http://emperors-clothes.com/interviews/keys2.htm
EMPEROR'S CLOTHES, Tuesday, December 5, 2000
Why Albanians Fled During NATO Bombing - "The truth about what
happened..."
Interview with Cedda Pralinchevich
Interviewer Jared Israel
Translator Petar Makara
This is the second Emperor's Clothes interview with Cedda Pralinchevich,
President of the Jewish Community in Prishtina. In the first interview,
Mr. Pralinchevich, formerly Chief Archivist of Kosovo, described how he
and tens of thousands of other Yugoslavs were driven from Prishtina by
the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) with NATO's backing.
NATO claims it bombed Yugoslavia in the Spring of 1999 to stop Yugoslav
war crimes against ethnic Albanians. These supposed crimes supposedly
produced the much-televised Albanian flight from Kosovo. Not so, says
Mr. Pralinchevich.
Yugoslavia's new more-or-less Foreign Minister Svilanovich stands with
NATO on the war crimes allegations. He has invited the NATO-controlled
War Crimes Tribunal to set up shop in Belgrade and promises to help them
hunt down Serbian leaders.
As far as the evidence hunt goes, the Tribunal hasn't done too well. It
employed hundreds of forensic experts and dug up Kosovo for a year
(under KLA direction) but found no evidence of Serbian atrocities. That
failure hasn't fazed NATO. Bolstered by the improved attitude from
Belgrade (Mayor Milan Protich was quoted in the 10-25 'Independent'
calling for the "de-Nazification" of the Yugoslav government) the NATO
propaganda machine has stepped up attacks against ousted President
Miloshevich and others, arguing that the exodus of all those ethnic
Albanians proves there must have been atrocities. Why else would they
leave?
Why else indeed.
Let's hear from Mr. Pralinchevich, historian of Kosovo.
[Note: In the text, we have tried to spell Serbian names so
English-speaking readers can pronounce them correctly. 'Pristina'
is
Prishtina', 'Prlincevic' is 'Pralinchevich' and 'Milosevic' is
'Miloshevich'. -
Jared Israel]
Why Albanians Fled During NATO Bombing
"Israel: NATO said the Albanians were fleeing atrocities. We in
the West who opposed NATO said they were fleeing the
bombing. You're saying we were both wrong, that the Albanians
weren't fleeing the Serbs and they weren't fleeing the bombing."
(From the interview below)
Israel: Why did so many Albanians leave Kosovo a few days after NATO
began bombing? Was the Yugoslav Army attacking them?
Pralinchevich: No, not attacking them. In some areas the Army did
relocate people, but not out of Kosovo. The idea was to move them
further into Serbia. You must understand, the Army was presented with a
most difficult situation. A major clash was expected between NATO and
Yugoslav troops. This kind of NATO ground attack was a special threat in
the area bordering Albania.
Under those circumstances, with the KLA [Kosovo Liberation Army]
attacking inside Kosovo and from Albania and with NATO poised to invade
and about to start bombing from airplanes, how could the Yugoslav Army
hope to protect that border population?
You should understand, the Army had had an experience like this in
Vukovar. That was in 1991. Civilians were trapped in a battlefield
between the Army and the Croatian Ustashe [neo-fascist] secessionists.
To avoid making the same mistake again, the Army wanted to empty a space
40 kilometers deep so people wouldn't be trapped between the Army, NATO
and the KLA.
At the same time there was a big increase in the number of KLA
terrorists illegally crossing the Albanian border into Kosovo. In that
situation there were bound to be some unhappy events. It was a most
difficult situation, you see.
Albanians Assassinated
Israel: Was this at the beginning of the bombing?
Pralinchevich: Yes, and earlier too. During this period, the Yugoslav
government tried to organize local Albanian Crisis Centers to distribute
humanitarian aid, and also a Headquarters to work with the Yugoslav
Army, organizing ethnic Albanians who lived in the danger zone to move
deeper into Serbia, away from potential fighting.
But those ethnic Albanians who did cooperate with the Army became a
target for the KLA. Many were assassinated.
Israel: Were these Crisis Centers located all over Kosovo or just near
the Albanian border?
Pralinchevich: Mostly near the border.
The Crisis Centers distributed humanitarian help from all over Serbia.
For example there was food and building materials to repair homes from
the North, from Vojvodina. People sent blankets, food, clothing,
everything.
The West Misunderstands Ethnic Albanians
Israel: Getting back to the Albanian exodus during the bombing, here's
the question: if the Yugoslav Army didn't throw the Albanians out, why
did so many leave? It's true we don't know the exact number. The Western
media has given all sorts of figures, from 150,00 to over a million,
which is slightly ridiculous - but certainly many thousands did leave.
Why? To escape the bombs?
Pralinchevich: Not exactly.
Israel: Not exactly?
Pralinchevich: No. The reason they left and went out of Serbia, to
Albania or Macedonia, is rooted in the cultural history of Albanian
people living in Kosovo. Because of their mindset, which I think people
in the West thoroughly misunderstand, the KLA had a big impact when it
attacked and executed Albanians who cooperated with the government.
Israel: I would have thought such attacks would turn them against the
KLA.
Pralinchevich: No, no. They led the ethnic Albanian population to stop
cooperating with the Yugoslav government and start cooperating with the
KLA.
Israel: Doesn't a guerilla movement need to treat ordinary people
decently to get support?
Pralinchevich: Yes, but the KLA was never what you mean by a guerilla
movement. It was a foreign-organized group of terrorists delivering a
message.
The so-called 'International Community,' that is, NATO, had trumpeted
that they had plans for the Albanians, that they would give them
independence and a Greater Albania, make them a major power in southern
Europe. So there was this intense propaganda from the West for ten years
and at the same time the crisis in the Albanian community was quite
pronounced. Even before the bombing, some Albanian representatives asked
the Yugoslav government to allow their people to form convoys and go
toward Macedonia, basically to save themselves from this crisis.
Israel: What crisis? The fighting between the Yugoslav Army and the KLA?
Pralinchevich: Not exactly, although this fighting did have a big
effect. So did the bombing, which started a bit later; it had a critical
psychological effect. But this was related to the KLA. You see the KLA
was trying to fulfill their own overall goals. To achieve these goals,
which involved proving to the West they could deliver, they told the
ethnic Albanians to leave. And this was not a polite request. It was an
order. Do you see?
At the same time the KLA, their special units, and then a bit later NATO
bombers, were attacking traffic on important roads that led to inner
Serbia.
Israel: And this influenced the Albanians?
Pralinchevich: Yes. It dissuaded them from going further into Serbia and
it also told them: Yugoslavia can't help you.
