VZCZCXRO6124
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBW #0165/01 0431708
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 121708Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2178
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BELGRADE 000165 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O.  12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PREL PREF PGOV PHUM KV SR
 
SUBJECT:  SERBIA:  REFUGEE COORDINATOR WEEKLY ACTIVITY REPORT: 
FEBRUARY 4-8, 2008 
 
REF:  A) BELGRADE 0021 B) BELGRADE 0061 C) BELGRADE 0070 
 
AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH UNHCR SERBIA REPRESENTATIVE 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶1.  (SBU) On February 6 the Ambassador met with UNHCR Representative 
in Serbia Lennart Kotsalainen to discuss UNHCR humanitarian response 
and preparedness in case of population movements from Kosovo into 
Serbia.  Kotsalainen said that signals from Kosovo thus far have 
been good.  He added that the GOS had been consistent in its message 
to Kosovo Serbs that they should remain in Kosovo but worried that 
the current calm situation could unravel quickly if the political 
instability in Serbia continued.  "The measures taken here could 
play a role in how things develop inside Kosovo," he said.  Though 
he did not believe a humanitarian crisis was imminent, and he did 
not expect significant movement in the first month following Kosovo 
declaration of independence, Kotsalainen told the Ambassador that it 
will be important to keep a close eye on developments six months 
down the line.  One potential problem he foresaw related to whether 
Kosovo Serbs stay or leave was the length of time Kosovo Prime 
Minister Thagi's government would accept parallel institutions in an 
independent Kosovo. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Kotsalainen said UNHCR enjoyed a close working 
relationship with PRM and will continue to stay in close touch in 
the coming months.  He said he was not clear however on how UNHCR 
could make use of the USAID-SCOPES funding mechanism would kick in 
and how UNHCR could make use of SCOPES funding in case of an 
emergency.  The USAID Serbia Contingency Planning and Economic 
Security Program (SCOPES) helps businesses grow in order to provide 
employment opportunities to vulnerable populations, including 
internally displaced persons.  SCOPES also works with municipalities 
across Serbia to become more resilient and better cope with crises 
and natural disasters.  The funding mechanism is not set up to 
provide direct monetary contributions to UNHCR or any other 
international organizations in the event of a humanitarian crisis. 
Rather, a portion of funding would be channeled as in-kind support 
via SCOPES implementing partners, based on a needs assessment from 
UNHCR, as the situation warrants.  USAID officer in charge for 
SCOPES Walter Doetsch has clarified the mechanism with UNHCR. 
 
INTEGRATING INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS IN SERBIA 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Kotsalainen told the Ambassador that it will be important 
to integrate the 206,144 IDPs from Kosovo in Serbia once the Kosovo 
situation is resolved.  He said the GOS will have to accept the 
reality that most of these individuals will not return to an 
independent Kosovo.  He added that UNHCR is working closely with 
Serbia's Commissioner for Refugees on a targeted plan to close the 
62 remaining collective centers across Serbia and find housing 
solutions for the approximately 4,500 IDPs who live in them. 
 
UNHCR ORGANIZES KEY PARTNERS WORKSHOP ON KOSOVO PREPAREDNESS 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) On February 7, UNHCR organized a half-day closed workshop 
on Kosovo emergency preparedness.  Newly arrived Senior Emergency 
Officer Andrei Kazakov led the session.  Participants included UNDP, 
UNICEF, WHO, IOM, and ICRC, as well as the Serbian Red Cross, CRS, 
DRC, and DAI (SCOPES implementing partner.) Bora Tajic, Head of 
Returns at the Kosovo Ministry's Coordination Center for Kosovo was 
the only government representative present.  His participation 
signals the likelihood that the Ministry for Kosovo will have a 
central role to play in the event of population movements. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Donors were not invited to the session, as UNHCR felt 
participation would impact the dynamics of the discussion, and could 
potentially limit information sharing by GOS representatives. 
Representatives from DAI, DRC, and CRS said it was overall a 
well-structured and organized session.  According to Deputy Director 
of DAI-SCOPES Michael Pillsbury, UNHCR had expanded upon its plans 
for operation centers and deployment of teams.  He said the basic 
structure would include an inter-agency coordination center in 
Belgrade, three field offices in Kraljevo (existing), Vranje and 
Novi Pazar (both out of UNDP offices), and twelve field-office based 
mobile teams, which would be deployed according to workload to 
boundary gates. 
 
SERBIA'S READMISSION AGREEMENTS WITH THE EU 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) On February 8, the Center for Cultural Decontamination, a 
local NGO and Le courier de la Serbie, a newly launched francophone 
news outlet organized a conference on readmission, minorities, and 
cultural diversity in Serbia.  Director of the Serbian EU 
Integration Office Tanja Miscevic said that Serbia's May 16, 2007 
Agreement on Readmission with the EU replaced all previously signed 
and ratified bilateral agreements with EU countries. 
 
BELGRADE 00000165  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Miscevic explained that from the legal standpoint, an 
illegal migrant is any one or combination of the following:  a 
failed asylum seeker originating from Serbia, an individual with an 
expired work or visit  permission originating from Serbia, or a 
third country failed asylum seeker for whom Serbia was the country 
of the first asylum. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) According to Miscevic, there are 1.5 million illegal 
migrants currently living across Europe who could be repatriated to 
Serbia.  This was the first time record had heard this figure and 
called on Assistant Minister for Labor Bojan Andjelkovic for 
clarification.  He told record his estimate is closer to 150,000. 
The imprecision stems partly from the lack of information from EU 
governments, who themselves do not have good estimates. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Miscevic said that since January 1, 2008, when the 
readmission agreement entered into force, signatory countries have 
identified 52 illegal migrants for repatriation. 
 
BELGRADE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S CLUB TO TARGET CHARITABLE GIVING TO 
INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶10.  (U) Refcord was guest speaker at the Belgrade International 
Women's Club February 9 monthly meeting.  The group raises 
approximately $100,000 per year through a variety of fundraisers and 
wants to develop a targeted strategy for giving to vulnerable 
populations, particularly IDPs.  The group has provided in-kind 
donations of food and non-food items to an unofficial collective 
center in Grocka on the outskirts of Belgrade for the past nine 
years.  They are now considering diversifying their giving to 
include a wider cross-section of IDPs.  Refcord will introduce the 
group to local NGOs who can provide practical advice on how to 
channel their assistance to reach the greatest number of 
beneficiaries. 
 
BRUSH