Himara Region four days without power electricity

100th Anniversary of Independence of Albania, electricity is interrupted, the control outside the regionespecially during nights hours.

While Albania and Kosova celebrate the 100th anniversary of the independence of Albania, the Himara region, continues for four days, without electricity, because the Corporation eneregjitike, CHEZ, a high voltage pole, "is overruled."

But the situation throughout the Himara Region is dramatic, especially during nights, where no cars identified by the plates, moving to make terror or any robbery.
Concerned citizens have asked outraged that the state of Albania, to provide electricity, as this community pays taxes 100% and does not deserve to be treated in this way.

Lack of electricity in the area, favors evildoers, who rob the houses of the inhabitants, a large proportion of whom live in emigration, Greece.

Enlarge PhotoReuters/Reuters - Kosovo's former Prime Minister and former commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army Ramush Haradinaj attends the judgement in his retrial at the International Criminal Tribunal
Kosovo ex-premier Haradinaj cleared of war crimes again

By Thomas Escritt and Fatos Bytyci | Reuters

    *
      Kosovo's former Prime Minister and former commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army Ramush Haradinaj attends the judgement in his retrial at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague November 29, 2012. REUTERS/Koen van Weel/Pool
      Enlarge Photo

      Reuters/Reuters - Kosovo's former Prime Minister and former commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army Ramush Haradinaj attends the judgement in his retrial at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former …more  Yugoslavia in The Hague November 29, 2012. REUTERS/Koen van Weel/Pool  less

    *  Article: Haradinaj acquittal proves U.N. tribunal's anti-Serb bias: Serbia

  

AMSTERDAM/PRISTINA (Reuters) - Ramush Haradinaj, a former guerrilla fighter in Kosovo who served briefly as prime minister, was acquitted of war crimes for a second time on Thursday, clearing the way for his return to mainstream politics but angering Serbia.

The retrial verdict by a United Nations court in The Hague comes on the heels of the acquittal on appeal two weeks ago of top Croatian general Ante Gotovina, fuelling nationalist accusations in Serbia that the court is biased against them.

The verdict, and Haradinaj's return to frontline campaigning, could undermine a new effort by the European Union to encourage Serbia and Kosovo to mend ties almost five years after the former southern Serbian province declared independence with the backing of the West.

Haradinaj was accused with two accomplices of persecuting ethnic Serbs in an effort to drive them out of Kosovo, during a 1998-99 war between guerrillas of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and security forces under late Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic.

Judges ruled there was no evidence to support the charges of crimes against humanity.

"On the contrary, the evidence establishes that, when he heard about the mistreatment of individuals, Haradinaj said no such thing should happen because this is damaging of our cause," the presiding judge, Bakone Justice Moloto, said.

There were gasps and cheers in the courtroom, and fireworks in Kosovo's capital, Pristina.

Haradinaj was prime minister for several months in 2005 but resigned when he was first charged. He was acquitted in 2008 but appeal judges ordered a partial retrial, saying the prosecution should have been given more time to make its case.

Prosecutors have long been dogged by problems of witness intimidation in Kosovo, where the KLA is still revered and clan loyalties run deep. Kosovo's government said the verdict was vindication of the guerrilla insurgency.

"This verdict is the strongest evidence that the Kosovo Liberation Army fought a just war for freedom and never committed the crimes of which we were unfairly accused," Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, himself a former KLA commander, said in a statement.

Speculation is rife in Kosovo's media that Thaci plans to reshuffle his coalition government to bring in Haradinaj's Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, possibly ceding the post of prime minister to Haradinaj and seeking the presidency for himself.

Hardinaj's lawyer said the 44-year-old former nightclub bouncer would return to Kosovo on Thursday evening, "and with the consent of the people, will soon be resuming his rightful position as the political leader of the country".

"TIME FOR RECONCILIATION"

Serbia's nationalist President Tomislav Nikolic said the ruling was further evidence the U.N. tribunal for the former Yugoslavia was "formed to try the Serbian people" for the wars of Yugoslavia's collapse in the 1990s.

He warned it would "annul" progress made so far in fledgling EU-mediated talks between Belgrade and Pristina. Progress in the talks is a key condition of Serbia's further integration with the EU, which made Belgrade an official candidate for membership in March.

But Ivica Dacic, who holds the more powerful post of prime minister in Serbia's coalition government, has said the talks must go on, regardless of the Haradinaj verdict.

Kosovo was the last throw of the dice by late Serbian strongman Milosevic after he fomented wars in Bosnia and Croatia. NATO finally intervened in 1999 with 78 days of air strikes to halt a brutal Serbian crackdown in which almost a million ethnic Albanians were expelled.

"This is a big day for our nation," said Mustafe Bislimi, one of several hundred Kosovo Albanians who watched the verdict live on a big screen in the Kosovo capital, Pristina.

"This shows that his (Hardinaj's) war was right. We need him now more than ever."

