Reflections upon the acquittal of Haradinaj: re-examining my two days in Kosovo in 2011

Pristina, 2011

Ramush Haradinaj has been cleared of the war crimes for the second time. I read this news in an article published in Weekly Balkan(周刊巴爾幹), a Taiwanese magazine paying attention mainly on the Balkan areas. This article was talking about the suicide committed by Serbia's ambassador to NATO, Branislav Milinkovic, last year (2012). The author inferred that there were some probable factors contributing to the self-destruction. Among them was the acquittal of Haradinaj's case, which made him disillusioned with the values lobbied by the so called democratic West. 

    What intrigued and stunned me was the angle of Serbians as victims this article proposed. This perspective was not new to me as the Montenegrin guy I met in Tivat told me that both sides - Serbia and Kosovo - delivered filthy conducts during the war in late 90s. However, I seemed to accentuate Kosovo Albanians as victims more and meanwhile perceiving Serbians as perpetrators. Moreover, I composed an article called The Duet Performed by Kosovar and Taiwanese to indicate the similar historical courses of oppression from powerful neighbor mainly; Serbia is to Kosovo what China is to Taiwan. After reading some articles and one related chapter in Michael Radu's book, Dilemmas of Democracy and Dictatorship, I deeply regretted that I was so insensitive/biased that I didn't think about how many dimensions this tragedy could present.  

    Defining the appearance of a war is never easy.  Diverse narratives will be unfolded upon different actors involved within and beyond the battle land. Even though the Hague Tribunal acquitted the accusations against Haradinaj, it seemed that the evidences were ample. According to the Voice of Russia, Haradinaj was allegedly "involved in the killings, tortures, raping, ethnic cleansing and tormenting of Serbs." In addition, "108 criminal cases involving murders and terrorism have been opened against him in Serbia." Moreover, as a former commander from Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), Haradinaj was also convicted of committing inhuman crimes against Albanians who were "perceived to be collaborators with the Serbian authorities, or otherwise not supporters of the KLA" (note 1). This could echo what Michael Radu's (2006, 119) pointing out that the KLA eradicated not only Serbs but also the Albanians who were moderate  in or opposed to the use of violence in the conflicts (note 2).

    What's even more controversial was that the KLA utilized average folks to manipulate  their image of victimhood. The KLA knew that any single atrocity against civilians would trigger the emotion and action from the Western Countries. So, what the KLA had done was to irritate the Serbian force, whose typical brutality would eventually lead to indiscriminate retaliation against armless civilians (Radu 2006, 123). This strategy proved to be right. CNN's coverage, though actually incorrect and biased, also strengthened more of the victimhood the KLA had been eager for.  As Radu (ibid) pointed out, "... this sort of 'coverage' paints an inaccurate picture, and heightens the anti-Serbian sentiment that the KLA depends on." In a pro-USA country like Taiwan, CNN's images have tremendous leverage over the portrait of international issues. NATO's air strike on Belgrade also "re-affirmed" Serbia as the perpetrator, which deserved the bombs. So, it might not be so surprising to see how the image of Kosovo Albanians as the victims has carved such a strong and vivid story line out of my stiff brain. 

    I believe local knowledge of the war must be to some extent different from the propaganda shaped by the KLA and that by international community. Kosovo versus Serbia or Albanian versus Serb has myriad facets, but only the one with the most power and resource will be made the splendid facade.  It would be dangerous to stick to any one of them exclusively. However, you may also say that it would be ineffective and impractical to encompass as many perspectives as possible to outline the truth. I think this is the contradict and dilemma that will be confronted when tackling justice issues. But, in my opinion, paying attention to diverse views of point is still important. For example,  If I had talked to one of the Kosovar people, I would have had the chance of listening to different perspective and subsequently broken what I was told and taught. Different meanings rather than hatred or nationalist might probably emerge during the process of interaction and exploration. 

    Sounds like utopia? Yes, it does. Nevertheless, I know what attitude I should harbor in my mind when I am going back to Balkan areas in the future. Under this condition, I believe a new appearance of Balkan Peninsula will unfold in front of me.




