[ALBSA-Info] New York Post

[Agron Alibali]

   The New York Post

                           January 18, 2000, 
ARMY HEROES FIGHT FOR GOOD WILL: SOLDIERS' TALES OF
LIFE IN KOSOVO:
WE'RE NOT THE UGLY AMERICANS

Hallie Levine

 In the wake of a GI being charged in the shocking
rape and murder of an
11-year-old girl in Kosovo, two U.S. Army officers in
the war-ravaged Yugoslav
province told The Post's Hallie Levine about the
pressure of serving there.

   First is Maj. Debra Allen, 52, Task Force Falcon, a
public-affairs officer.
She has been stationed in Kosovo for a little over a
month and will be there
until July. She has a husband and two children, ages
20 and 27, in Seattle.

   HOPEFULLY, the feeling of good will here will
continue even in the aftermath 
of the murder of Merite Shabiu [allegedly by Army
Staff Sgt. Frank J. Ronghi].
One of my soldiers today spoke to a man out in a
village who said he did not
blame American soldiers.

   I think the  Albanians  here understand that it was
one man committing a
crime, that 99 percent of our soldiers are
conscientious and work hard and want 
only what is best for the community.

   I've never seen another American solider or officer
act improperly. But
still, our soldiers are concerned -- we've worked hard
to establish a
relationship here, and we don't want that destroyed by
one man's actions.

   I've been in Kosovo a month and three days, and I
can tell you I most enjoy
the professionalism of the people I work with here and
the beauty of the area
around us. It's quite beautiful countryside, even
after all that has gone on. I 
think my biggest surprise was how open the  Albanians 
are to Americans.

   Whenever the American soldiers walk out on the
street, there's no animosity
-- children wave and hold out their hands and adults
say "hello" and doff their 
hats respectfully.

   I've never been in any situation where my life was
threatened. We do not
leave the base alone -- we always travel with at least
two other soldiers, for
security reasons.

   I'm up at around 6 a.m. and at work, answering
e-mail and official documents 
and meeting with other officers.

   I think the most striking thing about Kosovo is
that, while there's no
poverty, it's like watching a modern city that stepped
back in time -- there's
no garbage pickup, no power, and, most of the time,
even the telephones don't
work. Only 25 percent of the power needed in this
country is still available.

   People come out every morning in the freezing cold
and open their businesses,
their little coal heaters in front of their buildings
as they brew their morning
coffee.

   They still have the market every day where people
sell their goods. They
don't plan on refrigeration like we do -- everyone
shops daily. The American
base has heat and plumbing. Just last month, we got
inside shower facilities
with hot water.

   I don't know if Americans back home realize the
extent of the positive things
that are happening every week in this community when
Serbian and  Albanian 
leaders come together for meetings. Both sides are
anxious to have peace in
their country and want to be safe in their homes.

   But there's still a long way to go. If a Serb
walked into an  Albanian  store
today, he probably would be killed. An  Albanian  who
sold something to a Serb
would probably have his house burned down by other 
Albanians.  The Serbs don't 
go any place unescorted right now -- we drive them for
about an hour so they can
shop across the border. (This whole province isn't
even the size of New York.)

   Both  Albanians  and Serbs have a very large
cultural memory. We have one
woman who works for us here, an  Albanian  translator,
whose younger sister was 
killed last year by the Serbs. She's only 19, but
still says she'll never forget
or forgive. It's very sad to feel the hatred of these
two peoples that has stood
through generations.

   Since the stores are all open here (they import
things all the time), the
women are all very well dressed. You walk down the
street and see kids with
backpacks and down coats and new shoes.

   The people who do the best are those working for
either the United States
government or the United Nations -- they make enough
money in a week to support 
whole families for a month. The others, who can't find
good work here, often go 
to other European countries and send money home.

   1st Sgt. William Kuhnf, 55, chief of public
affairs, has also been stationed 
in Kosovo for a little over a month and will be there
until July. He has a wife,
a 16-year-old son and a golden retriever back in
Seattle.

   THE Merite Shabiu murder is a real tragedy. I don't
think you can blame it on
the stress or our lifestyle here at all, though --
horrible crimes happen
everywhere, every day, regardless of who the person is
or where they are.

   That kind of act is abhorrent and sickens me. It
makes me feel even worse
that it would happen in this kind of setting. I think
the local population also 
sees it as an aberrant occurrence and the act of an
individual, not of the
United States Army.

   When our female soldiers walk downtown, they're
noticed -- but they're looked
at more out of curiosity than any sort of sexual
thing. I've seen some of our
soldiers notice attractive women, but never any
inappropriate behavior.

   Quite honestly, we're all working really hard here
at the American base. I'm 
up at 6:30 a.m. and often work until midnight.
Soldiers don't leave the post
unless they're with at least two people, and if you go
to the town, you're there
on official business. There's no going out on the town
or to a bar. No drinking 
is allowed.

   In general, I think the  Albanians  like the
Americans -- just our presence
here is good for the economy.

   It seems to me that the  Albanians  have a lot of
optimism. They have peace
and are working and have all the necessities -- all
the cities have things in
shops and they're not in any dire straits.

   The most difficult thing for me to adjust to in
Kosovo is the communal
living. I live with five or six people in a room,
sleeping on fold-out cots.
It's fine. At least I'm in a heated building with
electricity and light.

   The most stressful thing is the long hours and the
constant activity. My job 
isn't ever really dangerous, but it is jam-packed. I'm
the 1st sergeant, so I
supervise all the media coverage.

   I relieve stress by catching movies at the local
theater and going out for a 
run.

   Everyone on the base gets along -- no one has time
for internal fighting or
bickering. We all have a job to do and we do it
together.

   Everyone is always very friendly and cordial to one
another, but when it
comes to socializing (eating meals together, going to
church together or to
movies together), we tend to stick to our immediate
units, which usually consist
of about 15 people.

   I'm kind of reserving judgment on the whole peace
process. I know there's
supposed to be a lot of hatred between the  Albanians 
and the Serbs, but I
haven't personally seen it.

   Overall, I think we're making progress and moving
forward and I think there's
definitely a chance that peace can take place.

GRAPHIC: -OUTRAGED: 1st Sgt. William Kuhnf says of the
girl's murder: "That kind
of act is abhorrent and sickens me." William Putnam

   -HOPEFUL: Maj. Debra Allen goes through her file on
the murder investigation.
"I think the  Albanians  here understand that ... 99
percent of our soldiers are
conscientious and work hard, and want only what is
best for the community," she 
says.  William Putnam

   -EYEnOFnSTORMn: Staff Sgt. Frank Ronghi is accused
of raping and murdering a 
girl in Kosovo, charges that worry Americans on the
peacekeeping force.  AP

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger.
http://im.yahoo.com