Serbs reiterate opposition to "strategy for north"
Kosovo Serb officials oppose the Kosovo Albanian government's plan for integrating the northern part of Kosovo.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Tuesday, March 16, 2010
While Pristina continues to insist on the decentralization of northern Kosovo, a march was scheduled for March 24 in Kosovska Mitrovica, to mark the anniversary of the beginning of the 1999 NATO attacks against Yugoslavia.
The Serb National Council event will also send a message against the "decentralization plan for northern Kosovo".
Surveys done in northern Kosovska Mitrovica show that citizens do not support the creation of a new municipality in this part of the ethnically divided town. Some believe that it is an effort by Pristina to occupy the north.
At the same time, in Pristina, preparations are under way to create a new municipality, that of "Northern Mitrovica", where Serbs are predominant.
Local Government Minister Sadri Ferati said that "everything is ready for forming the new Serbian municipality of Partes near Gnjilane, while the formation of the Northern Mitrovica municipality will depend on progress on the ground".
Meanwhile, Kosovska Mitrovica District chief Radenko Nedeljkovic said that Pristina is trying to buy time for avoiding real problems, claiming that even the formation of teams for preparing the integration of Northern Mitrovica is contentious.
The formation of the Northern Mitrovica municipality is part of the Kosovo government's plan for integrating the north into the Kosovo system.
