(1) Kosovo Albanians controlled the provincial government;
• Yes they did, but after 1989 Belgrade did and all the institutions.
(2) Kosovo Albanians controlled the cultural institutions;
• Yes, after 1989 Serbs did.
(3) Albanian was the official language in the province (and in fact Serbs in Kosovo were forced to learn Albanian, not the other way around);
• Yes, in 1989 it was abolished. No Albanian media, schools, speech etc. Albanians were always forced to learn Serbian before these happened. If Albanian is a recognized minority language than why wasn’t Albanian taught in areas other than Kosovo?
(4) Education was conducted in Albanian;
• Yes, in 1989 was only in Serbian.
(5) Albanians were the overwhelming majority of students at Pristina University;
• Yes demographics show that. They didn’t in early 90’s.
(6) Albanians were the overwhelming majority in the Kosovo police force;
• Yes they weren’t any more since all Albanians were fired and replaced by incoming Serbian police.
(7) As The Economist reported in 1981, “Mr. Fadil Hoxha [was] a member of Jugoslavia’s collective state presidency and a Kosovo Albanian.” What does this mean? The collective presidency of the Yugoslav federation was composed of representatives from its constituent republics, and also representatives from Kosovo and Vojvodina. However, Kosovo and Vojvodina were not republics of Yugoslavia but provinces of Serbia. Thus, Kosovo was treated as if it were a republic of Yugoslavia as far as the collective presidency of the federation was concerned.
• True
(8) Since 1974, the Kosovo parliament in Pristina (Kosovo’s capital) could veto decisions taken in Belgrade that corresponded to the entire Republic of Serbia (of which Kosovo is a province), but Belgrade had no say on matters that were decided in Pristina (!).
• True but Serbia had no say in maters of Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, B&H or Macedonia. But status of Kosova and Voivodina was complex.
(9) Albanians were discriminating against Serbs in industry and in the political administration.
• Discrimination was on both sides. Serbs were no angels.
(10) Kosovo Serbs, apparently starting in the 1970s, were subjected to low-level terrorism and harassment by either the Albanian KLA or its precursors. This caused a trickle, then a flood of Kosovo Serbs to flee the province out of fear for their lives.
• Harassment has been subjected on Albanians for decades. And this is no Victimization mentality. They were and there’s no argument to refute it NONE.
Listen if the pre-1989 status quo was being kept then we would never be here in the first place. There would be no grounds for war. And the current autonomy offer is less than it had in FYR times. So why offer less than it had. Also what are the guarantees that the autonomy would not be reduced or stripped again? If a minority is removed their rights then what do you think they should do? What would you do if you were in their place? Atrocities have happened on both sides but Serbs will not acknowledge it.
And to portray Albanians and a mafia run government come on. Russia is also mafia influenzed. Serbian government is also. Who killed Djindjic? Serb mafia tied to politics. Albanians can run their lives as well as others. Serbs can do better to run other’s lives? So please look at both sides and not be one sighted. In a way I saw the Autonomy as a good short term solution, but for the long term it needed to be larger and more concesions.
