Serbia

Letter to the International Helsinki Federation of Human Rights

Dear Friends and Esteemed Colleagues,

This letter is an answer to a "request" made by our associates and friends of long standing, with whom we cooperated for a number of years on the long-term and far-reaching programme of building a civic society in the FR of Yugoslavia.

The Congress of the Center for the Dissemination of Information and Democracy (CeRID) and "Serbia Together" in joint session held on May 19 1999 in Nis, presents the following DECLARATION

I am currently in Montenegro, consulting lawyer -- refugees from Kosovo -- about ways to conduct research into events in Kosovo after 24 March.There are over 80,000 Albanian refugees in Montenegro. Approximately 60,000 of them are from Pec, Mitrovica and Istok. Interviewing refugees will help us obtain relevant material about the pattern of ethnic cleansing in the above places. This material will be useful to the ICTY's Office of the Prosecutor for their decisions on conducting investigations and bringing indictments.

Dear friends,

We are writing to you in these difficult moments of our shared suffering. Convoys of Albanians and other citizens of Kosovo, among whom many of you, were forced to leave their homes. The killings and expulsions, homes destroyed and burnt, bridges, roads and industrial buildings demolished - paint a somber and painful picture of Kosovo, Serbia and Montenegro, as in indicating that life together is no longer possible. We, however, believe that it is necessary and possible.

The NATO aggression and continuous attacks against the FR of Yugoslavia have been going on for 44 days now. Hundreds of thousands of Kosovo Albanians have been forced to leave their homes. Under the tonnes of high-tech bombs and missiles the land is being converted to cinders, and the losses of human life grow daily.

(most recent first)

April 16, Budapest

Here are some more news about the situation in Serbia, where the bombings and massacres intensify. The death toll of passanger train hit rose to 55, of refugee convoy to 80 and the bridge over Danube in Belgrade is the only one still standing. The flames of oil rafinery and chemical plant in Pancevo are threatening in a very serious way.

Several thousand people gathered at the funeral of Slavko Curuvija, a prominent independent journalist, assassinated earlier this week.

This is the eight consecutive wartime May 1. In this century, no other European state has had such a long war. It is true though that Serbia was not in war, at least not in the same sense that it has ever declared war. But for eight years war has been the main element of our lives and our fate. For eight years workers 1 May is bloodstained, both stained with our blood and with blood of those who were until recently our fellow citizens.

On 15th April 1999 at 22:40 NATO forces heavily bombarded the plants of the Petrochemical Complex in Pancevo which were in regular operation. Installations and equipment of the Vinyl Chloride Monomer plant and Ethylene plant were directly hit.

As long time proponents of and activists for a democratic and anti-nationalist Serbia, who have chosen to remain in Yugoslavia during this moment of crisis and who want to see our country reintegrated into the community of world nations, we state the following:

We strongly condemn the NATO bombings which have hugely exacerbated violence in Kosovo and have caused the displacement of people outside and throughout Yugoslavia. We strongly condemn the ethnic cleansing of the Albanian population perpetrated by any Yugoslav forces.

NATO bombardment and armed conflicts in Kosovo must stop. The only way out of the crisis is an unconditional restoration of the peace process.

Since the effects of erratic policies are mass destruction of human life and devastation of the land, restoration of the peace process shall be a difficult task which will require participation of everyone who is able to make contributions to development and implementation of suitable solutions.

Vesna Terselic

War Resisters' International is in contact with women peace activists in the former Yugoslavia, who are feminist, pacifist and anti-nationalist in ideology. They have been campaigning against war and ethnic cleansing throughout the decade, at great personal risk and sacrifice. We preserve their anonymity.

March 28, 1999