Djorovic: Serbs lack basic living conditions, we must take care of those living in Kosovo

Dusanka Djorovic from the United Pensioners Association told Kosovo Online that the announcement of declaring Kosovo a special social protection area will have little impact on the lives of people because only a small number of Serbs remain in Kosovo, and they lack basic living conditions.

She emphasizes that these basic conditions include "freedom, rights, their own currency, their own doctor, their own school, and everything that belongs to their language area."

"As I personally understand the granting of special social protection status for Kosovo, it is intended for families with no income. Personally, I think it would be better to check families that have two, three, or four sources of income, do not live in the area of Kosovo and Metohija, and then direct that money into the fund for this social program for Kosovo and Metohija. As for the northern part where we live, I personally think it is more provided for than the southern part," said our interlocutor.

Dusanka Djorovic from the United Pensioners Association told Kosovo Online that the announcement of Kosovo being declared a special social protection area will have little impact on people’s lives because only a small number of Serbs remain in Kosovo, and they lack basic living conditions.

She emphasizes that these basic conditions include "freedom, rights, their own currency, their own doctor, their own school, and everything that belongs to their language area."

"As I understand the granting of special social protection status for Kosovo, it is intended for families with no income. Personally, I think it would be better to check families that have two, three, or four sources of income, do not live in the area of Kosovo and Metohija, and then direct that money into the fund for this social program for Kosovo and Metohija. Regarding our northern part, I personally think it is more provided for than the southern part," she says.

She recalls that there is an employment issue in Kosovo because there are no jobs "in terms of markets, factory openings—basic conditions in Kosovo do not exist, especially for the youth."

"This also applies to Albanians, but they perceive it differently than we do. They are building their state, while we believe we are in our own country, which is a huge difference," she explains.

She adds that much is needed for children, especially when they start school, kindergartens, or go on excursions, and that young people aged 20, and even some aged 30-40, do not have conditions to find employment, as "not everyone can work in state institutions."

She adds that the social protection program should include retirees from Trepca, Luksa, and Mitrovcanka, "who have been living on minimal income for 20 years, not due to their own fault but due to the fault of the state, while in the meantime, the state organs have always paid 60-70% regardless of residence since the war."

"We need to take care of the people who are in Kosovo. That has been my stance since the end of the war. The people who live in Kosovo and stay in Kosovo should receive a lot of money. If you live in Serbia and work here, a high salary has enabled you to buy an apartment, and later you'll secure yourself a job, which makes you a potential candidate for leaving, which is what's happening. That should have been done much earlier," Djorovic believes.

However, she adds, "Even 100 dinars is a lot if someone gives it to you when you have nothing, and many have nothing," which is why the outflow of both Albanians and Serbs is significant.

"I don’t have an overview or clear picture of the most vulnerable families. The local government should have that, and ideally, they should have already made a list of those who really need help, and it should have been done earlier. So that’s a matter for local government; they presumably know which families are the most vulnerable and should be prioritized. In the end, they should also provide lists of those eligible for social protection. But how effective is it if you don’t have freedom, peace, or your own currency? You have 20,000 dinars, and you have to go to Raska, Bujanovac, or another location in Serbia to withdraw it. You'll spend part of the money just for the trip," Djorovic warns.

She also recalls the high prices in Kosovo.

"Here, things are very expensive, especially after the ban on Serbian goods in this area: 1.45 liters of yogurt costs 2.45 euros. That’s 300 dinars, right? You can see what can be done. It’s simply very, very difficult here. These 20,000 dinars, and as I understand, 5,000 per family member, or per child, will help, of course. It would have been better if it had happened much earlier, but again, if you don’t have the freedom to move, don’t have your own product, your own school, we don’t know where this will lead. This all leads to uncertainty," she warns, adding that the elderly and the sick often have no one to withdraw money for them, and some of them have pensions of only 14-15,000 dinars.

She mentions that since last year, when the association was established, a lot has been done with the help of the temporary governing body.

"We got an office that was suitable for a pensioners' club and our activities. However, these Kosovo institutions quickly came and closed it down," Djorovic recalls.

She notes that the association is multi-ethnic.

"We gladly invite Albanians who receive Serbian pensions, and we have them. We also have Bosniaks and Roma, which is why it's called the United Pensioners Association. When we travel, we invite everyone, and they all respond. We’ve had three trips so far, organized by the local government, and we’ve had excellent cooperation with them. We will miss having our local government here very much. I hope it will return, because if the local government doesn’t exist, neither do we," she concludes.