Kosovo’s Interior Minister, Xhelal Sveçla, has reacted sharply to the statement by Snežana Paunović, the Serbian minister who said that if she were in Slobodan Milošević’s position in 1998, she would carry out ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. In an interview for Euronews Albania, Sveçla stressed that these words are not merely individual opinions.
The Kosovar minister argued that Paunović’s statement reflects a long-standing and uninterrupted line of official Belgrade towards the Albanian population. He assessed this as a continuation of the hostile attitudes that Serbia has historically held.
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Asked about the nature of the statement, whether it stemmed from personal convictions or a state approach, Sveçla gave a definitive answer. He underlined that the author of the words is a minister in the Serbian cabinet, responsible for Public Administration and Local Government, which makes it impossible to separate her from Belgrade’s official policy.
“This is not the first time we face Serbian violence,” said Sveçla, recalling the waves of displacement of Albanians from their lands in the late 1980s, as well as the oppression before and after the Second World War. He added that the large Albanian diaspora community is a direct consequence of Serbia’s continuous repression. According to him, the current statement is just a new episode that shows the desire to repeat painful histories.
The interview also addressed the reaction of Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dačić, who stated that any Serb who does not feel like one can go to Albania or Kosovo. For Sveçla, this shows that neither Dačić nor President Aleksandar Vučić have ever broken away from Milošević’s genocidal legacy.
The Kosovar minister pointed out the direct links of the current Serbian elite to Milošević’s regime. He recalled that Dačić has held key posts as Minister of Interior and Foreign Affairs, has been Deputy Prime Minister and deputy to Milošević, while still leading his Socialist Party. Likewise, Sveçla mentioned that Vučić himself was the deputy of Vojislav Šešelj, convicted in The Hague for war crimes, and that politicians like Aleksandar Vulin have served close to the Milošević family.
“It is about the same clique in power, with the same policy, only the circumstances have changed,” continued Sveçla. He concluded by emphasizing that, unlike in the past, the Albanians in Kosovo are no longer victims of Serbia. He assured that the state of Kosovo is strengthening its legal instruments and defense apparatus every day for its citizens, turning Serbian threats into unattainable wishes.
