Serbia Albanians accuse Belgrade of silent "ethnic cleansing"
Albanian Refugees leaving Presheva Valley
Riza Halimi, the only Presheva Valley Albanian representative in the Parliament of Serbia, during the Serbia government voting session yesterday said that he will not vote for the future government of Serbia, even though he supports Serbia's proposals and possible reforms to enter EU.
During his speech, Halimi emphasized that "most of the government appointed ministers have no serious willingness or interest to resolve the sensitive issue of the Albanians in the Presheva Valley. Serbia government has neglected to fulfill its obligations and respect the international requirements to develop equal conditions and respect human rights for all citizens that live in this region," added Halimi.
Presheva Valley is an Albanian-majority region in southern Serbia, across from Kosovo's eastern border.
Halimi has further criticized Serbia's government for intentionally neglecting the economic and social problems of Albanians in the Presheva Valley stating that " the unemployment among Albanians in the municipality of Presheva is over 70%."
"This provides no economic prospective for this underdeveloped area, which certainly accelerates the institutional ethnic cleansing of Albanians in this region," concluded Halimi. Up to 50% of Albanians in the Presheva Valley remain refugees in Kosovo as the region’s leaders accuse the Serb government of creating an environment of fear in the region with special police unit checkpoints and strong military presence.
Serbia’s new government is made up of a coalition which includes SPS, the party of the former president Slobodan Miloshevic who was being prosecuted by an international court in The Hague for crimes including ethnic cleansing in Kosovo and genocide in Bosnia.