Idriz Balaj, a former commander of a special KLA unit known as the Black Eagles, and Lahi Brahimaj, Haradinaj's uncle and a member of the KLA's general staff, were also acquitted in the retrial. Brahimaj has already served the six-year sentence he was given for torture at his first trial.

Judges ruled that ethnic Serbs and Albanians had been mistreated in camps controlled by the KLA, but found that nothing linked Haradinaj to these incidents.

On one occasion, Moloto said, Haradinaj had offered food and accommodation to an escaped detainee before returning him to his family.

(Additional reporting by Radosa Milutinovic in The Hague; Writing by Matt Robinson in Belgrade; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Berisha: Albania is 67 thousand square kilometers, not 28. 

Continues Berisha`s rethortic about the Greatar Albania

Prime Minister Sali Berisha, has not given up his nationalist approach to the unification of ethnic Albanian lands. During the inauguration of a street in Tirana named after former Foreign Minister of the Austrian Empire-hungrareze, Leopold Bertold, Berisha spoke about the partition of the territory of Albania."Count Bertold, the government and his country, the Austro-Hungarian Empire for years were determined for ethnic Albania, Albania Albanian territories inhabited by Albanians, Albania 67 thousand square kilometers, the main place in the Balkan Peninsula, in the south-western him.  

But the moment the Balkan alliance and other factors make it impossible then the realization of this independent state. Therefore, he strongly supported Ismail Qemali to proclaim the independence of Albania, the Albanian state established as a vital necessity to save the Albanians, the nation that he loved and respected by their extinction from the political map of Europe, "said Prime Minister .

However, Berisha underlined that some of the powers of the London Conference, enjoyed their allies were "making" part of the territory of Albania by secret decisions.

"After the declaration of independence of the Austro-Hungarian Empire representatives insisted and managed the London Conference, which will deal with the determination of boundaries to determine fair principles for her work. So margins, according to those principles, would be made in accordance with the ethnic majority and its geographical continuity. But other powers are present at the conference, exchanged Albanian territories to spoil the market for their Balkan allies. Others declare the day and other ghastly things about Albanians place at night, "said Berisha

.

Albania: 100 years, Berisha plays 'great Albania' trump card

In Tirana Albanian leaders, tensions with Macedonia 28 November, 10:49

 (ANSAmed) - TIRANA, NOVEMBER 28 - Albania's black and red national flag with a double-headed eagle is waving across the country which is celebrating today its 100th anniversary of independence in a tense political climate. The centre-right Premier Sali Berisha has been calling for days for an ethnic-national unification of all Albanians living in different Balkan states, in efforts to revive a strong nationalism which is rejected by Albania's opposition.

Yesterday afternoon during a ceremony in Tirana to inaugurate the statue of Adam Jashari, symbol of the resistance of Albanians from Kosovo, Berisha said that 'all of us representatives of ethnic Albanian territories are engaged in creating what our martyrs have fought for across a century - an Albanian nation united in its land'. Speaking in front of political leaders representing Kosovo's Albanians and the Albanian minority in the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia, Berisha added that 'the dream of unification is the true European dream of the nation', referring to Albanians united within the European Union. His statements alarmed neighbouring countries. Macedonia's President Gjorge Ivanov announced the annulment of his trip to Tirana where he had been invited to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the country's independence.

The decision was motivated with the incidents last week in the Albanian capital where the car of Skopje's Premier Nikola Gruevski was hit with eggs while two Macedonian flags were being burnt by protesters. A number of analysts however believe this call for nationalism coincides with celebrations of the country's independence ahead of what promises to be a harsh electoral campaign for parliamentary elections in June 2013, rather than expressing a realistic plan.

Not even such an important anniversary succeeded in dissolving tensions between Berisha and opposition leader Edi Rama. Rama refused to attend celebrations organized in Tirana and organized separate celebrations in Valona, the city where the new Albanian state was proclaimed. Meanwhile the Albanian capital is bracing up for celebrations and the national eagle will be decorating an enormous cake of 550 square metres, weighing 13 tons, baked by a great number of chefs.(ANSAmed).

 

Greek FM Cancels Visit to Tirana After Albanian PM Claims Greek Territories

A sudden deterioration in the Greek-Albanian relations occurred on Wednesday morning short before Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos boarded on the plane to take him to Tirana. Cause for the incident were provocative statements by Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha who claimed that part of Western Greece, Preveza (Epirus) were Albanian.

 Sali Berisha: [Citizens of Avlona] “proclaimed on 28. November 1912 the independence of Albania, the independence of ethnic Albania, of the Albania of all Albanian territories from Preveza to Presevo, from Skopje to Podgorica.”

