Kosova Crisis Center
link to alb-net
Kosova Benefit Concerts in 44 U.S.
Cities This Saturday With at Least 1,000 Acts (Newsday)
Rock For The Refugees / For the Kosova relief festival, Long Island join an international
effort to aid war refugees through music
By Isaac Guzman. STAFF WRITER
THIS SATURDAY, you can drive a few miles to a neighborhood pub or cafe and take part in an
international event. At nine venues across the Island, more than 60 local bands are slated
to perform in a Kosova Relief Festival to raise funds for refugees through the American
Red Cross. On the same day, in 44 U.S. cities as well as in locales throughout Canada,
Australia, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands, Argentina and Spain, at least 1,000 acts
will be tuning up, plugging in and rocking out for the cause. But unlike earlier
high-profile benefits, such as We Are the World and Live Aid, there are few stars on the
bill.
In Arnhem in the Netherlands, acclaimed alt-rockers Bettie Serveert will headline one
benefit show, but nearly every other act in the festival is unsigned and seeking to prove
that independent musicians, acting collectively, can produce an international hit.
"The premise for the whole festival and the way we had it planned was getting indie
musicians all over the world to show that they could come together and have some
impact," says U.S. national organizer Anicee Cochran. "It just kind of blew up
into a huge event. We anticipated that it would be big, but we didn't think that people
would get that into it. It snowballed to become this international thing."
The concept began on March 22, when Rene Schuijlenburg, a German musician, started a group
called Save the People of Kosova to promote charity concerts. He mentioned the events on
an Internet e-mail list called Indiebiz and caught the attention of Angela Byington, the
director of The Spiral Musician's Resource Group, a Seattle-based nonprofit dedicated to
promoting independent music. On April 7, she announced a May 15 benefit, not knowing what
would happen. In just five weeks, organizers in cities across the country pulled together
local shows. On the Island, Byington's announcement reached Richard Hughes and Dave
Isaacs, members of local bands The Slant and Jackalope Junction, respectively, who with a
few dozen musicians, club owners and other music insiders had recently formed the Long
Island Music Coalition.
Response to their appeal for participants was immediate. "The word was put out on the
Indiebiz list, and there was a meeting of the Music Coalition that night," Isaacs
says. "And I thought it might be a good thing for the coalition to rally around and
put it together. In the very beginning, it started to grow so quickly. The number of
people had tripled in four or five days. To do it all on the same day and coordinate it
through the Internet - I thought that was cool." Isaacs also found that the
combination of the Kosova benefit and the coalition helped local artists get over the
sometimes petty squabbles that crop up when egos and ideas clash. Some members of the
music coalition are infamous for cantankerous e-mail, but the festival smoothed over the
rough spots.
"It's always easier to rally around a cause than a more nebulous idea," Isaacs
says. "One of the things the coalition is formed around is being able to do things
just like this. We have one of the larger events of all the ones going on around the
country. If the coalition wasn't there, I don't know that I would have thought it was
possible." For those who aren't regulars on the scene and want guidance as to which
shows they might like, Hughes offers a brief primer on the day's offerings. "The show
at Beery's probably has a few more alternative bands," he says. "The show at the
Wrong Way probably has a few more of the jam bands.
The Borders Books venues and the one at the Congregational Chuch in Huntington tend to be
more acoustic. The Outer Limits is kind of a mixture of jam and alternative. And from what
I saw going on at Lakeside, they have hip-hop and punk and DJs, and The All Aboard is
really heavy and even has a few metal bands."
KOSOVA RELIEF FESTIVAL. Saturday at The Wrong Way Inn, Mr. Beery's, Outer Limits Ale
House, Borders Books & Music in Syosset and Jericho, Dugout Sports Bar, All Aboard
Pub, Lakesides and the Folk Music Society's Hard Luck Cafe at the Congregational Church in
Huntington. See listings for complete times and artist lineups. Admission is $10.
