User:Beaneater00/Sandbox/North Kosovo

Coordinates: 43°29′N 21°27′E / 43.483°N 21.450°E / 43.483; 21.450
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
North Kosovo
Ibar Kolašin
  • Северно Косово / Severno Kosovo
    Ибарски Колашин / Ibarski Kolašin (
    Republic of Kosovo
    . Ibarski Kolašin is a geographical region.

North Kosovo (Serbian: Северно Косово}, romanized: Severno Kosovo; Albanian: Kosova Veriore), also known as the Ibar Kolašin[1] (Serbian: Ибарски Колашин, romanized: Ibarski Kolašin; Albanian: Koloshini i Ibrit or Kollashini i Ibrit; earlier Old Kolašin,[2] Serbian: Стари Колашин, romanized: Stari Kolašin; Albanian: Koloshini i Vjetër or Kollashini i Vjetër), is a region in the northern part of Kosovo, composed of four municipalities with ethnic Kosovo Serbs majority: North Mitrovica, Leposavić, Zvečan and Zubin Potok.

Prior to the 2013 Brussels Agreement, the region functioned independently from the Republic of Kosovo's institutions, as they refused to acknowledge and recognize the independence of the Republic of Kosovo, declared in 2008.[3][4] The Government of Kosovo opposed any kind of parallel government for Serbs in this region.[5] However, the parallel structures were all abolished by the Brussels Agreement, signed between the governments of Kosovo and Serbia. Both governments agreed upon creating a Community of Serb Municipalities. The association was expected to be officially formed in 2016. According to the agreement, its assembly will have no legislative authority and the judicial authorities will be integrated and operate within the Kosovo legal framework. Political wrangling over Kosovo's status between its government and Serbia and has resulted in Kosovan authorities not allowing the formation of the Community.

History

2008–2013: Assembly of the Serb municipalities

Following

Assembly of Kosovo. Their stance was encouraged by Vojislav Koštunica
's Serbian government and they remained in control of this area with their own structures and paramilitaries.

2011 border clashes

In 2011, former President of Kosovo

Republic of Kosovo visited Northern Kosovo. His visit was accompanied by a heavy security presence.[11]

2013–today: Brussels Agreement

In early 2013, the Prime Minister of Serbia

Republic of Kosovo
Central Elections Commission on the ballot.

With the signatory of the

Appellate Court in Pristina will establish a panel composed of a majority of Kosovo Serbs judges to deal with all Kosovo Serb majority municipalities.[13][14]

Partition of Kosovo proposed by some Serbian politicians[15]

As the final stage of dialogue between Serbia and Kosovo is approaching, various officials from Serbia stated that the partition of Kosovo, with Serbia getting North is the best solution. President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić said on 9 August that he is for division of Kosovo.[16] Same could be heard from Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dačić[17] and Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin.[18] Some Albanian politicians stated that the exchange of territories may be the solution of Serbia-Kosovo dispute (with Serbia annexing North Kosovo and Republic of Kosovo annexing Preševo Valley), although many rejected this proposal.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Kosovo

North Kosovo consists of four municipalities,

exclave
".

Before the

Bosniaks and Roma. The 1991 census recorded 50,500 people in the municipalities of Leposavić, Zvečan and Zubin Potok, of whom the vast majority were Serbs, with a small number of Albanians, and other smaller minorities,[19] though the Statistical Office of Kosovo regards the accuracy of this census as "questionable" given that most Albanians boycotted it.[20] The population of the Mitrovica municipality was predominantly Albanian, with the town itself and two of the nearby villages being ethnically mixed.[21]

Mitrovica was split between Serbs and Albanians at the end of the war, with the

Ibar River
marking the dividing line. North Mitrovica, which is now home to approximately 22,500 Serbs and 7,000 members of other ethnic groups, is recognized since 2013 as a separate municipality by the Government of Kosovo.

