Kosovo

Since 1999, Kosovo has been administered by the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (June 1999). UNMIK has worked to foster autonomy, effective self-governance, protection of minority rights, and adherence to the rule of law. After six years of international community assistance, the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG) must still fully address interethnic reconciliation and make further progress on implementing the “Standards for Kosovo,” which help provide the framework for establishing a multi-ethnic, sustainable democratic society. In October 2005, the UN Security Council formally approved commencement of final status negotiations for Kosovo, based on the recommendation of UN Special Envoy Kai Eide. As a member of the Contact Group and contributor to the NATOled Kosovo Force, the United States remains fully involved in all aspects of peacekeeping and democratization in Kosovo. UNMIK and the PISG generally respected the human rights of Kosovo’s residents; however, there were serious problems in some areas, especially relating to Kosovo’s ethnic minority communities, including politically and ethnically motivated killings; restrictions of freedom of movement for minorities, particularly ethnic Serbs; and societal violence, abuse, and discrimination against minority communities. Additional progress is also still needed in identifying the fate of approximately 2,500 individuals from Kosovo who remain missing as a result of the 1999 conflict.

The United States continued to promote democracy and human rights to aid Kosovo’s post-war transition into a stable, democratic society on the path to Euro-Atlantic integration. In a dynamic period of transition in Kosovo, the United States worked to strengthen transparency, institutional accountability, and respect for the rule of law and the rights of minorities.

The United States worked diligently with the international community, including UNMIK, the EU, the OSCE, NGOs, and PISG officials to foster democratic and accountable institutions in Kosovo. Officials of the U.S. Office in Pristina, in coordination with the OSCE, assisted UNMIK with monitoring, protecting, and promoting human rights. In tandem with the PISG, the United States worked to combat TIP, build capacity within central and local government in both the executive and legislative branches, and train civil servants, judges, prosecutors, and youth to understand and apply rule of law and human rights standards. The United States funded programs that supported reform of local governance in order to better address the needs of Kosovo’s ethnic communities and assisted existing political parties to increase transparency and accountability for their constituencies.

The United States also supported NGOs in promoting the return of displaced persons and provided training to the police and judiciary to combat trafficking in persons and foster the creation of an independent, viable, and unbiased judiciary. The United States provided training to print and broadcast media on professional journalism. The International Visitor Program, along with other exchange and speaker programs, promoted a secure, multi-ethnic environment for all of Kosovo’s residents in the interest of building mutual understanding.

Following what were characterized as generally free and fair parliamentary elections in October 2004 (although only approximately one percent of Kosovo Serbs participated because of a Serbian Governmentsponsored boycott), Kosovo’s new Government created the Ministry for Local Government Administration, and the United States provided it with technical and policy assistance to shape policies and plans for municipal finance, the election of local officials, and the decentralization of local government throughout all of Kosovo in order to give all communities, especially minorities, a greater voice in local affairs. The U.S.-sponsored Local Government Initiative and the Municipal Infrastructure and Support Initiative provided training and technical assistance to municipalities in order to strengthen performance in financial self-sustainability, transparency, and accountability, legislative functioning, and citizen participation. The United States continued efforts to create the conditions necessary to facilitate the return of ethnic minority internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees who fled Kosovo during and immediately following the 1999 conflict as well as during the March 2004 riots. At the request of the PISG, the United States provided advisors to the Office of the Prime Minister on macro-economic policy, budgeting, legislative drafting, organization, management, and public relations.

The United States used political support and technical assistance to focus PISG efforts on passing and reviewing legislation and to strengthen the newly formed opposition’s voice. As a result of U.S. encouragement, political parties now use polling and constituent research data to make timely policy and strategic decisions and better represent constituents’ views. In an effort to encourage greater participation by Kosovo Serbs, the majority of whom boycotted participation in central and local government institutions, the United States assisted in the registration of the newly formed Serbian Democratic Party of Kosovo (SDSKiM).

Kosovo Assembly committees received expert advice in a new effort to monitor the implementation of parliamentary and governmental decisions for alignment with budgetary realities. At the request of Assembly members, the United States provided training on the Assembly’s rules of procedure, discussed how best to guarantee the rights of newly established opposition and minority parties, and resurrected the dormant Assembly rules committee.