Clinton Compares Holocaust,
Kosova and Milosevic, Hitler (AP)
By KEVIN GALVIN Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Clinton today compared Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic's campaign of ethnic cleansing with the Holocaust and argued for a major U.S.
commitment to rebuilding the Balkans after the conflict in Kosova.
``Southeastern Europe after the Cold War was free but poor,'' Clinton said. ``As long as
they are poor, they will offer a less compelling counterweight to the kind of ethnic
exclusivity and oppression that Mr. Milosevic preaches.''
Speaking to about 200 Veterans of Foreign Wars members at the National Defense University
at Fort McNair, Clinton called the Serb campaign in Kosova ``an attack ... on the dignity
of all people.''
``Though his ethnic cleansing is not the same as the ethnic extermination of the
Holocaust, the two are related — both vicious, premeditated, systematic oppression,
fueled by religious and ethnic hatred,'' Clinton said.
Clinton acknowledged the sacrifices U.S. veterans have made to preserve freedom, as he
reiterated the NATO demands that Milosevic must meet before the airstrikes end.
``The Kosovars must be able to return home and live in safety,'' he said. ``For this to
happen, the Serb forces must leave. Partial withdrawals can only mean continued civil
war.''
He again expressed remorse for NATO's mistaken bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade,
but said such ``inadvertent tragedies of conflict'' shouldn't distract from the purpose of
the NATO airstrikes.
``There are thousands of people that have been killed, systematically by the Serb
forces,'' he said. ``We must remember who the real victims are here.''
Clinton said the United States would work with the World Bank and its European allies to
invest in the Balkans as a way to promote stable and peaceful regimes. He offered no
specifics on how much money or manpower Americans would commit, but likened the endeavor
to the plan to rebuild Europe after World War II.
``If you believed the Marshall Plan worked,'' Clinton said. ``Then we have to work with
our European allies to rebuild Southeastern Europe and give them an economic future that
will pull them together.''
White House press secretary Joe Lockhart said Clinton wanted to acknowledge that the
veterans ``know something about standing up for the right thing'' and assure them that he
intended to persevere against Milosevic's forces.
``The World War II veterans here fought in Europe and the Pacific to prevent the world
from being dominated by a tyrant,'' Clinton said. ``The sacrifice of Americans and allied
troops helped to end a nightmare.''
As NATO pressed on through force and diplomacy to try to bring Milosevic to heel, Gen.
Hugh Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the air campaign ``is exacting a
significant toll'' but suggested the end was not in sight, from a military standpoint.
``It is possible that a force like the one Milosevic is using for ethnic cleansing and
terror in Kosova could hold out for quite some time,'' Shelton said.
Shelton would not say how long he thought the Serbs could keep NATO at bay, but he
insisted the alliance was ready and able to continue its intensified bombing for as long
as necessary.
Kosova and NATO: The Left's
Response
By Roger Lippman
The response of many progressives to the Serbian repression of the people of Kosova has
been to condemn U.S intervention, and even to minimize the Serbian atrocities. People seem
largely unaware of Serbian attacks on Kosova before the NATO intervention. March, 1999,
was not when the problem began.
It disturbs me to see people holding to their ideology above a concern for the people
being killed, raped, expelled from their homeland. There have been times in my life when
the reality that I observed conflicted with my politics, and I was forced to re-examine my
view of the world to account for that. This may be such a time for many of us.
For further information, see http://www.glypx.com/BalkanWitness
1. Introduction
When NATO began military action against Yugoslavia, many progressives immediately took up
the call to stop the intervention, and even brought out the same signs that had been used
in demonstrations against U.S. intervention in Central America, Iraq, etc.
But for many of us, the answer is not that simple. As a 35-year activist in labor, civil
rights, anti-intervention, solidarity, and environmental movements, I start from the
premise that the people of Kosova must be defended against the Serbian military that is
bent on obliterating their society.
The current news, from almost any source, portrays Serb destruction of Kosova (which
started well before the NATO bombings), the forced evacuation of entire cities, and the
systematic murder of men from the ages of 15 to 60. These crimes are comparable to the
Khmer Rouge destruction of Cambodia, the Serb destruction of Bosnia, or the U.S. in
Vietnam.
