HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS CALLS FOR END TO CONTINUING VIOLENCE IN KOSOVO

HR/99/73
4 August 1999



United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson called today for an end to killings, abductions, property destruction and acts of revenge afflicting Kosovo in recent weeks.

Speaking ahead of the submission, scheduled for next month, of a report to the Commission on Human Rights on the situation in Kosovo, the High Commissioner also called for urgent action on behalf of some 5,000 Kosovar Albanians reportedly detained, imprisoned or abducted in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Many families still do not know where relatives are being held, she said.

Saying she abhorred the terrible atrocities that have been committed against people living in Kosovo, the High Commissioner stressed that respect for human rights is a universal obligation. "Serbs, Roma and others have suffered and continue to suffer grave violations", she said, adding that she had observed the situation firsthand during recent visits to the region.

"My condemnation of violence committed against people living in Kosovo does not change when the ethnic identification or political affiliation of the victims changes," Mrs. Robinson said. "Reports from my staff on the ground speak of kidnapping, forced expulsions, murder, physical abuse and violent appropriation of other people's property -- their homes and shops. Houses are still being set afire every night in Kosovo. The most vulnerable are being targeted for attack”.

Mrs. Robinson said her staff is reporting that many of the victims of the current violence in Kosovo are elderly persons and women. "This is particularly appalling in this International Year of Older Persons", she said. "Indeed, the plight of older persons throughout the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is of great concern, as many of them are living in very precarious conditions.

"Children, too, are among the vulnerable. I welcome the progress made in getting children back to school in Kosovo, but I am worried about reports that Serb children are being prevented from enrolling in school”.

The High Commissioner said she was also disturbed by the systematic destruction and pillaging of religious shrines and cultural monuments. "Until this spring, these monuments had survived six hundred years of shifting empires in the Balkans and were protected by traditions of mutual respect among cultures", she said.

"Community leaders in Kosovo must have the courage to call for a stop to this vicious pattern of killing and intimidation," Mrs. Robinson said, "and this should be matched with practical steps to protect the vulnerable. They have called for respect for human rights; now it is time to exercise leadership in action.

"Just a few days ago the international community pledged major funding for the humanitarian and reconstruction needs of the Balkans. But economic assistance will only succeed if there is a basis of coexistence and respect for human rights throughout the region", Mrs. Robinson said. "The alternative is for the pattern of violence and counter violence to be prolonged into even further generations. That is not a recipe for peace but for instability and continuing bloodshed."

The High Commissioner emphasized her Office's commitment to working for an improved human-rights situation throughout the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, including both Serbia and Montenegro. She expressed deep concern at the plight of what is estimated as over 150,000 Serbs displaced from Kosovo, who join more than half a million Serb refugees from Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina enduring ongoing deprivation and uncertainty in Serbia. The displaced Serbs from Kosovo face particular deprivation. The High Commissioner called for concerted efforts to address this burgeoning humanitarian crisis, made all the more acute by the already-overtaxed infrastructure of social support within the country. She urged that humanitarian assistance to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia include initiatives to strengthen the underlying state of civil society and to protect the exercise of social and economic rights.

The High Commissioner appealed for support for the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Bernard Kouchner, in his efforts to restore the rule of law and respect for human rights in Kosovo. "Member States of the United Nations should give him the personnel and support he needs in his vital work," she said.