PACE to debate minorities in Serbia

Eric,
Right you are. Serbia is definitely the most tolerant and multicultural country in the Balkans, if not in all of Europe. We welcome all, even though some, like the albanians, try to take advantage of our kindness by ethnically cleansing us and trying to steal 15% of sovereign Serbian land (with the help of the US so that they can have an unrestricted military base in southeast Europe).
This is the reality of what is going on. The victims are painted as the aggressors, and the aggressors as victims. It is part of a huge anti-Serb, dehumnanizing propoganda campaign, which is still going on, and which is meant to destroy Serbia for daring to be free and independent, and not subservient to the colonialists like all our neighbours are.
There is an old saying - Nije lako biti Srbin - which means 'It's not easy being Serbian'.
It's not easy because we are not lapdogs, never have been, and never will be. We want to be treated fairly, and will settle for nothing less. Until this happens, there will never be peace in the balkans.
Cheers!!

Seems to me the only minorities in the world who get the best representation and privliges are the ones found in Serbia. A small country with a population of 9M...wow...mind blowing! I've done some reading and it suprises me that Serbia is the most culturally diverse country in the Balkans with the highest precentage of minorities compared with the total Serb population.

I read several parts of the Serbian constitution in respects to minorities and well it sure surpasses the level of tolerance that UK or even America appoint to their minorities. Its only one step off from giving them complete autonomy, even a country!

Eric and Dragan,

Bravo, you said it all! Many countries could learn a lot from Serbia.

The minoroties in Serbia have always had great rights. In fact, the Albanians in Serbia, prior to 1989, had by far the best rights that any minority in the world had. They did not even have to learn the official language of the country in which they lived. But then this excessiveness was reduced to just the regular as all the other minorities... and well, they were angry for having to learn the official language and some other minor things that are the norm everywhere. But anyways, the important thing to note is that the non-albanian minorities have always participated very much in our political processes. They constitute some 15% of the vote, and without doubt are the ones who decide who wins and who loses. For example, most serbs voted for the radicals, but the minority votes resulted in Tadic winning. Now, if they did not participate, our country may have different results, but that very fact, to be able to have that influence is unheard of anywhere in the world. Now, in the 1990s the albanians preferred to boycott the political process because they don't know what democracy is. This type of minority was so big that they their vote could have overthrown milosevic way earlier, along with other votes. But this is the problem when the minority does not want to participate in democracy. If they then the pro-West regime could have come to power way earlier. The problem is that the albanian minority wanted to have milosevic in power, because if some other regime was there then the west would not have been against serbia. Therefore minorities are only good when they participate in the political process of the country, and pretty much all minorities in serbia have been doing, having their own parties and representation in parliament and decision making. For example, when NATO bombed us, 90% of the minorities responded to the army call. That there shows loyalty to their country, and the fact that their participation is good and should be a model for all other countries. Vojvodina with six official languages is a model in itself, as it is the most multi-cultural region in Europe.

Dragan and lazar,

Thanks for the insightful historical view point. I'll be honest, I can't agree or disagree with you two gentlemen, I do not know enough about Serbian history in order to form an opinion. From a legal stand-point refering to the Serbian constitution; the benefits which minorities recieve in Serbia can be abused. As a lawyer, there are too many loopholes within the system for minorities to take advantage of there status quo!
In regards to Kosovo Albanians prior actions in Kosovo before the 1999 bombings as Lazar pointed out, well Serb officials in Belgrade are also partly to blame. If your constitution was formulated with the emphasis that minorities will be granted such privilges and rights then it was inevitable that such an outcome would arise.

Best wishes to you and the Albanian posters, may both of you find peace together.

Cheers

"Serbia is definitely the most tolerant and multicultural country in the Balkans"

Sure, Dragan. That`s why the Romanians in Timoc valley are called "vlahs" and have no right to have schools or churches in theyr language.

Serb "kindness" towards the Slovenians, Croatians, Bosnians and the Kosovars is very well documented. All you need to do is ask the victims how well they were treated by the Serbs and they will tell you why they fought for freedom.