2. History
We are fairly adept at recognizing the lies of the U.S. government, but not as familiar
with seeing what might be the faults of its enemies. We need a background in recent
history to be able to understand the situation and sort out Serbian propaganda.The status
of all the Yugoslav republics was determined by the 1974 Yugoslav constitution. Under that
constitution, Kosova had almost identical rights as the other areas. But as a concession
at the time to Serbian feelings, it was deemed an autonomous "province" of
Serbia, mainly lacking only the theoretical right to secede.
See http://www.glypx.com/BalkanWitness/articles.htm. (Select the article "Kosova
CONTRADICTIONS")
Yugoslav President Milosevic rose to power by exploiting the Serbian nationalism that had
been latent during the long reign of Tito. In 1989 he unconstitutionally revoked the
autonomous status of Kosova and instituted a brutal occupation very similar to the Israeli
occupation of Palestinian land. The 90% ethnic Albanian majority was denied the right to
have schools in its own language, and large numbers of Albanian professionals were fired
from their jobs. Over the past decade there were arrests without charge, indefinite
detention, disappearances, torture, assassinations, and attacks on villages.
In response to the Serbian occupation, there arose a massive, remarkably non-violent
ethnic Albanian opposition movement. This movement was largely ignored or even unnoticed
by most of the world, especially those in a position to do anything to support it.
Serbian repression increased. In 1997 and 1998, the Albanian people's movement mobilized
demonstrations of over 100,000 people. But for all its dignity and massive base of
support, the movement was outmatched by the sheer military power of the Serbian
authorities.
As a result of the failure of the non-violent movement to make significant progress, small
armed groups formed to fight the Serbian repression. These poorly armed and trained groups
became the Kosova Liberation Army (KLA).
In the spring of 1997, the economy of the neighboring country of Albania totally
collapsed. In the resulting chaos, weapons from the Albanian military were stolen when
armories were raided and completely emptied. The weapons were given away or sold for a
pittance, flooding into Kosova and to the KLA. While there have been circulating some
silly allegations that the KLA is financed, variously, by the CIA, drug trafficking,
and/or organized crime, the major source of foreign support, beyond Albanian weapons, has
been remittances from overseas Albanian immigrants.
However, the KLA was no match for the Yugoslav army, which historically was built to
protect the country against attacks from both the east and the west, and not long ago was
among the five largest military forces in Europe.
3. Failed negotiations
Months ago, the international community, including Russia, attempted to negotiate a
settlement between the Serbian government and the Albanians of Kosova. Months of
negotiations produced a compromise reluctantly accepted by the Kosovars, but rejected by
Milosevic. Meanwhile, it was clear that Milosevic had no intention of negotiating an
agreement.
NATO, too, has responsibility for the failure. Going back to the Croatia and Bosnia wars,
the West arranged cease-fires and allowed them to be broken with no consequences. They
never once really pushed back at Milosevic and the other separatists. They taught him that
he could get away with atrocities.
Ignoring an October cease-fire, Milosevic massed police and troops in Kosova and along its
borders in numbers far beyond those allowed by the cease-fire plan. Throughout 1998,
Yugoslav forces were shelling towns, looting, and burning villages, even right in front of
the OSCE cease-fire verification force then in place. See
http://www.seattletimes.com/news/nation-world/html98/clen_19990412.html
Attempts at negotiations are not a new idea. It is precisely because they failed to stop
the escalating repression that we have come to the unfortunate situation of outside
military intervention.
4. NATO military intervention
NATO's mission is to neutralize Serb expansionism, with its threat to European stability -
to prevent the spread of a hot war across borders into Albania, Macedonia, Bosnia, and
beyond. Those interests may coincide with protecting the Kosova Albanians from being
obliterated and restoring their autonomy.
