29. Oktober 1997
Studenten-Proteste in Kosova
Solidaritäts-Aktionen
October 29, 1997
Student's Protests in Kosova
Solidarity Movements
29. Oktober 1997
Students Against Genocide (SAGE)
Stanford University
Kosova Solidarity Movement
URGENT! STUDENT DEMONSTRATIONS BEGIN WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29:
Students Against Genocide (SAGE) invites you to
participate in the Kosova Solidarity
Movement. In particular, we appeal to our
colleagues at universities around the world to join
us in supporting the Student Independent Union
of the University of Prishtina in their
struggle for basic rights to education.
Our targets are
(1) University Presidents,
(2) President Clinton,
and
(3) President Slobodan
Milosevic.
BACKGROUND:
Kosova (or Kosovo) was
a formerly autonomous region in the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia. The
vast majority of the province's population is ethnic Albanian, whereas
the rest of Serbia's
population is predominantly of Serbian Orthodox faith.
In 1989, the Serbian
government unilaterally revoked the province's autonomy, closed
nearly all schools from
primary to University level, and a crackdown on the majority
Albanian population
ensued.
Of particular note,
in 1991 approximately 1000 ethnic Albanian professors and 27,000
ethnic Albanian students
were expelled from the University of Prishtina by Serbian police
and the use of the Albanian
language was prohibited there.
This is the seventh
academic year that the faculty and students have participated in an
underground university.
On October 1, 1997,
with international monitors present, the Student Independent Union
organized peaceful,
non-violent protests with the aim of restoring the university premises
to the faculty and students
and allowing them to resume instruction in the Albanian
language. The protesters
were attacked and many injured and arrested by Serbian riot
police leading to a
suspension of the protests.
Since that time, no
progress has been made in negotiations to end apartheid in the
University and high
schools in Kosova.
The protests are to
resume on October 29, 1997 with international observers present.
PLAN OF ACTION: WHAT YOU CAN DO!
1) Petition (below)
Please collect signatures!
Present completed petitions (paper or e-mail) to:
* your University
President
(urging him or her to make a public statement of support
for the Kosovo University students)
* send copies
to President Clinton,
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC 20500 or email to
President@whitehouse.gov
(asking him to do all in his power to pressure the Serbian government to
respect human rights of ethnic Albanians in Kosova)
* send copies
to Students Against Genocide,
PO Box 9248, Stanford, CA 94309 or email to borutg@leland.stanford.edu)
* send copies
to President Slobodan Milosevic;
Tolstojeva 33, 11000 Belgrade, Yugoslvia
* send copies
(and letters of support) to the Kosova students at: upsup@albanian.com
* if you have
a web-site, please put the petition on it (and let us know)!:
PETITION TO SUPPORT THE RIGHT TO AN EDUCATION
FOR ETHNIC ALBANIANS IN KOSOVA
Since 1991, after being
forcefully expelled, thousands of ethnic Albanian students
and professors have
been denied access to the University of Prishtina by Serbian
police in Kosova.
On October 1st, 1997,
with international observers present, the Student Independent
Union of the University
of Prishtina organized peaceful student demonstrations for the
right to education which
were met, without warning, by harsh Serbian riot police attacks.
The SIU will resume
peaceful protests on October 29, 1997.
We, the undersigned
(of ________________ University or College),
ask our University President
and the United States President to demand an immediate
end to all unjust, cruel
and inhumane treatment of the student demonstrators in Prishtina
carried out by the Serbian
police units.
The Yugoslavian government
must fully recognize the right of every individual to
freedom of peaceful
assembly and association (Article 21, Chapter 8 of the Charter of
the United Nations).
We also demand that
the Albanian majority living in Kosova be granted their basic right
to education (Article
13, Chapter 8 of the Charter of the United Nations), including the
restoration of a bilingual
education system in Kosova and the return of the thousands of
ethnic Albanian students
and faculty to the University premises. Students are the future:
by supporting their
human rights we will help prevent conflict in future generations.