The provocative statement of Berisha, posing assertion of part of Greek terriroty (Preveza) triggered the angry reaction of FM Avramopoulos who immediately canceled his trip to albania and issued the following statement:

“Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos cancelled at the last minute his visit to Tirana, expressing the discontent of the Greek government to the statements by Albanian Prime Minister on the occasion of today’s celebration.
Statements like these do not contribute to creating a climate of friendship, trust and good-neighborly relations between the two countries, and to develop joint initiatives in areas of common interest, such as the political, economic and energy sector. ” (mga.gr)

Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos was due to pay a visit to Tirana on Wednesday upon an invitation of his Albanian counterpart, to participate in the events marking the 100th anniversary of Albanian independence.

PS I wonder about the reaction of FYROM…

Albanian Media

Avramopoulos cancels visit due to Berisha's statement on Prevezën

www.shekulli.com.al

Greek ii Foreign Minister Avramopoulos canceled anticipated visit to Tirana. Avoidance seems to have come at the last moment and because it is made ​​Berisha's statement for national unity.

In a statement, the Greek Foreign Ministry says that the Greek government with this decision, "said dissatisfaction with Albanian Prime statements today on the occasion of the celebration of one hundredth anniversary of the independence of Albania".

"Such statements do not contribute to creating a climate of friendship, trust and good neighborly relations between the two countries, and to develop joint initiatives in areas of common interest, both in the political, economic and energy" , reads the press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece.

Albanian prime minister's spokeswoman, asked about the statement made by Berisha yesterday in Vlora, which was quoted Preveza, states that the prime minister's statement refers to the historical context of 100 years ago and does not express any territorial claim against our neighbors from the South North or East.

In short address to the citizens present in Vlora, Berisha read what was written on parchment: Vlora, its citizens, Ismail Kemal Vlora other men of the nation, announced in this eternal city, on November 28, 1912 the independence of Albania, Albania's ethnic Albanian independence of all Albanian territories from Preveza in Presevo, from Skopje to Podgorica. Forever honor the independence of Albania father Ismail Kemal Vlora, the men who signed the act of independence, the citizens of Vlora and all Albania! Happy 100th anniversary! "

President "does not expect more EU conditions"

Source: Tanjug

BELGRADE -- Tomislav Nikolić says Serbia will meet all obligations it had taken on regarding Kosovo, but that it does not expect more "difficulties" for its EU integration.

(Beta)

The Serbian president made the remark during his meeting in Belgrade on Thursday with visiting Italian Defense Minister Giampaolo di Paola, his office said.
Di Paola told Nikolić that Italy would strive to give positive signals to Serbia, which expects to get a starting date for accession talks next spring, but that in return Serbia must meet the obligations it had taken on to date in the talks with Priština.

Nikolić noted that his country was interested in advancing cooperation with Italy and could offer excellent conditions to Italian investors, "much better even than some EU member countries."

"Serbia guarantees security to investors, a huge market in the East which is accessible to us, a qualified workforce and a government which no longer tolerates corruption and crime," said Nikolić.

According to the release, Nikolić once against thanked Italy for the engagement of its battalion, serving with KFOR, on the protection of Serbian Orthodox churches and monasteries in Kosovo.

Failed opening the ceremony of the High - Way Albania Kosovo

Inauguration Ceremony of the fifth segment of the highway "Ibrahim Rugova" in Kosovo has been delayed due to protests for Fatmir Limaj.Hundreds of former KLA fighters gathered in village Gjurgjicë. They demanded the release of PDK deputy and their former fighter, Fatmir Limaj who gave arrest measures on Saturday in connection with the issue 'catch'.Protesters riding podium which has made it impossible to attend the ceremony at provided, then at 10 am.Meanwhile, Prime Minister Hashim Thaci's motorcade headed to Pristina, while Albanian PM Sali Berisha learned that was turned by helicopter.After this event scheduled to take place for the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of Albania, Kosovo's government reacted. "The cancellation was due to the intervention of a group of citizens unaware that demolished the place where the ceremony should be held", said among other things, in a communication from the Government, which is also grateful to the many citizens who had come to celebrate and asks for understanding termination of the ceremony, Prime Minister of Albania, Sali Berisha, President Jahjaga, the U.S. ambassador in Kosovo, Tracey Jacobson, of others.Jahjaga reacts regretsPresident of the Republic of Kosovo, Mrs. Atifete Jahjaga regrets the cancellation of long-awaited inauguration of the Way of the Nation as a result of the protest of a group of citizens in village Gjurgjicë."The inauguration of the Station of the Nation" Ibrahim Rugova ", joint work major, is the fulfillment of a dream and goal. Highway is the realization of our vision about European corridors that eventually overturns the barriers between us. Express our regret that a work of such major was hindered inaugurated today ', said the President's response.

 

Mysteriously of Avramopoulos visit in Tirana, on the occasion of the 100 years of Albania

 

The Greek Weekly "To Paron"  has raised some questions about the visit

1. Who has advised the foreign minister to travel to Tirana to celebrate with Mr. Berisha, the Chams and puce Alliance centenary of the founding of the Albanian state? 

