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U.S.
GOVERNMENT SOURCES
U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
http://www.state.gov/www/regions/eur/kosovo_hp.html
The Department's domestic site features a Kosovo page with
official texts and situation reports on ethnic cleansing.
http://www.usia.gov/regional/eur/balkans
The Department's international information site features
comprehensive, up-to-date information on the Kosovo crisis in
multiple languages.
THE
WHITE HOUSE
http://www.whitehouse.gov
The White House site contains official statements from the
President, the Vice President, and White House spokespersons. It
also features a link to the Kosovo Donations Coordination page
of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
THE
U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
http://www.info.usaid.gov/
The USAID Information Center is hosting an exhibit of
photographs from the Kosovo refugee crisis titled "The
Darkest Days of Spring." The online version of the exhibit
is on this site. To experience the full force of these images,
you can visit the Information Center's gallery in the Ronald
Reagan Building in Washington, D.C. The exhibit will be on
display until January 29, 2000.
THE
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
http://www.defenselink.mil/
DefenseLink is the main internet site for the U.S. Department of
Defensewith background and press releases on U.S. defense policy
and activities.
http://www.defenselink.mil/specials/lessons/
Review of Operation Allied Force, how to sustain and build upon
what went right in the operation, and how to improve on
identified shortcomings.
http://www.eucom.mil/europe/serbia_and_montenegro/kosovo/
The public access web information service of the U.S. European
Command; this URL leads directly to the Command's page on Kosovo.
U.S.
CONGRESS - COMMISSION ON SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE
http://www.house.gov/csce/
This is the home page of the Commission on Security and
Cooperation in Europe, better known as the Helsinki Commission.
The Commission is an independent agency of the United States
government mandated to monitor and encourage compliance of the
participating states with the Helsinki Final Act of 1975 and
subsequent documents. It is composed of nine members from the
United States Senate and nine members from the House of
Representatives, as well as one member each from the U.S.
Departments of State, Defense, and Commerce.
OFFICIAL
MULTILATERAL SOURCES
THE
UNITED NATIONS INTERIM ADMINISTRATION MISSION IN KOSOVO (UNMIK)
http://www.un.org/peace/kosovo/pages/kosovo1.html
On June 10, 1999, the UN Security Council authorized the
Secretary-General to establish in Kosovo an interim
international civilian administration under which the people of
the war-ravaged province could enjoy substantial autonomy. The
Security Council has vested in the UN Mission authority over the
territory and people of Kosovo, including all legislative and
executive powers, as well as the administration of the
judiciary. Never before has the United Nations assumed such
broad, far-reaching and important executive tasks. Among its key
tasks, the Mission will: promote the establishment of
substantial autonomy and self-government in Kosovo; perform
basic civilian administrative functions; facilitate a political
process to determine Kosovo's future status; support the
reconstruction of key infrastructure and humanitarian and
disaster relief; maintain civil law and order; promote human
rights; and assure the safe and unimpeded return of all refugees
and displaced persons to their homes in Kosovo.
"The task before the international community is to
help the people in Kosovo to rebuild their lives and heal the
wounds of conflict."
--UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan
THE
INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL FOR THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA (ICTY)
http://www.un.org/icty/index.html
The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former
Yugoslavia (ICTY), located in The Hague, was established by the
United Nations Security Council May 25, 1993. The ICTY is
mandated to prosecute persons responsible for serious violations
of international humanitarian law committed on the territory of
the former Yugoslavia since 1991. These include grave breaches
of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, violations of the laws or
customs of war, genocide, and crimes against humanity. This site
keeps the reader abreast of indictments, indictees, detentions,
convictions, acquittals, and the status of each.
ORGANIZATION FOR
SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE
http://www.osce.org/kosovo
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
has opened two new field offices in Kosovo to expand its work in
building a civil society in the province. The initial focus for
the field offices will be human rights work, development of
political parties, assisting NGOs, and helping with
democratization. Field offices are central to the work of the
OCSE, putting people directly into the communities in which they
are working. These offices form part of a network under five
regional centers. With the opening of field offices in Dragas
and Kosovo Polje, there are now ten OSCE field offices in Kosovo.
NATO
http://www.nato.int
The NATO site provides an overview of briefings and
background information made available during the air campaign
(March 25 to June 10) as well as up-to-date information on the
UN-mandated international peacekeeping force (Kosovo Force or
KFOR). The site provides information on humanitarian aid by the
Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC)
established at NATO Headquarters by NATO Allies and Partners for
Peace in June 1998.
