KOSOVO: SMALL NEW SERB PARTY DARES TO POSIT A

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PRISTINA 000803

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2015
TAGS: PREL KCRM PGOV PINR KDEM UNMIK YI
SUBJECT: KOSOVO: SMALL NEW SERB PARTY DARES TO POSIT A
POST-STATUS VISION


Classified By: COM TINA KAIDANOW FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).


1. (C) SUMMARY. The newly-formed Autonomous Liberal Party
(SLS) seeks to represent Kosovo Serbs who want to stay and
integrate into Kosovo institutions and society, regardless of
the outcome of the status process. Party President Slobodan
Petrovic told us the SLS is more concerned with the impact of
status on the everyday life of Serbs in Kosovo. While not
over-estimating its prospects, we believe that the SLS'
message is a valuable addition to what has thus far been a
bipolar debate among Serbs: resist any changes or quit
Kosovo. END SUMMARY.

New Kosovo Serb Party Independent of Belgrade


2. (SBU) According to the party program, the Autonomous
Liberal Party (SLS) was founded in Gracanica on January 27,
2006 in order to "defend the interests and values of the
national community of Serbian people in Kosovo ... paying
attention to the human, civilized, democratic and civil
values of other people in Kosovo." It was officially
registered with the OSCE on March 30 after garnering over
2,000 signatures from supporters.


3. (C) In recent meetings with us, Party President Slobodan
Petrovic described the SLS as representing Serbs who want to
stay and live in Kosovo, and criticized Belgrade-based
political parties for not representing Kosovo Serb interests.
He said the main problems in Kosovo are economic, and
emphasized that he is less concerned with the outcome of
status negotiations, which he believes will be determined by
the international community, than the degree to which the
status package will improve the lives of Serbs in Kosovo.


4. (C) Petrovic further noted that his party, which has its
main support base in central Kosovo, stands for "realistic"
returns of Kosovo Serbs to Serb-majority areas, which may not
be their original homes, but will at least be more
sustainable. The SLS chief also indicated that his party is
not exclusively Serb-oriented. One of his three vice
presidents is a Gorani, he pointed out, and the SLS is geared
toward acceptance of a multi-ethnic Kosovo, with interests
different from Belgrade. (Note: Leader of the moderate
Serbian List for Kosovo and Metohija (SLKM) Oliver Ivanovic
-- who was the best man in Petrovic's wedding -- addressed
the SLS founding assembly recently, and has told us that he
supports a future coalition with the SLS. End note.)

SLS wants to engage Albanian political class


5. (C) Petrovic said that the SLS fully supports Kosovo
institutions and would like elections to be held as soon as
possible so it can join the parliament and participate more
fully. However, he complained, despite PM Ceku,s recent
public statements urging Kosovo Serbs to engage, Ceku and
other Kosovo Albanian leaders have not acted on SLS proposals
and requests for meetings. Petrovic insisted that despite
the reluctance of the Kosovo Albanian leaders to cooperate
with them, common solutions to common problems are the only
way forward.

Prospects hampered by fear of ostracism, and lack of funding


6. (C) Petrovic maintained that many regular Kosovo Serbs
share his party's outlook but are afraid of being forced to
choose between being "patriots" or "traitors." He said that
some Serbs have already labeled the SLS as traitors and even
threatened party General Secretary Petar Miletic, a Contact
Plus journalist who lives in Mitrovica. (Note: Some
observers have expressed cynicism to us over the fact that
Petrovic's own family lives outside of Kosovo, in Nis,
Serbia. End note.)


7. (C) Apart from his work as an advisor on Kosovo issues to
the municipal president of Nis, Petrovic maintained he and
other SLS leaders are new to politics. He said they have

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many friends in the international community, but are having a
hard time obtaining the necessary financial backing to get
the word out to Kosovo Serbs and garner more support. Lack
of media resources forces party activists to go
"door-to-door," he noted, and makes it difficult to compete
against hard-liners who have funding and resources from
Belgrade.


8. (C) COMMENT: Taken together, the followers of the new SLS
and Ivanovic's SLKM nevertheless still cannot claim to speak
for the bulk of Kosovo's Serb population. Although their
message will get greater traction for now among the Pristina
diplomatic corps than within the rural heartland, Petrovic
and Ivanovic offer at least the theoretical prospect of a
third path, a formula for Serbs to remain in Kosovo. As with
Ivanovic, the SLS' importance far outweighs the sum of its
membership, and we will deal with it accordingly. We will
also look for ways to be helpful in building the party's
resource base. END COMMENT.


9. (U) Post clears this message in its entirety for release
to Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari.
KAIDANOW