Meanwhile the United States was training their KLA proxies in Albania
including in how to wage this sort of psychological warfare, to deliver
the message that Albanians should temporarily vacate Serbia.
Israel: So you're saying that this culture, this Kosovo Albanian
culture, had a strong tendency to respond to carrots and sticks?
Pralinchevich: That's it. Now you're beginning to understand.
Israel: And the U.S. was telling Albanians, "We'll help you secede;
we'll make you a star. But if you reject our help we'll kill you." Is
that it?
Pralinchevich: Your question is complex. I'll have to give a long
answer.
Israel: OK.
Pralinchevich: Historically, the Kosovo Albanians were never involved in
frontal battles. Instead, they had groups of warriors called kachatzi,
small bands of fighters that used hit and run tactics. But they never
kept large scale weapons to use in frontline war.
Part of the purpose of the Western training was to get the KLA to
surpass small group combat and become an army able to carry out NATO's
commands throughout Kosovo. NATO's foot soldiers.
To this end, one KLA group left Kosovo and went to Albania where they
were trained by the Americans, and by the way, they became the core of
what is now called the Kosovo Protection Corps. They marched back into
Kosovo with NATO in June, 1999 and seized government offices and
facilities and drove out hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Roma
["Gypsies"] Jews, pro-Yugoslav Albanians and others.
Israel: You're saying that after NATO took over Kosovo these KLA types
were under orders to drive out those people?
Pralinchevich: Yes. We can see the results of the action of exactly
those forces today. NATO planned the expulsion of 350,000 people.
Without NATO's approval and instructions, these KLA, whom NATO had
trained and brought back to Kosovo, would never have attempted this mass
expulsion. Impossible. NATO was eliminating a potentially rebellious
population.
And remember, they didn't expel only non-Albanians. Perhaps the most
important group was Albanians who in any official capacity had helped
the Yugoslav government. They had to go. NATO wanted the ethnic
Albanians who stayed in Kosovo to be without a Yugoslav alternative.
Israel: So this first wave of Albanians who marched across the border
with the KFOR [NATO] troops - they were hardcore KLA? Not simply
gangsters?
Pralinchevich: Well some were KLA gangsters and others were ordinary
gangsters from Albania. They carried out and allowed others to carry out
all kinds of crimes. Some wanted revenge; some wanted to steal; some
wanted to do this; some wanted to do that, to achieve whatever political
goals. And no one was interrupting the others. They were doing it
altogether in concert and not interfering with each other.
Israel: They were all KLA? There were no mysterious elements here? KFOR
claims mysterious elements carried out (and still carry out) these
crimes.
Pralinchevich: KFOR knows exactly who organized the expulsions, but of
course, as it became clear to ethnic Albanians that KFOR would tolerate
criminal actions carried out by the KLA, KLA crime became a mass
phenomenon. Whoever was doing criminal stuff would use the KLA label. If
someone would steal some Serb's car, he would say: "I'm KLA."
It got to be a joke among Albanians to call themselves 'KLA', to cover
up. If someone wanted to rob someone else's house, they would say -
"We're KLA."
Israel: Because they knew that KFOR wouldn't touch them if they were
KLA?
Pralinchevich: Yes, they became untouchable.
Israel: Getting back to the period up to the bombing: You were saying
that in this area along the border two things were going on: The army
was trying to get those people out of the potential fire zone plus they
were organizing local Albanians for self-defense. But at the same time a
section of Albanians had been organized by the other side, by the KLA.
So they were having a contest for the hearts of the ethnic Albanians?
Pralinchevich: Yes. At first the Yugoslav government felt confident that
they'd succeed in getting the Albanian population to organize to defend
itself from the KLA. The attempt to do this started during the
Rambouillet talks, in the winter of 1999, before the bombing.
Israel: My impression is that the KLA had a weak base during this
period. Is that true?
Pralinchevich: Yes, but remember there was a continuous influx of their
people from Albania. So they had weak popular support but they were
getting reinforcements from Albania, trying to turn the tide.
Israel: Which is why there were constant border clashes with Yugoslav
troops fighting these intruders.
Pralinchevich: Right.
Israel: So the KLA's solid base was in northern Albania?
Pralinchevich: At that time, yes. But the Yugoslav Government program of
self defense failed in the border area and then gradually throughout
Kosovo people switched to the KLA side.
Israel: During the bombing was the KLA used as spotters for NATO air
attacks?
Pralinchevich: Yes. Definitely.
Israel: Was the bombing used to drive Albanians out of Kosovo?
Pralinchevich: Not mainly on its own, but yes, insofar as it reinforced
the KLA's attempt to destabilize the area. Mr. Walker was the one who
was organizing the KLA. Mr. Walker of the Verification Mission that came
into Kosovo, under the OSCE [Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe] umbrella, in the fall of 1998.
You see this is a complex thing and I wanted to give a long answer. Even
this international corps of monitors, this Verification Mission, they
were also involved in organizing KLA. Before the bombing started we had
this forced diplomacy. The European Community and the U.S. insisted that
their forces come into Kosovo as peace monitors. At the head of these
peace Verifiers was Mr. Walker.
The Verifiers organized the KLA. That's why terrorist attacks by the KLA
increased after they arrived. During that period there was no major
shift of population, whether Albanian or Serbian, though this
international monitor group was laying the basis for migration. They
needed migration to create the impression of a crisis for international
public opinion.
Israel: How did they lay the basis for migration?
Pralinchevich: They did it by having the KLA kill some Albanians who
were cooperating with the government.
Israel: The Verifiers, the OSCE Monitors, did all this...?
Pralinchevich: Yes, they organized the KLA into a more cohesive force so
it could influence events. And they prepared for the bombing. The
Yugoslav government caught some Albanians and some Serbs who were
positioning bombing markers. Those are radio devices that emit signals
to identify targets.
We were confused when the OSCE monitors left Kosovo. It should have been
obvious why they left. Their job was done.
Israel: OK, I'm confused right now. I'm not sure about our focus. Are we
talking about the Verifiers being responsible for positioning bombing
markers?
Pralinchevich: Yes! That is one thing they organized. I say this in full
responsibility. Yes, OSCE monitors prepared the NATO attack.
The KLA is only a proxy for what NATO wanted to achieve in this
geographical area. All the current political turmoil points to NATO,
whether in Kosovo or Montenegro or the Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia.
Israel: Explain what you mean, please.
Pralinchevich: I mean Kosovo is just one of the points of
destabilization of Yugoslavia. It is manipulated from the US and Europe.
And this is not just what I think. It is obvious.
