Yugoslavia: Update to YUG34689.E of 10 July 2000 on whether members or formers members of the Kosovo Liberation Army or its splinter groups are reported to have beaten, harassed or threatened ethnic Albanian males who did not participate in the 1999 war or for other reasons; whether ethnic Albanians are being recruited to fight in Macedonia (summer 1999-June 2000)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 18 November 2002 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | YUG39985.E |
| Reference | 4 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Yugoslavia: Update to YUG34689.E of 10 July 2000 on whether members or formers members of the Kosovo Liberation Army or its splinter groups are reported to have beaten, harassed or threatened ethnic Albanian males who did not participate in the 1999 war or for other reasons; whether ethnic Albanians are being recruited to fight in Macedonia (summer 1999-June 2000), 18 November 2002, YUG39985.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3f7d4e3d3.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. |
The Research Directorate was unable to find specific mention of attacks on individuals who had refused to fight for the KLA or other groups during the 1999 war within the time period of the Information Request among sources consulted.
However, Human Rights Watch (HRW) noted that the KLA was responsible for killings in 1999 and 2000 of ethnic Albanians considered collaborators with the Serbian state (2001). HRW identified Prizren, Djakovica and Klina as locations of note for these actions and added that Albanian Catholics and families of former employees of the state were often the victims (ibid.). In addition, there are reports of politically motivated violence against Albanian moderates and opposition party members occurring in the same time period (ibid.; ibid. Dec. 1999; ICG 2 Nov. 1999, 12-14; ibid. 3 Mar. 2000, 16-18). For information concerning the situation of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo please consult YUG39668.E of 4 September 2002.
After the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) was formally disbanded in 1999, the International Crisis Group (ICG) estimated that "at least 5,000 battle-hardened" former-KLA members were without employment (ICG 2 Nov. 1999, 5). In 2000, the ICG noted that many of these had rejoined Kosovo Albanian society, some joined the United Nations initiated Kosovo Police Service (KPS) and the Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC), and others became founding members of Kosovar Albanian political parties (ibid. 3 Mar. 2000, 1, 3-6). The report also speculated that some former KLA members became involved in organized crime and violence in Kosovo (ibid., 1, 14-18).
With respect to splinter organizations, the ICG observed in 1999 that posters appeared in several communities with "lists of suspected Serbian war criminals," someof which bore the name of "local self-declared ethnic Albanian police units" (2 Nov. 1999, 4). In addition four specific organizations are referred to in reports consulted by the Research Directorate. These include the UÇPMB, an acronym that refers to "The Liberation Army of Preovo, Medvedja and Bujanovac (HINA 1 Mar. 2000), which is reportedly based on the south eastern border of Kosovo (The Houston Chronicle 10 Mar. 2001; The Sunday Times 28 Feb. 2000; ABC News 18 Apr. 2000). The UÇPMB is considered by the ICG as responsible for "actions mostly against the Serb MUP-police" in Serbian controlled regions east of Kosovo, "and is also reported to have killed 'collaborators' of the [Serbian] regime" (ICG 3 Mar. 2000, 8).
A second group, the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kosovo (FARK), formed prior to the 1999 conflict and is led by Bujar Bukoshi (ibid. 2 Nov. 1999, 12). Although an independent splinter organization to the KLA, FARK had operated under the KLA banner during the 1999 war (ibid., 13; UPI 23 Dec. 1999). The ICG reports that some KLA members reportedly claim that remnants of FARK in Northern Albania have dressed up in KLA uniforms and launched attacks to discredit the group (ICG 2 Nov. 1999, 13).
The National Liberation Army (NLA) and the Albanian National Army (ANA), are two other organizations linked to the KLA and operating in Macedonia (Jane's Defense Weekly 24 Aug. 2001; Morning Star 17 Aug. 2001). The Telegraph noted that these groups are of the same "clans that launched the rebellion in Kosovo" (25 Mar. 2001) and that the NLA's leadership fought for the KLA in 1999 (ibid.; Jane's Defense Weekly 24 Aug. 2001). Both the NLA and the ANA seek to incorporate ethnic Albanian areas of Macedonia into an independent Albanian Kosovo (ibid.; Houston Chronicle 10 Mar. 2001).
One report specified that the NLA recruited Kosovo Albanians from villages on the border of Macedonia after it began training and organizing in the summer of 2000 (Jane's Defense Weekly 24 Aug. 2001). The Research Directorate found no other reports of ANA or NLA recruiting activities in Kosovo during the time period of the Information Request among sources consulted.
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 to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
ABC News. 18 April 2000. Sue Masterman. "Rocket Attack: 2 Injured in Kosovo Violence." HINA [Zagreb, in Serbo-Croatian]. 1 March 2000. "Ethnic Albanian 'Liberation Army' Set Up in South." (FBIS-EEU-2000-0301 1 Mar. 2000/WNC).
The Houston Chronicle. 10 March 2001. Austin Bay. "NATO at a Crossroads in the Balkans." (NEXIS)
Human Rights Watch (HRW). 2001. Under Orders: War Crimes in Kosovo. _____. December 1999. Human Rights Watch World Report 2000. International Crisis Group (ICG) [Pristina]. 3 March 2000. ICG Balkans Report No. 88. "What Happened to the KLA?" _____. 2 November 1999. ICG Balkans Report No. 78. "Violence in Kosovo: Who is Killing Whom?" (Amended Version) Jane's Defense Weekly (UK). 24 August 2001. Tim Ripley. "Who are the NLA?" (Orthodox Peace Fellowship List Serve) Morning Star (London). 17 August 2001. Brian Denny. "Rebels Kill Police Officer; Albanian Group Rejects Peace Deal." (NEXIS)
The Sunday Times (London). 28 February 2000. "KLA Breakaway Plots Offensive." (The Australian/NEXIS)
The Telegraph (UK). 25 March 2001. Askold Krushelnycky and Philip Sherwell. "Rebels Fight for the Creation of a Greater Kosovo State." (Balkan Peace) United Press International (UPI). 23 December 1999. "Top Kosovo Commander Enters Politics." (NEXIS)
Additional Sources Consulted
NEXIS
IRB Databases
Internet sites including:
Albanians in Macedonia Crisis Centre
Amnesty International
Balkan Human Rights Web Pages
Federation of American Scientists
Human Rights Watch
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
Macedonia.org
Pravda
World News Connection
