General information

Call No.:

350-1-1:39/6

Part of series

HU OSA 350-1-1 Records of the International Monitor Institute: Europe: Balkan Archive

Located at

VHS PAL #39 / No. 6

Digital ver. identifier

HU_OSA_00000039

Original Title

Die nächste Krise

Date of air

1992-05-19

Date

1992

Level

Item

Primary Type

Moving image

Language

German

Notes

No notes available

Content

Form/Genre

Television program

Contents Summary

This broadcast focuses on Kosovo as an area where conflict may potentially reappear. The report details how Kosovo is revered by Serbs as the cradle of Serbian culture, featuring a brief historical account of Kosovo and the significance of the Battle of Kosovo Polje in 1389. The modern state of the economy is then focused on, showing the dire poverty of the region and how the illegal trading in foreign hard currency is some of the only work available. Having always been the poorest part of Yugoslavia, Kosovo's ethnic make-up is then examined, detailing showing how many Serbs have emigrated to cities in Serbia proper, creating an even larger ethnic Albanian majority. The report talks about the police state existing in Kosovo and the ethnic Albanians' desire to gain full independence. The report includes an interview with Ibrahim Rugova, ethnic Albanian leader of the LDK; several other ethnic Albanian leaders; and Serbian officials in Kosovo. The report details how the Serbian Orthodox Church aids in the oppression of the Albanian majority, featuring interviews with Fathers Atanasije Rakita and George Trajkovic, Serbian Orthodox priests in the Prizren diocese, who state that Serbs have deeper roots in Kosovo and that it has always been Serbian territory. According to the priests, Muslims have been continuously endangering Serbian churches and their priesthood with little tolerance towards Christianity—especially, they claim, after the 300,000 Albanian Muslims settled after WWII, offsetting the Serbs' historical ethnic majority. Alushi A. Gashi, an Albanian doctor and human rights activist, states that Serbia has created a state of apartheid in Kosovo, experiencing oppression in every aspect of daily life. A Serbian female student at the University of Pristina is also interviewed, saying that, as a member of the Serbian minority, she feels very unsafe in Kosovo. Radivoje Popovic, Serbian President of the University of Pristina, claims that demands for political secession are coming from the Albanian side, namely out of ethnic Albanian student organizations, and that there will be no negotiations over the issue of to whom Kosovo belongs. Ibrahim Rugova gives his view on how Serbian propaganda has been used to skew the reality that Serbs have succeeded in controlling all public institutions in Kosovo and forbidding official use of the Albanian language. He also touches on Kosovar Albanians' desire to be an independent state and the possibility of uniting with Albania. Other footage includes monasteries in the Prizren area (Decani); the ruins in Kosovo Polje; street life and markets in Kosovo; Albanian writers and intellectuals meeting at the Literary Society of Kosovo; impoverished living conditions among Albanian families in their homes; and Albanian children being taught in private homes.

Context

Associated Names

ORF (Copyright holder, Producer)