Notes
1. Please see http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/kosovo-if-they-are-not-guilty-who-committed-war-crimes-2012-11-29

2. Michael, Radu. Dilemma o Democracy and Dictatorship: Place, Time, and Ideology in Global Perspective. New Brunswick, N.J. : Transaction Press, 2006.

The Duet Performed by Kosovar and Taiwanese

Kosovo, an officially new-born country in the 2000s, and one of the poorest countries in Europe, is the destination to whom I was eager to go last summer in 2011. The reason I felt like going might be simply based on my own superficial projection referring to Taiwanese identity which has been rejected by international reality. 


Before I went to Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, I had heard about some descriptions in regards with this city. For example, a polish girl I met in Ljubljana mentioned that (it was said) there were still some mines rested in many buildings. The owner of the hostel in Tivat where I stayed wrapped Pristina as a scary city with his jokingly erratic facial expression. Moreover, there was a Montenegrin guy told me that generally Kosovo was not a good place to visit then. There have been many sad and ugly things conducted by Serbians as well as by Kosovars. One of his uncle lost his lives during the war. 


All these comments may merely point to some facades among others. Nevertheless, it's no doubt that the legacy of the conflict was still there, and the tense between it and Serbia appeared to keep lasting for the coming generations. 

The journey to Pristina was long enough to help escalate the anxiety and nervousness in mind. Meanwhile, the rugged but breathtaking mountains eased my nerves. A Macedonian Australian guy and a beautiful Macedonian girl sat around me, both of whom were so friendly and chatted with me, also made me feel somewhat relieved. 

As long as the bus crossed the border, I overlooked the settlement located in the dark valley surrounded by the silent mountains. It's really hard for a person like me coming from a country with long peaceful situation to imagine the bullet-riddled grounds which just had been so real in the recent past. 

It was a few minutes to 4 a.m. when I woke up everyone who was heading for Skopje. The bus was pulled over on the side of the main road, where a fleet of tanks just passed. I went inside the bus station, taking a nap until 7 a.m. 

I observed the city landscape of Pristina from inside while the taxi rolled its wheels in the city. It was so different from the places where I had been to in Europe then. I felt as if I was watching a program on national geographic channel. The image impact became even stronger when I walked on the street after settling in hostel. Kosovo is for sure located in Europe, and I knew that it was such a different place given its history and culture. However, the landscape still made my frame of understanding fall apart; Mosque, music, traffic, market, tradutional custome, building, and so on all, every element here formed the slides that dazzled my eyes. 

Perhaps it's almost impossible to be a blank sheet of music paper when exploring a place you haven't been to before. In the very beginning every melody you write to a large extent denotes the clout of your assumption and understanding based on former experiences. The following key point is how to find different stories behind the evidences that are seemingly  in accordance with what you have been taught and told. It seemed that I didn't do this well. To me, the air was saturated with the legacy of the war against Serbia. The overflow of sad moisture was not condensed into rainwater and therefore the objects were surrounded by the depressed fog, looking gray, mottled, and dusty. The photos of missing people during the war hang on the wall of the governmental building (next to the Skanderberg statue) particularly weighted this kind of sorrowfulness. It reminded us of how real and horrible the war has been. It also manifested what innocent folks couldn't beg for option but luck when this kind of repeatedly historical trajectory  on the rail. 

 

Due to the escalating tension in the border with Serbia then, I determined not to linger here for too long. After two days of stay, I headed for Tirana from Pristina directly. Looking out from the window with the bus lurching forward on the main road to Tirana, while the desolate, ever-battled, wounded land cascading from horizon  in front of my eyes, recalling the Roma boy who might also crystal the solitude, I saw no immediate hope. 

It was apparently that I came up with this no-hope statement  based on not only the assumptions mentioned above but also my own definition shaped by my growing up in Taiwan of how the life should look like. Taiwan hasn't experience war for more than half a century. Since Chiang Kei-shek retreated to Taiwan in 1949, the island, including other small ones scattered on the ocean, has undergone dramatically changes and vicissitudes. These days Taiwan has removed the shackles of poverty / totalitarian rule and standed out in the world with its own fierceness. What I have grown up along with made it difficult for me to imagine how a country like Kosovo could recover from the wound and trauma and then regain its gorgeousness again.

