Milovic: The work of the Clinical Hospital Center impeded after the abolition of the dinar; patients lack food and medication

Deputy Director of the Clinical Hospital Center Kosovska Mitrovica, Dragisa Milovic, stated that the institution's work had been significantly impeded, especially after the abolition of the dinar, and that the patients lacked food, medication, and sanitary materials the most. He appealed to the international community to respond.

Milovic, appearing on Pink TV, reminded that the Clinical Hospital Center in Northern Mitrovica was the only institution, as he said, where Serbs could work and receive medical treatment, emphasizing that all other hospitals and clinics had been ethnically cleansed, with the Clinical Hospital Center Pristina relocated to Gracanica.

He added that healthcare institutions, which were predominantly Serbian, operated "under impossible conditions," facing pressure from Pristina for the past 25 years.

"The latest regulation by the Central Bank of Kosovo to ban the dinar as currency in Kosovo has further complicated the already difficult lives of Serbs living in Kosovo. Regarding our hospital, we need fuel and oil for our ambulances, and above all, what is most essential is food for our patients. I would like to remind you that we have around 536 beds, and our patients, especially diabetics and oncology patients, require a specific type of diet. In these circumstances, where Pristina has banned the transport of goods or food from central Serbia, we are operating under abnormal conditions. Also, our 1,700 healthcare workers and support staff, who have been receiving their salaries regularly all these years, unfortunately, cannot do so for the past month or more," Milovic said.

He emphasized that these were ongoing issues for Serbs in Kosovo.

"These problems didn't start yesterday. Our patients were deprived of vaccinations; they had to go to Kraljevo and Raska to get vaccinated. These are all unilateral actions that Pristina takes to make our already difficult lives unbearable. Therefore, patients now don't have enough medicine, sanitary materials, or food. Regarding our scanner and ultrasound machines, our technicians come from Serbia, and their services are paid in dinars. The question is, how can we continue working under these conditions? This pressure didn't start yesterday, it's been going on for 25 years, but the Albin Kurti regime, since coming to power, has drastically worsened our situation. So, we face political, institutional, and physical pressures every day," Milovic highlighted, recalling the shooting of Serbian children on Christmas Eve.

He also commented on the recent arrest of a Serbian individual in Northern Mitrovica.

"Yesterday's arrest of a Serb in the north for an alleged war crime from 1999 only shows how insecure our situation is, and yet, we receive information from Pristina that it's the most democratic state in the region and Europe, or as Osmani says, 'a beacon of democracy.' Unfortunately, for us Serbs, there is no democracy or freedom in these parts," he stated.

Asked how they manage with fuel and sanitary materials, Milovic explained that they are still using their existing supplies, and the current warm weather is favorable for them.

"We're still using up our fuel reserves; deliveries are almost over, and we're lucky that the weather isn't cold now. In any case, we pay for fuel in dinars, and our debts to our supplier are piling up, and if this situation isn't resolved very quickly, I appeal primarily to the international community, ambassadors of the Quint, and the US embassy to react. In the 21st century, in Europe, our patients not having access to medicine, food, and sanitary materials cannot be allowed to happen," he stressed.

Milovic pointed out that there were double standards in Kosovo, referring to reports from Freedom House indicating progress in democracy and the rule of law.

"These are double standards, as seen in the case of elections in the north, where mayors with barely over a hundred votes were declared legitimate and legal. One standard applies to Albanians, and another to us Serbs, but we will persevere because we have no other choice. We are on our land; we have lived on Kosovo for centuries; we haven't taken anything that doesn't belong to us. We want to live in peace and have a future here for us and our children. That's why we need the help of the UN, according to Resolution 1244, for the EULEX and KFOR missions to protect Serbs from all these attacks and violence. I must say that our Serbian citizens and non-Albanians are under constant pressure, and the situation is not improving. We are worried about what Kurti's next move will be after banning the dinar. His entire policy and strategy aim to prevent the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities, agreed upon in 2013 and 2015 in Brussels, guaranteed by the EU, and to push it into the background," Milovic assessed.

He added that "Kurti uses the war in Ukraine as an excuse, claiming that Serbia refuses to enforce sanctions against Russia, in front of the Quint and Western countries that recognize Kosovo."

"The situation is difficult for us, but we have no other choice, we must be united, patient, wise, and cohesive, not succumb to provocations, which will probably continue in the future, and jointly, with the help of our mother country, Serbia, remain on our land," Milovic concluded.