17.01.2014 Rroma in Kosovo

Based on selected informants, Woker (2014) presents an unbiased, nuanced view of the fate of Rroma in Kosovo. He portrays various projects in Pristina and the suburbs that were co-sponsored by returning or remaining Rroma. In the Serbian municipality of Gracanica they run a hotel, which was co-sponsored by a Swiss official. Nrecaj, a Rrom, wanted to set up small libraries in all public schools to improve children’s education skills. However, the Kosovo authorities showed no interest in his project. Andreas Worms, an official who assessed the return of Kosovo exiles in late 1999 on behalf of the Swiss Federal Government and some aid agencies, confirms the difficulties of reintegration. Not infrequently, the houses of the Rroma were destroyed in Serbian minority areas: “Wormser had to assess the reasonableness of a return in the event of asylum applications. The current situation of the minority was often delicate: their homes in Serbian villages were destroyed and in the Albanian settlement area they were seen as collaborators with the Serbs and had to fear for their lives.” Woker’s conclusion is that the situation for the Rroma in Kosovo is still unsatisfactory. The conflicts from spring 2004 encouraged many in the decision to seek their luck abroad. From originally around 200’000 Rroma today about 50’000 remain in the Kosovo. Despite efforts by organizations such as “Voice of Roma”, who work for better educational qualifications among the Rroma, there remain strong tensions between the two other ethnic groups in the country: the Kosovar Albanians who make up the majority of the population and the Kosovo Serbs, who constitute the second largest group. Whether the Rroma hotel will become a model project or not, will have to be seen.