In fact, there has been one hope existing in this land since the end of the war. Namely, Kosovars  have their own country at least. There are around 90 political entities that have recognized Kosovo as a country such as most of the EU members, US, Canada, and Japan. In other words, for the coming future Kosovars could keep enjoying their own identity without worrying about the insulting and confusing from outside, or, Serbia. The recognition from (most of) EU and US is like the ticket to the international community, the official and "normal" one. 

As for Taiwan, in contrast, China's threatening is becoming immense and closer. Tons of profits that can gained from China's market make most of the world silent in rights and justice regarding with Taiwanese people. Only around twenty countries still maintain official relationships with the island with most of them underpinned by the desire of money. The more and more difficulty situation in the international community and complicated historical legacies make many stuffs politically important. Meanwhile, emotionally burdensome and annoying, even the tiny things as well. The money thing, now matter it is related to the seduction of filthy lucre from China or simply refers to the basic survival, makes the situation more perplexing in this crisis era. Under those conditions, many  folks choose to be silent, pathetic, and, you may call it, practical.

Of course, the definition of hope varies. But both Kosovar and Taiwanese would like to keep having and looking their own hopes. What we (they) ask for, are simply the respect. Without respect, how could the easy and normal life fall upon us?

But, as I have said, Kosovar has their own country, and therefore other kind of hopes could be built upon its land. Taiwanese? I see no immediate hope.

歐洲急行軍(六) 蒙特內哥羅2: 來自台灣的溫暖

從碉堡走下來後，便在古城內亂走，同時思索接下來的行程。


走著走著，忽然有熟悉的語言傳進耳朵裡，而且還是非常親切的口音! 回頭一看，是一位導遊正在做解說。接著再往他身邊的遊客們聽去，我越來越確定他們是台灣來的旅行團! 由於很久沒說中文，再加上能在蒙特內哥羅碰到來自同樣家鄉的人，是何等不容易的事情，所以我決定去打聲招呼。


這團的台灣遊客都非常親切熱情! 看到我是一個人，居然就邀請我跟著他們一起聽解說XD。接著又邀請我跟他們一起用餐! 這頓餐是我離開台灣之後吃過最好的一頓正餐了T.T。用餐完畢後，我又跟著他們的遊覽車一起到Budva....XD。其實一開始我是不好意思跟的，畢竟我不是團員。不過在其中幾位團員的堅持下，同時他們也幫我徵詢其他團員的看法，似乎也都覺得沒關係，所以我就臉皮很厚的上車了(掩面)。


在得知我是一個人這樣趴趴走之後，他們都覺得我很勇敢(我是不覺得啦，畢竟我跑的點基本上算是保守的，跟很多前輩比起來，我還很嫩)。我本來以為以長輩&父母親的角度來看，會覺得我的行為很危險。但沒想到他們卻很贊同我的行程XD，不過我猜有部分原因是因為我沒有跟他們說我接下來要去科索沃的關係...哈哈。因為他們對我太好了，我實在不想讓他們擔心，所以只好把行程說得保守一點。另外，當他們知道我爸媽並不知道我的行程後，也沒有譴責我XD，因為他們也認為我爸媽應該是百分之兩百會因為擔心而阻止我的計畫。



拜緣分所賜，我得以來到Budva這個蒙特內哥羅境內最受歐美遊客喜愛的渡假勝地。除了著名的海灘外，古城區也挺不錯的，別有一番滋味。另外，當天似乎有蒙國的水球代表隊正在比賽，所以餐廳滿滿的人潮都在觀看電視直播。

由於這個旅行團的行程有些delay，所以我決定自己一個人坐車回Kotor，這樣就不必麻煩他們了，即便路線可能是順路的。臨別前，其中幾位團員居然給我餅乾還有....錢!!!  我當然不能收，但他們堅持要我收下，因為他們不希望我接下來的日子過的太辛苦，而且他們還說看到我就像是看到他們的小孩一樣。好吧，那我只好收下了(泣)(掩面again)


