ICMP’s Conference on Kosovo Missing Persons Gathers Albanian and Serb Representatives in Skopje

A two day conference organized by the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) and titled “The Future of the Missing Persons Process from the Kosovo Conflict” started today in Skopje, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Representatives of family associations of missing persons as well as government representatives from Serbia and Kosovo are attending, in addition to relevant experts and representatives of the international community.

Dvodnevna konferencija „Budućnost procesa traženja i identifikacije lica nestalih u kosovskom sukobu“ koju je organizovala Međunarodna komisija za nestale osobe (ICMP) otvorena je danas u Skoplju. Konferenciji prisustvuju predstavnici udruženja porodica nestalih i institucija vlasti Srbije i Kosova, kao i relevantni eksperti i predstavnici međunarodne zajednice.

The goal of the meeting is to take stock of the process of searching for persons missing from Kosovo conflict. The first day of the conference was dedicated to discussions on current situation and the progress reached in locating, recovery and identification of missing persons, legislation on missing persons, war crimes prosecutions, the incorporation of the consolidated Kosovo list of missing persons into the regional list and the functioning of domestic institutions.

Representatives of families of missing persons expressed their concern over lack of exhumations, lack of institutional support to family associations as well as inadequate communication and information exchange among the regional governments, especially when it comes to access to government archives and dossiers that could help in finding more missing persons.

“Every family member has a legal and moral right to know the fate of their missing loved one. The authorities in the region – and in particular of Serbia and Kosovo – need to provide information in their possession and to ensure a transparent process for the interest of their citizens. We also believe a special focus should be given to creating a joint regional list of missing persons that will improve the search and benefit everyone in the region. I hope that through this meeting all stakeholders – including the families – will provide their views on how to ensure a sustainable process of accounting for the missing,” said ICMP Director General Kathryne Bomberger during the opening speech of the conference.

“We highly appreciate this continuing tradition started by ICMP at their Ohrid 2007 conference. We believe this forum represents an excellent opportunity for the families affected by war consequences in Kosovo to receive answers to their questions”, said Haki Kasumi, the Coordinator of the Coordinating Council of Associations of Families of the Missing in Kosovo.

“Thanks to ICMP’s initiative, today we are in Skopje together with all family associations of missing, kidnapped and killed persons from the Kosovo and Metohija region. We hope this conference will help reveal the fates of persons who remain unaccounted for 13 years after their disappearance”, said Verica Tomanović, President of the Family Association of Missing and Kidnapped Persons from Kosovo-Metohija.

The conference continues tomorrow with round table discussions during which strategies and recommendations for the future will be elaborated.

Formed in 1996, ICMP is the only specialized international organization that addresses the issue of missing persons in all of its facets. ICMP endeavors to secure the co-operation of governments and other authorities in locating and identifying persons missing as a result of armed conflicts, other hostilities or violations of human rights and to assist them in doing so.

Cilj sastanka je da se ustanovi trenutno stanje procesa pronalaska nestalih u sukobu na Kosovu. Prvi dan konferencije protekao je u diskusiji o trenutnoj situaciji i naprecima postignutim u lociranju, ekshumaciji i identifikaciji nestalih lica, potom raspravi o zakonskim rješenjima o nestalim osobama, istragama ratnih zločina, pripajanju konsolidovane liste nestalih lica na Kosovu regionalnoj listi, a razmatrano je i funkcionisanje domaćih institucija.

Predstavnici porodica nestalih izrazili su svoju zabrinutost nedostatkom ekshumacija i manjkom institucionalne podrške udruženjima porodica. Porodice su također naglasile neadekvatnu komunikaciju i razmjenu informacija između vlada u regionu, naročito što se tiče pristupa vladinim arhivama i dosijeima koji bi mogli biti od pomoći u pronalasku preostalih nestalih osoba.

„Sve porodice imaju pravno i moralno pravo da znaju sudbinu svojih voljenih. Vlade u regionu, a u ovom slučaju naročito vlade Srbije i Kosova, moraju pružiti informacije koje su u njihovom posjedu i moraju obezbijediti transparentan proces u korist svojih građana. Također smatramo da treba staviti poseban akcenat na kreiranje zajedničke regionalne liste nestalih koja će olakšati potragu i biti od koristi cijelom regionu. Nadam se da će kroz ovaj sastanak svi zainteresovani – uključujući i porodice – iznijeti svoj stav o tome kako obezbijediti održiv proces pronalaska nestalih osoba”, izjavila je generalna direktorica ICMP-a, Kathryne Bomberger tokom uvodnog govora konferencije.

“Jako visoko ocjenjujemo nastavak tradicije koju je ICMP započeo u Ohridu 2007. godine i smatramo da je ovaj forum dobra prilika za porodice nestalih pogođene posljedicama rata na Kosovu, da dobiju odgovore na pitanja koja ih muče”, rekao je Haki Kasumi, šef Koordinacije udruženja porodica nestalih lica na Kosovu.

“Zahvaljujući inicijativi ICMP-a danas se nalazimo u Skoplju zajedno sa svim udruženjima porodica nestalih, kidnapovanih i ubijenih lica sa prostora Kosova i Metohije. Nadamo se da će ova konferencija doprinijeti rasvjetljavanju sudbine nestalih lica koja su još uvijek na spisku traženja i nakon 13 godina od nestanka“, izjavila je Verica Tomanović, predsjednica Udruženja porodica kidnapovanih i nestalih lica na Kosovu i Metohiji.

Konferencija se nastavlja sutra kada će se kroz diskusije u manjim grupama raspravljati o strategijama i preporukama za naredni period.

ICMP je osnovan 1996. godine i jedina je specijalizirana međunarodna organizacija koja se problemom nestalih osoba bavi kroz sve njegove aspekte. ICMP nastoji obezbijediti saradnju vlada i drugih organa vlasti pri lociranju i identifikovanju osoba nestalih tokom oružanih sukoba, drugih oblika neprijateljstva ili kršenja ljudskih prava, te nastoji pružiti pomoć u provođenju ovih aktivnosti.