2. Pose the question not only because of the attitude of the Albanian government in a series of bilateral issues, but also because the celebrations in a context revival of the idea of ​​national integration of Albanians, with events in Kosovo and Macedonia. 

3. It should be recalled that Mr. Avramopoulos the Albanian irredentism, outside Skopje, aims constantly to our country ... 

4. Mostly though it should be noted that the Albanian Independence was awarded by the Allies after the blackmail against Greece to abandon the historical, national demands for the release and attachment to the national body of the territories of Northern Epirus.If he wants to honor his neighbor Avramopoulos, let's make do with a visit to the reception of the Albanian embassy in Athens ...

Separatists gaining ground in Europe

  Edward Cody , The Washington Post

Antwerp, Belgium

...

       

As debt-burdened European governments struggle to overcome the disparities in their still-imperfect union, old demons of regional separatism have surged anew in recent months, raising another unwelcome challenge to the continent's traditional nation-states.

Separatist movements have dramatically reinforced their positions here in Belgium's prosperous Flanders region, where the independence-minded New Flemish Alliance captured Antwerp's 16th-century City Hall on Oct. 14 and, under its populist leader Bart De Wever, is heading into national elections in 2014 with new wind in its sails.
"There is an outcry in Flanders for change," declared Danny Pieters, vice president of the Belgian Senate and a senior Flemish alliance leader.
Independence-minded nationalists also have made recent gains in Spain's Basque Country, returning to power in the regional government after a four-year pause, and in Catalonia, where separatists running the regional government have threatened to hold a referendum on whether to remain part of Spain. In Scotland, which has been part of Great Britain for 300 years, such a referendum has already been scheduled for autumn 2014 — on the anniversary of a battle in which Scotsmen defeated the British.
"Secessionist temptations are legion on our continent these days," Daniel Cohn-Bendit, a Green representative in the European Parliament, warned in a recent column.
On the other side of the ledger, two long-term separatist strains have receded, at least for the moment: on the French island of Corsica, where Mafia-style crime has eclipsed the nationalist movement, and in industrialized northern Italy, where scandal has set back the Northern League, forcing it to temper its complaints about paying high taxes to compensate for lazy and larcenous Sicilians.
Viewed from afar, the nations of Europe seem to have such a timeless history, under kings, prime ministers and presidents, that no one would think of pulling out of the country in favor of regional separatism. But struggles for regional cultural and political independence — the Basque ETA set off bombs for decades — have long burned under the surface, a permanent part of the European landscape.
In the Balkans, the death of Marshal Tito set off bloody regional wars in the 1990s that resulted in the breakup of Yugoslavia into half a dozen new states. Czechoslovakia also spilt after the fall of the Soviet Union, but peacefully, into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Western Europe's recently successful separatist leaders have shown no clear inclination for such violence, although some have suggested they could be tempted to violate constitutional law if their demands are not met. But even if the separatists remain peaceful, the resurgence of regional nationalists has created another debilitating struggle for leaders already trying hold together a European Union undermined by punishing debts and divergent economies.
Ironically, the regional separatists have benefited from the success of the European Union over the last half-century and the ideal of seeing, one day, a United States of Europe in which the role of national governments would diminish. Artur Mas, the Catalonian nationalist leader, and De Wever, his counterpart here in Antwerp, both have spoken lyrically of seeing their regions as independent nations within such a federated Europe.
In most instances, breakaway leaders have strengthened their positions recently because they found it easier to broaden their support in the context of Europe's relentless financial crisis. By forcing central governments to enact painful tax increases and spending cuts, the crisis has made the perennial quests for local independence more attractive to ordinary people who feel they are over-taxed for social welfare programs that transfer wealth to other regions.
De Wever rose to notoriety in 2005 by leading a convoy of 12 trucks loaded with more than 200 million euros in fake 50-euro bills that were transported from Flanders in the north to Wallonia in the south, dramatizing his message that relatively well off Flemish-speaking taxpayers were financing a costly welfare system for French-speaking Walloons. The Bank of Belgium estimated that in that year the transfers amounted to 5.8 billion euros.
Conversations in the elegant streets of Antwerp indicated that many people support De Wever and his Flemish alliance not because they want to break away from Belgium, but because they want change from crisis-driven economic policies handed down from Socialist Party-led national government in Brussels.
A key indicator of what they object to, observers here said, was the recent closure of a nearby Ford auto plant, which resulted in the loss of 400 jobs directly and another 600 in parts and supply companies. The national government proposed lowering the age of government pensions for laid-off workers, while De Wever insisted the best solution was to attract business investment to create other jobs for them. Otherwise, he added, Flanders would end up "Walloon-ized" by welfare payments.
Philippe Juliam, a secondary school ethics teacher enjoying a beer and a fat Havana in one of Antwerp's countless wood-paneled cafes, said De Wever's cause is gaining adherents not only because of the crisis but also because it responds to a growing feeling that in fact the country is already divided along linguistic and many other lines.
"We are two different nations, with different cultures, different economies and different languages," he said, puffing on his Bolivar.
Scottish independence activists have long said similar things, although they speak the same language as the English. But it was only last year that the Scottish National Party gained a majority in the regional parliament and Oct. 15 when its leader, First Minister Alex Salmond, signed the referendum agreement with Prime Minister David Cameron in London.
As opposed to other European independence movements, the Scottish separatists have been hampered by the economic crisis that has slowed activity across the continent since 2008. Rather than blaming the London government, many Scots have expressed fear that things would only get worse if Scotland were to go it on its own, leading to polls that show the nationalists would lose if the referendum were held today.
The economic argument has boosted separatist hopes strongly in Catalonia, however, drawing in many people who previously would not have envisaged life outside Spain. Oriol Pujol, a leader of the ruling regional party, Convergence and Union, estimated in a recent interview that more than 8 percent of Catalonia's $260 billion economy goes off to Madrid in taxes and never returns to help the region.
Mas, the regional president, recently set new elections for Nov. 25 and pledged that, if he gains a reinforced majority as expected, he will organize a referendum on a greater independence — greater but carefully undefined. He decided to act, officials in Barcelona said, after failing to win concessions from Madrid on new fiscal arrangements that would allow the region to keep more of its tax money.
The long-restive Basque Country, where polls show 40 percent of the population favors independence, has long been the scene of Europe's best-known regional movement, largely because of terrorist strikes by the ETA that have killed more than 800 people over several decades. The ETA, Basque-language initials for Basque Country and Liberty, announced a permanent cease-fire late last year, halting attacks, but the Spanish government insisted it must turn over its arms and dissolve before arrests will stop.