ALLIED
FORCES SOUTHERN EUROPE
http://www.afsouth.nato.int
NATO's AFSOUTH is one of the two Regional Commands of NATO's
Allied Command Europe (ACE). The southern region embodies NATO's
forward presence, with an area of responsibility that stretches
west to east from the Atlantic approaches to the Mediterranean
to the Black Sea and the Middle East coastline, and north to
south from the Alps to the North African coast. Featured on the
site is Operation Joint Guardian, a NATO contingency response
aimed at ensuring full compliance with the Military Technical
Agreement signed by NATO and FRY military authorities on June 9,
1999, and with UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (June 10,
1999). Its main aim is to allow safe return of refugees and
displaced persons, to help alleviate human suffering, and to
achieve a peace settlement in Kosovo.
UNITED
NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES
http://www.unhcr.ch
The premier online source for refugee-related information:
includes country profiles, news, maps, publications, teachers'
modules, Witness multimedia documentaries, and the REFWORLD
research databases. The Web site features basic information
about UNHCR and refugees - ordinary people who have left their
homes to escape war, persecution, and human rights abuse - and
press releases and other timely information about refugee
situations worldwide. Includes the UNHCR Newswire Service and
"Refugees Daily," a daily digest of the latest refugee
news reported by the world's media.
http://www.unhcr.ch/pubs/rm116/rm116toc.html
UNHCR's "Refugees Magazine" issue "Kosovo: One
Last Chance".
INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS AND SECURITY NETWORK (ISN)
http://www.newisn.ethz.ch/cwa/
ISN is a one-stop information service in the fields of
international relations and security. Among the services offered
are an annotated links library, a limited area search tool (ISN
LASE), a selection of resources on current world affairs, and
specialized fact databases. ISN was started in 1994 as a result
of the first "Institutes and the Security Dialogue"
conference (now the "International Security Forum")
held in Zurich. It is coordinated and developed by the Center
for Security Studies and Conflict Research at the ETH Zurich in
cooperation with numerous international partners. The project is
supported by the Swiss Government as an official part of
Switzerland's participation in Partnership for Peace.
NEWS
SOURCES
THE
VOICE OF AMERICA
http://www.voa.gov/
The latest news from the VOA newsroom; see the "Balkan
Coverage" page for the Live News Program Schedule for
English and Balkan Services.
RADIO
FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY
http://www.rferl.org/
"Everyone has the right...to seek, receive, and impart
information and ideas through any media and regardless of
frontiers." (Universal Declaration of Human Rights)--Audio
and text of Kosovo news is online in English, Russian, Albanian,
and the languages of the former Yugoslavia. There is a European
mirror site for users in Europe and Asia.
RADIO
B92
http://www.freeb92.net/
B92 Radio is now back on the air on local FM in Belgrade. The
Web site includes a regular section on repression of the media
in Yugoslavia.
HUMANITARIAN
RELIEF SITES
INTERNATIONAL
COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS
http://www.icrc.org
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is an
impartial, neutral, and independent organization whose
exclusively humanitarian mission is to protect the lives and
dignity of victims of war and internal violence and to provide
them with assistance. It directs and coordinates the
international relief activities conducted by the movement in
situations of conflict. It also endeavors to prevent suffering
by promoting and strengthening humanitarian law and universal
humanitarian principles. Established in 1863, the ICRC is at the
origin of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
RELIEFWEB
http://www.reliefweb.int
ReliefWeb is a project of the United Nations Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The purpose of this
effort is to strengthen the response capacity of the
humanitarian relief community through the timely dissemination
of reliable information on prevention, preparedness, and
disaster response.
LYCOS
NEWS--HELP FOR KOSOVAR REFUGEES
http://www.lycos.com/news/flash/kosovohelp.html
A list of links to many of the organizations assisting the
hundreds of thousands who have fled Kosovo, and information on
some of the services they are providing.
DOCTORS
WITHOUT BORDERS (MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES)
http://www.dwb.org/index.html
Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), the 1999
Nobel Peace Prize laureate, is the world's largest independent
international medical relief agency aiding victims of armed
conflict, epidemics, and natural and man-made disasters and
others who lack health care due to geographic remoteness or
ethnic marginalization. Annually, more than 2,000 volunteers
representing 45 nationalities work in over 80 countries in front
line hospitals, refugee camps, disaster sites, towns, and
villages. Doctors Without Borders teams provide primary health
care, perform surgery, vaccinate children, rehabilitate
hospitals, operate emergency nutrition and sanitation programs,
and train local medical staff.
http://www.dwb.org/missions/kosovo.html
Information on Doctors Without Borders' Kosovo program.