Yugoslav propagandists, echoed by economic determinists in the U.S. left, claim that NATO
wants control of the Balkans so it can control proposed oil pipelines from the rich
oilfields of the Caspian Sea. But take a look at a map of that region. There is no logic
to establishing a pipeline through the former Yugoslavia. Existing and proposed routes
terminate in Turkey or on the Black Sea or the Persian Gulf. You can see maps of the
proposed routes in the New York Times, October 11, 1998 (page 12).
Those who oppose NATO military intervention should be asked what they had to say before.
Did they ever speak for the defense of Kosova against Serbia? (Or, for that matter, are
they speaking in defense of the Kosovars now?) They have the responsibility to offer
serious, credible alternatives. Otherwise, their alternative to intervention is to give
Milosevic a free hand. The last decade and the last months show that Milosevic did not and
will not negotiate over Kosova in good faith. The years of organized non-violence by
ethnic Albanians yielded only sustained violence from the Serbs and virtually nothing from
the international community. Meanwhile, the example of the Serbian destruction of Bosnia
was right there in front of us, and the same or worse has been happening in Kosova.
Some say that intervention in Kosova should be under the auspices of the U.N. Clearly,
that would be better than NATO. However, given the opposition of China and Russia, who
have veto power, the Security Council has not been able to reach agreement on any
intervention. So the result would be to leave the Kosova Albanians at the mercy of
Milosevic. If the final destruction of Kosova is to be prevented, someone has to act. (For
background on the role of the U.N., see http://www.glypx.com/BalkanWitness#iwpr3.htm)
Even if the bombing was a mistake, and negotiations should have been given more of a
chance, where does that leave us now? Can the parties realistically revert to the
situation of mid March? Remember that negotiations to get Milosevic to stop the
destruction of the Albanians went on for a long time, and he continually broke his
promises, as he did with Bosnia.
It demeans the peace movement to be standing out there in alliance with Serb nationalists,
chanting the same old slogans left over from the 80s, without speaking out for the human
rights of the Kosovars and calling repression, atrocities, and crimes against humanity by
their names. The movement strips itself of its ethical legitimacy with its alternately
simplistic and deceitful response to this crisis.
5. Ideologies
Anti-interventionism, socialism (to taste), a dash or two of pacifism, and identification
with the oppressed have guided progressives well over the last four decades. Some have
come to rely on these principles to the point where they don't think about the facts.
Suddenly we're in a situation where most people don't know the complex history, and the
facts don't fit our usual assumptions.
* Anti-interventionism at this moment is akin to the failure to act against Hitler in
1938, or before.
As Physicians for Human Rights recently stated,
Horrible abuses of all types occur all over the world, but the crime of genocide is in a
class by itself. The Genocide Convention, which the United States has signed and ratified,
defines the crime as:
...acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial
or religious group... by killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental
harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life
calculated to bring about its destruction, in whole or in part.
We at Physicians for Human Rights believe that what is occurring in Kosova meets that
test. Milosevic and his forces are clearly destroying at least a part of this ethnic group
by forcibly driving almost half its population out of Kosova, by targeted killings of
community leaders, by the execution of Kosovar men, and boys, and the whole-scale
demolition of homes, villages, and cultural and religious sites. Our government is legally
required by the Genocide Convention to prevent, suppress, and punish the crime of
genocide.
See http://www.glypx.com/BalkanWitness#genocide.htm
* The "socialism" of Milosevic is akin to the dehumanization, ethnic chauvinism,
forced evacuation, and mass murders of civilians characteristic of the
"socialism" of Pol Pot, or the National Socialism of Germany.
Curiously, Serbian propaganda is being uncritically disseminated by some self-described
socialists, including the Workers World Party (also known as the International Action
Center). They should be ashamed of themselves for justifying Milosevic's genocidal
strategies against the Kosovars in the name of the working class and the oppressed, while
imagining that the Milosevic government has anything to do with socialism.
