Protest of Serbs in North Mitrovica: For us, this Bridge is a symbol of survival

Serbs from North Kosovo held a peaceful protest today at Trg Brace Milic in North Mitrovica in response to announcements from Pristina about opening the main bridge on the Ibar. They unanimously declared that they do not accept the opening of the bridge because they do not feel safe. They emphasized that the protest and its messages are not calls for war, but for peace.

The protest began at 11 a.m. at the square near the bridge on the Ibar. Among the gathered were the presidents of the provisional authorities of Kosovska Mitrovica, Zubin Potok, and Zvecan - Ivan Zaporozac, Srđan Vulovic, and Ivan Todosijevic.

The attendees carried banners saying, "On the bridge, we defended survival; now we defend against disappearance," "If Kurti opens the bridge, KFOR and the Quint will be responsible," and "While the EU and the USA write statements, we are being expelled."

The first to address the gathering was former judge of the Higher Court in Kosovska Mitrovica, Nikola Kabasic. He stated that a relentless aggression and plundering have started against the Serbian people, especially in the last two years.

"Since then, a series of actions have begun in which Serbs will lose all conditions to survive or all conditions will be created for them to leave. All activities of Albin Kurti's government are aimed at ethnic cleansing of Serbs," Kabasic declared.

He assessed that the situation today is a repetition of 1999 when Serbs gathered because the then-state was not ready to help them, so they began to self-organize.

"We had to self-organize to survive, and we succeeded. The bridge actually preserved multi-ethnicity in Kosovo. This city and this bridge were fortunate that ethnic cleansing of Serbs, which lasted in 1999 and 2000, stopped here. For Serbs, this bridge is a symbol of survival," emphasized Kabasic.

Call for Unity

He called for the unity of Serbs in Kosovo, especially in the north.

"We must either organize together or be driven away one by one. I have somewhere to go, but I won't. I planned to stay here and die here. No one from Serbia can come and live here or educate their children. We must rely on ourselves. That is why we all must gather. Because, for Sveçla, we are all the same," Kabasic stressed.

Every time the usurpers in the Municipality hold a session, we will come here to discuss it. If it is not in our interest, we will reject that decision because it is illegitimate, he noted.

"The Municipality cannot have power because it is illegitimate and does not represent the people here. The message is that we have no problem with the Albanians. They work here, and not a hair on their heads is missing. Good for them, good for us. The path to reconciliation is through trade... That should interest us. The economy should unite us, and politics divides us," said Kabasic.

This protest, he said, is against the measures of the government currently in Pristina.

"The police in the north have stepped outside the Constitution and laws of Kosovo. They arrest utility workers... They arrest people who change streetlight bulbs. That is not the job of the police. The police must not spy on Serbs. I think this is the beginning of something new. The Serbian people must present themselves as a political entity that will speak with one voice to Pristina, but also to Belgrade," Kabasic concluded.

Appeal to the International Community

He stated that the municipality is not in the hands of the majority citizens but in the hands of 300 brought-in citizens.

"Special forces have been brought in to work against Serbian interests here. When we have institutions and are free from this surveillance, everything will be different. The number of police and the equipment they have are disproportionate to the situation. This area has the lowest crime rate. I genuinely believe that we can come together, find common interests, and be united. I appeal to the international community: Do not agree to any actions on the ground, as it could lead to violence. Our safety is at stake. If you fought to preserve the multi-ethnicity of Kosovo, now you must protect it," emphasized Kabasic.

He asked the leadership in Serbia to continue providing assistance, ensuring it is fairer and more evenly distributed.

"One more plea to Serbia: You must listen to us. You may not agree with us, but we have the right to speak. I fear that sometimes you do not have a proper insight into everything that is happening. Listen to us," he urged.

Wall of Silence

Journalist Rada Komazec from "Jedinstvo" stated that "when you are on the side of truth and justice, you have nothing to fear." The history of Kosovo is written on the pages of Jedinstvo, which no one can erase, she said, reminding that the newspaper was expelled from Pristina in 1999, and its entire property was usurped.

"Our writings to international organizations were in vain; we only encountered a wall of silence," Komazec recalled.

After finding refuge, they were, as she said, expelled from the building in Mitrovica as well.

