From kosova at jps.net Wed Feb 6 04:44:50 2002 From: kosova at jps.net (kosova at jps.net) Date: Wed, 6 Feb 2002 01:44:50 -0800 Subject: [A-PAL] Deadline - March 31, 2002 Message-ID: Albanian Prisoner Advocacy List -- Prisoner Pals Newsletter January 29, 2002 ========================================== A-PAL STATEMENT: ========================================== FROM YOUR FRIENDS AT A-PAL: COME ON! ALL PRISONERS MUST GO HOME. With 180 Albanian prisoners remaining in Serbia and a U.S. Congressional deadline for their release set by March 31, 2002, WE NEED YOUR HELP! Another month has passed, 12 weeks since the November 5 agreement about the release of the remaining prisoners to UNMIK, and still only a handful of prisoners have been released. Many readers have questioned a discrepancy in the actual number of prisoners. ICRC lists 196 Albanians with 180 of them being from Kosova. UNMIK counts only those from Kosova and lists the number now at 160. Last Friday, the final four hostages in the Ferizaj group went home. However, by today, January 29, 2002, Serb justice authorities should have handed over all documents on Kosova Albanians to the UNMIK judicial pillar officials. UNMIK officials as well as several international judges will review all the cases--both political and criminal--and the remaining prisoners should be either released or transferred to Dubrava Prison by March 31, 2002. While this might seem like good news, and well-deserved relief to the many waiting families and A-PAL advocates, the track record of Serb officials in keeping such promises is abysmal. During the past two and a half years, such deadlines often meant nothing more than a brand-new flurry of excuses: no money to pay court workers, lost documents, judges out sick, new demands for Serb war criminals to be sent to Serbia, only a handful of releases, and so on. And still today, desperate families are being contacted by Serb lawyers asking for bribe money to expedite the prisoners' releases. Imagine what fear the prisoners left behind must have - thinking that they will be forgotten. Because of this, once again we ask you, our readers, to contact your local foreign affairs leaders. Urge them to support the US Congressional deadline of March 31, 2002, and to place conditions on all future aid to Serbia/FRY if the prisoners are not released by the deadline. Also, encourage European leaders to block membership in the Council of Europe if war criminals are not handed over and the prisoners not released. To date, over 17,700 emails have been sent to world leaders on behalf of the innocent prisoners. Over 1,000 members have joined the campaign to free them. We need everyone to participate at this crucial time. It takes only moments for you to help in this well-organized effort. Help the remaining prisoners GO HOME. Do not allow Serb officials to continue Milosevic's policies towards Albanians. The repression MUST STOP. Together, WE can Stop It. Please, join our efforts NOW! http://www.dbein.bndlg.de/APP/ Sincerely, Alice Mead * Naida Dukaj * Rizah Xhakli A-PAL coordinator * A-PAL coordinator * APP Prishtina Divi Beinecke * Valerie Hughes * Nexhmi Kelmendi Euro A-PAL Action * Kosova Ireland Solidarity * APP Prishtina Trish Porter * Wolfgang Plarre A-PAL activist * A-PAL compiler and archivist Mentor Cana * Bernie Sullivan Alb-net coordinator * A-PAL UK Anders Wessman * Bart Staes Sweden-Kosov@ Union * MEP-A-PAL supporter Olivier Dupuis MEP-A-PAL Supporter JOIN over 1,000 advocates at our EUROPEAN A-PAL ACTION! EMAIL-ACTION: RELEASE THE PRISONERS NOW! T? LIROHEN MENJ?HER? T? BURGOSURIT! LASST JETZT DIE GEFANGENEN FREI! ODMAH OSLOBODITE ZATVORENIKE! http://www.dbein.bndlg.de/APP/ http://www.khao.org/appkosova **************************************************************************** ICRC PRESS RELEASE Pristina, January 28, 2002 ICRC CONTINUES TO ACCOMPANY DETAINEES BACK TO KOSOVO On Friday (25.01.2002) the International Committee of the Red Cross accompanied four detainees back to Kosovo. The detainees have been released by the authorities in Belgrade. Three detainees have been released from Sremska Mitrovica prison and one from Nis prison. All of them are from Ferizaj/Urosevac region. There are still 196 ethnic Albanian detainees out of which 180 are from Kosovo. The ICRC will continue to register, visit, facilitate family visits, exchange Red Cross Messages, and when released by