PRISHTINA-DEMOGRAPHIC SITUATION

Interview with Kosovo demographer, Prof. Dr Hivzi Isllami

AIM, Prishtina

The recently held symposium in Prishtina, organized by the Government of Serbia, where Serb members of the Academy of Sciences and Arts, but some politicians too, adopted radical conclusions including those concerning how to reduce birth-rate among the Albanians, and urge it among the Serb population in order to change the ethnic structure in this space, was the immediate reason for a conversation with the known Kosovo demographer, Dr Havzi Isllami.

AIM: It is often stressed that birth-rate and the demographic situation in general in Kosovo is specific in comparison with other environments. What actually characterizes demography flows in Kosovo within the structure of economic, social, educational, religious, political and other factors?

Isllami: The demographic situation in Kosovo has certain specific properties. It is the last demographic transition in Europe. But, there are specfic causes for that, too. In all of former Yugoslavia, Kosovo was the least developed area, where the key sectors of population reproduction - woman, family, village - were left out of reach of social, urban and cultural transformation. However, after the sixties, initial industrailization, urbanization and processes of social changes, by dissolving the comparatively homogeneous social and economic structure of Kosovo, influenced lowering of birth-rate and its territorial and social differentiation. Data provided by the 1981 census show that birth-rate, reflected through stratification prism, was determined by neither ethnic affiliation nor religion, nor was it connected with the atavistic and certain God-given formulae. In 1981 in Kosovo, an economically active woman gave birth to 3.07, and a supported woman to 5.49 children. A supported woman in agriculture had 6.74 children, and an active woman working in non-agricutural branches of the economy had 2.47 children. Illeterate women and those with no education gave birth to 7.04, those with secondary school 2.24 and highly-educated women 2.18 children on the average. A Serb woman in Kosovo ends up her reproduction period after having given birth to 3.42 chidlren (as a comparison, in Serbia 1.85, and in Vojvodina 1.87), while a Montenegrin woman gave birth to 3.16 children during her reproduction period in Kosovo (in Montenegro 2.98, in Serbia 2.12, in Vojvodina 1.99, in Croatia 1.84). But, with Croats in 1981 in Kosovo, birth-rate amounted to 27.5 parts per thousand, while with Croats in Croatia it was 15.3 parts per thousand. Social and cultural emancipation of women, their employment, education and mobility in space and on the social scale play a decisive role in accepting birth control in marriages and change of the reproduction regime.

AIM: In the past few years, demographic problems of Kosovo and "demographic expansion" of the Albanians have become the subject of virulent discussions in political and scientific circles of Serbia and former Yugoslavia. What are the reasons for starting this discourse?

Isllami: Within the Serb-Yugoslav discourse about Kosovo in the beginning of the eighties, demographic side of the Kosovo Albanian issue was not neglected but on the contrary it often became predominant. It is, of course, not disputable that relevant institutions in every society should deal with issues of demographic development as an inseparable part of social and economic development, in order to "direct" population trends in the desired direction. But, in the case of Kosovo, this discourse went on in an atmosphere of complete absence of rational reasoning and objective scientific analysis, so it acquired an open Neo-Malthusian and racist character. A broad discussion in political, party and scientific circles was not initiated in order to find a just solution for the problem of Kosovo and improvement of the quality of birth and reproduction of the Albanian population, but simply out of fear of demographic growth of the Albanians who allegedly had aspirations towards creation "Greater Albania" jeopardizing demographic and national prosperity of South-Slav nations in this way. Birth as an act and birth-rate as a phenomenon, however, from the times of homo sapiens to this day, have never been denoted as nationalistic. Such an interpretation exists only with Serb scientist and politicians.

AIM: In March this year, a symposium of Serb scientists and politicians about the population was held in Prishtina. According to your opinion, what was the objective of this gathering?

