First Serbs are inducted
into Kosovo Protection CorpsBy Rick Emert, Kosovo bureau
Rick Emert / Stars and Stripes
Shaban Musliu, chief of staff of the Kosovo Protection Corps' Regional Task Group 6, left;
Imri Illazi, the group's deputy commander, center; and Lt. Col. Clemson Turregano, chief
of the Joint Implementation Commission, prepare to induct two Serbs at the group's
Gnjilane headquarters Monday. |
GNJILANE,
Kosovo — The induction of the first Serbs into the Kosovo Protection Corps Monday was
an important step toward ethnic Albanians and Serbs living together peacefully, according
to protection corps leaders.
"For
the first time, we have Serbs that are equal members of the KPC, and together [Albanians
and Serbs] will be members of the KPC to accomplish the duties we have in front of us, for
the whole population of Kosovo," said Imri Illazi, Regional Task Group 6 deputy
commander.
The
group’s newest members, Dalibor Dimic and Stojan Djordjevic, are a small fraction of
the original 17 Serbs from the town of Straza who said they wanted to join the corps.
That number
dropped to 10 candidates after interviews, background checks and screenings were
completed, said Capt. John Poole, from 1st Battalion, 35th Armor Regiment. As the
battalion’s liaison for the corps, Poole assists with training and was involved in
the hiring of the Serbs.
Five of
those 10 were notified that they were accepted, the other five had reportedly left for
Serbia to find work, Poole said.
Only two of
those Serbs joined the corps on Monday.
The chief
of the Multinational Brigade East Joint Implementation Commission, Lt. Col. Clemson
Turregano, likened Dimic and Djordjevic to Jackie Robinson, who smashed the color barrier
in America by becoming the first black man to play Major League Baseball.
"[The
Serbs] may not see what an important first step they’ve taken toward integration, but
it is an important step," Turregano said.
The Kosovo
Protection Corps was formed in June 1999 and evolved from the former Kosovo Liberation
Army.
The
corps’ function is similar to the Federal Emergency Management Agency or the National
Guard, although it is not a military entity, Turregano said.
Its members
handle things like an influx of refugees, and provide other emergency services, like first
aid. Although the corps’ members are allowed to carry personal weapons for
self-defense, they cannot get involved in law enforcement, Turregano said.
The corps
has a regional task group in each of the KFOR sectors in Kosovo.
Regional
Task Group 6, with operates in Multinational Brigade East, is now the only group to have
Serb members. The group has 500 members. The sector comprises about 361,000 Albanians and
45,000 Serbs.
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