"Serbia is definitely the most tolerant and multicultural country in the Balkans"

Sure, Dragan. That`s why the Romanians in Timoc valley are called "vlahs" and have no right to have schools or churches in theyr language.

Seems to me the only minorities in the world who get the best representation and privliges are the ones found in Serbia. A small country with a population of 9M...wow...mind blowing! I've done some reading and it suprises me that Serbia is the most culturally diverse country in the Balkans with the highest precentage of minorities compared with the total Serb population.

I read several parts of the Serbian constitution in respects to minorities and well it sure surpasses the level of tolerance that UK or even America appoint to their minorities. Its only one step off from giving them complete autonomy, even a country!

Eric,
Right you are. Serbia is definitely the most tolerant and multicultural country in the Balkans, if not in all of Europe. We welcome all, even though some, like the albanians, try to take advantage of our kindness by ethnically cleansing us and trying to steal 15% of sovereign Serbian land (with the help of the US so that they can have an unrestricted military base in southeast Europe).
This is the reality of what is going on. The victims are painted as the aggressors, and the aggressors as victims. It is part of a huge anti-Serb, dehumnanizing propoganda campaign, which is still going on, and which is meant to destroy Serbia for daring to be free and independent, and not subservient to the colonialists like all our neighbours are.
There is an old saying - Nije lako biti Srbin - which means 'It's not easy being Serbian'.
It's not easy because we are not lapdogs, never have been, and never will be. We want to be treated fairly, and will settle for nothing less. Until this happens, there will never be peace in the balkans.
Cheers!!

Eric and Dragan,

Bravo, you said it all! Many countries could learn a lot from Serbia.

The minoroties in Serbia have always had great rights. In fact, the Albanians in Serbia, prior to 1989, had by far the best rights that any minority in the world had. They did not even have to learn the official language of the country in which they lived. But then this excessiveness was reduced to just the regular as all the other minorities... and well, they were angry for having to learn the official language and some other minor things that are the norm everywhere. But anyways, the important thing to note is that the non-albanian minorities have always participated very much in our political processes. They constitute some 15% of the vote, and without doubt are the ones who decide who wins and who loses. For example, most serbs voted for the radicals, but the minority votes resulted in Tadic winning. Now, if they did not participate, our country may have different results, but that very fact, to be able to have that influence is unheard of anywhere in the world. Now, in the 1990s the albanians preferred to boycott the political process because they don't know what democracy is. This type of minority was so big that they their vote could have overthrown milosevic way earlier, along with other votes. But this is the problem when the minority does not want to participate in democracy. If they then the pro-West regime could have come to power way earlier. The problem is that the albanian minority wanted to have milosevic in power, because if some other regime was there then the west would not have been against serbia. Therefore minorities are only good when they participate in the political process of the country, and pretty much all minorities in serbia have been doing, having their own parties and representation in parliament and decision making. For example, when NATO bombed us, 90% of the minorities responded to the army call. That there shows loyalty to their country, and the fact that their participation is good and should be a model for all other countries. Vojvodina with six official languages is a model in itself, as it is the most multi-cultural region in Europe.

Dragan and lazar,

Thanks for the insightful historical view point. I'll be honest, I can't agree or disagree with you two gentlemen, I do not know enough about Serbian history in order to form an opinion. From a legal stand-point refering to the Serbian constitution; the benefits which minorities recieve in Serbia can be abused. As a lawyer, there are too many loopholes within the system for minorities to take advantage of there status quo!
In regards to Kosovo Albanians prior actions in Kosovo before the 1999 bombings as Lazar pointed out, well Serb officials in Belgrade are also partly to blame. If your constitution was formulated with the emphasis that minorities will be granted such privilges and rights then it was inevitable that such an outcome would arise.

Best wishes to you and the Albanian posters, may both of you find peace together.

Cheers

Serb "kindness" towards the Slovenians, Croatians, Bosnians and the Kosovars is very well documented. All you need to do is ask the victims how well they were treated by the Serbs and they will tell you why they fought for freedom.