Israel: I apologize for these picky questions. People are starved for
clarification on these points. Nobody has made things clear.
Pralinchevich: I'm grateful for the questions. And again: I am answering
with full consciousness of my responsibility to be accurate.
Israel: I understand. You're an historian of Kosovo.
Pralinchevich: Yes, I am, and I want people to know the truth about what
happened here...
So getting back to the period before the bombing: the OSCE was taking
steps to produce a migration of Albanians towards Macedonia and Albania.
The idea was to break down the physical barrier of the border existing
between Yugoslavia on the one hand and Macedonia and Albania on the
other. The OSCE wanted to create for the international community the
impression of a humanitarian catastrophe . . .
Israel: Even before the bombing?
Pralinchevich: Yes. The OSCE was actually organizing the complete
scenario for the crisis in Kosovo. Once again, they were trying to push
the ethnic Albanian population to Albania and Macedonia to present the
impression of a humanitarian nightmare.
We were surprised that right before the bombing significant numbers of
Albanians began moving toward the border. We were surprised. But of
course, it was planned.
Israel: But there were no bombs yet.
Pralinchevich: At that time the KLA had a big influx of reinforcements
from Albania. They attacked road crossings and so on with the intention
of making a total chaos and collapse of the situation in Kosovo. This
was intended to make a point to all Albanians.
Israel: But in terms of the population movement, why were the ethnic
Albanians leaving?... I wish you could just give me some idea...
Pralinchevich: That is exactly why I started answering your question by
talking about the culture of the Albanian people. Because they have a
strong clan structure and as part of that tradition, if the leader of
the village says, "Let's vote for this candidate!" they tend to vote for
this candidate, and if the leaders says "Let's all go!" - they go
Israel: But why would the clan leaders say "Let's all go!"?
Pralinchevich: First of all, a large part of the ethnic Albanians wanted
to return to the situation that existed a hundred years ago, under the
Ottoman Empire, and again during World War II, when Kosovo was under
Nazi- Albanian control. Most of the Albanian population had been won to
this goal by the secessionist movement.
Promises from the USA
When I speak of secession you might think of the Basques in Spain or the
Irish in northern Ireland, but this is very different. In Kosovo, a
foreign Superpower supported the secessionists for well over a decade.
Because of this support, the Albanians were psychologically prepared to
achieve - no, not to achieve, to be given - secession. As a gift. The
secessionist leaders, starting with Rugova, had promised them, "Do this,
do that and the US will intervene and we will get Kosovo." They had been
promising this for years. "Sacrifice your children by boycotting the
schools; sacrifice your health by boycotting the hospitals; use your
suffering to show foreign public opinion how we suffer under the Serbs,
and the U.S. will come to our rescue."
By March, 1999 this political theater had been going on 10 years. "The
US will set us free." And of course, many Albanians believed that during
World War II the German Nazis had set Albanians free.
The Yugoslav constitution of 1974 didn't help. It weakened the central
government and thus encouraged those in Kosovo who wanted to return to
the W.W. II regime when Albanian nationalists ruled Kosovo under the
German Nazis and terrorized the Serbs, Roma ['Gypsies'] and Jews. After
1974 the abuses against Serbs and Roma increased. This was openly
manifested during the ethnic Albanian riots in 1981.
These were race riots, with Serbs as the targets, both the Serbian
clergy and ordinary Serbian citizens. After that the Americans entered
the picture and magnified the secessionists' political strength ten
times over.
U.S. Openly Encouraged Secessionists in 1990
For example, when US Ambassador Zimmerman arrived in Yugoslavia in 1990
[before the outbreak of the Yugoslav wars of secession] one of his first
acts was to go to Kosovo and open an Exhibition of architectural works
from Chicago. He used this exhibition to boost the Albanian
secessionists.
Israel: How?
Pralinchevich: He didn't invite anyone from the Federal Yugoslav Federal
or Serbian Governments. But he did invite Ibrahim Rugova [the main
secessionist leader at that time] and the like.
By snubbing the Federal Government, which represented multiethnic
society, and snubbing those Albanian leaders who opposed secession,
Zimmerman's action had a profound psychological effect
Israel: I can imagine. Everyone notices who doesn't get invited to a
party.
Pralinchevich: Yes, and especially in this period, when there was much
ultra-nationalist agitation in Kosovo, to break Kosovo away from Serbia
and to take parts of Macedonia and Bulgaria and link it all up with
Albania. And these were the leaders whom Zimmerman invited. How could
Albanians argue against secession when Rugova could say, "See? We have
the support of the most powerful nation on earth!"
Israel: People often present Mr. Rugova as the good guy, by way of
contrast to the KLA.
Pralinchevich: They have the same goal: secession. The difference is
over methods. Rugova always wears a scarf to illustrate the entrapment,
or whatever, of Albanians in Yugoslavia. He says he'll take it off when
Kosovo secedes from Serbia.
The United States, for its own geopolitical reasons, deliberately
encouraged the secessionist tendency among Albanians, used them against
the Yugoslav government in order to destabilize the Balkans.
The fact is that Serbs and Albanians had been living together with some
degree of tolerance for centuries, whenever there was peace... The
United States disrupted this status quo.
Serbs and Albanians Worked Together During the Bombing, Until...
Israel: In Prishtina, during the bombardment, was there any effort to
have unity between the Albanians, the Serbs and other minorities?
Pralinchevich: We, as loyal citizens of Yugoslavia, whether Serbs or
Albanians, tried to cooperate and live together, to help each other.
Israel: But what about the majority of the people in Prishtina? Did the
majority try to help each other?
Pralinchevich: Yes. It was the town of intellectuals. We all had flats
next to each other. The children went to the same schools. We lived in
the same apartment buildings.
Israel: So the secessionists weren't strong there?
Pralinchevich: Not at first, but then later even in Prishtina the
Albanians were sucked into the secessionist camp. This could happen
because of certain cultural traits, deeply rooted in their history.
During the bombing, suddenly they started leaving. And when we asked
them, "Why are you doing this?" they replied, "We have to!"
Israel: Who are you talking about?
Pralinchevich: Professors, managers at stores, retired people, even
retired Yugoslav Army officers who were ethnic Albanian.
"Sorry, I have to go."
I'll give you an example. My Albanian neighbor was a Professor. He
seemed very much integrated into Yugoslav life. Our children played
together; we were friends, you see. And then, without warning he packed
up and started to leave his flat, to leave Kosovo. So I said: "Why are
you leaving, neighbor?" He said: "Sorry. I have to." And I said, "Why?