INTERNATIONAL
CRISIS GROUP
http://www.crisisweb.org/projects/sbalkans/kosovo.html
The International Crisis Group is a private, multinational
organization committed to strengthening the capacity of the
international community to understand and respond to impending
crises. ICG's approach is grounded in field research, with
reports distributed widely to foreign ministries, international
organizations, journalists, and others. The ICG Board is chaired
by former U.S. Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell. ICG
currently operates field projects in eight countries. This is
the ICG's South Balkans project on Kosovo.
http://www.intl-crisis-group.org/projects/sbalkans/kosovo.html
ICG's South Balkans project is looking at Kosovo in depth during
1999. ICG has moved a team of analysts into Kosovo to monitor
the peace process and support efforts to defuse tensions,
establish rule of law, and create a functioning system of
self-government. With this mandate, a new full-time office in
Pristina will concentrate on the role of the international
community in Kosovo, internal developments in Kosovar politics
and the relationship between the two.
INTERACTION
http://www.interaction.org/kosovo/index.html
InterAction is a coalition of more than 160 humanitarian
organizations working on disaster relief, refugee-assistance,
and sustainable development programs worldwide. This site
provides information on the humanitarian response to Kosovo.
MERCY
CORPS INTERNATIONAL
http://www.mercycorps.org/focus/index.html
Mercy's mission is to alleviate suffering, poverty, and
oppression by helping people around the world build safe and
productive communities. Partnerships with other organizations
are helping Mercy build a global humanitarian movement that is
helping 2.2 million people in 23 countries. This URL opens to
the Kosovo Focus page.
KOSOVA
HUMANITARIAN AID ORGANIZATION
http://www.kosova.nu/
The Kosova Humanitarian Aid Organization is looking to
coordinate efforts with other individuals and NGOs to help the
Kosovars survive during their hardships. In Albanian and
English.
MISSING
PERSONS/PEOPLE LOCATOR SITES
http://www.refugjat.org
http://www.redcross.org/intl/trace.html
http://www.glaine.net/~kosovo
HUMAN
RIGHTS SITES
KOSOVO
FOCUS ON HUMAN RIGHTS
http://www.hrw.org/hrw/campaigns/kosovo98/index.html
The Kosovo Web site of Human Rights Watch, an organization
"dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around
the world."
THE
COALITION FOR INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE
http://www.cij.org/
The Coalition for International Justice (CIJ) is an
international, non-profit organization working to support the
international war crimes tribunals for Rwanda and the former
Yugoslavia. CIJ provides support through advocacy, fundraising,
working with other Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and by
providing technical legal assistance.
AMNESTY
INTERNTIONAL
http://www.amnesty.org
Amnesty International is a worldwide campaigning movement that
works to promote all the human rights enshrined in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and other international standards.
In particular, Amnesty International campaigns to free all
prisoners of conscience; ensure fair and prompt trials for
political prisoners; abolish the death penalty, torture, and
other cruel treatment of prisoners; end political killings and
"disappearances"; and oppose human rights abuses by
opposition groups.
INTERNATIONAL
HELSINKI FEDERATION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
http://www.ihf-hr.org/
The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights is a
self-governing group of non-governmental, not-for-profit
organizations that act, to protect human rights throughout
Europe, North America, and the Central Asian republics formed
from the territories of the former Soviet Union. A primary
specific goal is to monitor compliance with the human rights
provisions of the Helsinki Final Act and its Follow-up
Documents. A secretariat based in Vienna supports and provides
liaison among 39 member "Helsinki committees" and
associated human rights groups. The IHF also has direct links
with individuals and groups supporting human rights in countries
where no Helsinki committees exist. In addition to gathering and
analyzing information on human rights conditions in OSCE
participating States, the IHF acts as a clearinghouse for this
information, disseminating it to governments, inter-governmental
organizations, the press, and the public at large. The IHF is
active in all the Balkan countries.
PHYSICIANS
FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
http://www.phrusa.org/new/index.html#kosovo
Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) is an organization of health
professionals, scientists, and concerned citizens that uses the
knowledge and skills of the medical and forensic sciences to
investigate and prevent violations of international human rights
and humanitarian law. Since 1986, PHR members have worked to
stop torture, disappearances, and political killings by
governments and opposition groups; to improve health and
sanitary conditions in prisons and detention centers; to
investigate the physical and psychological consequences of
violations of humanitarian law in internal and international
conflicts; to defend medical neutrality and the right of
civilians and combatants to receive medical care during times of
war; to protect health professionals who are victims of
violations of human rights; and to prevent medical complicity in
torture and other abuses. This URL opens to the PHR section on
Kosovo.
