KOSOVO SERB JOURNALISTS LOOK TO UNOSEK AND USG TO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRISTINA 000162 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR DRL, INL, EUR/SCE NSC FOR BRAUN USUN FOR DREW SCHUFLETOWSKI EUR/ACE FOR DMAYHEW E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PGOV PINR PREL EAID KDEM SOCI UNMIK YI SUBJECT: KOSOVO SERB JOURNALISTS LOOK TO UNOSEK AND USG TO PROTECT MINORITY MEDIA SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED, PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. During a roundtable discussion on March 1 with COM and EU representative Torbjorn Sohlstrom, Kosovo Serb journalists shared their concerns about the lack of protections for Serb media in the status package, and offered their proposal for additional guarantees. COM assured them that the package provides Serbs with mechanisms that will enable their elected political leaders to advocate for them and achieve objectives like those set forth in their proposal. She emphasized that a robust international community presence will ensure that the status package is fully implemented. These Serb journalists are indicative of a noticeable, if nascent, trend among some Kosovo Serbs -- at least those in the south -- who are willing to at least examine the Ahtisaari document and consider its provisions, having realized that Belgrade is more concerned about status than about advocating for concrete provisions that will improve their daily lives. END SUMMARY. KOSOVO SERB JOURNALISTS OFFER THEIR OWN STATUS ANNEX ¶2. (SBU) On March 1, COM and EU representative Torbjorn Sohlstrom participated in a roundtable discussion with Kosovo Serb journalists at Radio KIM, in the Serb enclave of Caglavica, just outside Pristina. Radio KIM journalist Zivojin Rakocevic expressed his "deep disappointment" over what he described as the lack of protections for an independent Serb media in UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari's status proposal. Zarko Joksimovic from the Journalists Association of Kosovo and Metohija (JAKM),discussed the need for a media annex to the status package, which would include elements such as funding for non-Albanian language media, a second public broadcasting station in Serbian and other non-Albanian languages, and tax free imports of media products, publications, and equipment. The journalists insisted that the only way to ensure that the political will exists to establish and implement these protections is to include them in the package itself. (NOTE. JAKM members had earlier approved submission of the proposed annex to UNOSEK during an animated debate on February 28. END NOTE). COM SAYS FUTURE ENGAGEMENT CAN ACHIEVE THEIR OBJECTIVES ¶3. (SBU) COM thanked the journalists for engaging actively in the status process and for being willing to examine the Ahtisaari document carefully. She told them that USOP has already passed their proposal along to UNOSEK, but reminded them that the status package itself is not meant to be a document of governance; rather, it provides a baseline of rights and guarantees for the Serb community, which can be further expanded through robust use of the power-sharing arrangements made possible by the document's provisions. She assured them that the Ahtisaari package creates a framework in which Kosovo Serb leaders, by participating in Kosovo institutions, can effectively advocate on behalf of their community to achieve specific objectives such as those laid out in the JAKM proposal. She also told the journalists that they will play a crucial role in the upcoming weeks and months, ensuring that Kosovo Serbs have accurate information upon which to base their decisions. ¶4. (SBU) COMMENT. Despite their overall skepticism about the package, the fact that Kosovo Serb journalists -- and other Serbs, particularly in southern Kosovo -- have been willing to examine the Ahtisaari document as the point of departure for commentary and engagement is an encouraging sign. A delegation of Serbs from the southern village of Silovo recently visited USOP asking that they be included in Ahtisaari's package as part of the enlarged Serb-majority municipality of Novo Brdo, another sign that many Serbs recognize the importance of finding their place in the Ahtisaari framework. We think that some of the enhanced rights for Serb media proposed by the association of PRISTINA 00000162 002 OF 002 journalists are worth considering, whether in the status package itself or forthcoming legislation, if only to show this key group of local Serb stakeholders that we are responsive to their concerns. END COMMENT. ¶5. (U) Post clears this message in its entirety for release to Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari. KAIDANOW