KOSOVO: STRPCE STABLE, BUT TENSE AS PRESSURE FROM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 PRISTINA 000498

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/22/2018
TAGS: PGOV PINR KV UNMIK
SUBJECT: KOSOVO: STRPCE STABLE, BUT TENSE AS PRESSURE FROM
PARALLEL GOVERNMENT MOUNTS

Classified By: Ambassador Tina S. Kaidanow for Reasons 1.4 (b),(d).


1. (C) Summary. The Serb-majority municipality of Strpce
continues - somehow - to function. The situation is unstable
in that the parallel government persists in competing with
legitimate structures, but for the time being the Kosovo
Police Service and KFOR keep the peace. The parallel
government controls most of the municipality's territory and
continues to assert itself in policing illegal construction,
as well as through attempts to control cadastral records and
the municipal building itself. Strpce's parallel chief civil
servant (CEO),Radica Grbic, tells us she is unhappy with the
parallel government, believing that parallel mayor Zvonko
Mihaijlovic does not understand the predicament confronting
Strpce's Serbs. Grbic continues to maintain contact with
outside parties, including Strpce's Albanians, and she
conveys messages to Mihaijlovic on our behalf. UNMIK is
unable to exert any authority in the municipality, nor is ICO
an accepted interlocutor on the Serb side, leaving a
political vacuum in helping to resolve this situation for the
long term. We continue to exert our admittedly limited
influence with key actors - most notably Belgrade's
representatives in Kosovo - to keep things calm and prevent
any escalation. The situation in Strpce is yet another
example of how important it is to rationalize the
international presence in Kosovo; i.e., to ensure a uniform
and complete deployment of EULEX into all areas of Kosovo
later this fall. In the absense of such a uniform
deployment, the potential for uncertainty and violence in
Strpce, as well as in other enclave locales, will only
increase. End Summary.

Political Situation Confused


2. (C) The political situation in the Serb-majority
municipality of Strpce remains confused, with no one faction
or institution holding a preponderance of power. The
Serb-only parallel municipal government, led by Zvonko
Mihaijlovic (Serbian Radical Party),continues to occupy
certain offices in the municipal building. Workers -- both
Serb and Albanian -- employed by the legitimate municipal
government continue to occupy other offices in the municipal
building as well. Strpce's police station remains open, and
Kosovo Police Service (KPS) commander Dragan Ivanovic, along
with his Serb officers, remain on the job and responsive to
higher KPS command at the regional and central level. In
Albanian majority areas of the municipality, Beqir
Fejzullahu, the top Kosovo Albanian vote-getter in Strpce in
the November 17, 2007 municipal elections, serves as
political leader of Strpce's Albanian minority.

Role of the KPS Key


3. (C) Most observers, including Strpce's parallel CEO
Radica Grbic, who held the same position as the
municipality's chief civil servant during the previous
legitimate administration, agree that the Kosovo Serb KPS,
backed by KFOR, is the most important factor maintaining
Strpce's relative stability. UNMIK CIVPOL and USKFOR in the
region tell us that KPS commander Ivanovic is advising Strpce
residents of all ethnicities to file police reports with his
officers if and when they have a complaint, rather than
resorting to taking action themselves. Strpce CIVPOL monitor
(and U.S. police officer) Teresa Pyle told us Sept. 3 that
this has kept tensions low and reduced the number of
complaints "because now that they have to write them down and
sign them, people aren't making as many accusations as
before."

Parallel Government Continues to Push the Envelope


4. (C) Amid the municipality's political and security
complexities, parallel mayor Mihaijlovic and his followers
continue to assert authority in various ways, most visibly in
their efforts to combat illegal construction and to gain
access to cadastral records. Parallel government officials
maintain a vehicle checkpoint at the entrance to the "Weekend

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Zone" area in Strpce in an effort to stop illegal
construction there. This has led Albanians building homes in
that zone to make periodic complaints to Embassy officials
and to the press. During our September 3 conversation, Pyle
showed us the checkpoint. She explained that it has been
turning away trucks, prompting builders to hide construction
materials in passenger cars, which originally were exempt
from inspection. KPS regional command told USKFOR on
September 18 that it was considering allowing the Strpce KPS
-- vice the parallel government -- to man the checkpoint as
long as legitimate municipal inspectors could be found to
assist them.