FREEDOM
HOUSE
http://www.freedomhouse.org/
Freedom House was founded nearly 60 years ago by Eleanor
Roosevelt, Wendell Willkie, and other Americans concerned with
the mounting threats to peace and democracy. Freedom House has
been a proponent of democratic values and an opponent of
dictatorships of the far left and the far right. Non-partisan
and broad-based, Freedom House is a proponent of the view that
American leadership in international affairs is essential to the
cause of human rights and freedom.
http://freedomhouse.org/nit98/yugo.html
Freedom House's "Nations in Transit" report on
Yugoslavia.
http://freedomhouse.org/survey99/country/yugo.html
Freedom House's "Freedom in the World" survey on
Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro).
COUNCIL
FOR THE DEFENCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS IN PRISHTINA
http://albanian.com/kmdlnj/
The Council for the Defence of Human Rights and Freedoms (CDHRF
) "documents human rights abuses of the Serbian authorities
in primarily ethnic Albanian inhabited Kosova." The site
provides information about the CDHRF and weekly, monthly, and
annual reports (in English and Albanian) on human rights
violations in Kosova.
ABOUT.COM
GUIDE TO HUMAN RIGHTS
http://humanrights.tqn.com/culture/issuescauses/humanrights/msub18.html?pid=2771&cob=home
A guide to selected human rights items on the Balkans.
OTHER
RELEVANT SITES
CARNEGIE
ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE--INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION
POLICY
http://www.ceip.org/programs/migrat/migwhat.html
The Endowment's International Migration Policy Program is a
leading source of expert analysis and policy ideas on migration
and refugee issues. The Program focuses on bridging the worlds
of research and policy in these areas, bringing an independent
voice to migration and refugee policy debates here and abroad,
and enhancing public understanding of these and related issues.
There are a number of items on Kosovo.
THE
NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTE (NDI)
http://www.ndi.org/
The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit organization
working to strengthen and expand democracy worldwide. Calling on
a global network of volunteer experts, NDI provides practical
assistance to civic and political leaders advancing democratic
values, practices, and institutions. The Institute works with
those who are struggling to promote peaceful political reform.
It establishes partnerships with political leaders who have
begun the difficult task of building stable pluralistic
institutions and creating better lives for their citizens.
http://www.ndi.org/eaeurop.html
Information on NDI programs in Central and Eastern Europe.
INTERNATIONAL
REPUBLICAN INSTITUTE
http://www.iri.org/
IRI conducts programs outside the United States to promote
democracy and strengthen free markets and the rule of law. The
programs are tailored to the needs of pro-democracy activists in
over 30 countries and include, for example, grassroots political
organizing, campaign management, polling, parliamentary
training, judicial reform and election monitoring. By aiding
emerging democracies, IRI plays a role in helping bring greater
stability to the world. IRI's programs are nonpartisan and
adhere to fundamental American principles such as individual
liberty, the rule of law, and the entrepreneurial spirit that
fosters economic development.
http://www.iri.org/region.asp?region=3501964612
Information on IRI programs in Central and Eastern Europe.
CENTER
FOR INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE ENTERPRISE
http://www.cipe.org/
The Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) works in
four principal areas: a grants program that currently supports
over 90 indigenous organizations in developing countries, an
award winning communications strategy, training programs, and
technical assistance through field offices. Since its inception
in 1983, CIPE has funded more than 550 projects in 70 countries
and has conducted management training programs throughout the
world.
http://www.cipe.org/region/europe/index.html
nformation on CIPE programs in Central and Eastern Europe.
THE
FUND FOR AN OPEN SOCIETY - YUGOSLAVIA
http://www.soros.org/natfound.html
The Fund for an Open Society - Yugoslavia was established in
1991 to promote the development of open society in Yugoslavia.
The Foundation supports a variety of programs in the areas of
educational, social, legal, and health care reform. It is an
affiliate of the Soros Foundations Network, dedicated to
building open societies around the world.