2) Supporting activities on college campuses:
Please plan to organize
an activity on your campus in conjunction with signature
collection and the upcoming
student demonstrations in Kosova.
SAGE leaders will be
pleased to assist you in your plans.
(Contact Borut Grgic, Stanford SAGE President at borutg@leland.stanford.edu
or
Mirium Mahlow, Stanford SAGE Vice President at miri@leland.stanford.edu
or
Sylvia Iorgova, Stanford SAGE Outreach Coordinator at blaga@leland.stanford.edu).
Ideas include:
a) Petition signing
and letter-writing table in the center of campus at noontime.
Hint: offer FREE PIZZA to those who stop to participate!
b) Lecture on
Kosova (e.g. by a knowledgeable professor on your campus, or
SAGE can help you find speakers).
c) Candlelight
rally: to raise awareness and draw media attention to the Kosova
situation.
d) * Remember
to visit the University of Prishtina students' website at: www.alb-net.com
and send a message of support from your university!! *
______________________________________________________________________
ALBANEWS Site of the Day: "Albanian Home
Page" http://www.albanian.com/main
______________________________________________________________________
Dear ALBANEWS subscribers,
The Kosova Student Protests against the Serbian
occupation of
University premises will continue tomorrow
October 29th, 1997.
Albanian students in Kosova are fighting for
a fundamental right to
study in their own language. PLEASE SUPPORT
THEM!
For further and more detailed information please
visit the protest
home page at:
Please DISTRIBUTE this information further
to related organizations,
associations, student organizations, human
rights groups, and others.
From: Students Independent Union of UP <luckie@SEZAMPRO.YU>
Subject: [ALBANEWS]
THE MAIN PRICIPLES AND RULES OF STUDENTS'
PROTESTS IN KOSOVA
-------------- Albanian News and Information
Network --------------
Archives: http://listserv.acsu.buffalo.edu/archives/albanews.html
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UNIVERSITY OF PRISHTINA
STUDENTS INDEPENDENT UNION
Prishtina, October 27, 1997
THE MAIN PRINCIPLES AND RULES OF PROTESTERS IN
NON-VIOLENT AND
PEACEFUL PROTESTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PRISHTINA
1. We are firmly determined for non-violence in
our thoughts, opinions, words and behavior,
even when provoked by police or when it uses
violence against us.
2. We are going to be open and honest towards
everybody, without distinction.
3. The purpose of our protests is not political.
Its intention is obvious: The unconditional
release of premises, buildings and campus of
the University.
4. We do not try to defeat out adversary, but
we are demanding the respect of human rights
and civil freedoms equally for all peoples.
5. We are not going to use violence against private
and public property or against different
ownership; we do not want to damage them.
6. We are not going to arm ourselves or use kinds
of arms.
7. Everybody who provokes the police will be
considered as police informer.
8. If the police intervenes brutally, this is
not a sign that we ought to be violent as well.
9. We are not going either to call out slogans
and whistle or to make other kind of
gesticulations, because we want to show our determination
and will with our attitude.
10. If anyone - a protester or a supporter uses
violence against the police or somebody else
we shall do our utmost to prevent and stop their
violence.
11. We have decided to stick the instructions
and orders of the Organizing Council for
protests at the level of the University of Prishtina
and of keepers and maintainers of order in
the protests.
The Organizing council
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SIUUP - STUDENTS INDEPENDENT UNION OF THE UNIVERSITY
OF PRISHTINA
e-mail: upsup@albanian.com
Tel&Fax: ++381 38 35 109
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* >> Students'
Protests in Kosova: http://www.alb-net.com << *
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______________________________________________________________________
ALBANEWS Site of the Day: "Council for
the Defence of Human Rights and Freedoms,
Prishtina, Kosova"
http://www.albanian.com/kmdlnj/
______________________________________________________________________
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ALBANEWS Site of the
Week <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
! K O S O V A STUDENT
PROTESTS '97 http://www.alb-net.com/
!