PM to receive U.S. State Department official

Source: B92, Tanjug

BELGRADE -- Serbian PM Ivica Dačić will on Tuesday in Belgrade meet with visiting Deputy Assistant U.S. Secretary of State Philip Reeker, the government said.

Philip Reeker (file)

According to the release, the meeting between Reeker and Dačić should begin at noon Tuesday, and a statement should be given to media when it is completed.
The U.S. embassy in Belgrade were not able to give any further details about Reeker's visit.

Reeker was in Belgrade at the beginning of July, holding a meeting with Dačić, who was the prime minister-designate at the time.

Speaking for B92, former Serbian Ambassador to Germany Ognjen Pribićević said that the visit was meant to "encourage the Belgrade-Priština talks to accelerate and bring results, and appeal on reconciliation in the region after the acquittal of Croatian generals".

This observer also noted that the trip was "a regular working visit to the region".

Tanjug news agency is quoting its sources in Washington who said that the visit was planned previously and "has nothing to do with the Hague ruling, nor is it particularly related to some news in the Belgrade-Priština talks".

On Monday, Reeker visited Montenegro, where he met with Montenegrin Foreign Minister Nebojša Kaluđerovic.

A release following the visit said that the new government of the country could count on the support of the U.S. in the process of Montenegro's accession to the European Union and NATO.

This week, Sarajevo media have said, he will visit Bosnia-Herzegovina for talks with the country's senior officials on concrete steps that should be made by Bosnia towards its membership of the EU and NATO.

The U.S. official will also travel to Brussels.

Hillary Clinton congratulates Albanians: Albania, Friends and partners

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton congratulated the Albanian people on the occasion of the 100thanniversary of Independence on behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States.

"On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I am delighted to send best wishes to the people of Albania, while you celebrate your Independence Day this November 28," said Clinton.

Clinton in her statement of congratulations asked and has the opportunity to request that the next elections will be free and transparent.

In a press release, she appreciates the positive steps made ​​by Albania and states that progress should be made ​​electoral reform.

"Since the establishment of a democratic republic, Albania has made ​​great strides forward. Today, Albania is ready to consolidate them win and be integrated into a Europe that is whole, free and at peace. But it requires the approval of the remaining reforms now, and conducting free and transparent parliamentary elections next spring, further strengthening of democracy and modernization of Albania so to respond to the needs of the Albanian people, "said Clinton.

Secretary Clinton also noted that the U.S. will always be a friend and partner of Albania and cooperation between the two countries will continue.

"As you celebrate with family and loved ones, know that the United States is a partner and a friend. We look forward to a future of continued friendship and cooperation, "concludes the press release of Secretary Clinton.

Kosovo's Fatmir Limaj Back in Detention

Top Story

The former Kosovo Liberation Army, KLA, commander Fatmir Limaj, has been placed in detention for a month, an international judge ruled on Saturday.

Fatmir Aliu

BIRN

Pristina

Limaj and three other ex KLA, fighters, Naser Krasniqi, Nexhmi Krasniqi and Naser Shala, who were accused of war crimes, appeared over the weekend at Pristina’s District Court, where they were ordered to one month detention on remand.