BALKAN
PEACE TEAM
http://www.igc.apc.org/pbi/bpt.html
In 1993, a number of organizations, including International
Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR), Peace Brigades
International (PBI), and War Resisters International (WRI),
received requests from Croatia and Kosovo for an international
presence. A joint project was formed, the Balkan Peace Team,
which now has 11 member organizations. The first team arrived in
Croatia in February 1994, using the local name Otvorene Oci -
Open Eyes - with volunteers both in northern Croatia (Karlovac)
and in Split. The work includes accompaniment of peace and human
rights activists, presence at apartment evictions and court
trials, making official contacts, visiting refugee camps, and
networking with local people. A team has been established in
Belgrade, working in Serbia and making regular visits to Kosovo.
KOSOVO
CRISIS CENTER
http://www.alb-net.com/index.html
The Alb-Net.Com Group was established by a "few but very
determined Albanian students and professionals" with the
intent to provide Albanian communities around the world with
up-to-date news directly from Pristina and other sources. The
"Free Kosova" page presents "factual material
that unveils a systematic pattern of Serb atrocities and
aggressions against everything Albanian in Kosova."
OPEN
CHANNELS FOR KOSOVO
http://www.dds.nl/openchannels
A Press Now web site on "Voices from the Region." Ever
since April 1993, Press Now has stood for the independent media
in former Yugoslavia. Press Now wants to inform politicians, the
press, and the general public on the media in former Yugoslavia
by means of public programs and campaigns, to raise money and to
gather equipment for independent media in the former Yugoslavia,
and to bring the media there in touch with Dutch media to
provide structural support to related newspapers and
broadcasters. Press Now supports those media in
Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro,
Serbia, and Slovenia, where it is an established fact: 1) that
they are not state-owned; 2) that their editorial policy is not
influenced by governmental structures; 3) that they are not
connected to any political party; 4) that they do not spread
propaganda; 5) that they take a stand against war and ethnic
conflicts; and 6) that they contribute to a reconstruction of
democracy.
http://www.dds.nl/~pressnow/links/kosovo.html
The Press Now homepage for Kosovo.
NETWORK
OF EAST-WEST WOMEN
http://www.neww.org/kosova/
The Network of East-West Women links women across national and
regional boundaries to share resources, knowledge and skills.
NEWW's mission is to empower women and girls throughout the East
(Central and Eastern Europe, and NIS and the Russian Federation)
and the West by dialogue, networking, campaigns, and educational
and informational exchanges. NEWW supports action and joint
projects inspired by feminist principles. This is NEWW's Kosovo
page.
SOCIETY
FOR EDUCATION OF WOMEN--"MOTRAT QIRIAZI"
http://www.igc.apc.org/balkans/quiriazi.html
Named after the two sisters Qiriazi, who founded the first
school for girls in Korca (Albania) 100 years ago, two sisters
from Pristina, Safete and Igballe Rogova, formed a society for
education of women: "Motrat Qiriazi" (Sisters Qiriazi).
With the formation of the Women's Network in Pristina and with
the collaboration of other women's groups Motrat Qiriazi started
its activities in February 1995. Motrat Qiriazi, which provides
fresh educational possibilities for women, is dedicated to: 1)
Understanding the problems, needs, and desires of rural women;
2) raising the consciousness of rural women and breaking their
isolation by facilitating the exchange of ideas and skills
between rural and urban women; 3) supporting the democratization
of the family and aiding in the elimination of all forms of
violence against women; and 4) addressing issues like health
education and the importance of high school education for girls.
The health component involves bringing gynecologists,
pediatricians, and general practitioners to hold discussions
about pertinent health issues, answer questions, and provide
information.
ALTERNATIVE
INFORMATION NETWORK IN FORMER YUGOSLAVIA
http://www.aimpress.ch/
AIM (Alternativna Informativna Mreza) is a project of
independent journalists from former Yugoslavia and the European
Civic Forum. AIM was established in 1992 to offer unbiased
high-quality professional information. Its network of
journalists covers all the states of former Yugoslavia and
Albania. AIM encourages the foundation of new independent media
providing them with a reliable source of information. AIM texts
are available in Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and English.
INSTITUTE
FOR WAR AND PEACE REPORTING
http://www.iwpr.net/
The Institute for War & Peace Reporting (IWPR) is an
independent publishing and media group that aims to inform the
international debate on conflict and provide training and a
platform for independent media and other democratic voices.
Through this work, IWPR aims to contribute to the resolution of
conflict and to the strengthening of civil society, democracy,
and the rule of law. Founded in 1991, the Institute focuses on
the Balkans, the Caucasus, and other areas in Eastern Europe and
the former Soviet Union. The central aim is to support media
development through practical assistance and concrete
journalistic projects.
Links to websites outside the
U.S. Government should not be construed as an endorsement of
contents contained therein.
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Document compiled by Dr S D
Stein