Bairam Curri: Refugees and the Liberation Army of Kosovo

AIM Tirana, 25 June, 1998

The small town Bairam Curri in the north of Albania, forgotten even by the Albanians, has become known in just a few weeks not only in Albania. Reports of CNN, BBC and other most prominent world tv stations, in the past few days, all end with the following words: "Bairam Curri, Nothern Albania".

This small town with no more than four thousand inhabitants who live in dramatic poverty attracted attention of the world in the beginning of June when the tide of refugees from Kosovo started flowing in. About 260 kilometres long road leading from Tirana is almost impassable, but the way can be shortened if one takes a ferry across the artificial lake made after the gigantic hydro-electric power station had been constructed in the seventies.

The ferry-boat which plies towards Bairam Curri resembles a movable scenery of some bloody theatre. People disembarking are refugees from Kosovo who are travelling towards other parts of Albania, and those who are embarking are journalists of the best known journals and tv stations. This exchange is the first contact with Kosovo. Refugees are heading towards mini-buses which will take them in the direction of various towns of central Albania, followed by journalists and taxis. Their faces are worn out and pale. They watch numerous cameras with anger. An elderly woman decides to speak. "We walked for 50 hours to the border. We saw massacred people, arms and heads cut off, eyes dug out. We saw children born and children die along the way". She is on its way to Durres, and we are going towards Bairam Curri.

Much pain is felt on the ferry-boat. In a corner, ten young men in black trousers. A citizen from Bairam Curri says that young men are arriving every day from Germany, Switzerland, the USA and other countries, and travelling towards the north in order to cross the state border and join the Liberation Army of Kosovo (OVK). They are standing in a group and talking in low voices. After an hour, one of them goes up to the journalists of NBC wishing to tell them something. His English is not good enough for them to understand each other. Suddenly, tension is created. Someone hurries to take over the role of an interpreter. It turns out that the young man had suspected that one of the journalists was a Serb! The journalist of NBC hurriedly explains, not without concern, that there are no Serbs in his crew. This ends the incident, but even on this ferry boat a big burden of the conflict and hatred could be felt, although many kilometres separate it from the war.

In the lobby of Ermal Hotel in Bairam Curri, there are many of those who are looking for rooms, but not a single one is available. Six months ago, the owners of the hotel were looking for a buyer wishing to seel it, and nowadays, their business is flourishing. A very humble room for foreigners costs about 40 dollars. Representatives of OSCE, UNHCR and other international organizations are staying in this hotel. More than a hotel, this building resembles some headquarters where information are exchanged. Bairam Curri itself resembles some miniature city.

Fifteen thousand refugees have arrived in this small town, all of whom have numerous relatives among those who have remained where the conflict is. One cannot say that their arrival was unexpected, because the echo of the war and weapons can be heard in surrounding villages every day. The town is experiencing a chaotic situation. The road towards Padesh, where the refugees are coming from, should not be called a road. It is starting to rain and the journey becomes dangerous. At the border, we see barefoot children and old people who have travelled down dangerous roads all night in order to avoid Serb snipers. The sight is deeply moving. Soaking wet, they greet us. However, except for the journalists and a few peasants whose houses are next to the border, nobody welcomes the caravan of refugees any more. A few days ago, UNHCR sent water and food, but we have seen none of it.

"For ten days now we are staying in shepherds' cabins", says a 50-year old, holding a three-year old child.

"Hundreds of people have left their homes, but cannot start on the journey because they are sick or wounded".

"How do you see your future?"

"The future? We will fight for liberation of Kosovo. I will go back again", he answers.

"Do you expect help from the international community?"

"Yes. NATO!"

They all believe in two things: NATO and OVK. NATO airplanes in the sky and OVK soldiers on land, are the only hope of these desperate people.

We are going back with them. The natives offer them help. From the beginning of the crisis, in the course of just a few days, only 15 houses have given refuge to about two thousand people who had arrived from Kosovo.

Lionel Rosenblatt, president of the organization REFUGIEES INTERNATIONAL, specialized for offering help says: "In almost 20 years of my engagement with the problem of refugees in many countries of the world, the hospitality of these poor people is unprecedented. However, if projects are not developed for offering support to the town of Bairam Curri and the surrounding villages, it will be impossible to overcome this crisis".

Majority of families in this region live on social welfare which does not exceed 20 dollars a month. They have drinkable water only a few hours a day, telephone lines practically do not exist. It seems that the new-comers, along with trauma of the war, are experiencing the shock of poverty they could not have even imagined.

In Bairam Curri, everybody speaks of the OVK. Often men come with the women, children and the elderly, leave them behind in Tropoje and go back in order to wage war. Majority of them do not even want to know whether Rugova has met Milosevic, whether Nano has met this or that, or whether Berisha is delivering patriotic speeches in Tirana.

"They are all traitors and will not last long", says a young man who has just arrived from Switzerland in order to join the OVK. The only slogan of the newly arrived refugees from Kosovo and the soldiers of the OVK arriving from diaspora is: "We are all the OVK".

AIM Tirana

Arben KOLA