Isllami: The Serb active involvement in seeking instruments for birth limitation of the Albanians and establishing an ethnic balance in Kosovo has never stopped. This became quite obvious at this "scientific" symposium which was fully a function of daily policy. Immersed into deep economic and social problems, internal political conflicts, international isolation, moral and demographic crisis, Serbia wishes to turn the attention of its public to Kosovo again. Due to its disastrous policy in Kosovo where only violence against the Albanians operates perfectly, the objective of the gathering was to use the Serbs in Kosovo again, promising to colonize Kosovo with 400 thousand Serbs and send away the same number of the Albanians. Such and similar approaches, without any doubt, form part of a genocidal model of thinking and behaviour, but the Serb regime through its institutions, does not cease committing various forms of acts of genocide against the Albanians, including those in the demographic domain. Kosovo and the Albanians cannot be blamed for the defeat of Milosevic's policy in all spheres, negative natural movements of the Serbian population and total demographic catastrophe of the Serb village, all the way to destruction of the Serb society.

AIM: Can the current Serb regime influence reduction of birth-rate and demographic growth of the Albanians by means it keeps threatening them with?

Isllami: Forcible and bureaucratic manipulation of the regime through politicizing, pressure, dubious motivations, stressing fear that a certain nation will occupy a territory belonging to other nations etc, may cause only counter-effective behavior among the actors of reproduction who belong to the demographically "aggressive" nation. So far, no meddling of the state in the sphere of birth ever had any success, without consequences on human will and reason. After all, the process of reproduction goes on on the micro level, where individuals and married couples are its direct bearers who make decisions about the number of births and the time interval between them. States and regimes which tried to do something with the same aspirations did not succeed, especially not the cruel ones, such as the Serb. How can they have any influence when Kosovo was turned into a classic colony? On the other hand, after dissolution of the autonomy of Kosovo and dissolution of former Yugoslavia, the Albanians are constructing their own life, families and society the best way they can and know how.

AIM: In your polemic, you have rejected parts of the latest book written by Branislav Krstic "Kosovo between the Historic and Ethnic Rights", and you pointed out to aspirations of Serb policy towards the Albanians? You have reacted although it seems that this time science was used as a means to an end?

Isllami: Even the architect Branislav Krstic joined the campaign for resolution of the Kosovo problem, of course, from the aspect of Serb national and state interest, dwelling mostly on the demographic territorial dimension. One of the main thesis in this book is fear of "demographic expansion of the Albanians" which, according to him, got into full swing after the sixties when autonomy of Kosovo started gaining in strength, stressing that, while "the Province exists, it is not possible to reconcile the historic right of the Serbs and the ethnic right of the Albanians". That is why he pleads for breaking up of the compact territorial residence and numerical superiority of the Albanian population, that can be achieved only by territorial re-shaping of Kosovo and creating a differential autonomy, which means division of Kosovo. This is not at all an original idea of Krstic, because proposals for territorial tearing Kosovo to pieces were stated before in various versions. Kosovo is a single indivisible whole in historic, geographic, ethnic, legal and political sense. Conclusions and messages from Mr Krstic's book in favour of reconciliation of the two rights and resolution of the Kosovo, that is, the Albanian and Serb issue are truly tragic for Kosovo and the two nations in the Balkans. The Albanians will not even accept the discussion about recomposition of the Kosovo space.

AIM: Migration processes are also highly conspicuous in Kosovo. How much can they influence the change of ethnic composition of the population, including the projects of Serb authorities on colonization of Kosovo?

Isllami: The main objective of the Serb regime in the past hundred years and perhaps even longer was to change the ethnic composition of Kosovo and the surrounding regions by colonization of the Serb population and removal of the Albanians. Between the two wars and after the Second World War, this was partly effectuated. In the beginning of the eighties, the idea about colonization of Kosovo became topical again and it was supported by all state and political structures of former Yugoslavia, and it started through the so-called Yugoslav Program for Kosovo. After 1990, the Serb authorities, with the approval of all political parties, adopted new projects and laws on colonization which have not yielded encouraging results, so the police and militaristic state decided to fulfill its intentions by causing emigration of the largest possible number of Albanians, especially young ones, by subjecting them to open terrorism. Parallelly with the silent ethnic cleansing, a few months ago, Serb-Yugoslav authorities adopted the new Law on bringing 100 thousand Serbs to Kosovo. Although this project seems to have more of a political and psychological function of pacifying nationalistic passions, it should not be underestimated. Too vigorous reactions of the international community are not evident, while the Albanians can oppose this project only by refusing to leave Kosovo, which is becoming more and more difficult under unendurable conditions of repression and poverty. Effectuation of this Project can have incalculable consequences on the interethnic, political and economic level, not only in Kosovo, but broader too.

Tahire Govori