Print The Others: Kosovo of Non-Albanians

Axis Information and Analisys

16.05.2006
The Others: Kosovo of Non-Albanians

Can Karpat, AIA Balkanian section

The Kosovo question is considered as a purely Albanian-Serbian problem. The international community reduced the status talks into a two-team match between the Albanians and the Serbs. However the fact that Kosovo is also the land for some 4-percent of Turk, Bosnian, Gorani, Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian makes the Kosovo question their problem as well. These peoples, whose population figures are not even statistically confirmed, are struggling for survival in the region…

Since February, direct talks about the Kosovo final status go on between the Albanian and the Serbian teams, without much success though. The duel between the majority and the main minority seems to last for a while.



Kosovo ethnic map (clik for enlarge)

The final status talks involve only two sides: the Albanian majority and the Serbian minority. As one diplomatic source put it frankly, the talks are not about the status of Kosovo, but the status of the Serbs in Kosovo. The others, who are neither Albanian nor Serb, are just waiting for the final verdict.
As the former UN-appointed international ombudsman in Kosovo, Marek Antoni Nowicki stated harshly: “The Serbs are a so-called political minority in Kosovo and they are an important part of the negotiations story. All the other, non-Serbian minorities are not a part of that story and are bound to suffer the consequences of the political process. When the status discussion reaches the point of certain final agreements, nobody will think about what to give to other minorities like the Gorani, Bosnian or Roma”.
Yet, these “politically negligible” minorities live in Kosovo as well. Kosovo is also the land of Turks, Bosnians, Gorani, Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians. Do they feel themselves closer to the Albanians? After all, except the Christian Albanian minority, these ethnic communities share a common faith, Islam with the majority nation. And it is always wise and safe to follow the mainstream of the majority. Or do they feel themselves closer to the Serbs? This may well be the case, for the Serbian struggle for more protection and rights could also positively affect their own situation.
Although the answer is not that clear-cut as one would have expected, one thing is sure: While Albanians and Serbs clash for what they call their historical rights, other minorities consider the current situation in more pragmatic terms. They try to survive - despite themselves.
All these ethnicities have extremely complex relations with each other. Albanians are irritated by the Bosnian language, which dangerously sounds like Serbian. Bosnians claim that Gorani are originally Bosnian. Turks are keen to see Gorani as the “Turks of mountains”. Gorani, who are Serbian-speaking Muslim Slavs, are considered as “Serbian spies” by Albanians. While Roma Gypsies claim that together with Ashkali and Egyptians they all came from northern India, Ashkali claim for Persian origin and Egyptians for Egyptian origin. And the Balkan history goes on … As the British writer Saki put it, “the Balkan peoples make more history than they can consume”.

Continuation of the article - Attitude of minorities in the Kosovo status issue
- Serbs
- Turks
- Bosnians and Gorani
- Roma, Ashkali, Egyptian