Petkovic: Every house, field, and yard we have fought for is a small victory for the survival of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija

Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petkovic, stated today at a conference on the "Free Legal Aid" project, within which legal assistance was provided to internally displaced persons, that every house, field, and yard they had managed to secure was a small victory in the struggle for the survival of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija.

The conference presented the results of a project that lasted for the past five years, funded by the EU with 4.9 million euros. Petkovic said that this project was one of the few showing its humane face and thanked the EU Delegation in Serbia for its support and funding for the project. Stating that 6,600 beneficiaries had gone through the project, Petkovic said that over 3,000 cases had been positively resolved.

"The issue of property implies an inviolable human right, and when the EU stands behind such a project in Pristina, they cannot behave as arrogantly as they usually do towards the Serbs", Petkovic said.

As he stated, it was significant that a new project cycle had been secured for the next two years, which, he added, was important for lawyers to continue their proceedings.

"The project gives hope to the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija that their rights and life in Kosovo and Metohija, despite all the problems and challenges, are still possible", Petkovic emphasized.

In this regard, he cited the example of Dragica Gasic, a returnee to Djakovica, emphasizing that she was the first female returnee and hoping that she would not be the last.

"There is no morning that we don't hear from her. With her courage and dedication to the project, Dragica managed to exercise her right and return to her apartment in Djakovica. Dozens of organizations from Pristina protested and demanded her eviction to prevent returnees in Djakovica. They even banned her from buying bread in nearby stores, so we ensured that food was delivered to her doorstep. We will continue to fight for every one of our returnees. Dragica Gasic is still in her apartment, she succeeded thanks to the project. She is the first female returnee, and I hope she will not be the last", Petkovic said.

Speaking about the position and basic human rights of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, he said that we had had an extremely difficult year full of challenges. The problems faced by the Serbs in Kosovo, he said, were enormous and reached the point of complete deprivation of rights.

"Institutional violence carried out by the Pristina authorities almost every day is reflected in the life of our people, especially in the last year, leading to more than 12% of the Serbs leaving the southern Serbian province. We point out all of this every day by talking about the difficult position of the Serbs, from unfounded persecutions to the confiscation of private property, unlawful expropriations, and the construction of illegal police bases, all of which result in an extremely difficult life for the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, as well as questioning the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina in Brussels", the Director of the Government's Office said.

He emphasizes that Belgrade is doing everything to preserve peace, and stability, and to ensure that the position of the Serbs is such that our people can stay and survive in their ancestral homes.

He also emphasizes that Belgrade fulfills all its obligations in the dialogue, while Pristina does not fulfill its main obligation, which is to outright refuse to form the CSM for more than 10 years. As he says, they have started talks in Brussels about the CSM, which, as he notes, represents the only framework for the survival of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija.

"Without the CSM, the problem is everywhere. We are witnesses, even in the last days in the Municipality of Zvecan, where there is a blatant seizure of private property of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the complex 'Rajska Banja'. That complex is one of the most significant investments of the Government of Serbia and the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, aiming to uplift the community, employ young people, and provide treatment to patients. And then someone comes and says it's not yours, it's ours. How can it be yours when they didn't build it, were never there, and have no documents? This is the true face of today's situation in Kosovo and Metohija, legal violence, and revenge against the Serbs", Petkovic said.

He notes that the project discussed today at the conference in the presence of the Head of the EU Delegation in Serbia, Emanuele Giaufret, helps in realizing the basic human rights of the Serbs.

He emphasizes that the Serbs face many other problems, such as the continued usurpation of private property and intimidation of internally displaced persons who want to return.

As he explains, intimidation happens when, upon returning to their village to visit their often destroyed homes, to go to the graves of their loved ones, the Serbs encounter pressure to sell their property. If they refuse to sell, neighbors immediately appear, accusing them of alleged war crimes, and holding them in prisons until it is proven that they are innocent.

"But the message has already been sent that they are not welcome, neither them nor those who are thinking about returning", he said.

He emphasizes that less than two percent of internally displaced persons have returned to their homes, and he points out that there is a higher return rate in Rwanda than in Kosovo.

"This speaks volumes about the fact that Pristina does not want to allow the return of the Serbs to Kosovo and Metohija", Petkovic emphasizes. Nevertheless, as he underscores, Belgrade will not be deterred from continuing to fight for truth and justice, for the displaced to reclaim their property.

"The policy of persecuting everything Serbian is unsustainable in the long run", he stated.

Speaking about the arrests of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, Petkovic once again called on representatives of international organizations in Kosovo and Metohija to address the case of the arrested Zoran Kostic.

"It is an older man from Priluzje, accused of alleged war crimes, a seriously ill person, he has been in detention for several months. Only through our efforts was he taken to a hospital in Pristina, where he underwent surgery. Doctors mutilated him, and he still has bleeding today. It is no longer a question of whether he will be released from detention, but whether he will stay alive", Petkovic recounted, urging especially EULEX to address this and all other cases, emphasizing that such behavior was unacceptable.