“The risk of flight and the risk of tampering with evidence existed in respect of all accused in view of the fact they were charged with very serious alleged criminal offences,” EULEX said in a press release.
Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thaci has described Limaj’s detention as unacceptable and unjust and as a sly act by EULEX.
Speaking at the ceremony marking the Kosovo Security Forces day in Pristina, Thaci said that no one has the right to make “secret” arrests without the knowledge of the local institutions.

“This is unfair! This is unacceptable! This is shameful! This is not justice, this is indignity,” Thaci said during the ceremony aired live by Kosovo’s public broadcaster on Monday afternoon.
The four men were acquitted on May 2 on all charges of war crimes committed during the Kosovo war, but the prosecution appealed the verdict and on November 20 the case was sent to a retrial.

According to the indictment the defendants had “violated the bodily integrity and health of an unspecified number of Serb and Albanian civilians and Serb prisoners of war held in a detention centre in the village of Klecka.”

Almost all of the charges were based on the testimony of Agim Zogaj, known as Witness X, who killed himself last September in Germany, before the first trial started.

Zogaj was a prison guard at the Klecka prison and his diary about events there was crucial to the prosecution’s case but on March 21, the court found that his testimony and diaries were inadmissible.

However, last week the EULEX judge, Gerrit-Marc Sprenger, overruled that decision, making Zogaj’s testimonies admissible.
Limaj’s former soldiers from the KLA’s 121st Brigade “Kumanova” have announced a protest in the village of Gjurgjice in Malisheva, on Tuesday morning during the inauguration of the new section of the Pristina-Vermice highway.

In a press release issued on Sunday, they called for Limaj’s immediate release and said they are  “deeply disappointed” with Kosovo’s justice system and accused EULEX of bias.
The EU Special Representative to Kosovo, Samuel Zbogar, said on Monday that he understands the sensitivities and emotions surrounding Limaj’s arrest and called for non-inference in the judicial processes.
“A fundamental principle of any modern, democratic society is non-interference in the judicial process. Judges act independently, prosecutors act autonomously and those indicted are innocent until proven guilty. Decisions by EULEX prosecutors and judges have never been, are not and will never be politically motivated,” he said

Limaj, the Vice President of the ruling Democratic Party of Kosovo, also faced war crime charges at the Hague Tribunal, ICTY.

He was charged, along with Isak Musliu and Haradin Bala, with war crimes against Serbs and Albanians suspected of collaborating with Serbia during the Kosovo war.

In November 2005, the ICTY acquitted him and he returned home to a hero’s welcome.

On November 16 this year, EULEX has indicted Limaj for organized crime and corruption during his time as the Minister of Transport, between 2008 and 2010.

EU 5 "less likely than ever" to recognize Kosovo

Source: Beta

PRIŠTINA -- The five EU countries that have not recognized Kosovo are increasingly less likely to consider doing so, according to a Priština-based Albanian language daily.

In a commentary published on Monday, Koha Ditore notices that the opposition to Kosovo's independence is strengthening among the five - Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain.
According to this, one reason are increasing demands for an independence referendum in Spain's province of Catalonia, which would "additionally burden a possible recognition (of Kosovo) by Spain".

"While members of Kosovo's government are competing in who brought in more recognitions from various third world countries, there has been no progress with the EU and NATO that would awaken any kind of hope that one of their member-states opposed might recognize (Kosovo). Without those recognitions, European integrations will remains only a dream that cannot be achieved," said the article, and noted that only sovereign states can join the EU and NATO:

"The North Atlantic Alliance (NATO) has made no attempt to create an illusion that Kosovo could join, or receive some partnership status as a state, while all its member-states do not recognize it."

As for the EU, it is offering Kosovo relations and agreements that it does to other regions, entities and communities that are not sovereign countries.

"Kosovo, of course, is in no position to say 'no' to these offers of the European Union. However, Kosovo should not be satisfied with this, and even manipulate its public opinion (to believe) that the EU is treating it as any other state. That, simply put, is not the case," said the newspaper, noting that "Kosovo is being treated differently, and has accepted to be treated differently".

Kosovo's ethnic Albanians unilaterally declared independence in early 2008, but Serbia rejected the proclamation as illegal under its Constitution.