the authorities in Belgrade, they will be accompanied back home by the ICRC Belgrade and Pristina teams. For further information contact Nada Doumani, tel 044 115 036 -- N? vazhdim ?sht? kumtesa e s? premtes e cila si duket p?r shkaqe teknike nuk i ka arritur imejllat e juaj, p?r k?t? ar?sye e d?rgojm? s?rish. KUMTES? SHTYPI Prishtin?, 28 Janar 2002 KNKK VAZHDON T? SHOQ?ROJ? T? BURGOSURIT P?R N? KOSOV? T? premten (25.01.2002), Komiteti Nd?rkomb?tar i Kryqit t? Kuq shoq?roi kat?r t? burgosur p?r n? Kosov?. T? burgosurit jan? liruar nga autoritetet n? Beograd. Tre t? burgosur jan? liruar nga burgu i Mitrovic?s s? Sremit dhe nj? nga burgu i Nishit. T? liruarit jan? nga Ferizaji. Jan? edhe 196 shqiptar? t? burgosur prej t? cil?ve 180 jan? nga Kosova. KNKK do t? vazhdoj? t? regjistroj? t? burgosurit, do ti vizitoj?, do t? organizoj? vizita familjare, do t? shk?mbej? porosi t? Kryqit t? Kuq, dhe kur t? lirohen nga autoritetet e Beogradit, ata do t? shoq?rohen p?r n? sht?pi nga ekipet e KNKK nga Beogradi dhe Prishtina. P?r m? shum? informata kontaktoni Vjosa Osmani, tel 241 518/241 520, 249 114/249 115 -- ### From kosova at jps.net Thu Feb 7 20:27:36 2002 From: kosova at jps.net (kosova at jps.net) Date: Thu, 7 Feb 2002 17:27:36 -0800 Subject: [A-PAL] Nebojsa Covic's latest excuse is nonsense! Message-ID: Albanian Prisoner Advocacy List -- Prisoner Pals Newsletter February 06, 2002 ========================================== A-PAL STATEMENT: ========================================== "Rushing to a decision"? Covic's latest excuse is nonsense! Human rights, representative government, and justice issues must be at the center of the U.S., EU and UN agenda in regards to Kosova. The political morass that the remaining prisoners are caught in reveals the lack of focused policy, leadership and authority on all sides. The estimated number count of the remaining prisoners ranges from 162 to 200. The official count is still unknown. Cooperation from the authorities on the total remains quite minimal. By January 29, 2002, the Serb justice authorities was to have handed over all documents on Kosova Albanians to the UNMIK judicial pillar officials. UNMIK officials as well as several international judges are to review all cases, both political and criminal, and the remaining prisoners should either be released or transferred to the Dubrava Prison by March 31, 2002. On February 5, 2002, John Christian Cady of the UNMIK judicial pillar stated that he had received files from Serb officials and would begin translating them and reviewing the cases. While this might seem like good news, and a possible source of well-deserved relief to the many waiting families and A-PAL advocates, the track record of Serb officials in keeping such promises is abysmal. During the past two and a half years, such deadlines often meant nothing more than a brand-new flurry of excuses: no money to pay court workers, lost documents, judges out sick, new demands for Serb war criminals to be sent to Serbia, only a handful of releases, and so on. And still today, desperate families are being contacted by Serb lawyers asking for bribe money to expedite the prisoners' releases. Rushing to a decision? (says Covic in the B92 article below.) Lets get serious! Covic denies the validity of Cady's statement - not to mention that this process has actually been under discussion since last June, 2001 - that a preliminary agreement to hand over the files was made in early September, 2001, and that a common document was signed November 5, 2001. The truth is the prisoners could be put on buses and taken to Kosova in the space of one day. Covic's bluster and sense of persecution (wait, aren't the Albanians the ones being persecuted here?) is intended to play upon the guilty conscience of internationals for the bombing of Serbia by NATO. He is using the prisoners, once more, to gain political goals, to bargain with their lives and liberties, thus proving that Covic does not regard the individual human rights and civil rights of Albanians as inviolable. Kosova's Albanians are expendable. It's standard practice for Serb officials at the highest levels to manipulate justice and international norms to suit their immediate political needs. This is outrageous. The EU should join the United States in conditioning the next release of aid to the FRY with the transfer of the Kosova Albanians to UNMIK. Sincerely, A-PAL Team