Serbia and Montenegro: Information on access to health services, education, employment and social services by Serbs in Kosovo (January 2003-February 2005)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 25 February 2005 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | SCG43388.E |
| Reference | 2 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Serbia and Montenegro: Information on access to health services, education, employment and social services by Serbs in Kosovo (January 2003-February 2005), 25 February 2005, SCG43388.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/42df618620.html [accessed 2 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
For information on access to education for Serbs in Kosovo, please consult SCG43305.E of 18 February 2005.
According to sources many of the problems experienced by Kosovo Serbs are due to their "limited freedom of movement" and "security hazards and concerns" (IHF 23 June 2004). The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) reported that, for Kosovo Serbs, "economic opportunities were scarce , and access to social services, education and health care limited" (23 June 2004, 20; see also Freedom House 30 Nov. 2004, 12). The UNHCR spoke of "major constraints" on all services and "economic, social and cultural rights" in general, due to a lack of freedom of movement for the Serbian population in Kosovo (13 Aug. 2004). In order to facilitate their freedom of movement, the United Nations Interim Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) offered to provide Kosovo licence plates to Kosovo Serbs (Freedom House 30 Nov. 2004, 12; Country Reports 2003 25 Feb. 2004). Country Reports 2003 stated that the freedom of movement for Kosovo Serbs "varies greatly" according to location (25 Feb. 2004).
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) stated that "individuals in a particularly vulnerable situations ... should not be returned by states, given the inadequate standards of health care and social welfare" in Kosovo (24 Aug. 2004).
Koha Ditore reported that the economic conditions particularly affect the non-Albanian communities of Kosovo, whose apartments, farms or land had been stolen from them or were being occupied by others (29 Oct. 2004). This Pristina-based newspaper added that many Kosovo Serbs stay in Kosovo in part due to the support they receive from Belgrade, through the "parallel structures" (Koha Ditore 29 Oct. 2004).
Parallel institutions were established in the aftermath of the conflict and have been tolerated by UNMIK (Freedom House 30 Nov. 2004, 11). For example, Kosovar municipal courts or administrations are paired with those in a town in Serbia, creating a parallel administrative and judicial system (ibid.). According to Freedom House, these parallel institutions have had "a negative impact on governance and on the integration of Serbs in Kosovar society" as they hamper the development of intercommunal relations (ibid.).
Health Services
Although the "range of treatments and medications available is constantly developing," the United Kingdom Home Office stated that Kosovo's health care system "cannot ... provide treatments for all medical conditions" (May 2003). Minority children in particular are affected by the state of the health care system; "[h]igh rates of infant and childhood mortality" are mostly blamed on poverty, poor hygiene and the deterioration of public sanitation (Country Reports 2003 25 Feb. 2004).
It should be noted that as part of the Serbian "parallel institutions," the North Mitrovica Hospital in Kosovo is funded by the Serbian Ministry of Health (ibid.). The Coordination Center for Kosovo-Metohija (CCK), which was established with funding from the Serbian government, helps in providing a certain level of social services, as well as health care (ibid.).
Employment
The International Crisis Group (ICG) reported that the "high unemployment [rate] and few economic opportunities" of Kosovo Serbs exacerbate their perception of being "an endangered species in Kosovo" (24 Jan. 2005). Country Reports 2003 reported that unemployment is between 50 to 60 per cent in Kosovo and "higher among Kosovo Serbs and other ethnic communities" and that this situation is, in part, responsible for the low number of returnees to Kosovo among the estimated 170,000 Kosovo Serbs who fled during the summer of 1999 and after (25 Feb. 2004).
According to Danas, a Belgrade-based newspaper, some reconstruction efforts have been made to ensure the return of 25 families to the village of Vidanje, and a UNDP employee explained that finding work for the returnees was also part of the strategy (9 Oct. 2004). The 33 Serbs who came back to Vidanje at the end of September 2004 were the first to return to Kosovo since the violent events of March 2004 (Danas 9 Oct. 2004). In other cases, with the help of the international community, some agreements have been worked out to share the land, which had often been occupied by Kosovo Albanians (ibid.).
Some Serbs in Kosovo work for "Serbian parallel structures" or even collect salaries from both the parallel structures and from the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG) or UNMIK (ICG 24 Jan. 2005; Freedom House 30 Nov. 2004, 11). Thanks to subsidies from the Serbian government, communities have been preserved, since Kosovo Serb teachers or doctors stay and earn salaries that can represent "double the Serbian standard" (ibid.)
The IHF indicated that Serb judges or judicial personnel kept working in "the shadow Belgrade-run judicial system in Serb-controlled parts of Kosovo" (23 June 2004). Despite efforts by UNMIK to stop the practice, personnel working for parallel courts "continued to receive double wages" (Country Reports 2003 25 Feb. 2004).
The Kosovo Police Service (KPS), which has attempted to recruit more members from minority communities, has not solved the problem of low representation from these communities (for example, Serbs accounted for about 1 per cent of officers) (ibid.).
Social and legal services
In a visit to Kosovo, Boris Tadic, the president of Serbia, promised to help improve the living conditions of Kosovo Serbs (IWPR 18 Feb. 2005). In a meeting with Soren Jessen-Petersen, the head of UNMIK, he demanded "extra security" for Serb residents and denounced the living conditions in Serbian communities, some of which had been "without electricity since mid-December [2004]" (ibid.). The IWPR indicated that Kosovo Serbs claim to have been unable to pay their electrical bills due to the lack of freedom of movement (to work in their fields for instance) and lack of employment (ibid.).
Although Country Reports 2003 stated that it was unlikely that members of ethnic minorities would receive a fair trial in criminal cases, international judicial personnel, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the Serbian Bar Association were working together to provide assistance and logistical support for Kosovo Serbs (Country Reports 2003 25 Feb. 2004).
UNMIK offered travel documents to the 71,000 Serbs identified in the civil registry of Kosovo, as well as to members of other minorities, but as at February 2004 only 1,000 persons had requested the documents (ibid.).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2003. 25 February 2004. "Serbia and Montenegro." United States Department of State. Washington, DC.
Freedom House. 30 November 2004. Nations in Transit 2004. "Serbia and Montenegro."
Danas [Belgrade, in Serbian]. 9 October 2004. Jelena Bjelica. "Comment faire revivre les villages serbes du Kosovo ?" (Le Courrier des Balkans)
Koha Ditore [Pristina, in Albanian]. 29 October 2004. Marek Antoni Nowicki. "Déplacés du Kosovo : l'éternel retour." (Le Courrier des Balkans).
Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR). 18 February 2005. Balkan Crisis Report No. 542. "Tadic Reaches Out to Kosovo Serbs."
_____. 8 October 2004. "Kosovo : quand la vie commune reste possible."
International Crisis Group (ICG). 24 January 2005. Crisis Group Europe Report No. 161. "Kosovo: Toward Final Status."
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF). 23 June 2004. Human Rights in the OSCE Region: Europe, Central Asia and North America, Report 2004 (Events of 2003).
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). 24 August 2004. "Kosovo Minorities Still Need International Protection, Says UNHCR."
United Kingdom (UK). May 2003. Home Office, Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND). "Kosovo."
Additional Sources Consulted
Internet sources, including: Amnesty International (AI), Comité de liaison pour la solidarité avec l'Europe de l'Est (COLISEE), Le Courrier des Balkans, International Crisis Group (ICG), Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), United Nations Interim Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), WNC.