We're safe here. Nobody's bothering you. The housing complex hasn't been
bombed. We're all working together." And he said, "I was ordered to
leave." He gave me the keys so I could watch his flat . ... Ironically,
after NATO took over he returned and then I was forced out by the KLA
gangsters. I gave him my key, so he could watch my flat.
Israel: But who ordered him to leave?
Pralinchevich: The leader of his clan.
Israel: Why?
Pralinchevich: To prove obedience to the KLA. This was the KLA's
national plan. All loyal Albanians were to leave during the bombing and
go to Albania or Macedonia to show the world how terrible the Serbs
were; this exodus was staged; it was a performance, Hollywood in Kosovo.
What is Hollywood without actors? A large number of Albanians had to
perform, had to actually leave Kosovo. This was not so different from
what they had been doing for ten years, you see, pretending they had
been locked out of the schools when actually it was an organized
boycott, and so on.
Moreover, once they were in the refugee camps, the Albanians would be
under the direct leadership of the KLA, which could intensively
indoctrinate them, Which it did.
Israel: But why would his clan leader agree to this crazy plan?
Pralinchevich: You think it was crazy? This gets us to the heart of the
matter. Between the attacks from the KLA on Albanians who cooperated
with the Yugoslav government and the continuous bombing by NATO,
especially of Albanians who disobeyed the KLA, the KLA had gotten their
message across to the clan leaders. So now the clan leaders ordered
their people to pack up and leave.
Israel: You know, during the bombing, NATO said the Albanians were
fleeing atrocities. We Western opponents of NATO said they were fleeing
the NATO bombing. But you're saying we were both wrong, that the
Albanians weren't fleeing the Serbs or the bombing.
Pralinchevich: Let's just say the bombing isn't a sufficient
explanation. If they were just fleeing bombs, why did they have to go to
Albania and Macedonia? Why not to inner Serbia? And what about people
like my friend, who just packed up, seemingly for no reason, and left?
The rest of us, Serbs, Jews, Roma, we were in Prishtina too. Why didn't
we leave? Did we value our lives less than they valued theirs? No, it
wasn't the bombs. They were afraid to disobey their clan leaders.
But the bombing did play an important role. The KLA served as spotters;
they could direct NATO attacks against hostile Albanians, and this
confirmed for the clan leaders that the KLA had serious power.
It was psychological warfare, intended to reinforce the psychological
crisis among Albanians, a crisis rooted in fear.
The KLA and NATO were telling Albanians: NATO supports the KLA. After
NATO takes over, the KLA will be in charge and if you don't leave now
you will be in big trouble later. There will be no safe refuge.
That's what I meant when I said you need to know something about
Albanian culture in order to understand why Albanians left.
You have to know about blood feud.
Blood Feud and the Canon of Leke
Pralinchevich: One book has a great hold over Kosovo Albanians. It's
called the 'Canon of Leke Dukagjiniis'. It's a 15th century text that
spells out codes of behavior. It goes into great detail on how to carry
out blood feuds, when and whom it is proper to kill. It lays out the
proper methods to use when killing, rules and regulations and so on.
And this Canon is alive among Albanians today, especially since the fall
of communism. This is an intensely tradition-oriented culture. Blood
feud is a constant threat for Albanians. Thousands of people in Albania
and Kosovo cannot leave their houses because they are being hunted; even
a child in the cradle might be marked for death as part of a feud. It is
for this reason that Kosovo Albanian houses are often built surrounded
by high walls and with gun slits instead of windows.
By methodically killing those who refused to support them, the KLA was
striking a deep fear among Albanians: the refusal of one Clan member to
obey could lead to revenge against his entire clan. And now the KLA had
NATO bombers to enforce blood feud.
What took me by surprise was how much this affected Albanians, even
intellectuals. It's amazing. Here is a Professor in Prishtina, very
sophisticated, but when the order comes from his Clan leader, who is
perhaps a farmer 100 miles away, the Professor immediately packs up and
leaves for Albania without even considering saying no.
Israel: We didn't understand the KLA. We thought their terror tactics
were counter productive.
Pralinchevich: Well, they knew their own people, their fears, their
traditions. They knew that if they could prove they were deadly, the
clan leaders would fall in line.
Now they live in a society dominated by gangsters. None of this would
have happened were it not for years of effort by the United States.
***
Further reading:
1) On the involvement of the OSCE Verification Monitors in organizing
the KLA and in spying on Yugoslavia, see:* ''Humanitarian Spies'' by
Jared Israel at http://emperors-clothes.com/analysis/humanita.htm
- and -
* ''The Cat is Out of the Bag'' at
http://emperors-clothes.com/news/ciaaided.htm
2) "The roots of Kosovo fascism'' The title of this excellent piece by
George Thompson is self-explanatory. It can be read at
http://emperors-clothes.com/articles/thompson/rootsof.htm
3) On the criminalization of politics, economics and daily life in
Kosovo since the June, 1999 NATO takeover see the following
* "Crime and Terror in the New Kosovo" at
http://emperors-clothes.com/news/u.htm [Documents the criminalization of
daily life]
* "How will you plead at the trial, Mr. Annan?" at
http://emperors-clothes.com/news/howwill.htm [The London 'Observor'
quotes an internal UN report documenting the criminal nature of the
Kosovo Protection Corps, set up by the UN ]
* "Gracko survivors blame NATO" at
http://emperors-clothes.com/misc/grack.htm [A terrible crime reveals the
enormity of NATO's opening of the border between Serbia and Albania.]
Note: United States planners were fully aware of the destabilizing
potential of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo as far back as 1982. Here is a
quote from "YUGOSLAVIA, a country of study" a 1982 book which is part of
the U.S. Army's "Area handbook series."
In the forward, Dr. William Evans-Smith, Director of Foreign Area
Studies for American University in Washington, DC, writes:
"The study focuses on historical antecedents and on the cultural,
political
and socioeconomic characteristics that contribute to cohesion and
cleavage within the society. "
Here's a quote from the book:
"Yugoslavia's largest national minority was its Albanian community,
in
1981 numbering some 1.6 million, nearly 7 percent of the
population.
Most Albanians were concentrated in Kosovo where they constituted
roughly 80 percent of the population; another quarter million
resided in
neighboring Macedonia and Montenegro. All told, an estimated
one-third to one-half of all Albanians lived in Yugoslavia - making
them
one of the largest potentially irredentist communities in the
world...
"Some demonstrators [in the 1981 Albanian riots] suggested that the
proposed Kosovo republic ought to include Albanians in Macedonia
and Montenegro too. Some extremists even voiced secessionist
sentiments calling for a 'Greater Albania.'"
The book was published by Headquarters, Department of the Army (DA Pam
550-99), Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC. It
is available at libraries.