和他們分別後，有種莫名的失落，因為下一次見到一大群台灣人的機會，大概是明年畢業後才有機會了。另一方面，也有種無形的壓力XD，因為特別照顧我的幾個團員們都再三囑咐叮嚀交代我要小心。偏偏我的下一站是科索沃，一個尚未從過去的戰亂走出的年輕國家。對許多來自西歐與北歐的人來說，它們對於東歐的了解恐怕不會比我多上太多，更別說是科索沃這個政治問題複雜的內陸新興國家。資訊的不足以及因而衍伸出的刻板印象，加上來自台灣的人情壓力XD，讓我的心情忽然緊張了起來 囧。


為了預防萬一，所以在前往科索沃前，還特地先到郵局寄明信片，結果Kotor古城區郵局所販賣的郵票太大張，所以我最後只成功寄出一張XD。

歐洲急行軍(五) 蒙特內哥羅1: Kotor

車站旁的...民房?

台灣人進入蒙特內哥羅雖然不需要簽證，但卻必須在入境前至少兩天以前，完成通報手續。聽說完成通報程序會獲得通知，但我沒有收到XD。但我還是不管它，直接登上前往Kotor的巴士，想說大不了回頭嘛....XD。結果通關的時候，海關人員護照直接蓋章走人，連看都不看。

在即將到達Tivat前 (Kotor附近的一個城鎮)，有一段路程是巴士會開上船。車上的人都很興奮，因為沒人預期到居然有機會從這個位置來觀賞Bay of Kotor (一整車的年輕人，我猜應該都是國外來的背包客)。

到達Kotor是美麗的黃昏時分。走出公車站後，我一邊按照網路上的指示，尋找我所預定的Hostel的蹤跡，一邊不停地按下快門捕捉美麗的光景。後來我真的找不到，只好求助計程車司機，好心的司機大哥幫我打電話去問，才發現原來我要住的地方不在Kotor，而是在Tivat 囧(在錯誤的城市走那麼久，真是太愚蠢了T.T)

Kotor黃昏



從我住的Hostel遠眺

從Tivat坐公車到Kotor，可能要20分鐘，可能要50分鐘；前者是經過機場，然後再由鄰近的隧道前往Kotor，後者則是反方向繞行半島一圈。雖然繞半島這條路線很漂亮，可以觀賞壯麗的海灣以及座落其中的各大小鎮，但是........環灣道路太過狹小，連一大一小的兩台車會車都必須耗上一段時間，然後司機大哥又愛開快車，偏偏整條路都沒有設置曲面鏡，所以不時會踩剎車(在這樣的路況之下，有些司機還能講手機，然後速度還不放慢 = =)。有一個阿桑就是在車子行進間就起身準備下車，沒想到一個小剎車把她整個人摔進駕駛座上，結果變成緊急剎車  = =。




環灣道路上遙望Perast

活著抵達Kotor後，便前往著名的古城區。在古城門旁有一個傳統市場，有種台灣黃昏市場的感覺XD


那是什麼動物....



好一個蜂蜜

Kotor古城區其實也是很多遊客，但跟Dubrovnik比起來算是很少了，所以我比較喜歡這裡XD。亞洲遊客不算少，不時能碰到日本團跟韓國團。整個古城範圍其實不大，但整體來說還挺漂亮的，可以看到東正教教堂，還有蒙特內哥羅境內唯二的其中一座羅馬天主教教堂。

此地的另一個重頭戲則在於爬上興建於山壁上的雕堡，然後俯瞰Bay of Kotor。在炎熱的天氣之下爬山，其實很煩人，所以路上不時能聽到剛從上頭下來的遊客告訴正在奮力往上爬的大家說這一切都很值得XD。正如他們所說的，晴朗的Bay of Kotor真的非常壯麗動人，當下的主觀感覺就是: 這裡應該要比Dubrovnik還要紅才對啊!!!

所有的辛苦都是為了這一刻啊!