In 2018, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe estimated that the population of Leposavić, Zvečan, Zubin Potok and North Mitrovica stands at 48,500 inhabitants. Of these, around 42,500 (87%) are Serbs, 5,000 (10%) Albanians, 1,000 (3%) Bosniaks and others.

These estimations indicate that more than 60% of all Kosovo's Serbs live in North Kosovo. A special bus service operates in parts of North Kosovo to facilitate the movement of non-Serb residents around the territory.[22] The bus operates with an accompanying security presence to ensure the safety of the passengers and permits those residents to more safely enter and leave the North Kosovo area.[22]

Ethnic map of North Kosovo(blue-Serbs, red-Albanians)[23]

Municipalities

Municipality District Area in km² Population
North Mitrovica Mitrovica 11 21,000
Leposavić 539 13,000
Zvečan 122 7,500
Zubin Potok 335 7,000
Total 1,007 48,500

Economy

Zvečan Fortress

The economy of the region was devastated by the war — by 2006, the unemployment rate had reached 77% in Mitrovica municipality. The largest employer was the Trepča mining complex in Zvečan which employed 4,000 people at the height of its operations. However, it was shut down in August 2000 due to the severe pollution which it was producing. The economic situation has deteriorated significantly in recent years due to a lack of capital investment, exacerbated by the uncertainty caused by the political dispute over the region's future. The region uses the Serbian dinar rather than the euro used elsewhere in Kosovo.[19][21][unreliable source?] Smuggling of goods such as alcohol has become a business in North Kosovo where the customs regulations of the Kosovo authorities are unable to be enforced.[22] The Kosovo customs authorities do, however, attempt to curtail the flow of illegal goods from North Kosovo into the rest of Kosovo and have an elaborate network of surveillance cameras in place in that regard.[22] The smugglers transport goods over the porous frontier between Central Serbia and North Kosovo.[22]

Geography

North Kosovo is rich in mineral resources, once known for the

Gazivode
.

Politics and the rule of law

Politics

Since 1999, the Serb-inhabited north of Kosovo had been governed as de facto independent from the Albanian-dominated government in Pristina. It used Serbian national symbols and participated in Serbian national elections, which are boycotted in the rest of Kosovo; and in turn, it boycotted Kosovo's elections. The municipalities of Leposavić, Zvečan and Zubin Potok are run by local Serbs, while the Mitrovica municipality had rival Serb and Albanian governments until a compromise was agreed in November 2002, whereby the city has one mayor. Serbs were active participants in the Kosovo Elections of 2013.

The region united into a community, the

UNMIK.[24]
And was abolished in 2013 as a result of the Brussels Agreement.

There is also a central governing body, the Serbian National Council for Kosovo and Metohija (SNV). The President of the SNV in North Kosovo is Dr. Milan Ivanović, while the head of its Executive Council is Rada Trajković. Local politics are dominated by the Serbian List for Kosovo. The Serbian List is led by Oliver Ivanović, an engineer from Mitrovica.

North Kosovo is by far the largest of the

2011 Pristina-Belgrade Talks. In November 2012, Prime Minister of Kosovo Hashim Thaçi stated that autonomy for Northern Kosovo will never be granted, and the region will always remain a part of the Republic of Kosovo.[27]

Rule of law

Law enforcement and green border checkpoints are carried out by

Serbian police also operate in the area.[28][29] North Mitrovica in particular remains a hot spot for organized crime.[28]

Sport

Due to Serbian refusal of Kosovo institutions, Serbs in this part of Kosovo act independently in sport. For example, the Football First League of North Kosovo is primarily formed of Serbian clubs from four of North Kosovo's municipalities.