---
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EMPEROR'S CLOTHES, Tuesday, December 5, 2000
Why Albanians Fled During NATO Bombing - "The truth about what
happened..."
Interview with Cedda Pralinchevich
Interviewer Jared Israel
Translator Petar Makara
This is the second Emperor's Clothes interview with Cedda Pralinchevich,
President of the Jewish Community in Prishtina. In the first interview,
Mr. Pralinchevich, formerly Chief Archivist of Kosovo, described how he
and tens of thousands of other Yugoslavs were driven from Prishtina by
the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) with NATO's backing.
NATO claims it bombed Yugoslavia in the Spring of 1999 to stop Yugoslav
war crimes against ethnic Albanians. These supposed crimes supposedly
produced the much-televised Albanian flight from Kosovo. Not so, says
Mr. Pralinchevich.
Yugoslavia's new more-or-less Foreign Minister Svilanovich stands with
NATO on the war crimes allegations. He has invited the NATO-controlled
War Crimes Tribunal to set up shop in Belgrade and promises to help them
hunt down Serbian leaders.
As far as the evidence hunt goes, the Tribunal hasn't done too well. It
employed hundreds of forensic experts and dug up Kosovo for a year
(under KLA direction) but found no evidence of Serbian atrocities. That
failure hasn't fazed NATO. Bolstered by the improved attitude from
Belgrade (Mayor Milan Protich was quoted in the 10-25 'Independent'
calling for the "de-Nazification" of the Yugoslav government) the NATO
propaganda machine has stepped up attacks against ousted President
Miloshevich and others, arguing that the exodus of all those ethnic
Albanians proves there must have been atrocities. Why else would they
leave?
Why else indeed.
Let's hear from Mr. Pralinchevich, historian of Kosovo.
[Note: In the text, we have tried to spell Serbian names so
English-speaking readers can pronounce them correctly. 'Pristina'
is
Prishtina', 'Prlincevic' is 'Pralinchevich' and 'Milosevic' is
'Miloshevich'. -
Jared Israel]
Why Albanians Fled During NATO Bombing
"Israel: NATO said the Albanians were fleeing atrocities. We in
the West who opposed NATO said they were fleeing the
bombing. You're saying we were both wrong, that the Albanians
weren't fleeing the Serbs and they weren't fleeing the bombing."
(From the interview below)
Israel: Why did so many Albanians leave Kosovo a few days after NATO
began bombing? Was the Yugoslav Army attacking them?
Pralinchevich: No, not attacking them. In some areas the Army did
relocate people, but not out of Kosovo. The idea was to move them
further into Serbia. You must understand, the Army was presented with a
most difficult situation. A major clash was expected between NATO and
Yugoslav troops. This kind of NATO ground attack was a special threat in
the area bordering Albania.
Under those circumstances, with the KLA [Kosovo Liberation Army]
attacking inside Kosovo and from Albania and with NATO poised to invade
and about to start bombing from airplanes, how could the Yugoslav Army
hope to protect that border population?
You should understand, the Army had had an experience like this in
Vukovar. That was in 1991. Civilians were trapped in a battlefield
between the Army and the Croatian Ustashe [neo-fascist] secessionists.
To avoid making the same mistake again, the Army wanted to empty a space
40 kilometers deep so people wouldn't be trapped between the Army, NATO
and the KLA.
At the same time there was a big increase in the number of KLA
terrorists illegally crossing the Albanian border into Kosovo. In that
situation there were bound to be some unhappy events. It was a most
difficult situation, you see.
Albanians Assassinated
Israel: Was this at the beginning of the bombing?
Pralinchevich: Yes, and earlier too. During this period, the Yugoslav
government tried to organize local Albanian Crisis Centers to distribute
humanitarian aid, and also a Headquarters to work with the Yugoslav
Army, organizing ethnic Albanians who lived in the danger zone to move
deeper into Serbia, away from potential fighting.
But those ethnic Albanians who did cooperate with the Army became a
target for the KLA. Many were assassinated.
Israel: Were these Crisis Centers located all over Kosovo or just near
the Albanian border?
Pralinchevich: Mostly near the border.
The Crisis Centers distributed humanitarian help from all over Serbia.
For example there was food and building materials to repair homes from
the North, from Vojvodina. People sent blankets, food, clothing,
everything.
The West Misunderstands Ethnic Albanians
Israel: Getting back to the Albanian exodus during the bombing, here's
the question: if the Yugoslav Army didn't throw the Albanians out, why
did so many leave? It's true we don't know the exact number. The Western
media has given all sorts of figures, from 150,00 to over a million,
which is slightly ridiculous - but certainly many thousands did leave.
Why? To escape the bombs?
Pralinchevich: Not exactly.
Israel: Not exactly?
Pralinchevich: No. The reason they left and went out of Serbia, to
Albania or Macedonia, is rooted in the cultural history of Albanian
people living in Kosovo. Because of their mindset, which I think people
in the West thoroughly misunderstand, the KLA had a big impact when it
attacked and executed Albanians who cooperated with the government.
Israel: I would have thought such attacks would turn them against the
KLA.
Pralinchevich: No, no. They led the ethnic Albanian population to stop
cooperating with the Yugoslav government and start cooperating with the
KLA.
Israel: Doesn't a guerilla movement need to treat ordinary people
decently to get support?
Pralinchevich: Yes, but the KLA was never what you mean by a guerilla
movement. It was a foreign-organized group of terrorists delivering a
message.
The so-called 'International Community,' that is, NATO, had trumpeted
that they had plans for the Albanians, that they would give them
independence and a Greater Albania, make them a major power in southern
Europe. So there was this intense propaganda from the West for ten years
and at the same time the crisis in the Albanian community was quite
pronounced. Even before the bombing, some Albanian representatives asked
the Yugoslav government to allow their people to form convoys and go
toward Macedonia, basically to save themselves from this crisis.
Israel: What crisis? The fighting between the Yugoslav Army and the KLA?
Pralinchevich: Not exactly, although this fighting did have a big
effect. So did the bombing, which started a bit later; it had a critical
psychological effect. But this was related to the KLA. You see the KLA
was trying to fulfill their own overall goals. To achieve these goals,
which involved proving to the West they could deliver, they told the
ethnic Albanians to leave. And this was not a polite request. It was an
order. Do you see?
At the same time the KLA, their special units, and then a bit later NATO
bombers, were attacking traffic on important roads that led to inner
Serbia.
Israel: And this influenced the Albanians?
Pralinchevich: Yes. It dissuaded them from going further into Serbia and
it also told them: Yugoslavia can't help you.