YOU CAN HELP. JOIN over 1,000 advocates at our EUROPEAN A-PAL ACTION! www.dbein.bndlg.de/APP/ ========================= * A R T I C L E * ========================= B92 News Covic in dispute with UNMIK over prisoner transfers February 6, 2002 12:47 PRISTINA, Wednesday ? The United Nations mission in Kosovo said yesterday that all ethnic Albanian prisoners in Serbia would be transferred to Kosovo by the end of March. Jean Christian Cady, head of the UNMIK police and justice department, said the Yugoslav authorities had handed over a considerable number of files on Albanians from Kosovo in detention in Serbia. But Nebojsa Covic, Belgrade?s Kosovo coordinator, warned against rushing any decision, claiming UNMIK in return had handed over just two files on Serbs imprisoned in Kosovo. He warned there were ?huge problems? in the Kosovo judiciary ?which must be resolved.? ?It?s true that the situation is improving with the arrival of international judges but it can only be good if judges from Serbia join in and that is also being worked on,? said Covic. ### EMAIL-ACTION: RELEASE THE PRISONERS NOW! T? LIROHEN MENJ?HER? T? BURGOSURIT! LASST JETZT DIE GEFANGENEN FREI! ODMAH OSLOBODITE ZATVORENIKE! http://www.dbein.bndlg.de/APP/ http://www.khao.org/appkosova From kosova at jps.net Wed Feb 13 10:53:17 2002 From: kosova at jps.net (kosova at jps.net) Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2002 07:53:17 -0800 Subject: [A-PAL] Kostunica : Judge or Judged? Message-ID: Albanian Prisoner Advocacy List -- Prisoner Pals Newsletter February 9, 2002 ========================================== A-PAL STATEMENT: ========================================== Just who exactly is in charge of not releasing the 157 to 180 remaining Albanian prisoners? Is it President Kostunica? From our archives: Statement made on February 7, 2001: "This week, the Serb Parliament passed the amnesty law. It was announced yesterday the law will release only 108 of the remaining 580 prisoners. The lack of transparency throughout this whole process has been disappointing as well. The Yugoslav Ministry of Justice has promised a "speedy" review of cases that had no proper evidence. But this speedy review comes without a timetable of any kind. "Those convicted without any evidence will be pardoned," Momcilo Grubac said, adding that Mr. Kostunica was the one to make the final decision." Speedy? Now, a year later, it is Kostunica ultimately who is behind the political gamesmanship in delaying the release of the Albanians in the hopes of gaining money and political favors from the EU and US. His treatment of these people is illegal and we support efforts by relatives to press charges against Serb leadership and courts for torture, disappearance, inhumane treatment, kidnapping, and extortion. Nebosja Covic is also an active player in this strategic shell game, playing with people's lives for personal and political gain. ========================================== A-PAL AND APP FRIENDS SPEAK OUT FOR THE FREEDOM OF THE 190+ ALBANIANS STILL IN SERB PRISONS. One prisoner, ELEZ HAXHALLARI, has been removed from Nish Prison this week and his whereabouts are unknown. Please include this in your letters. Arben Xhafieri of Tetove, president of the PDSH party in Macedonia, has asked Serb Foreign Minister Svilanovic to release the remaining prisoners. KOSOVA SWEDEN FRIENDSHIP UNION PRESSES CHARGES FOR KIDNAPPING AGAINST PRESIDENT KOSTUNICA.-- By Anders Wessman The chairman of Sweden-Kosov@ Friendship Association, Anders Wessman and the person standing for the charges, Idriz Zogaj urges all Albanians that have friends or relatives still detained in Serb prisons, to do the same thing. This would put pressure on the new so called democratic leadership in Serbia to do the only right thing, grant freedom to the kidnapped ones. It would also isolate Vojislav Kostunica, since he can't travel to the countries were charges have been pressed since he there would stand the chance to be arrested and to have to participate in a trial. He did it once for Dr. Flora Brovina, so he could do it for them all, 194 still kidnapped persons. We urge specially to Kosovars who it may concern and who lives in USA to press charges against Kostunica. Together we stand strong, alone we parish away and no one will remember our existence! If we could make him international wanted it would be a big support for the release of the hostage. ========================================== Open Letter: SWEDEN KOSOVA FRIENDSHIP UNION PRESS CHARGES AGAINST KOSTUNICA FOR KIDNAPPING AND TORTURE.