5. (C) One factor holding tensions in check is the stable
status quo that no one wants to disturb, a point that
Commander Ivanovic made with USKFOR on September 18,
describing Strpce as "manageable for now," given that nothing
disruptive had occurred over the previous two weeks. Another
factor may be a commonly-held opinion among both Stprce's
Serbs and Albanians that illegal construction is a major
problem requiring some sort of action. USKFOR reported on
August 11 that Fejzullahu, Strpce's Albanian political
leader, and others are outraged by the building, which is
talking place in a national park. An article in the Albanian
language daily Koha Ditore on September 17, while criticizing
the parallel structures for operating an illegal checkpoint,
also pointed out that Mihaijlovic had "environmental" reasons
for preventing construction there. (Note: Local residents of
all ethnicities have griped about this problem for years, but
even under the parallel government, construction continues
largely unabated. End Note.)


6. (C) The situation is less stable regarding the dueling
jurisdiction over control of the municipal cadastral records.
Mihaijlovic asserts his "government's" right to control the
cadastral office in Strpce, and parallel officials have twice
attempted to occupy the office, most recently on September 1.
These attempts have raised tensions in the town. For
example, Strpce residents, during the September 1 clash over
cadastral records, called for the KPS to intervene and
protect the office. The Cadastral Office now remains locked,
and the KPS Regional Command in Ferizaj/Urosevac controls the
keys. T


7. (C) Apart from the cadastral office itself, Mihaijlovic
has also said he wants to control the entire municipal
building and all municipal functions. For the moment, the
building remains divided between parallel officials and those
still working for what remains of the legitimate municipal
government, who are paid by the Kosovo central budget. These
civil servants reported to USKFOR on September 18 that they
were still under pressure from Mihaijlovic to give the
parallel government control over municipal taxation
(including property taxes),among other things. KPS officers
are now stationed at the building's entrance to prevent any
flare-ups of violence. The civil servants continue to
provide all Strpce residents with essential land records,
birth certificates, and other documents essential to everyday
life, thus preserving some elements of legitimate municipal
government and helping the municipality to continue
functioning.

CEO's View


8. (C) In speaking with Radica Grbic on September 3, we
heard a great deal of frustration from her about the parallel
government, which she believes "simply does not understand
the position we (Strpce Serbs) are in." She also confirmed
reports that Mihaijlovic is portraying any small or
incidental contact with international officials, including
KFOR, as a sign of support for his parallel government's
legitimacy, which in her opinion further illustrates his
misunderstanding of the situation. As with many other more
moderate Kosovo Serbs, Grbic expressed dismay at the results
of the May 11 parallel elections, which resulted in parallel
assemblies dominated by hardliners from the Serbian Radical
Party (SRS) and the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS). She

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explained her continued presence in the parallel government
as an attempt to maintain contacts with UNMIK, Strpce's
Albanians, and the outside world. We asked her, and she
agreed, to carry a message to Mihaijlovic warning that his
continued efforts to assert authority in Strpce could well
provoke a violent confrontation that the international
community would be hard-pressed to keep under control. On
September 9, Grbic phoned to tell us that Mihaijlovic heard
our message but had no response, and insisted that we talk to
him directly.

Ministry for Kosovo's Reaction


9. (C) On September 19, the Ambassador met with Serbian
State Secretary for Kosovo Oliver Ivanovic and pressed him to
restrain Mihaijlovic. Ivanovic indicated he would counsel
Mihaijlovic to refrain from further provocative action. As a
moderate politician, Ivanovic concurred with Grbic's opinion,
expressing a great deal of frustration with the results of
the parallel elections in Kosovo, pointing out that
Mihaijlovic "is after all, a member of the Radical Party,"
but noting that as a matter of Serbian state policy, support
for the parallel municipal authorities in Strpce and
throughout Kosovo would continue and indeed intensify.

Comment: Not Seeing Clearly


10. (C) Among the parallel authorities in Serb-majority areas
in Kosovo, Strpce's poses the most serious challenge to date.
We have received no indication that the Serbian government,
through the Ministry for Kosovo -- the organization with the
most potential influence in this situation -- is making any
substantial effort to restrain the parallel mayor; indeed,
they have previewed their intention to increase support to
parallel authorities, no matter how politically distasteful
these Radical administrations may be to a DS-led Belgrade
government. We have made the potential consequences of
continued provocations by the parallel authorities quite
clear to Belgrade's representatives in Kosovo, and we
continue, together with USKFOR, to exert practical influence
on the ground where possible to encourage restraint and good
sense. The situation in Strpce is yet another example of how
important it is to rationalize the international presence in
Kosovo; i.e., to ensure a uniform and complete deployment of
EULEX into all areas of Kosovo. In the absense of such a
uniform deployment, the potential for uncertainty and
violence in Strpce, as well as in other enclave locales, will
only increase. End Comment.
KAIDANOW