Meanwhile the United States was training their KLA proxies in Albania
including in how to wage this sort of psychological warfare, to deliver
the message that Albanians should temporarily vacate Serbia.
Israel: So you're saying that this culture, this Kosovo Albanian
culture, had a strong tendency to respond to carrots and sticks?
Pralinchevich: That's it. Now you're beginning to understand.
Israel: And the U.S. was telling Albanians, "We'll help you secede;
we'll make you a star. But if you reject our help we'll kill you." Is
that it?
Pralinchevich: Your question is complex. I'll have to give a long
answer.
Israel: OK.
Pralinchevich: Historically, the Kosovo Albanians were never involved in
frontal battles. Instead, they had groups of warriors called kachatzi,
small bands of fighters that used hit and run tactics. But they never
kept large scale weapons to use in frontline war.
Part of the purpose of the Western training was to get the KLA to
surpass small group combat and become an army able to carry out NATO's
commands throughout Kosovo. NATO's foot soldiers.
To this end, one KLA group left Kosovo and went to Albania where they
were trained by the Americans, and by the way, they became the core of
what is now called the Kosovo Protection Corps. They marched back into
Kosovo with NATO in June, 1999 and seized government offices and
facilities and drove out hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Roma
["Gypsies"] Jews, pro-Yugoslav Albanians and others.
Israel: You're saying that after NATO took over Kosovo these KLA types
were under orders to drive out those people?
Pralinchevich: Yes. We can see the results of the action of exactly
those forces today. NATO planned the expulsion of 350,000 people.
Without NATO's approval and instructions, these KLA, whom NATO had
trained and brought back to Kosovo, would never have attempted this mass
expulsion. Impossible. NATO was eliminating a potentially rebellious
population.
And remember, they didn't expel only non-Albanians. Perhaps the most
important group was Albanians who in any official capacity had helped
the Yugoslav government. They had to go. NATO wanted the ethnic
Albanians who stayed in Kosovo to be without a Yugoslav alternative.
Israel: So this first wave of Albanians who marched across the border
with the KFOR [NATO] troops - they were hardcore KLA? Not simply
gangsters?
Pralinchevich: Well some were KLA gangsters and others were ordinary
gangsters from Albania. They carried out and allowed others to carry out
all kinds of crimes. Some wanted revenge; some wanted to steal; some
wanted to do this; some wanted to do that, to achieve whatever political
goals. And no one was interrupting the others. They were doing it
altogether in concert and not interfering with each other.
Israel: They were all KLA? There were no mysterious elements here? KFOR
claims mysterious elements carried out (and still carry out) these
crimes.
Pralinchevich: KFOR knows exactly who organized the expulsions, but of
course, as it became clear to ethnic Albanians that KFOR would tolerate
criminal actions carried out by the KLA, KLA crime became a mass
phenomenon. Whoever was doing criminal stuff would use the KLA label. If
someone would steal some Serb's car, he would say: "I'm KLA."
It got to be a joke among Albanians to call themselves 'KLA', to cover
up. If someone wanted to rob someone else's house, they would say -
"We're KLA."
Israel: Because they knew that KFOR wouldn't touch them if they were
KLA?
Pralinchevich: Yes, they became untouchable.
Israel: Getting back to the period up to the bombing: You were saying
that in this area along the border two things were going on: The army
was trying to get those people out of the potential fire zone plus they
were organizing local Albanians for self-defense. But at the same time a
section of Albanians had been organized by the other side, by the KLA.
So they were having a contest for the hearts of the ethnic Albanians?
Pralinchevich: Yes. At first the Yugoslav government felt confident that
they'd succeed in getting the Albanian population to organize to defend
itself from the KLA. The attempt to do this started during the
Rambouillet talks, in the winter of 1999, before the bombing.
Israel: My impression is that the KLA had a weak base during this
period. Is that true?
Pralinchevich: Yes, but remember there was a continuous influx of their
people from Albania. So they had weak popular support but they were
getting reinforcements from Albania, trying to turn the tide.
Israel: Which is why there were constant border clashes with Yugoslav
troops fighting these intruders.
Pralinchevich: Right.
Israel: So the KLA's solid base was in northern Albania?
Pralinchevich: At that time, yes. But the Yugoslav Government program of
self defense failed in the border area and then gradually throughout
Kosovo people switched to the KLA side.
Israel: During the bombing was the KLA used as spotters for NATO air
attacks?
Pralinchevich: Yes. Definitely.
Israel: Was the bombing used to drive Albanians out of Kosovo?
Pralinchevich: Not mainly on its own, but yes, insofar as it reinforced
the KLA's attempt to destabilize the area. Mr. Walker was the one who
was organizing the KLA. Mr. Walker of the Verification Mission that came
into Kosovo, under the OSCE [Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe] umbrella, in the fall of 1998.
You see this is a complex thing and I wanted to give a long answer. Even
this international corps of monitors, this Verification Mission, they
were also involved in organizing KLA. Before the bombing started we had
this forced diplomacy. The European Community and the U.S. insisted that
their forces come into Kosovo as peace monitors. At the head of these
peace Verifiers was Mr. Walker.
The Verifiers organized the KLA. That's why terrorist attacks by the KLA
increased after they arrived. During that period there was no major
shift of population, whether Albanian or Serbian, though this
international monitor group was laying the basis for migration. They
needed migration to create the impression of a crisis for international
public opinion.
Israel: How did they lay the basis for migration?
Pralinchevich: They did it by having the KLA kill some Albanians who
were cooperating with the government.
Israel: The Verifiers, the OSCE Monitors, did all this...?
Pralinchevich: Yes, they organized the KLA into a more cohesive force so
it could influence events. And they prepared for the bombing. The
Yugoslav government caught some Albanians and some Serbs who were
positioning bombing markers. Those are radio devices that emit signals
to identify targets.
We were confused when the OSCE monitors left Kosovo. It should have been
obvious why they left. Their job was done.
Israel: OK, I'm confused right now. I'm not sure about our focus. Are we
talking about the Verifiers being responsible for positioning bombing
markers?
Pralinchevich: Yes! That is one thing they organized. I say this in full
responsibility. Yes, OSCE monitors prepared the NATO attack.
The KLA is only a proxy for what NATO wanted to achieve in this
geographical area. All the current political turmoil points to NATO,
whether in Kosovo or Montenegro or the Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia.
Israel: Explain what you mean, please.
Pralinchevich: I mean Kosovo is just one of the points of
destabilization of Yugoslavia. It is manipulated from the US and Europe.
And this is not just what I think. It is obvious.
Israel: I apologize for these picky questions. People are starved for
clarification on these points. Nobody has made things clear.