--Anders Wessman and Idriz Zogaj 2/9/02 On Saturday the 2 of February Sweden-Kosov@ Friendship Union made a rally at the Gothenburg Film Festival because of the show of the film "Children (Kosovo 2000)". We decided to change our opinion regarding raising money to the Serbian authorities for the release of the kidnapped Kosovar parents. This since we have been getting letter from APP-USA their it is stated that UN appeal to the public to not pay the ransom. Instead we decided to support financial aid for the Kosovar children who has their parents in Serbian jail. At the same date Sweden-Kosov@ Friendship Union decided to appeal to the international public to support charges against Serb president Vojilsav Kostunica. One of the member of the board of Sweden-Kosov@ Friendship Union, Idriz Zogaj, decided act direct by pressing charges at the same day against Serbian president Vojislav Kostunica, responsible for keeping his cousin's husband Shaban Kabashi as a hostage for ransom in Serbian jail. This has also been noted in the Tuesday 5th of February edition of ?Rilindja?. The charges were pressed for keeping innocent Albanians imprisoned in Serbian jail. This can only be regarded as keeping kidnapped Kosovars in Serbian jail according to the organization Sweden-Kosov@ Friendship Union. This because that friends and relatives have to pay up to 9.000 US Dollar to the Serbian authorities for the release of their loved ones. The chairman of Sweden-Kosov@ Friendship Association, Anders Wessman and the person standing for the charges, Idriz Zogaj urges all Albanians that have friends or relatives still detained in Serb prisons, to do the same thing. This would put pressure on the new so called democratic leadership in Serbia to do the only right thing, grant freedom to the kidnapped ones. It would also isolate Vojislav Kostunica, since he can?t travel to the countries were charges have been pressed since he there would stand the chance to be arrested and to have to participate in a trial. The 5th of November 2001 the Serb president signed a document for the transfer of the kidnapped to UNMIK custody. This is yet to be accomplished. Please do not forget these, our last victims of the war. Help them by being their voice in the world, press charges against the Serbian leader who is able to release the hostage by a presidential decree if he wants to do so. He did it once for dr. Flora Brovina so he could do it for them all, 194 still kidnapped persons. We urge specially to Kosovars who it may concern and who lives in USA to press charges against Kostunica. This because the President of Serbia according to our sources are right now in USA Together we stand strong, alone we perish away and no one will remember our existence! If we could make him international wanted it would be a big support for the release of the hostage. Sincerely Idriz Zogaj Member of the board, Sweden-Kosov at Friendship Union + 46 (0) 707 - 97 15 06 Idriz_zogaj at yahoo.com Anders Wessman Chairman of the board, Sweden-Kosov@ Friendship Union +46 707 65 20 58 sweden_kosov at spray.se ========================================== K?SHILLI P?R MBROJTJEN E T? DREJTAVE E T? LIRIVE T? NJERIUT COUNCIL FOR THE DEFENCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS Prishtina,Kosova 2/6/02 COMMUNIQUE The international authorities prevent the activists of the CDHRF from visiting those in detention in the prisons of Kosova Within its activities, the Council for the Defence of Human Rights and Freedoms has requested to be allowed to visit a number of prisons in Kosova in order to get informed about the conditions in which prisoners are being kept. The most recent case was on February 6, 2002. On this day, a delegation of the CDHRF was invited by the officials of the District Prison in Prishtina to visit Sali Veseli, a high-ranking officer of the TMK. At the spot, the representatives of the CDHRF were told that the visit could not take place. CDHRF states that this is a violation of their right to carry out the activities envisaged in a number of UNMIK regulations. CDHRF has requested to be allowed to visit Sali Veseli (but was denied the right to do so). Within these efforts, a delegation of the CDHRF met with a number of officials dealing with the