* To pacifists who oppose the NATO bombing I ask, what should be done to stop the Serbian
war crimes? Howard Clark of War Resisters International wrote recently, "There are
moments when the military manage to put a nonviolent solution beyond immediate
reach."
See http://www.glypx.com/BalkanWitness#clark.htm
6. A Better Approach
Progressives must acknowledge the primacy of the original problem: Milosevic's decade of
ethnic warfare. Once we are clear about our responsibility to support the victims of his
campaign, we can work creatively for solutions, and demand that the U.S. do the right
thing to support the people of Kosova:
* Support, at the least, autonomy for Kosova. Don't sell out the Albanians: there must be
no partition of Kosova, no armed Serbian authorities in Kosova.
* Don't continue to destroy Serbia's infrastructure or bomb non-combatants.
* Make creative diplomatic attempts to bring peace, in cooperation with effective
intermediaries.
* In conjunction with these efforts, use military force appropriately as needed to prevent
the further destruction of the Kosovars, and to allow them to return to their homeland
with a feeling of security.
* Commit resources to the reconstruction of Kosova.
* Work for a democratic Serbia and assist its reconstruction.
Letter to Rev. Jesse Jackson
Dear Reverend Jackson,
Your visit to Belgrade was a bittersweet one. I was delighted to see the three young
soldiers allowed to leave Serb prison under trumped-up charges and head home to their
families.
But I was shocked by your suggestion that we then, in turn, suspend bombing of Serbia
without ever once mentioning that they should suspend military operations in Kosova! Nor
did your itinerary include a visit to the camps in Albania or Macedonia or a trip to
Prishtine, where the democratic leaders of the Kosovar society try to carry on in mortal
danger of either starvation or beating and imprisonment.
In particular, at about the same time you obtained the release of the soldiers, you
ignored the plight of a courageous Albanian student, Albin Kurti. In 1998, Albin and the
students of the University of Prishtine, stood up to the Serb military, unarmed in a
policy of non-violence based on the methods of Martin Luther King, in an effort to regain
the right to use their schools. In their use of King's methods, they hoped to reach out to
Western leaders like you.
Kurti, his father, and two younger brothers were arrested April 28 in Prishtine in what
eye witnesses call an "extremely abusive manner." They were taken to prison.
Albin's fifteen year old brother was released after a beating. The rest have not been
heard of since. They have, perhaps, been executed.
Your advocacy in this manner could restore your image as a fair-minded leader of the
oppressed. I hope to hear from you soon.
Sincerely,
Alice Mead
Kosova Action Network Coordinator
There are no retreats, there are reinforcements of Serbian
forces (KP)
Podjevė, May 13th (Kosovapress) Today, the sector for information of the Operative Zone
of Llapi, have disproved the news of the serbian official and informative circuits that,
allegedly the partial retreat of the serbian forces from Kosova has begun. This sector,
through Mr. Ismet Cakiēi, has precised on the contrary that massive police and military
forces are being positioned and reinforced in the region of Llap. The most massive
reinforcements are around the town of Podjevė, along the road Podjevė-Prishtinė and in
the mountains of Gallap, where the biggest armament arsenal is being hidden. The serbian
information about allegedly, the retreat of 250 first serbian soldiers, are only a
political propaganda to alleviate the attacks of NATO aviation against Yugoslavia.
Brestovci has been shelled today
Rahovec, May 13th (Kosovapress) The serbian forces, since the morning until the midday,
have shelled the village Brestovc near Rahovec. These shelling have been done by the
serbian positions in Hoēė tė Madhe. Mainly the houses of Brestovc in front of Rahovec
have been shelled.
Movements of the serbian forces toward Gjakovė
(KP)
Gjakovė, May 13th (Kosovapress) Today, along the road Prizren-Gjakovė, massive movements
of the serbian paramilitary, military and police forces have taken place. They have moved
from Prizreni toward Gjakovė with military vehicles; jeeps, trucks, armoured means,
picgauer and private vehicles. They have not moved in convoys, but divided in two and
three, in the midday, when the flights of NATO warplanes had stopped.