Pralinchevich: I'm grateful for the questions. And again: I am answering
with full consciousness of my responsibility to be accurate.
Israel: I understand. You're an historian of Kosovo.
Pralinchevich: Yes, I am, and I want people to know the truth about what
happened here...
So getting back to the period before the bombing: the OSCE was taking
steps to produce a migration of Albanians towards Macedonia and Albania.
The idea was to break down the physical barrier of the border existing
between Yugoslavia on the one hand and Macedonia and Albania on the
other. The OSCE wanted to create for the international community the
impression of a humanitarian catastrophe . . .
Israel: Even before the bombing?
Pralinchevich: Yes. The OSCE was actually organizing the complete
scenario for the crisis in Kosovo. Once again, they were trying to push
the ethnic Albanian population to Albania and Macedonia to present the
impression of a humanitarian nightmare.
We were surprised that right before the bombing significant numbers of
Albanians began moving toward the border. We were surprised. But of
course, it was planned.
Israel: But there were no bombs yet.
Pralinchevich: At that time the KLA had a big influx of reinforcements
from Albania. They attacked road crossings and so on with the intention
of making a total chaos and collapse of the situation in Kosovo. This
was intended to make a point to all Albanians.
Israel: But in terms of the population movement, why were the ethnic
Albanians leaving?... I wish you could just give me some idea...
Pralinchevich: That is exactly why I started answering your question by
talking about the culture of the Albanian people. Because they have a
strong clan structure and as part of that tradition, if the leader of
the village says, "Let's vote for this candidate!" they tend to vote for
this candidate, and if the leaders says "Let's all go!" - they go
Israel: But why would the clan leaders say "Let's all go!"?
Pralinchevich: First of all, a large part of the ethnic Albanians wanted
to return to the situation that existed a hundred years ago, under the
Ottoman Empire, and again during World War II, when Kosovo was under
Nazi- Albanian control. Most of the Albanian population had been won to
this goal by the secessionist movement.
Promises from the USA
When I speak of secession you might think of the Basques in Spain or the
Irish in northern Ireland, but this is very different. In Kosovo, a
foreign Superpower supported the secessionists for well over a decade.
Because of this support, the Albanians were psychologically prepared to
achieve - no, not to achieve, to be given - secession. As a gift. The
secessionist leaders, starting with Rugova, had promised them, "Do this,
do that and the US will intervene and we will get Kosovo." They had been
promising this for years. "Sacrifice your children by boycotting the
schools; sacrifice your health by boycotting the hospitals; use your
suffering to show foreign public opinion how we suffer under the Serbs,
and the U.S. will come to our rescue."
By March, 1999 this political theater had been going on 10 years. "The
US will set us free." And of course, many Albanians believed that during
World War II the German Nazis had set Albanians free.
The Yugoslav constitution of 1974 didn't help. It weakened the central
government and thus encouraged those in Kosovo who wanted to return to
the W.W. II regime when Albanian nationalists ruled Kosovo under the
German Nazis and terrorized the Serbs, Roma ['Gypsies'] and Jews. After
1974 the abuses against Serbs and Roma increased. This was openly
manifested during the ethnic Albanian riots in 1981.
These were race riots, with Serbs as the targets, both the Serbian
clergy and ordinary Serbian citizens. After that the Americans entered
the picture and magnified the secessionists' political strength ten
times over.
U.S. Openly Encouraged Secessionists in 1990
For example, when US Ambassador Zimmerman arrived in Yugoslavia in 1990
[before the outbreak of the Yugoslav wars of secession] one of his first
acts was to go to Kosovo and open an Exhibition of architectural works
from Chicago. He used this exhibition to boost the Albanian
secessionists.
Israel: How?
Pralinchevich: He didn't invite anyone from the Federal Yugoslav Federal
or Serbian Governments. But he did invite Ibrahim Rugova [the main
secessionist leader at that time] and the like.
By snubbing the Federal Government, which represented multiethnic
society, and snubbing those Albanian leaders who opposed secession,
Zimmerman's action had a profound psychological effect
Israel: I can imagine. Everyone notices who doesn't get invited to a
party.
Pralinchevich: Yes, and especially in this period, when there was much
ultra-nationalist agitation in Kosovo, to break Kosovo away from Serbia
and to take parts of Macedonia and Bulgaria and link it all up with
Albania. And these were the leaders whom Zimmerman invited. How could
Albanians argue against secession when Rugova could say, "See? We have
the support of the most powerful nation on earth!"
Israel: People often present Mr. Rugova as the good guy, by way of
contrast to the KLA.
Pralinchevich: They have the same goal: secession. The difference is
over methods. Rugova always wears a scarf to illustrate the entrapment,
or whatever, of Albanians in Yugoslavia. He says he'll take it off when
Kosovo secedes from Serbia.
The United States, for its own geopolitical reasons, deliberately
encouraged the secessionist tendency among Albanians, used them against
the Yugoslav government in order to destabilize the Balkans.
The fact is that Serbs and Albanians had been living together with some
degree of tolerance for centuries, whenever there was peace... The
United States disrupted this status quo.
Serbs and Albanians Worked Together During the Bombing, Until...
Israel: In Prishtina, during the bombardment, was there any effort to
have unity between the Albanians, the Serbs and other minorities?
Pralinchevich: We, as loyal citizens of Yugoslavia, whether Serbs or
Albanians, tried to cooperate and live together, to help each other.
Israel: But what about the majority of the people in Prishtina? Did the
majority try to help each other?
Pralinchevich: Yes. It was the town of intellectuals. We all had flats
next to each other. The children went to the same schools. We lived in
the same apartment buildings.
Israel: So the secessionists weren't strong there?
Pralinchevich: Not at first, but then later even in Prishtina the
Albanians were sucked into the secessionist camp. This could happen
because of certain cultural traits, deeply rooted in their history.
During the bombing, suddenly they started leaving. And when we asked
them, "Why are you doing this?" they replied, "We have to!"
Israel: Who are you talking about?
Pralinchevich: Professors, managers at stores, retired people, even
retired Yugoslav Army officers who were ethnic Albanian.
"Sorry, I have to go."
I'll give you an example. My Albanian neighbor was a Professor. He
seemed very much integrated into Yugoslav life. Our children played
together; we were friends, you see. And then, without warning he packed
up and started to leave his flat, to leave Kosovo. So I said: "Why are
you leaving, neighbor?" He said: "Sorry. I have to." And I said, "Why?
