SERBIA: REFUGEE COORDINATOR WEEKLY ACTIVITY REPORT: MARCH

UNCLAS BELGRADE 000225

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PREF PGOV PHUM SR KV
SUBJECT: SERBIA: REFUGEE COORDINATOR WEEKLY ACTIVITY REPORT: MARCH
3-7, 2008

REF: BELGRADE 0070

UNHCR: NO POPULATION MOVEMENTS FOLLOWING KOSOVO DECLARATION OF
INDEPENDENCE

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1. (SBU) On March 6, Refcord met with UNHCR Serbia
Representative Lennart Kotsalainen and deputies Angelita Cecere
(Senior Program Officer) and John Young (Senior Protection
Officer) to review core UNHCR activities in the coming months.
Kotsalainen said there had been no population movements into
Serbia following Kosovo's declaration of independence. He
assured Refcord that UNHCR, in coordination with its regional
offices and partners would continue to monitor the political and
security situation in the region, paying close attention any
early warning signs of movement. "It's not over yet. How the
next six months play out, especially in North Mitrovica, will be
important," he said.

UNHCR REPORTS CONTINUED ACCESS TO HIGH-LEVEL GOS OFFICIALS

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2. (SBU) Kotsalainen reported continued good access to
high-level GOS representatives in key ministries. He had
recently met with Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs Feodor
Starcevic to tell him UNHCR would continue to work with the GOS
on durable solutions for current and any new internally
displaced persons (IDPs) from Kosovo. Starcevic told
Kotsalainen that the GOS would cooperate with UNHCR under the
auspices of UNSC Resolution 1244. Young referenced a February
24 meeting between Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic and UN
Resident Coordinator Lance Clark where Djelic assured Clark of
the security of UN premises and staff following the February 21
violence against foreign embassies. In the days following the
attacks, Kotsalainen said most UN offices had taken down their
UN flags.

DURABLE SOLUTIONS FOR CURRENT IDP CASELOAD

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3. (SBU) Kotsalainen and Cecere feared the current political
situation in Serbia would make it difficult for UNHCR to
advocate and pursue durable solutions for the 206,071 IDPs from
Kosovo in Serbia. Young said that Serbian authorities continued
to "insist, on all levels, for the return of IDPs to Kosovo,
refusing to support full integration as an option for IDPs in
Serbia." According to UNHCR, only 788 IDPs returned to Kosovo
in 2007. Young worried the GOS position would have a negative
impact on the type of assistance donors could provide, confining
them to limited programs linked only to return. Kotsalainen
said UNHCR would continue to press the GOS to support
integration for those IDPs unwilling or unable to return to
Kosovo. Contingent on GOS support, UNHCR plans to engage donors
later this spring to support housing and employment programs
which would allow the most vulnerable IDPs to live a dignified
life in Serbia.

LIKELY DELAYS IN ASYLUM PROCESS

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4. (SBU) UNHCR will continue working toward establishing an
asylum system in Serbia. The GOS adopted the Asylum Law in
November 2007, which is due to go into effect April 1, 2008.
Young worried that the current political environment and the
lack of interest by the Ministry of Interior to move the process
forward would certainly prolong implementation beyond April.

DANISH REFUGEE COUNCIL: CROSS-BORDER ACTIVITIES PROGRESSING
SMOOTHLY

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5. (SBU) Danish Refugee Council Regional Representative Anders
Engberg told Refcord on March 10 that DRC's cross-border
operations, including several go-and-see visits in early March
were on-track. Engberg will travel to Kosovo this week to
monitor activities on the ground. DRC had resumed cross border
operations March 3 following a two-week pause post Kosovo
declaration of independence.

MUNTER