! Protests Against the Serbian Occupation
of University Premises !
______________________________________________________________________
-------------- Albanian News and Information
Network --------------
Archives: http://listserv.acsu.buffalo.edu/archives/albanews.html
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UNIVERSITY OF PRISHTINA
STUDENTS INDEPENDENT UNION
Prishtinë, October 21, 1997
Dear Sir,
We feel free to inform You that the Students Independent
Union of the Albanian University
of Prishtina, again on 29 October 1997 is going
to organize peaceful, non-violent, students'
protests with the intention to release with no
conditions premises and university room-space
for delivering instructions in the Albanian language,
as they have been occupied by Serbian
regime since 1991. As you already know, Students
Independent Union on 1 October 1997
organized peaceful students' protests and without
any provocation by students, Serbian police
attacked with no prior warning in the most brutal
way to disperse the quiet protests during
which the participators were arrested and injured.
As You may know, in 1991, about 1,000 Albanian
professors and assistants and 200
administrative workers, adding to them more than
27,000 Albanian students, were expelled
by Serbian police forces from their university
buildings, after 21 years of successful work of
the University, only due to the fact that they
were Albanians and studied in their mother
tongue - Albanian. However, the students and
teachers, aided by the Albanian population,
have resisted this occupation and violence by
continuing their classes in extremely difficult
conditions in private houses. This is the seventh
academic year that the University of
Prishtina has worked outside is official buildings.
Therefore, the protests have the intention to
have the official buildings released, as they are
the property of the University. The peaceful
protests will be organized and kept under full
control by the Students Union, which is a non-political
organization and the sole students
organization at the University of Prishtina.
The Students Union has made the required
preparations for the protests. It will not allow
involving of some political force or tendency in
the protests with any requests that are outside
of our own ones. The Students Union is
determined to avoid the use of force, causing
of conflict or any physical excess.
Accordingly, we ask You, dear Sir, to send some
representatives of Yours to observe our
peaceful protests, so that they may inform You
appropriately about our noble intention, to
protect and to realize peacefully our fundamental
human and national rights for studying
freely in our mother tongue, that is guaranteed
by international covenants. We shall do our
utmost to take care of your representatives in
these conditions.
We feel free to ask You to forward this information
to the ones You find it convenient to
make their contribution to this action of ours.
Your observation on our peaceful protests would
contribute much to avoid any escalation for
the situation otherwise tense in Kosova.
Extending my great thanks to You in advance for
Your understanding, I remain
Sincerely Yours,
Bujar Dugolli, president
--------------------------------------------------------
UNIVERSITY OF PRISHTINA
Since the students - the Students
Independent Union of the University of Prishtina has
undertaken the initiative to organize peaceful
protests for releasing the occupied buildings of
the University;
Since the students had prior
talks with the state institutions, political subjects and other
associations, from whom they had formal support,
and hope that they will offer their concrete
help too;
Since the University has offered
support to the students' initiative for these protests and
have expressed their readiness to organize peaceful,
cautious, many-sided and dignified
protests;
The University Organization
Council distributes to the public opinion in the country and
abroad the following
PLATFORM
1. Students' protests are organized
for the purpose of releasing university buildings and
other premises occupied by the Serbian regime
in 1991.
2. Students' protests are
calm, peaceful and nonviolent. The whole activity
about the
organization of protests will be in the
function of peaceful protests. The opinion in the
country and abroad will be notified in due time
with the slogans and placard (shouts, etc.),
which will be used by the students in and during
the protests. The opinion will be notified in
due time about other adequate actions which will
enable better organization and realization
of peaceful protests. The media and other international
bodies will be informed and invited
in due time.
3. Preparation and realization
of peaceful protests will be done by the Students Protest
Council of the University and other sub-councils
of faculties and high pedagogic schools
(two year colleges), in close cooperation with
the University, faculties and high pedagogic
schools.