整體來說，撇除有點兇狠的開車技術之外，Bay of Kotor是個值得待上一星期的好所在。除了Kotor之外，鄰近的Perast、Herceg Novi...等地，都是值得一遊的好所在^^。

歐洲急行軍(四) 亞得里亞海(與Dubrovnik)

不知為何，我對於克羅埃西亞沒有太多的興趣，所以我買了張從Ljubljana到Dubrovnik的票(中圖要在Split換車)，直接殺到克國南部這個最受歡迎的城鎮。

由於我坐的巴士是晚上七點從Lkubljana出發，所以與亞得里亞海第一次的接觸，已經是夜晚了。一開始覺得有些可惜，但後來想想，看看不同風貌的亞德里亞海也不錯啊。而它也確沒讓人失望 : 克羅埃西亞那曲折破碎的海岸線就這樣透過沿岸城鎮的燈火給呈現出來，這絕對是我目前為止所看過最美麗的海岸夜景。

到達Split大約是清晨6點，所以白天的海景是從Split以下才有緣欣賞到(其實本來有考慮停Split，因為這裡是網球名將Goran Ivanisevic的故鄉XD)。如同原先所預期的，藍天白雲之下的亞德里亞海真的是讚到一個不行，整車的人沿路都在拍照。

克羅埃西亞南邊有一小段國土被波士尼亞與赫賽哥維那給截斷，而這一段是不需要簽證的。但海關人員還是會上車請大家出示護照。過了海關後，巴士就到休息站休息。我從網路上發現曾經有人利用這個休息站偷渡到Mostar去! 不過我沒這個膽，所以最後還是乖乖回原來的車。其實先前到Ljubljana就是想在那邊辦理波簽，但是沒有辦法><。希望下次能夠成行!

波士尼亞境內的休息站 真的超想偷渡到Mostar

終於來到著名的Dubrovnik。一下車就有一堆人來推銷他們的民宿，不過一開始我不願真它們周旋，還先到舊城區周邊繞一下，看有沒有辦法找到便宜的住宿。後來因為天氣太熱 + 包包太重，只好再回公車站找親切的阿婆們。

安頓好住宿後，就到舊城區逛逛了。這邊的確很美很有味道，但可能是因為天氣太熱加上遊客太多的關係，我在這邊只感到有些煩躁，就如同阿姆斯特丹給我的感覺一樣。後來我就買了隔天到蒙特內哥羅Kotor的車票，決定只待一個晚上就好。BTW，這邊有很多旅行社在經營許多一日遊的package，譬如說我要去的Kotor半島，以及波士尼亞的Mostar，據說還有到阿爾巴尼亞的行程，所以下次如果有人想到克羅埃西亞玩的話，看能不能將波士尼亞簽證辦到手，這樣就可以以Dubrovnik為中心，然後到鄰近的熱門地區看看(我個人還滿喜歡Kotor的...)。

歐洲急行軍(三) 因塗鴉而生色的Ljubljana (斯洛維尼亞)

如果拿許多國家的首都規格來檢視Ljubljana，那麼他恐怕要讓人失望了，就連火車站恐怕都會輕易地被許多台灣鄉鎮給比下去；舊城區的規模也不算太大，大概半天不到的時間就可以逛完。但是，對我來說，Ljubljana的清幽與舒適就足以秒殺掉其他擁擠且生活步調緊張的大城市。簡單來說，是座小而美的首都。

但真正讓人驚艷的，是那高密度的塗鴉，其中有許多作品真的是水準與趣味性兼具。不過我的host好像覺得我給的評價有點過譽XD，因為她覺得還是有很多低劣的作品，再加上過去曾經有兩派塗鴉藝術者鬥爭，使得Ljubljana的塗鴉沒有往日的水準。不論如何，對於我這個外行人而言，這裡的塗鴉真的是非常驚人。

除了一般街道，喜歡塗鴉的人絕對不能錯過這個Ljubljana版的Christiana(丹麥哥本哈根無政府主義者的集散地)。這裡有許多藝術家進駐，所以此地的塗鴉更是讓人驚喜。

下次有機會到Ljubljana的人，絕對不能錯過這些藏身於各個角落的"市民們"唷。