The overall state of Kosovo’s print and broadcast media continued to improve, but the level of professional journalism was inconsistent. U.S. assistance supported the enhancement of an independent, selfsufficient media to focus on increased professionalism, effectiveness, and sustainability. The United States reduced its levels of direct subsidy in favor of assistance for business planning, increased the use of audience research and targeting, and strengthened professional and trade associations to represent both media interests and responsibility to the public. With U.S. guidance, the Kosovo Assembly passed legislation establishing the Independent Media Commission to help equalize private and public media, improved public media accountability, and created a new regulatory body governing the licensing and operation of broadcast media. As a result of U.S. support, the Association of Independent Broadcasters of Kosovo and the Association of Professional Journalists of Kosovo successfully lobbied to decriminalize libel and defamation and change some of the customs restrictions on importing foreign media. U.S. funds supported the creation of a local media association’s code of ethics and sponsored a best practices workshop for media professionals of all ethnicities in Kosovo.

Civil society development is crucial to Kosovo’s maturation as a modern democracy. The U.S.-funded Kosovo Institute for Policy Research and Development assisted the Government in drafting the new election law and the Kosovo Research and Documentation Institute worked in all municipalities to improve communication, transparency, and the reporting skills of municipal leadership. The United States assisted the Kosovo NGO consortium and the Advocacy Network of Kosovo to carry out a 15-municipalitystrong campaign promoting the implementation of the Standards. U.S. assistance to civil society brought together networks of like-minded organizations while supporting training, management, and grant-making efforts.

The United States provided much-needed computer equipment, books and English-language instruction in the majority ethnic Serb municipality of Gracanica. Two American Corners established during the year in multi-ethnic municipalities – one in the ethnic Serb majority area of northern Mitrovica – provided a springboard for further community outreach, including speakers, exhibits, and English language classes and resources.

Strengthening the rule of law is a key U.S. priority for ensuring a democratic, stable future and efficient, transparent legal structures in Kosovo. Building on U.S. efforts to help establish the policy framework for a modern justice sector, assistance focused on using a consultative process with local and international stakeholders to develop appropriate legislation; draft and enact modern criminal justice laws and regulations; and de-politicize judicial institutions. The United States supported a criminal procedure commentary project, amendments to the Kosovo criminal procedure code, a Kosovo Chamber of Advocates, and a legal clinic/moot courtroom to advance technical skills of law students, judges, and prosecutors. In conjunction with the European Agency for Reconstruction, the United States provided recommendations on court administration, adopted by UNMIK’s Department of Justice, and supported the creation of an apolitical, independent, and transparent justice ministry.

The United States actively encouraged the creation of an open and safe climate for the return of IDPs who fled Kosovo following the 1999 conflict and the 2004 inter-ethnic riots. U.S. officials publicly urged the PISG to continue the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue to help resolve the fate of an estimated 2,500 persons missing since 1999. The United States contributed funding to identify new gravesites and exhume and identify remains in Kosovo. Additionally, the United States encouraged UNMIK’s Department of Justice to develop a war crimes division to investigate and prosecute unsolved war crimes and missing persons cases. The active leadership of the United States on minority issues culminated in conflict mitigation programs, assistance to reconciliation dialogue NGOs, and significant funding to NGOs working with returns- related infrastructure construction. During the year the United States provided advocacy and funding for UNMIK’s efforts to relocate and provide health care to hundreds of Roma living in three lead-con taminated IDP camps in northern Kosovo.

The promotion of the rights of women and persons with disabilities continued to be U.S. priorities. In 2005, the United States contributed training, advocacy and political support to the first women’s caucus in the Kosovo Assembly, one of Kosovo’s few truly multiethnic cross-party political institutions. U.S. funding contributed to women’s regional business initiatives, awareness campaigns for disability issues, and the first women’s center established in Serb-majority northern Kosovo. The United States awarded 22 small grants for projects ranging from conflict resolution training for teachers in multi-ethnic schools to the development of a Junior Achievement-style program. A U.S.-funded program sent Kosovo television crews to the United States to participate in the production of documentaries on community policing, philanthropy, and volunteerism.

U.S. officials continued to urge dialogue between members of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and ethnic Albanian members of the PISG. Officials from the United States met frequently with the heads of major religious communities: the Chief of Mission hosted a well-attended and well-received annual Iftaar (fast-breaking dinners) for the Islamic community, and U.S. officials attended Serbian Orthodox holiday services during the year. U.S. officials continued to urge UNMIK and the PISG to begin reconstruction on religious buildings damaged during the 1999 conflict and in the inter-ethnic riots of March 2004. Officials from the United States met frequently with the heads of the major religious communities, provided funding to preserve Ottoman-era transcripts in the Gazi Medhmed Pasha Library and granted significant funding to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization’s large-scale effort to preserve cultural heritage in Kosovo.