NATO to Survey Patriot Missile Sites in Turkey

Topic: Protests in Syria

Patriot anti-missile batteries
© AFP/ MEHDI FEDOUACH

ANKARA, November 26 (RIA Novosti) – NATO officials will start surveying sites along the Turkey-Syria border on Tuesday for possible deployment of Patriot air defense systems, the Turkish General Staff said in a statement.
The NATO delegation includes 30 experts from the United States, Germany and the Netherlands, all of whom have Patriots in their arsenals.
The Turkish General Staff said that the Patriot missile systems will not be used to establish a no-fly zone or to conduct offensive operations, but only “against an air or missile threat from Syria,” the Hurriyet daily said, citing the statement.
“The regions the Patriot systems would be deployed to and the number of foreign personnel that will be assigned to them will be be based on the NATO delegation’s site-survey,” the statement said.
Turkey, a NATO member, has requested the deployment of Patriot missiles on its territory, saying the anti-missile system is necessary to protect its 900-km border with conflict-torn Syria.
Among the most possible sites for the Patriot deployment are Diyarbakir, Urfa and Malatya in southeastern Turkey. Hurriyet said up to 300 military personnel will be needed to service the Patriot batteries.
Syria has condemned the Patriot missile plan in Turkey as “another act of provocation.” Russia has warned that the move could trigger a regional crisis. NATO maintained that the missiles would be placed for defensive purposes only.
US Patriot surface-to-air missiles were last deployed to Turkey in 1991 and 2003, during the two Gulf Wars, to protect the country from Saddam Hussein’s Scud missiles.
Turkey has fired artilllery salvos across its border with Syria several times in recent weeks in retaliation for Syrian shelling, which killed five Turkish civilians in October. It has also provided shelter to refugees fleeing the violence in Syria and has been one of President Bashar al-Assad’s harshest critics during the almost 17-month revolt against his rule.
Tensions between Turkey and Syria flared dangerously this summer after Damascus shot down a Turkish fighter that had violated its airspace. Turkey threatened retaliation if there was any repeat of the incident, although it admitted the plane had mistakenly strayed slightly into Syria.

Greek Parliament Gets Lagarde List Case

By Andy Dabilis on November 26, 2012 in Economy, News, Politics

 

Greek Justice Minister Antonis Roupakiotis

The Greek Supreme Court has sent to Parliament the case file relating to the so-called Lagarde list of some 2,059 Greek with $1.95 billion in deposits in the Geneva, Switzerland  branch of HSBC that still hasn’t been vetted for possible tax evaders.
The details of the preliminary investigation were passed by prosecutor Nikos Pantelis to Justice Minister Antonis Roupakiotis. Parliament, which has a history of protecting its own, now has to decide whether any politicians should answer for alleged wrongdoing.
Former finance ministers Evangelos Venizelos and Giorgos Papaconstaninou deny failing to ensure authorities investigated the list properly to find if there were any tax invaders among the names.
Papaconstantinou was given the list in 2010 from his French counterpart, Christine Lagarde, now head of the International Monetary Fund, one of Greece’s Troika of lenders. He said he lost it, but Venizelos produced a copy on a memory stick.
The information came from a greater list on a CD that was stolen from the bank by an employee, prompting Venizelos to say it couldn’t be used to prosecute tax cheats, but Lagarde said other European countries had done so.
Ex-Financial Crimes Squad (SDOE) chiefs Yiannis Kapeleris and Yiannis Diotis also reject accusations that they failed to do their jobs properly, but the list still hasn’t been used by the government, other than to prosecute a journalist who released the names and said that Prime Minister Antonis Samaras was trying to protect the rich and privileged.

Red and Black Alliance: Referendum on joining, Albania - Kosovo

Red and Black Alliance proposed by Pristina referendum on the unification of Albania with Kosovo.

Head of the Red and Black Allianc, Kreshnik Spahiu, said on November 28, launches petition for referendum, and appealed Albanians from all regions to participate in this petition.

"The petition will be signed on 28 November on the Albania-Kosovo and will be submitted to the parliaments in Tirana and Pristina" Spahiu said.

According to him,the  referendum will be a popular vote for the union of two Albanian countrys and procedures and internationally monitored referendum.

 


CIA, Will break the storm for Greek corruption
defencenet,gr
CIA knows all about the personal lives of Greek politicians and businessmen? According to German newspaper, the renowned website Wikileaks has documents with rich, intriguing photographs, which includes "pink" scandals featuring leading public men of our country who have a preference the same sex.
In the hands of American intelligence exist except for the pictures, and talks ...Son entrepreneur has ... give and take with political son and both of them are involved in bribes and drugs.
The documents to Wikileaks, according to German website that relies publication of «Espresso», are references to U.S. diplomats who served in Athens with a unique mission to investigate the personal lives of leading Greek politicians and businessmen. And of course there are references to the files of the CIA.
Talk about scandals will cause huge shock to the Greek public.

