THE LAUSANNE PRINCIPLE. Multiethnicity, Territory and the Future of Kosovo’s Serbs
THE LAUSANNE PRINCIPLE. Multiethnicity, Territory and the Future of Kosovo’s Serbs

Author(s): Author Not Specified
Subject(s): Constitutional Law, Transformation Period (1990 - 2010), Inter-Ethnic Relations
Published by: ESI – European Stability Initiative
Keywords: Kosovo administration; Kosovo constitution;
Summary/Abstract: Five years into the international administration of Kosovo, two violent days in March 2004 have sorely tested the international commitment to a multiethnic Kosovo. Directed against Kosovo’s minorities and against the international mission itself, the violence has left many wondering whether UNMIK has the capacity to achieve its objectives in the face of open resistance.This is a dangerous moment for international policy in the region. The urgent priority for the Kosovo mission and the incoming SRSG is to reaffirm the international commitment to multiethnic society, at both the diplomatic and the practical level.This paper argues that the policies needed in response to the March riots must be based on the practical needs of Serbs living in Kosovo today. The paper finds that the current reality of Kosovo Serbs differs from the common perception in important ways. There are still nearly 130,000 Serbs living in Kosovo today, representing two-thirds of the pre-war Serb population. Of these, two-thirds (75,000) are living south of the River Ibar in Albanian-majority areas. Almost all of the urban Serbs have left, with North Mitrovica now the last remaining urban outpost. However, most of the rural Serbs have never left their homes. The reality of Kosovo Serbs today is small communities of subsistence farmers scattered widely across Kosovo.

• Details
• Contents