The United States continued to highlight the need for increased UNMIK and PISG attention to curbing human trafficking in Kosovo through support of governance structures and NGOs. In addition to sponsoring a speaker to further develop local resources, the United States advocated a joint effort among the more than 20 organizations currently handling trafficking to arrest and convict known traffickers and provide support to victims. The United States actively assisted in developing an anti-trafficking strategy for Kosovo, organized public awareness campaigns, and provided surveillance equipment for UNMIK’s anti-trafficking unit, which aided in several arrests.


Montenegro

In Montenegro, the Government generally respected the human rights of its citizens, but there were problems in some areas. Shortly after the assassination of the chief of police, police raided a nearby prison and beat and abused suspected prisoners. Human rights abuses by police were generally not brought to justice. Media independence improved but problems remain. An analysis prepared for the Montenegrin Foreign Ministry on the Montenegrin media sparked controversy and sharp reactions from local outlets due to the Government’s apparent attempt to better “control” the media. Domestic violence and discrimination against women remained problems. Trafficking in women and children for sexual exploitation continued to be a problem. Some ethnic discrimination persisted, particularly with regard to Roma.

The United States continued to support democratic reforms in Montenegro by assisting the development of democratic political parties, strengthening the representative and legislative functions of parliament, and building domestic capacity for credible nonpartisan election monitoring. In Montenegro, political party development helped political parties, particularly younger party members in politically isolated communities in the north, to improve their organization, decision-making, and public outreach in order to be more representative and issue-based. Programs to support civil society development strengthened the capacity of civic organizations to hold the Government accountable, advocate for democratic reform, and monitor elections. Parliamentary capacity building efforts improved caucus and committee work, staff development, and constituency outreach. These programs aimed at creating a political dialogue that is anchored firmly to the public interest and through which complex issues can be addressed democratically.

Through grants, training, and technical assistance, the United States is working to develop the skills and capacity of independent Montenegrin media outlets by enabling them to offer a professional product and become financially sustainable. U.S. programs provided expert advice to leaders of Montenegro’s new Public Broadcasting Service regarding adoption of various programming principles and organizational options for the restructuring of the public broadcaster. The United States also promoted media freedom and principles of free speech in Montenegro through small-scale exchange and training programs.

In Montenegro, the United States provided a combination of technical assistance, training, and financial grants to a core group of NGOs to develop institutional capacity according to international standards of transparency and accountability and to develop the skills, expertise, and credibility required to advance public policy dialogue. Through U.S. programs, these NGOs are learning to build constituencies for judicial, economic, and social reform priorities; conduct public education about legislative initiatives; participate in the development of policy solutions; and demand accountability from the government. As a result, the Government adopted more than 25 key pieces of reform legislation, including laws on political party financing, guidelines for police on domestic abuse intervention, a law on witness protection, and a code of ethics for civil servants.

The United States is strongly committed to supporting the rule of law in Montenegro and supported programs focused on increasing the capacity of the judiciary. The United States strengthened the ability of the state prosecutor’s office to effectively investigate and prosecute official corruption through technical advice and assistance. U.S.-sponsored police training emphasized the importance of respect for citizens’ rights.

The United States funded a “Legal Counseling Office” project implemented by the Association for Disabled Youth in Montenegro. The Association printed and distributed state disability laws to increase awareness on rights and benefits for disabled persons. The U.S. also supported the NGO “Sign of Hope” to provide training and raise awareness on the needs of youth with disabilities.

The U.S. Government continued to promote ethnic and religious tolerance throughout Montenegro. U.S. officials met regularly with the leaders of religious and ethnic minorities, as well as with representatives of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Government to promote respect for religious freedom and human rights. U.S. officials reached out to the Islamic community during Ramadan in 2005, sponsoring well-received Iftaars (fast-breaking dinners) in both Serbia and Montenegro.

Trafficking in women and children for sexual exploitation continued to be a problem. U.S. efforts helped reestablish an effective, integrated anti-trafficking effort by the Government of Montenegro. Reaching beyond traditional “rule of law” actors, the new effort included health, labor, and education officials. Six traffickers were convicted in 2005, compared to only one total in all previous years. The Government of Montenegro assumed the entire budget responsibility for a TIP victim’s shelter that the United States helped establish in 2004 and partially funded through 2005.