Gallery

  • North Mitrovica
    North Mitrovica
  • Leposavić
    Leposavić
  • Zvečan
    Zvečan
  • Zubin Potok
    Zubin Potok

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ Cvetković, Marina. "The exchange of gifts at traditional weddings in the Ibarski Kolašin" – via Google Books.
  2. ^ Ilić, Jovan. "The Serbian question in the Balkans" – via Google Books.
  3. ^ BBC, Could Balkan break-up continue?, 22.02.08
  4. ^ ""Koha ditore": Kosovska vlada bez ingerencija na severu Kosova - Vesti dana - Vesti Krstarice". 13 July 2011.
  5. ^ Kosovo PM: End to Parallel Structures, BalkanInsight.com, March 7, 2008
  6. ^ "Serbs form rival Kosovo assembly". BBC News. 2008-06-14. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  7. ^ Vesna Peric Zimonjic (2008-06-29). "Kosovo Serbs set up rival assembly". The Independent. UK. Retrieved 2008-06-29.
  8. ^ "Kosovo", Jane's Sentinel, July 2006
  9. ^ UNMIK Condemns And Investigates Incident Archived 2010-07-31 at the Wayback Machine, B92, February 10, 2005
  10. ^ Oliver Ivanović interview, Danas, Belgrade, pp. 12-13. 9 December 2006
  11. ^ President Pacolli visits the northern part of Mitrovica, President of the Republic of Kosovo, February 26, 2011
  12. ^ "Serbia/Kosovo: The Brussels Agreements and Beyond" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-02-18.
  13. ^ "Report on implementation of the Brussels Agreements" (PDF).
  14. ^ "The Brussels Agreement" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-11-07.
  15. ^ "DODIK: Serbia should seek North Kosovo". www.novosti.rs (in Serbian (Latin script)). Retrieved 2018-08-14.
  16. ^ "Vučić: Zalažem se za razgraničenje sa Albancima". N1 Srbija (in Serbian (Latin script)). Retrieved 2018-08-12.
  17. ^ "Dačić: There is no better solution than partition of Kosovo". N1 Srbija (in Serbian (Latin script)). Retrieved 2018-08-12.
  18. ^ "Vulin: I am for partition of Kosovo and Metohija". Politika Online (in Serbian). Retrieved 2018-08-12.
  19. ^ a b c OSCE profiles of Leposavić 18,600 including 18,000 Serbs and 200 Albanians, Zubin Potok 14,900 "with a vast Kosovo Serb majority" with 800 Kosovo Albanians, and Zvečan "The estimated total population is 17,000 with a large Kosovo Serbian majority (approximately 16,000). Some 350 Kosovo Albanians (...)", 1 May 2006
  20. ^ Kosovo and its Population Archived 2007-06-26 at the Wayback Machine, Statistical Office of Kosovo, September 2003
  21. ^ a b OSCE profile of Mitrovica, 1 May 2006
  22. ^ a b c d e France 24 'programme length' special report on Kosovo broadcast on 24 December 2010
  23. ^ "Šta zapravo znači ideja o razgraničenju na Kosovu?". N1 Srbija (in Serbian (Latin script)). Retrieved 2018-08-12.
  24. ^ "Kosovo Serbs launch new assembly", BBC News, 28 June 2008
  25. ^ "Kosovo partition 'on the table'". BBC News. 2007-08-12. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
  26. ^ "BIRN - Serbia Plays Kosovo Partition Card". Kosovo.birn.eu.com. 2007-04-19. Archived from the original on 2012-09-05. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
  27. ^ "Page Not Found: 404". {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  28. ^ a b North Kosovo: Dual Sovereignty in Practice Archived 2011-03-20 at the Wayback Machine, International Crisis Group, 14 March 2011
  29. ^ Mark Lowen (2011-07-27). "Kosovo tense after deadly clash on Serbian border". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-09-11.

Further reading

  • Lutovac, M. (1956) Ibarski Kolašin. Naselja, Beograd, XXXIV, 8

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to North Kosovo.

Category:Disputed territories in Europe Category:Independence of Kosovo Category:Regions of Kosovo Category:Serb communities in Kosovo Category:Subdivisions of Kosovo

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