We're Fine

The only demonstration we've seen here in our village is the school children marching down main street to celebrate Kosova's independence. The US Embassy that has been attacked is in Serbia. The ruckus within Kosova is mostly limited to the northern regions, 60km from us. There are 17,000 NATO troops here in Kosova, 35 countries make up the peace-keeping forces. While we are wary, we feel the violence will not grow due to their presence. Please join us in praying for a peaceful transition here in the Balkans.

Independence At Last

“Thank You USA” is what the coffee was saying to us, but the entire country of Kosova is also saying it. They have deep gratitude for America here, especially on Independence Day. The US was instrumental in the UN campaign to drive the Serbs from Kosova in 1999. Today they consider America the key to their successful bid to become a country.

To witness the announcement on TV yesterday, Julia and I found ourselves in a local restaurant with our friends, John and Ruth. It was a sunny, but cold afternoon and a generous 6 inches of snow covered the ground. Several men and a few women had gathered to watch the prime minister and president. There was a meal, drinks, dancing, fireworks, toasts, clapping, speeches and plenty of laughing. Occasionally a man would walk out the door, fire his automatic pistol in the air, then step back into the party. One man from our village said to me, “there was a song here, back in the early 80’s when we were oppressed. It consoled us saying, don’t worry mother you have a son in America. Now America is here and we can’t believe it.”

After a couple hours we went back to our friend’s home to celebrate with our children and watch the TV reports (CNN, BBC, etc). It was fun watching folks celebrate in downtown Pristina. We played some traditional Albanian music, danced some more and ate cake.........we slept in late on Monday. We are certainly lucky to have experienced Kosova's indepencence day.

So, how many countries are there now?
A. 193
B. 195
C. 213
D. 388
E. Hard to say

Independence Close?

We may witness the birth of a country this weekend. It appears our new prime minister, Hashim Thaci (Tha-chee) will declare independence in the capital city of Pristina this Sunday. Serbia is still very much against it, Russia too. They have no leverage as most of the EU countries support the Kosovar Albanians and their desire for secession from Serbia. However, the political ramifications stretch far and wide.

There will be a great deal of celebrating Sunday and all week. Our school will not have classes Mon - Wed. The Palmers will not venture into Pristina until Tuesday (maybe). No need to join in the serious revelry which involves shooting guns into the air (we're told). We're very happy for our Albanian friends here. Their joy will spill over, no doubt, but they are still concerned about unemployment, corruption, electricity, food prices, etc. Life will go on one week from now.

Tensions are a bit high. We do not expect any violence, however, there are Serbian paramilitary groups that could cause trouble at the borders. The UN troops and the police have already become more visible the past few days. When you know the history, recent and past, it is hard to understand how anyone would disagree with the Kosovar Albanians' wishes to have a land of their own. Serbia, of course, is passionate about this portion of their sovereign land - they don't want to lose it. It is emotional and raw. Please pray for a peaceful transition.