management of prisons. The activists of the CDHRF were told that there is no need for such visits (they were told that they can get all the information they require from the prison authorities). Such an attitude hinders the work of HR NGOs and is in opposition to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights. A similar problem is related to the fact that no visits are allowed to those who are being kept in detention at the Bondsteel military camp in Sojeva. CDHRF has submitted a number of requests to be allowed to visit the prisoners there but has never received an answer. CDHRF informed the former head administrator of Kosova, the Ombudsperson, the UNHCHR and other HR organizations on the problems it is facing during its work. CDHRF would like to inform the public opinion that despite its efforts to visit those who are being kept in detention, in order to get informed about the conditions in which they are being kept, it has been prevented in doing so by the authorities administering with these institutions. Prishtina, February 6, 2002 Information Service -- JOIN over 1,000 advocates at our EUROPEAN A-PAL ACTION! EMAIL-ACTION: RELEASE THE PRISONERS NOW! T? LIROHEN MENJ?HER? T? BURGOSURIT! LASST JETZT DIE GEFANGENEN FREI! ODMAH OSLOBODITE ZATVORENIKE! http://www.dbein.bndlg.de/APP/ http://www.khao.org/appkosova From kosova at jps.net Fri Feb 15 02:54:31 2002 From: kosova at jps.net (kosova at jps.net) Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 23:54:31 -0800 Subject: [A-PAL] The forgotten witnesses of the Milosevic Trial In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Albanian Prisoner Advocacy List -- Prisoner Pals Newsletter February 15, 2002 ========================================== A-PAL STATEMENT: ========================================== We are including here a letter presented by MEP Olivier Dupuis to the Members of the European Parliament. We ask that all of our readers maintain international pressure on Serb and UNMIK authorities to transfer the remaining prisoners immediately - and that the Albanian hostage situation be resolved by March 31, 2002. -- THE FORGOTTEN WITNESSES OF THE MILOSEVIC TRIAL by Olivier Dupuis, MEP ITALY Brussels, 12 February 2002. While the Milosevic trial starts in the Hague with charges of genocide and crimes against humanity - the first trial in history against a Head of State indicted while in office -, we reiterate our complete support to the work of the Tribunal in a time when many have questioned its legitimacy and legality confident as we are in the mechanisms established by the UN in 1993 regarding the right of the accused. At the same time, we are extremely concerned of the fact that at three years of the NATO Kosovo campaign the international community and the European Union in particular, have not been able to apprehend two other infamous indicted such as the former president of the Serpsk Republic Karadzic and his partner in crime General Mladic, who are the principal political responsible of the atrocities committed in Bosnia. We also denounce the inanity of the international community vis ? vis the some 200 Kosovo Albanian hostages who, at three years of their capture, still remain detained in inhumane conditions in several Serbian prisons as we have heard from one of them, Mr. Albin Kurti who was recently released. In a time in which these hostages could be heard as witnesses at the Milosevic Trial in the Hague, the international community should make undoubtedly clear to the authorities in Belgrade that the lack of cooperation in the arrest of Karadzic and Mladic and the postponement of the release of the Kosovar hostages might resort in the lodging of a formal complaint before the International Criminal Tribunal in the Hague for ?unlawful detention of civilians? and ?obstruction of justice?. Transnational Radical Party www.radicalparty.org ============================================================ JUSTICE MEANS JUSTICE FOR ALL. FREE THE REMAINING PRISONERS! JOIN OUR EMAIL ACTION CAMPAIGN AT: www.dbein at bndlg.de/APP/ http://www.khao.org/appkosova http://www.bndlg.de/~wplarre/ KOSTUNICA PERPETUATES THE POLICIES OF MILOSEVIC JOIN A-PAL SWEDEN AND THE CAMPAIGN OF SWEDEN-KOSOV@ UNION THEY HAVE BROUGHT KIDNAPPING CHARGES AGAINST KOSTUNICA! contact: Idriz Zogaj and Anders Wessman sweden_kosov at hotmail.com ============================================================