The Serbs in northern Kosovo trust the Serbian Orthodox Church and KFOR the most, while they fear Kurti's repression

Findings from Demostat's focus groups, among other things, show that the Serbs in northern Kosovo have the greatest trust in the Serbian Orthodox Church, specifically, the Eparchy of Raska and Prizren, while they fear the terror of institutions in Pristina the most.

Demostat's website states that the readiness of the Kosovo Serbs for armed resistance to Pristina has been detected to protect their personal safety, "in defense of their lives and homes".

The presence of various types of fear - fear of uncertainty, fear of Pristina's repression, fear of Kosovo Security Forces, and fear of an outbreak of armed conflict, including war, is the main finding of Demostat's focus groups organized after the events in Banjska on September 24, where an Albanian police officer and three Serbs were killed.

As they state from Demostat, their main goal was to explore the social hopes and fears among the Serbs living in northern Kosovo.

"Fear in people was the first thing noticed, as many did not want to participate in Demostat's focus groups, so we faced a significant problem in finding participants for the public opinion survey. In addition to the mentioned findings, we have detected that a certain number of people are afraid of representatives of the Serb List, which was one of the reasons why we had difficulty finding interviewees", according to Demostat.

"A high level of distrust primarily relates to the institutions of Pristina, mostly the Government led by Albin Kurti, as well as the illegitimate local administrations elected after illegitimate elections in the northern part of Kosovo (Serbs did not participate in these elections because Pristina persistently refuses to establish the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities, as stipulated in the 2013 Brussels Agreement). There is also a high level of distrust in the Kosovo Police Service (KPS). At the same time, we have detected a decreasing trend in the level of trust in Serbian institutions (in official Belgrade) after the Serbs from the northern part of Kosovo and Metohija withdrew from local institutions, and this 'erosion of trust' has intensified especially after the tragic events in Banjska", it is stated.

Regarding trust, Demostat emphasizes that the Serbian community in Kosovo trusts KFOR the most.

"On the other hand, when it comes to trust, our focus groups showed that the Serbian community in Kosovo trusts KFOR the most, as we have recently reported. As respondents explain, they believe that this mission can provide security and safety, primarily protection from Pristina's repression. Additionally, the Serbs in Kosovo have great trust in the Eparchy of Raska and Prizren", the research reveals.

In their research in central Serbia, Demostat found that there is no will among citizens to engage in a war for Kosovo.

"For example, we recently explored which issues citizens perceive as the most significant regarding their personal concerns and detected that these relate to personal standards. For many respondents, Kosovo is perceived as the most significant problem of the state of Serbia. However, among the Serbs living in northern Kosovo and Metohija, we found a high readiness for armed resistance to Pristina, to protect their personal safety 'in defense of their lives and homes'. This is noticeable not only among younger individuals but also among the older Serbs living in that area", Demostat notes on their website.

As they point out the causes should be sought in the following facts:

"An illegitimate local government formed after illegitimate local elections in four municipalities in northern Kosovo. For the existence of an illegitimate local government in northern Kosovo, Pristina, the Serbs who did not participate in local elections, and Belgrade, which initiated the withdrawal of the Serbs from institutions, creating a kind of interregnum, share responsibility. 

Repressive behavior of Pristina, which has been ongoing for some time but intensified after the withdrawal of the Serbs from institutions. The main cause is Pristina's constant refusal to establish the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities, which would provide the Serbs with a form of autonomy, as envisaged in all agreements and documents, from the Ahtisaari Agreement to the Ohrid Agreement".