AP News, March 4th, 2007
Several thousand ethnic Albanians marched through Kosovo's capital Saturday protesting a U.N. plan on the province's future, saying the proposal falls short of granting it full independence from Serbia.
The protesters chanted anti-U.N. slogans, waved Albanian flags and held banners calling for self-determination as they walked the streets of Pristina. Police said no incidents were reported during the protest.
The demonstration followed a violent clash between police and activists of the "Self-Determination" movement nearly a month ago. Two demonstrators were killed when U.N. police fired rubber bullets at ethnic Albanian protesters angry with the plan.
In the aftermath of that protest, three U.N. cars were bombed, raising fears that tension could plunge the territory back into violence eight years after the war between Serb forces and ethnic Albanian separatists.
The U.N. plan, drafted by chief envoy Martti Ahtisaari, would grant greater rights and security to Kosovo's small Serbian minority while putting the province under internationally supervised self-rule and giving it elements of statehood, such as a flag, anthem, army and constitution.
The protest comes a day after the final round of talks between ethnic Albanians and Serbs ended in disagreement over the plan. With both sides entrenched in their opposing views, it was unlikely that Ahtisaari would significantly change his proposal before submitting it later this month to the U.N. Security Council _ which will have the final say.
Ethnic Albanian leaders, who demand independence from Serbia, have accepted the U.N. proposal, while Serbia rejected it, saying it gives the province virtual independence.
"We are demonstrating against Ahtisaari's plan which clearly denies people of Kosovo the right to self-determination," said Glauk Konjufca, an organizer of the protest. "If others want to impose on us harmful projects ... we do not accept and we fight that."
Kosovo's Prime Minister Agim Ceku appealed Friday to ethnic Albanians to trust that the U.N.-mediated process would lead to independence, and urged protesters not to use violence.
