Kosovo will conduct nationwide census that includes surveying ethnic Serb minority

Kosovo will conduct nationwide census that includes surveying ethnic Serb minority

Subject: IR

Section: Mapping

Context:

• Kosovo commenced its first nationwide census since 2011 on April 5, aiming to include the ethnic Serb minority despite high tensions with Serbia.
• The census, costing 12 million euros and funded by Kosovo’s government, the EU, the UN, and the World Bank, was delayed from 2021 due to the pandemic.

Details:

• Around 4,400 surveyors will gather data until May 17 on demographics, education, employment, and war damages, aiming to aid Kosovo’s EU integration efforts.
• Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008 after a 1999 NATO campaign, still faces non-recognition from Belgrade.
• The 2011 census recorded 1.74 million residents, with ethnic Serbs making up nearly 1.5%.
• Prime Minister Albin Kurti has urged the Serb minority to participate in the census for better governmental planning.
• However, the Srpska List party, representing the Serb minority and allied with Belgrade, has called for a boycott, labelling the census as “fake” and a validation of alleged Serb expulsion.
• Ethnic Serbs have historically boycotted Kosovo institutions and recently opposed the ban on using the Serbian dinar, escalating tensions.
• The Srpska List claims conducting a census under current conditions would legitimize the claimed ethnic cleansing since 1999.
• Kosovo and Serbia’s EU membership aspirations are hindered by their refusal to compromise on issues, amidst fears in the West of escalating regional tensions during the ongoing war in Ukraine.

What was the Kosovo conflict about?

• Ethnicities at the centre :
  • Of the 1.8 million people living in Kosovo, 92% are Albanian and only 6% Serbian.
  • The rest are Bosniaks, Gorans, Turks and Roma.
  • Serbs are Eastern Orthodox Christians, while the Albanians in Kosovo are majority Muslims.
  • For many Serbians, the Kosovo region, is the heart of its national and religious identity — and home to numerous cherished mediaeval Serb Orthodox Christian monasteries.
  • On the other hand, Kosovo’s majority ethnic Albanians view Kosovo as belonging to them, and accuse Serbia of occupation and repression.
  • Root of conflict: breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s
  • The conflict can be traced back to the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s.
  • After the disintegration, Kosovo – a province of the former country – sought its own autonomy and independence. This was opposed by Serbia.
  • As part of Yugoslavia, the republic of Serbia included the regions of Kosovo and Vojvodina.
  • Within Serbia, Kosovo and Vojvodina held the status of autonomous provinces.
• Armed clashes :
  • In 1998, armed clashes broke out between the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), an ethnic Albanian guerrilla group seeking independence, and the Serbian security forces.
  • The conflict intensified, leading to a significant loss of life and the displacement of thousands of people.
• NATO’s intervention :
  • International efforts to resolve the conflict was led by the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
  • It resulted in a military intervention in 1999.
  • NATO conducted a bombing campaign against Serbian targets and forced the withdrawal of Serbian security forces from Kosovo.
  • The NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFor) is still based in Kosovo, with a current strength of 3,762.
• Kosovo unilaterally declared independence :
  • In 2008, Kosovo unilaterally declared independence.
  • A total of 99 out of 193 UN countries now recognise Kosovo’s independence, including the US, the UK and 22 out of 27 European Union (EU) countries.
  • But Russia and China (do not recognise Kosovo) have blocked Kosovo’s membership of the UN.

Source: TH