 Macedonia: Minority marks Albanian independence

November 25, 2012

By KONSTANTIN TESTORIDES, Associated Press

SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) — More than 1,000 ethnic Albanians marched in the capital of Macedonia on Sunday to mark the 100th anniversary of Albania's independence from the Ottoman Empire. Some politicians have opposed such celebrations, saying they could stoke ethnic tensions in Macedonia.
The prime ministers of neighboring Albania and Kosovo, Sali Berisha and Hashim Thaci, were expected to attend the celebrations later Sunday at Skopje's sports center.
The anniversary celebrations in Macedonia's capital are scheduled to last for four days, and similar festivities will take place later this week in the capitals of Kosovo and Albania.
Ethnic Albanians make up about 25 percent of Macedonia's population of 2.1 million, but tension with the country's Slavic-speaking Macedonian majority has remained high since a six-month armed ethnic Albanian insurgency in 2001 to demand greater autonomy in minority areas.
For nearly five centuries, Albania was at the heart of a sprawling Ottoman Empire, but it declared independence in 1912, and is now a parliamentary democracy and member of the United Nations and NATO.
In Skopje, Macedonia's capital, thousands of Albanian national flags — a black double-headed eagle on a red background — were on display Sunday there and in minority areas of northern and western Macedonia. Divers even placed the flag at the bottom of Lake Ohrid, which straddles Macedonia and Albania.
"This is really an exaggeration" auto-mechanic Jovan Krstevski, 49, of Skopje told The Associated Press, as ethnic Albanians marched there. "I have nothing against any flag or celebrations, but placing such huge flags in such a manner and with such noise is nothing but dramatizing the event and has nothing to do with a tribute. Just the opposite, only to demonstrate the (minority's) power and to provoke their fellow Macedonians."
The opposition Social Democrats earlier described a decision by the Macedonian government to join Albania's independence celebrations as a "political provocation."
Conservative Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski has the country's largest ethnic Albanian party, the DUI, in his coalition government. The DUI is led by Ali Ahmeti.
"We ask whether Gruevski and Ahmeti are aware that their irresponsible behavior and harmful policies will cause fresh ethnic tension and undermine the rule of law?" deputy Social Democrat leader Gordan Georgiev said recently.
Even Gruevski allies have publicly argued that the Albanian celebrations are part of a minority drive toward creating a largely autonomous state — a notion dismissed by Ahmeti.
Stojance Angelov — leader of Dignity, an association of Macedonian veterans of the 2001 ethnic conflict — said such a move would be unfair and damaging to Macedonia.
In an interview with Channel Five TV, Ahmeti said, "Raising the Albanian national flag is not a demonstration of power, but part of a great date for us Albanians and ... should not be seen as a provocation to the Macedonians."
He said, "We do not have any pretensions to dividing Macedonia because Macedonia is our country, Macedonia is our homeland. Our ancestors were here, our future is here and we need to build our future together."
Relations between the two main coalition partners have, however, soured in recent weeks after the country's ethnic Albanian defense minister paid tribute to the insurgents of 2001. Gruevski responded by presenting draft legislation to grant pensions to former government soldiers who fought in the ethnic conflict — but not to rebel veterans.
Two recent incidents in neighboring Albania also have raised tensions in Macedonia.
Macedonian national flags were set on fire in Tirana, the capital of Albania, and eggs were thrown at a car carrying Gruevski as the Macedonian prime minister visited Tirana.
Macedonia's government complained about both incidents, and the Albanian foreign ministry condemned them.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Spain's next threat: Losing 20% of its economy

Catalonia, Spain's next threat: Losing 20% of its economy

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/12/business/catalonia-independence-spain/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

By Oliver Joy, CNN

November 25, 2012 -- Updated 0942 GMT (1742 HKT)

Medical workers demonstrate in Madrid against the Spanish government's latest austerity measures to deal with Spain's crippling debt.

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Spain in crisis

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STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Catalans go to the polls on Sunday November 25 in a vote that trigger a referendum for independence
• Catalonia is home to tourist attractions -- Barcelona Football Club and the Gaudi House Museum
• The CiU is raising the debate on sovereignty at a time of public frustration over taxes in Catalonia

London (CNN) -- It's September 11, 2012. The National Day of Catalonia. And an estimated two million people are on the streets of Barcelona waving banners "Catalonia -- The next state in Europe" and "Independencia."

Separatist Catalans are calling for sovereignty from Madrid and the rule of the conservative Popular Party, led by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.

Losing 20% of the economy is the last thing the Spanish government needs right now. But if those calling for independence get their way, that could be exactly what happens when Catalans go to the polls this weekend.

Catalonia -- a region in the northeast of Spain and home to global brands and tourist attractions including Barcelona Football Club and the Gaudi House Museum -- represents one fifth of the Spanish economy.

The Catalan independence question comes at an inconvenient time for Rajoy's government. Spain, part of the eurozone mainstay, is grappling with unsustainable borrowing costs and a soaring public deficit while trying to placate public anger over a lack of jobs and stringent austerity.

Out of the hardship, regional disputes in northern Spain have started to resurface, particularly in Catalonia. Economists at Deutsche Bank say the political turmoil in such a prosperous region could be the catalyst that forces the Spanish central government into seeking aid from Europe's permanent bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism.

As the industrial heartbeat of the eurozone's fourth largest economy, Catalonia is the most affluent region in Spain. Situated on the Mediterranean and bordering France, the area is home to seven million people and made up of four provinces: Barcelona, Lleida, Tarragona and Girona.