Kosovo be assessed and measures appropriate to
the specific situation of each community, as well as to local
community perceptions of the actual and potential risks in the
given community, are swiftly undertaken;
· Prompt and impartial investigations into all acts of violence to
which Romani, Ashkaeli and Egyptian individuals and other persons
regarded as "Gypsies" in Kosovo have been subjected are carried
out; all perpetrators of racially-motivated acts of ethnic
cleansing are brought swiftly to justice and victims or families
of victims receive adequate compensation; justice is done and
seen to be done;
· The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
redoubles its efforts to bring to justice individuals guilty of the
persecution of Roma, Ashkaelia, Egyptians and other persons regarded
as "Gypsies" in Kosovo;
· All governments honour the international warrants for the arrest of
a number of persons wanted in connection with crimes of ethnic
cleansing occurring in Kosovo;
· Sustained efforts be undertaken by all authorities in Kosovo and
involved in the administration of Kosovo to ensure that no discussions
of Kosovo's final status are embarked upon until such a time as
all stakeholders achieve durable and lasting consensus in
practice that Kosovo is a multi-cultural society in which all
individuals can freely exercise in practice all of their
fundamental human rights;
· Any forced returns of Kosovo Romani, Ashkaeli or Egyptian
individuals to Kosovo are rendered impossible and impermissible until
such a time as authorities in Kosovo are able to demonstrate
durable and lasting security and freedom from racial
discrimination for all in all parts of the province.
· Any persons factually residing in a host country for a period of
five years or longer be provided with real possibilities for
integration in the host country if that person so chooses,
including by making available the possibility of acquiring the
citizenship of the host country.
· Suitable arrangements be made for the recovery of -- or
compensation for -- any and all property destroyed or confiscated by
force or coercion, including any property sold under conditions
of duress.
The international community undertook military action in Kosovo and the
rest of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to reverse the
"humanitarian emergency" facing ethnic Albanians in early 1999.
Failure to reverse the humanitarian emergency facing Roma,
Ashkaelia, Egyptians, and also Serbs and other minorities would
mean that in practice, NATO acted, with UN Security Council
endorsement, in effect to assist ethnic cleansing. The
preservation of an international human rights order requires that this
status quo be swiftly ended. The ethnic cleansing of Roma,
Ashkaelia, Egyptians and others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo
cannot stand.
www.errc.org
La epurazione etnica dei rom kosovari, dal 1999 ad oggi
(terza parte)
1. NEW YORK, OCT. 25TH: Benefit for the Roma people of Kosovo - 7pm
2. FIVE YEARS OF ETHNIC CLEANSING of Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians and
others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo (ERRC, June 2004)
=== 1 ===
Da: actioncenter.balkan
Data: Dom 24 Ott 2004 17:14:32 Europe/Rome
Oggetto: [IAC] Benefit for the Roma people of Kosovo- Mon. 10/25 7pm
Rispondere-A: actioncenter @ action-mail.org
The International Action Center presents:
An Evening with the Ansambl Teodosievski -
A Romani (Gypsy) Band from the former Yugoslavia- a 5-piece band -
trumpet, clarinet, dumbek-drums, keyboard and accordion.
Music & Dance For the Survival of Roma
Monday, October 25
(United Nations Day)
7:00 pm
39 W. 14th St. #206, Manhattan
A benefit event for the Roma people of Kosovo and their struggle to
survive under NATO occupation of Serbia.
***This meeting will be in place of the regular Tuesday night IAC
volunteers & activists meeting.
Introductory remarks by:
*Sani Rifati, Voice of Roma
*Ramsey Clark, former US Attorney General
*Barry Lituchy, CUNY Professor and contributing author to NATO in the
Balkans
*Sara Flounders, IAC, co-editor of Hidden Agenda: U.S./NATO Takeover of
Yugoslavia
Come to learn about the Roma people (know as "Gypsies," a term that is
both inaccurate and often used in a derogatory manner), and their
struggle to survive persecution in the NATO occupied Kosovo and other
parts of the world.
In the past 5 years more than 100,000 Roma were driven out of Kosovo,
along with Serbs, Turks, Gorani, Jews and others. Today Kosovo is
governed by UNMIK - the UN Interim Administration. Hundreds of NGOs,
thousands of 'peace-keepers (40,000 NATO/U.S. soldiers) and 5,000 UN
police looked on while a massive ethnic cleaning was committed.
The talk will be followed with a concert by the world-renown Romani
band, Ansambl Teodosievski from the former Yugoslav republic of
Macedonia. This virtuoso group was founded by a great Romani singer
and the two-times Nobel Peace Prize candidate, Esma Redzepova. Everyone
is invited to dance! (If you don't know how, just let this music lead
you in the right direction!)
Donation requested.
