Macura on the status of women in Kosovo: Ethnic cleansing of Serbian and minority communities is being carried out in a sinister manner

Minister in the Serbian government responsible for gender equality and prevention of violence against women, Tatjana Macura, stated to Kosovo Online that the situation of women, as well as vulnerable categories of society in Kosovo, is such that there is, so to speak, a sinister form of ethnic cleansing of all minorities living in that area, including the Serbian community.

Macura indicated that such tendencies are evident from analyses of the number of newborns in maternity wards in areas where the Serbian community is most populous, or the number of students enrolling in primary and secondary schools.

"It is evident from these data that there is a decline in these numbers, which clearly shows that there are fewer and fewer women and men coming from the Serbian community, as well as from other minority communities in Kosovo and Metohija," said Macura.

She added that there are no official data on the number of women killed in Kosovo, but the problems faced by women in that region are almost identical to those faced by all women.

Therefore, she appealed for all women to report the violence they suffer, as the only way to free themselves from it.

Today in Vienna, Macura also emphasized that the protection of women's human rights must always be high on the agenda everywhere, as these rights can be degraded "in an instant."

At the conference "Economic Empowerment of Women of Serbia and the Diaspora," organized in the Austrian capital by the minister's office and the Serbian Embassy in Vienna, Macura pointed out that women have, in a way, positioned themselves as an indispensable factor in society, given that the Serbian government is the only one in the region that has a minister directly responsible for the protection of women's human rights.

"It took courage, because we live in a time when women's human rights are easily regressed. The protection of women's human rights must be set high in all countries, because these rights can be degraded in an instant," the minister warned.

Zarko Obradovic, the head of the Permanent Mission of Serbia to international organizations in Vienna, noted at the conference that the attitude towards women depends on education, family, and the state of society, while the status of women in a society depends on the readiness of the state to implement solutions that will improve their status.

"From my perspective, Serbia is a champion in many areas in the Balkans, including the status of women, which we often overlook. When you look at all the areas where women are represented, we can be proud," said Obradovic.