Compromise provides legitimate, lasting peace

We cannot give up on the attempt to find an encompassing solution for the future status of Kosovo by using diplomatic means, Jeremic said. This solution should include establishment of an institutional network that provides long-term Serb presence in Kosovo, he said at a charity dinner in favor of the most vulnerable in KiM organized in Chicago on Friday night. The solution for the status of Kosovo must not violate the Constitution of Serbia and it will have to be approved by the UN Security Council, all in keeping with provisions of Resolution 1244, Jeremic noted. He added that the life of Serbs in Kosovo, as the most vulnerable community in Europe, is still almost unbearable. He pointed to the tragic fact that, since June 1999 (when United Nations Interim Administration was established), the number of Serbs in Kosovo has halved and that they are unable to exercise their right to return. Jeremic stressed that Serb communities across the world will mark the memory of a carefully organized and brutally carried out pogrom of Serbs in Kosovo, which took place on March 17-19, 2004. We must never forget how, in less than 72 hours, 35 Serbian monasteries were set on fire or completely destroyed, many of which date from the 16th century or earlier, he said. Unless something is done against threats and destruction, there is a real possibility that much of our cultural heritage will be flattened and lost forever to mankind, Jeremic underlined. He also said that the remaining Serbs in Kosovo are still the target of daily attacks, which is the consequence of a pervasive culture of impunity that fuels extremism and hate crimes. Jeremic thanked the Unitas Fund and the Humanitarian Society Bozur from Chicago for their humanitarian activities, as well as all those who have decided to support the most vulnerable in Kiosovo.