INTERNATIONAL ACTION CENTER
39 West 14th St, #206, (between 5th & 6th Ave in Manhattan)
New York, NY, 10011
212-633-6646, http://www.iacenter.org
=== 2 ===
http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=servis/z_en_2004_0081
Five Years of Ethnic Cleansing of Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians
and others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo
Budapest, 10. 6. 2004, 16:00, (ERRC)
Today marks the fifth anniversary of the beginning of the ethnic
cleansing of Roma, Ashkaelia, Egyptians and other persons
regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo. In the wake of the
cessation of NATO action against the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia in June 1999 and the subsequent return of
predominantly ethnic Albanians from abroad, ethnic Albanians violently
expelled approximately four fifths of Kosovo's pre-1999 Romani
population -- estimated to have been around 120,000 -- from their
homes. In the course of the ethnic cleansing campaign,
ethnic Albanians kidnapped Roma and severely physically abused
and in some cases killed Roma; raped Romani women in the presence
of family members; and seized, looted or destroyed property en
masse. Whole Romani settlements were burned to the ground by
ethnic Albanians, in many cases while NATO troops looked on. A number
of Romani individuals who disappeared during the summer months of
1999 remain to date missing and are presumed dead.
Today, most Kosovo Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians are refugees outside
Kosovo, or are displaced within the province. To date, according to
international administrators in Kosovo, not one single person has
been brought to justice for anti-Gypsy crimes occurring since
1999 as part of the on-going ethnic cleansing campaign. A number
of EU governments have disregarded international arrest warrants
for persons wanted in connection with crimes of ethnic cleansing
in Kosovo.
International policy toward Kosovo, endorsed by the UN Security Council
specifies that Kosovo must become "a multi-ethnic society where
there is democracy, tolerance, freedom of movement and
equal access to justice for all people in Kosovo, regardless of
their ethnic background." As if to emphasise how far from
that target today's Kosovo is, in March of this year, Kosovo's
ethnic Albanians redoubled efforts to rid the province of
minorities including Roma, Ashkaelia and Egyptians. During the upsurge
in violence, nineteen people were killed, around 4,100 people
were forced to leave their homes, and for the most part are
currently displaced either in Kosovo itself or in neighbouring
Serbia and Montenegro. Around 360 of those forced to flee
during recent violence were reportedly Romani or from another
group regarded as "Gypsies".
The latest wave of violence in Kosovo brought international media
attention to the province. However, even prior to the recent
violence, all was not well in Kosovo. The international
administrators of Kosovo had not managed to end once and for all
grenade attacks and other extreme forms of assault against
minorities and their property. The destruction of building sites
targeted for minority returns was frequent enough not to be listed as a
major crime for the purposes of tracking racially motivated
crime. Racial discrimination was then close to total and is still
so today. And, as noted above, the organs of justice in
Kosovo have been extremely inefficient with respect to
bringing to justice those responsible for wholesale ethnic
cleansing. At the same time, in an effort to maintain the fiction that
all was well in Kosovo, as well as due to intense pressure for
returns exercised by a number of governments of EU Member States,
international administrators downplayed persistent indications
that ethnic Albanians intend an ethnically pure province.
Thus, the events of March 2004 frequently referred to as "renewed
violence", are more properly regarded as an intensification of an
ethnic cleansing campaign ongoing since June 1999. The ethnic
cleansing by ethnic Albanians of Roma, Ashkaelia, Egyptians and
others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo is the single
biggest catastrophe to befall the Romani community since World
War II.
The ERRC urges that:
· Without delay, the security situation of Romani and Ashkaeli
communities throughout Kosovo be assessed and measures appropriate to
the specific situation of each community, as well as to local
community perceptions of the actual and potential risks in the
given community, are swiftly undertaken;
· Prompt and impartial investigations into all acts of violence to
which Romani, Ashkaeli and Egyptian individuals and other persons
regarded as "Gypsies" in Kosovo have been subjected are carried
out; all perpetrators of racially-motivated acts of ethnic
cleansing are brought swiftly to justice and victims or families
of victims receive adequate compensation; justice is done and
seen to be done;
· The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
redoubles its efforts to bring to justice individuals guilty of the
persecution of Roma, Ashkaelia, Egyptians and other persons regarded
as "Gypsies" in Kosovo;
· All governments honour the international warrants for the arrest of
a number of persons wanted in connection with crimes of ethnic
cleansing occurring in Kosovo;
· Sustained efforts be undertaken by all authorities in Kosovo and
involved in the administration of Kosovo to ensure that no discussions
of Kosovo's final status are embarked upon until such a time as
all stakeholders achieve durable and lasting consensus in
practice that Kosovo is a multi-cultural society in which all
individuals can freely exercise in practice all of their
fundamental human rights;
· Any forced returns of Kosovo Romani, Ashkaeli or Egyptian
individuals to Kosovo are rendered impossible and impermissible until
such a time as authorities in Kosovo are able to demonstrate
durable and lasting security and freedom from racial
discrimination for all in all parts of the province.
· Any persons factually residing in a host country for a period of
five years or longer be provided with real possibilities for
integration in the host country if that person so chooses,
including by making available the possibility of acquiring the
citizenship of the host country.
· Suitable arrangements be made for the recovery of -- or
compensation for -- any and all property destroyed or confiscated by
force or coercion, including any property sold under conditions
of duress.
The international community undertook military action in Kosovo and the
rest of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to reverse the
"humanitarian emergency" facing ethnic Albanians in early 1999.
Failure to reverse the humanitarian emergency facing Roma,
Ashkaelia, Egyptians, and also Serbs and other minorities would
mean that in practice, NATO acted, with UN Security Council
endorsement, in effect to assist ethnic cleansing. The
preservation of an international human rights order requires that this
status quo be swiftly ended. The ethnic cleansing of Roma,
Ashkaelia, Egyptians and others regarded as "Gypsies" from Kosovo
cannot stand.
www.errc.org