[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 108 (Wednesday, July 28, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1672]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   SERBS DESERVE PROTECTION IN KOSOVO

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 27, 1999

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I am outraged by the killing of 
14 Serbs last Friday near the town of Gracko in Kosovo. The culprits of 
this crime are, in my view, prime candidates for the next indictments 
for crimes against humanity by the International Tribunal which is 
located in The Hague. I certainly hope that the efforts of KFOR, the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and 
Tribunal investigators will help identify and immediately apprehend 
those responsible for this crime.
  The killings, however, are no isolated incident. Since NATO air 
strikes ended, the Serb forces have retreated, and the Kosovar refugees 
have begun to return to their homes, those Serb civilians who chose to 
remain in the region have repeatedly been subjected to violent 
retribution. Certainly a Kosovo which is ethnically cleansed of Serbs--
and, according to reports, cleansed of Roma as well--is not the kind of 
Kosovo for which the international community undertook such a risky and 
costly intervention. Kosovo must pursue the path of rule by law not by 
lawlessness, and respect for and protection of basic human freedoms--
including life itself.
  A related disturbing trend is the attempt by leaders of the Kosovo 
Liberation Army--the KLA--to fill the political vacuum created now that 
Serbian authorities have departed Kosovo. The KLA has yet to prove its 
democratic credentials; in many instances, its tactics have sent the 
opposite message. Mr. Speaker, before the KLA is granted any role in 
Kosovo's interim administration, it must prove itself. Helping to find 
those responsible for this latest atrocity would be a good place to 
start. Nationalist Kosovar Albanians can not hide behind the past 
victimization of their people by Milosevic and his forces, those 
responsible for these actions taken against Serbs and their property in 
Kosovo must be held accountable. Neither can they relegate 
responsibility for stopping these incidents to the international 
community alone.
  The international community must make clear to all Kosovar Albanian 
leaders that their actions now will go a long way in determining what 
kind of support they will find for their own aspirations down the road. 
The benefits of enhanced political status for Kosovo cannot be enjoyed 
without also undertaking the responsibilities of democratic governance.

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