We're safe here. Nobody's bothering you. The housing complex hasn't been
bombed. We're all working together." And he said, "I was ordered to
leave." He gave me the keys so I could watch his flat . ... Ironically,
after NATO took over he returned and then I was forced out by the KLA
gangsters. I gave him my key, so he could watch my flat.
Israel: But who ordered him to leave?
Pralinchevich: The leader of his clan.
Israel: Why?
Pralinchevich: To prove obedience to the KLA. This was the KLA's
national plan. All loyal Albanians were to leave during the bombing and
go to Albania or Macedonia to show the world how terrible the Serbs
were; this exodus was staged; it was a performance, Hollywood in Kosovo.
What is Hollywood without actors? A large number of Albanians had to
perform, had to actually leave Kosovo. This was not so different from
what they had been doing for ten years, you see, pretending they had
been locked out of the schools when actually it was an organized
boycott, and so on.
Moreover, once they were in the refugee camps, the Albanians would be
under the direct leadership of the KLA, which could intensively
indoctrinate them, Which it did.
Israel: But why would his clan leader agree to this crazy plan?
Pralinchevich: You think it was crazy? This gets us to the heart of the
matter. Between the attacks from the KLA on Albanians who cooperated
with the Yugoslav government and the continuous bombing by NATO,
especially of Albanians who disobeyed the KLA, the KLA had gotten their
message across to the clan leaders. So now the clan leaders ordered
their people to pack up and leave.
Israel: You know, during the bombing, NATO said the Albanians were
fleeing atrocities. We Western opponents of NATO said they were fleeing
the NATO bombing. But you're saying we were both wrong, that the
Albanians weren't fleeing the Serbs or the bombing.
Pralinchevich: Let's just say the bombing isn't a sufficient
explanation. If they were just fleeing bombs, why did they have to go to
Albania and Macedonia? Why not to inner Serbia? And what about people
like my friend, who just packed up, seemingly for no reason, and left?
The rest of us, Serbs, Jews, Roma, we were in Prishtina too. Why didn't
we leave? Did we value our lives less than they valued theirs? No, it
wasn't the bombs. They were afraid to disobey their clan leaders.
But the bombing did play an important role. The KLA served as spotters;
they could direct NATO attacks against hostile Albanians, and this
confirmed for the clan leaders that the KLA had serious power.
It was psychological warfare, intended to reinforce the psychological
crisis among Albanians, a crisis rooted in fear.
The KLA and NATO were telling Albanians: NATO supports the KLA. After
NATO takes over, the KLA will be in charge and if you don't leave now
you will be in big trouble later. There will be no safe refuge.
That's what I meant when I said you need to know something about
Albanian culture in order to understand why Albanians left.
You have to know about blood feud.
Blood Feud and the Canon of Leke
Pralinchevich: One book has a great hold over Kosovo Albanians. It's
called the 'Canon of Leke Dukagjiniis'. It's a 15th century text that
spells out codes of behavior. It goes into great detail on how to carry
out blood feuds, when and whom it is proper to kill. It lays out the
proper methods to use when killing, rules and regulations and so on.
And this Canon is alive among Albanians today, especially since the fall
of communism. This is an intensely tradition-oriented culture. Blood
feud is a constant threat for Albanians. Thousands of people in Albania
and Kosovo cannot leave their houses because they are being hunted; even
a child in the cradle might be marked for death as part of a feud. It is
for this reason that Kosovo Albanian houses are often built surrounded
by high walls and with gun slits instead of windows.
By methodically killing those who refused to support them, the KLA was
striking a deep fear among Albanians: the refusal of one Clan member to
obey could lead to revenge against his entire clan. And now the KLA had
NATO bombers to enforce blood feud.
What took me by surprise was how much this affected Albanians, even
intellectuals. It's amazing. Here is a Professor in Prishtina, very
sophisticated, but when the order comes from his Clan leader, who is
perhaps a farmer 100 miles away, the Professor immediately packs up and
leaves for Albania without even considering saying no.
Israel: We didn't understand the KLA. We thought their terror tactics
were counter productive.
Pralinchevich: Well, they knew their own people, their fears, their
traditions. They knew that if they could prove they were deadly, the
clan leaders would fall in line.
Now they live in a society dominated by gangsters. None of this would
have happened were it not for years of effort by the United States.
***
Further reading:
1) On the involvement of the OSCE Verification Monitors in organizing
the KLA and in spying on Yugoslavia, see:* ''Humanitarian Spies'' by
Jared Israel at http://emperors-clothes.com/analysis/humanita.htm
- and -
* ''The Cat is Out of the Bag'' at
http://emperors-clothes.com/news/ciaaided.htm
2) "The roots of Kosovo fascism'' The title of this excellent piece by
George Thompson is self-explanatory. It can be read at
http://emperors-clothes.com/articles/thompson/rootsof.htm
3) On the criminalization of politics, economics and daily life in
Kosovo since the June, 1999 NATO takeover see the following
* "Crime and Terror in the New Kosovo" at
http://emperors-clothes.com/news/u.htm [Documents the criminalization of
daily life]
* "How will you plead at the trial, Mr. Annan?" at
http://emperors-clothes.com/news/howwill.htm [The London 'Observor'
quotes an internal UN report documenting the criminal nature of the
Kosovo Protection Corps, set up by the UN ]
* "Gracko survivors blame NATO" at
http://emperors-clothes.com/misc/grack.htm [A terrible crime reveals the
enormity of NATO's opening of the border between Serbia and Albania.]
Note: United States planners were fully aware of the destabilizing
potential of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo as far back as 1982. Here is a
quote from "YUGOSLAVIA, a country of study" a 1982 book which is part of
the U.S. Army's "Area handbook series."
In the forward, Dr. William Evans-Smith, Director of Foreign Area
Studies for American University in Washington, DC, writes:
"The study focuses on historical antecedents and on the cultural,
political
and socioeconomic characteristics that contribute to cohesion and
cleavage within the society. "
Here's a quote from the book:
"Yugoslavia's largest national minority was its Albanian community,
in
1981 numbering some 1.6 million, nearly 7 percent of the
population.
Most Albanians were concentrated in Kosovo where they constituted
roughly 80 percent of the population; another quarter million
resided in
neighboring Macedonia and Montenegro. All told, an estimated
one-third to one-half of all Albanians lived in Yugoslavia - making
them
one of the largest potentially irredentist communities in the
world...
"Some demonstrators [in the 1981 Albanian riots] suggested that the
proposed Kosovo republic ought to include Albanians in Macedonia
and Montenegro too. Some extremists even voiced secessionist
sentiments calling for a 'Greater Albania.'"
The book was published by Headquarters, Department of the Army (DA Pam
550-99), Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC. It
is available at libraries.
---
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