4. Students Council for the
organization of protests is open and ready to cooperate and
coordinate the work with institutions and other
relevant subjects and associations on the
basis of their concrete declarations for the
support offered to the peaceful protests as well as
for the measures and the extent of support they
offer.
5. The general or specific
prepared strategy for the realization of protests and the exact
time of organization will be offered to the public
opinion, dependent on the time, the suitable
moment and favorable circumstances.
6. The new academic year begins
in time. The University will be working uninterruptedly
all the time. The teaching process will be adapted
to the peaceful protests and their duration,
in accordance with the decision of competent
authorities and pursuant to the regulation in
force, the purpose of which should be implementation
of students' requests.
Prishtina, 15.09.1997
Organization Council
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SIUUP - STUDENTS INDEPENDENT UNION OF THE UNIVERSITY
OF PRISHTINA
e-mail: upsup@albanian.com
Tel&Fax: ++381 38 35 109
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* >> Students'
Protests in Kosova: http://www.alb-net.com
<< *
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Bundesaußenminister Dr. Klaus Kinkel erklärte heute (02.10.) zu den Demonstrationen der kosovo-albanischen Studenten in Pristina:
"Ich verfolge die aktuelle Lage im Kosovo mit großer Aufmerksamkeit
und Sorge. In den
vergangen Tagen hat die Staatengemeinschaft alle Parteien im Kosovo
nachdrücklich zu
Besonnenheit und Zurückhaltung aufgefordert. Ich bedauere sehr,
daß dieser Appell bei den
serbischen Sicherheits-behörden ungehört verhallt ist.
In Pristina und anderen Städten des Kosovo ist gestern die Polizei
mit Gewalt gegen
friedliche Demonstranten vorgegangen. Die Führer des Studentenprotests,
der Rektor und
Prorektor der parallelen kosovo-albanischen Universität wurden
festgenommen.
Die Bundesregierung verurteilt aufs schärfste dieses gewaltsame
Vorgehen gegen friedliche
Demonstranten. Es ist ein flagranter Verstoß gegen grundlegende
Bürgerrechte. Diejenigen,
die diesen Polizeiansatz angeordnet haben, tragen die schwere Verantwortung
für eine
gefährliche Verschärfung für die ohnehin gespannten
Lage im Kosovo. Im Kosovo steht die
Stabilität der gesamten Region auf dem Spiel. Was dort geschieht,
ist keine innere
Angelegenheit der BR Jugoslawien, sondern geht ganz Europa an.
Präsident Milosevic und die serbische Führung müssen
wissen: Der Einsatz von
Wasserwerfern und Tränengas kann nicht der Weg sein, die Probleme
des Kosovo
zu lösen. Ich appelliere an Präsident Milosevic,
Abstand zu nehmen von weiterer
Gewaltanwendung und den Weg frei zu machen für einen Abbau
der Spannungen im
Kosovo.
Es ist deshalb höchste Zeit, daß Belgrad und Pristina der
zwischen ihnen herrschenden
Sprachlosigkeit ein Ende setzen und einen ernsthaften Dialog über
die Probleme im Kosovo
beginnen. Die Demonstrationen der albanischen Schüler und Studenten
zeigen, daß die
Geduld in der albanischen Bevölkerung, gerade bei den jungen Kosovo-Albanern,
erschöpft
ist. Ein erster Schritt wäre die rasche Umsetzung der bereits
im vergangenen Jahr
geschlossenen Vereinbarung über das Erziehungswesen im Kosovo,
die bislang Makulatur geblieben ist. Wir unterstützen hierbei
nachdrücklich die Vermittlungsbemühungen durch die Gemeinschaft
San Egidio.
Belgrad muß wissen: Das Scheinwerferlicht der internationalen
Öffentlichkeit ist auf
den Kosovo gerichtet. Durch Aussitzen kann das Kosovo-Problem
nicht gelöst
werden."
senden