VZCZCXRO6416
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHPS #0118/01 0441731
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131731Z FEB 07
FM USOFFICE PRISTINA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7028
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1031
RHFMIUU/AFSOUTH NAPLES IT
RHMFIUU/CDR TF FALCON
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUEPGEA/CDR650THMIGP SHAPE BE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
RUFOANA/USNIC PRISTINA SR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRISTINA 000118 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR DRL, INL, EUR/SCE 
NSC FOR BRAUN 
USUN FOR DREW SCHUFLETOWSKI 
EUR/ACE FOR DMAYHEW 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM KDEM PGOV PINR PREL YI UNMIK EAID PHUM
SOCI 
SUBJECT: COM REACHES OUT TO KOSOVO SERBS IN TOWN HALL 
MEETING 
 
REF: A. PRISTINA 19 
 
     ¶B. PRISTINA 112 
     ¶C. 06 PRISTINA 1100 
     ¶D. PRISTINA 56 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED, PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY.  During a town hall meeting in Gracanica, 
Kosovo Serbs shared their practical concerns about 
implementation of the Ahtisaari package, economic 
development, security, and returns with the COM and EU 
representative Torbjorn Sohlstrom.  COM described the many 
provisions in the document that will benefit Kosovo Serbs, 
and urged them to read and understand the entire document 
thoroughly.  She assured them that the international 
community is united and determined to see that all of the 
rights and guarantees enshrined in the document will be 
implemented in practice.  END SUMMARY. 
 
COM URGES KOSOVO SERBS TO UNDERSTAND THE AHTISAARI DOCUMENT 
 
¶2.  (SBU) On February 12, COM and EU representative Torbjorn 
Sohlstrom participated in a town hall meeting in Gracanica, 
organized by the Belgrade-based NGO Fraktal.  They described 
the elements contained in UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari's 
package, particularly those providing special rights and 
guarantees to Kosovo Serbs, and responded to questions on 
issues including implementation, economic development, future 
international presence, political participation and returns. 
Among the Kosovo Serb attendees from Gracanica, Babin Most 
and other enclaves south of the Ibar, only one had actually 
read the proposal.  COM urged them to look carefully at the 
document, which has been translated into Serbian by the Unity 
Team and is available on several websites, and share the 
understandings gained through the townhall discussion with 
friends and colleagues. 
 
KOSOVO SERBS FOCUS ON IMPLEMENTATION AND THE ECONOMY 
 
¶3.  (SBU) During the meeting, Kosovo Serbs raised incisive 
questions and evinced serious concerns about what their lives 
will be like in a post-status Kosovo.  None raised the issue 
of independence per se; rather, they focused on practical 
concerns such as security and prospects for economic 
development.  Several pointed out that Kosovo institutions 
have not implemented already existing laws designed to 
protect Kosovo Serbs, and expressed their concern that the 
future Kosovo government will be unable or unwilling to put 
into practice the rights and guarantees offered by the 
package.  Several, including the mother of a Kosovo Serb 
teenager killed several years ago in a drive-by shooting in 
Gracanica, asked about security; others queried about 
pensions from former state-owned enterprises and their right 
to reclaim usurped properties and businesses and return to 
their homes.  One asked about international community plans 
to implement mass returns, while another pointed out 
perceived injustices related to the privatization of 
socially-owned enterprises.  Referring to the violent Kosovo 
Albanian protest against Ahtisaari's proposal in Pristina on 
February 10 (ref B), one Serb asked whether the international 
community will be able to control such outbursts in the 
future, and whether it will succumb to pressure from Kosovo 
Albanians and accelerate the status process without proof 
that Albanians are willing to meet standards. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) A Serb businessman from Babin Most (ref A) 
expressed his disappointment that his enclave and several 
others would not be included in a Serb-majority municipality, 
maintaining that as a result, the document is "useless" to 
him.  Other participants questioned whether Kosovo Serbs 
would have any real influence in government even if they 
agreed to take part in Kosovo institutions.  A Serb doctor 
expressed his frustration over obstacles in accessing high 
quality medicines and other supplies from Serbia, 
 
PRISTINA 00000118  002 OF 002 
 
 
difficulties he attributed to Kosovar procedures.  One 
participant asked whether there could be more Serb 
municipalities created in the future. 
 
COM ASKS SERBS TO ENGAGE 
 
¶5.  (SBU) COM urged participants to understand that the 
Ahtisaari proposal is a robust mechanism for addressing many 
of their concerns, and said it affords strong rights and 
guarantees to all Kosovo Serbs, regardless of where they 
live.  She said that the international community is united 
and determined to implement the proposal, adding that their 
rights will be enshrined in the constitution and noting that 
the sole purpose of establishing an international civilian 
office in Kosovo post-status is to ensure implementation of 
the document.  COM and Sohlstrom explained that the status 
proposal allows Kosovo Serb municipalities to, among other 
things, manage their own healthcare systems, cooperate with 
one another and receive financial support from Serbia.  COM 
emphasized repeatedly that violence will not be tolerated, 
and said that KFOR and UNMIK, and eventually the EU rule of 
law mission, will do whatever is necessary to maintain peace 
and order during the status process and beyond. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) COM reminded the Kosovo Serbs that their 
participation and engagement on all levels is key to 
realizing the rights being offered to them.  She told them 
that Kosovo Serbs could have a decisive voice in the future 
government, if they participate in elections and win seats 
beyond the minimum ten that are guaranteed.  She asked them 
to turn to established mechanisms such as the Kosovo Property 
Agency (KPA) for reclaiming property (ref C), and promised 
that the international community would continue its pressure 
on Kosovo's government to fulfill its obligations on property 
rights.  COM also pointed out that the return process 
requires trust on both sides - Kosovo authorities must create 
the conditions for return, but displaced Serbs themselves 
must be willing to return.  She noted the examples of Srpski 
Babush and Svinjare (ref D), where Kosovo authorities have 
paid to rebuild homes for Serbs who have since refused to 
return and live in them.  On economic development, COM made 
the case for privatization as an important step towards 
preserving and creating jobs, noting as an example the 
potential benefit that privatization of the Brezovica ski 
resort in the Serb-majority enclave of Strpce could bring if 
Serb leaders would agree to let it go forward. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) COMMENT.  These central Kosovo Serbs seemed 
genuinely interested in learning about the status proposal 
and the rights it will grant them.  Their questions were 
focused and thoughtful, though reflecting the difficult 
circumstances of their lives over the past eight years. 
There is considerably more room for such engagement; part of 
the public outreach campaign now underway is geared towards 
the spread of just such reassuring messages to a beleaguered 
and uncertain Serb population.  USOP and COM will conduct 
more of these town hall meetings in coordination with Fraktal 
and other helpful NGOs who have lines into the Serb 
community.  END COMMENT. 
 
¶8.  (U)  Post clears this message in its entirety for release 
to Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari. 
KAIDANOW