"We held futile meetings with KFOR, with UNMIK; they just shrugged their shoulders," Komazec said.

"We are indigenous and our own here, and we extend a hand to the Albanians to live in peace," she added.

She stated that she has no right to remain silent for all the journalists who have perished and been attacked in Kosovo.

"Now they want to open the bridge where thousands of ethnic attacks have occurred," Komazec emphasized.

In the memory of Serbs is also February 13, 2000, when more than 40,000 Albanians from South Mitrovica, under some so-called peace march, tried to occupy and invade the northern, Serbian part. She reminded that French KFOR prevented that invasion.

"We ask the authorities in Pristina to reconsider their decisions because we know that they ordered the illegal councilors in the North Mitrovica municipal assembly to make such a decision. I also ask the international community to stop Pristina's diabolical plan," Komazec urged, assessing that this is an old tactic to make the Serbs leave on their own.

The Last Blow for All Serbs

Retiree Dusanka Vlahovic conveyed, on behalf of the retirees, that fear and helplessness prevail among them.

"They have closed the post offices, abolished the dinar, and thus we are also confined here. We have to go to Raska to withdraw our pensions. No one asks us about our expenses. We worry about the future of our families. Opening the bridge would only increase the fear. If KFOR and the international community open the bridge, they are granting permission for ethnic cleansing. We all remember what happened on the bridge. After the abolition of the dinar, this would be the last blow for all Serbs. I appeal for unity so we can get through these difficult days," said Vlahovic.

"Opening the Bridge - New Persecution"

Director of the Post Office in Kosovo and Metohija Ivan Milojevic said he comes from the police station where the questioning has just finished after a difficult day yesterday.

"They have closed the post offices in the north, and I expect them to do the same in the south. From them, we only expect closures; they would be happiest if we closed ourselves down. But we cannot do that for the sake of ourselves and our descendants. They want to open the bridge. As the director of the Post Office, I see that the only way is for us to stand together and oppose them. I know what I will do and what many of you will do if Kurti opens the bridge. I will stand peacefully and democratically, and I will lie down on the asphalt, and let them arrest us. Opening the bridge will only lead to further persecution.

When they implemented measures to stop the dinar, we had a regular route from Gracanica to Gorazdevac, and the van carried money for both Serbs and Albanians. They arrested two workers and traumatized our colleague. Do you know what charge they are facing? Money laundering, even though the money legally entered the country. They are accusing me too, and I said I took personal responsibility for everything, I stand in front of my employees. If someone needs to be blamed, let them blame me; I can go to prison if necessary," said Milojevic.

Call for Peace

History professor at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of North Mitrovica, Luka Jovanovic, stated that it is painful to watch how Serbs in Kosovo have had their churches and monasteries taken away for years, and their rights to work and free movement revoked, and even their right to life denied.

"They are taking our properties in Leposavic and Zubin Potok, claiming that their ancestors left them Gazivode. But the hardest part is how they are killing and arresting our brothers. History has never deceived us; when tyranny is like this, it is a sign that its end is near," Jovanovic said.

He added that opening the main bridge on the Ibar would shift the boundary of Serbian unity and history.

"How will we look into the eyes of Jelena Tucev's children or Borivoje Spasojevic's grandchildren, who were brutally killed when Albanians tried to ethnically cleanse Kosovska Mitrovica? That is why we must not remain silent and expect someone else to solve our problems. If we stay silent today and in the coming days, tomorrow they will enter our schools, occupy our churches and monasteries, and enter our hospitals. Worst of all, our children will not know who they are, what they are, or where they are from. And for this reason, and for those people who stood up for our fathers and brothers 20 years ago and defended this city so that we can stand here today, we must do the same so that our children can play in these streets as we did," emphasized Jovanovic.

Jovanovic referred to historical facts and stressed that the protest and its messages are not calls for war, but for peace.

"This is not a call for war. This is a call for peace, for dialogue, coexistence, and agreement. We have never been the ones calling for war. Kurti and Sveçla are calling for war because they fear peace with the Serbian people. In that peace, Kosovska Mitrovica is the city with the most children, with the most students. In that peace, Kosovska Mitrovica is a city for everyone, and that is the Mitrovica we are fighting for," concluded Jovanovic.