Koha Ditore carries on the front page a letter that the Budapest-based European Centre for Roma Rights has sent to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The Centre calls for waiving the diplomatic immunity of UNMIK senior staff ‘because they are responsible for the health and humanitarian catastrophe that has been occurring in the camps in Mitrovica North for the last six years. UNMIK’s behaviour raises some serious issues that need to be addressed by criminal or civil court’, the letter reads.
The letter also says that the camps for Roma were built as an ad hoc response to the displacement of Roma refugees and were meant to exist only for several weeks. ‘However, six years have passed and the camps are still there, the camp residents are devastated and their children suffering from health problems,’ said the letter.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
This is a problem the Kosovars need to solve immediately. Even if the UN does not help, citizens should help in placing the Roma in safer housing, and integrating them back in the community.
That is what Albanians do - help those that want to live peacfully in Kosova. UNMIK is not only not helping but is staying in the way with their bureaucratic circles.
So, serbs have no reason to complain. In Serbia Serb refugees are treated like trash let alone non-serbs.
UN has nothing to do with human rights, that's why the situation of Roma has not been getting attention. Prosecution is far fetched but their leaders can certainly keep up the pressure.
No way is the SG going to waive DI for UNMIK senior staff - that would mean they had to admit a huge degree of failure. But ECRR raises a good issue: UNMIK staff operate in the bubble of impunity; at least in other countries where Roma/Sinti face similarly widespread discrimination as they do in Kosovo, there are ways of rendering someone inside government accountable.
Post a Comment