Continued persecution of Roma, Ashkalis, Egyptians and others perceived as "Gypsies" in Kosovo

RELIEF WEB (SWITZERLAND)

Source: European Roma Rights Center (ERRC)

Date: 27 Jun 2005

In the aftermath of ethnic cleansing: Continued persecution of Roma, Ashkalis, Egyptians and others perceived as "Gypsies" in Kosovo

Memorandum of the European Roma Rights Centre

Introduction

Six years ago, after the end of the NATO bombing of former Yugoslavia, Roma Ashkalis, Egyptians and others regarded as "Gypsies" ("RAE") were violently cleansed from their homes in Kosovo by means of arson, mass destruction of houses, killings and rape. Today, persecution of the members of these communities continues, manifested in their systematic exclusion from access to fundamental human rights. Racial discrimination against RAE communities in Kosovo is pervasive, depriving tens of thousands from even a bare minimum of dignity. Anti-Gypsy sentiment among the majority is widespread, ranging from assaults on RAE individuals to verbal abuse and dissemination of defamatory images, including images stigmatising RAE as perpetrators of crimes against Albanians, in the media.

Living in an atmosphere of persistent threats to their security, unprotected against massive exclusion from jobs and denial of access to income sources, exposed to extremely substandard and hazardous living conditions; marginalised in the public sphere, the RAE communities today experience levels of oppression which render the necessity of providing them with international protection unquestionable. Oppression of RAE is further aggravated by failure of the United Nations administration to bring to justice the perpetrators of even the most egregious crimes committed against RAE since June 1999.

A brief summary of some particularly extreme issues facing Roma, Ashkalis, Egyptians and others considered as "Gypsies" in Kosovo follows:

Failure to Provide Just Remedy for Gross Violations of Fundamental Human Rights: RAE are denied the right to compensation for the violent crimes committed against them immediately after the end of the NATO bombing in June 1999 and the following years. In the course of the ethnic cleansing campaign, ethnic Albanians kidnapped and severely physically abused and in some cases killed Roma, Ashkalis and Egyptians; raped women in the presence of family members; and seized, looted or destroyed property en masse. Whole Romani settlements were burned to the ground by ethnic Albanians, in many cases while NATO troops looked on. In the following years numerous RAE returnees were targeted for violent assaults such as the brutal killing of four Ashkali returnees in Dashevc/Dosevac in November 2000, the numerous explosions causing deaths and destruction of newly rebuilt houses for returnees. The perpetrators of these crimes have not been brought to justice to date. The ethnic cleansing of the RAE remains totally unremedied.

Continuing Violence, Intimidation, and Harassment: After several years during which UN officials and others assured the public that the worst violence in Kosovo was over; after Germany, Italy, Sweden and other states, considering Kosovo to be safe, terminated the international protection of many RAE and started their forceful repatriation to Kosovo, the renewal of mass violence against minorities in Kosovo in March 2004, demonstrated that forces in Kosovo intent on expelling non-Albanian minorities continue to control the course of events. Several hundreds of Roma and Ashkalis were targeted for violent attacks; at least 75 houses belonging to Romani and Ashkali families were set on fire. In Vushtrri/Vucitrn alone, some 70 houses belonging to Ashkalis were burned and destroyed.

Roma, Ashkalis, Egyptians and others considered as "Gypsies" in Kosovo today live in a state of pervasive fear, nourished by routine intimidation and verbal harassment, as well as by occasional racist assaults by Kosovo Albanians. Most of these incidents remain unreported to the authorities due to lack of trust and fear of retaliation, reinforced and affirmed by the awareness among RAE that there has been no justice delivered in connection with the massive wave of violent crimes committed against them, and indeed that the persons primarily responsible for these crimes are the new powers in Kosovo.

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