KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

27.08.2003.

THE PARLIAMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Starting from the fact that the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro is a full member of the United Nations and from the principles of state sovereignty and the territorial integrity of the State Union and the Republic of Serbia as its member state, which has been guaranteed by the Constitutional Charter and reaffirmed by the UNSC Resolution 1244,

Noting the commitment of the Republic of Serbia, as the member state of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, to provide its full support to the consistent implementation of:

- The United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 of June 10, 1999;

- The Military-Technical Agreement on Kosovo and Metohia of June 9, 1999;

- The Common FRY-UNMIK Document of November 5, 2001;

Bearing in mind the highest and widely accepted state interests:

- Establishment and development of the democratic society in the Republic of Serbia, which is based on the rule of law and which provides for full observance of human rights,

- Preservation and strengthening of stability and cooperation in South East Europe,

- Affiliation and participation of the Republic of Serbia, through its membership in the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, in European associations, with the accession to the European Union as its final objective;

Appreciating the efforts of the relevant international institutions, governmental and non-governmental organizations (OSCE, UNHCR, the International Ombudsperson in Kosovo and Metohia, Amnesty International) to improve the human rights and overall political and security situation in Kosovo and Metohia,

Pointing to the humanitarian catastrophe in the Republic of Serbia with great concern, the catastrophe that has been caused by a large number of involuntary migrants, 250,000 of whom are internally displaced persons from Kosovo and Metohia,

Insisting on the principles and objectives of the United Nations Charter, particularly on those related to the observance of human rights, the right of refugees and IDPs to return home, the right to freedom of movement, property rights, and other human and civic rights,

Has made the following assessment:

1. The implementation of the UNSC Resolution 1244 has been unsatisfactory and disturbing thus far, marked by frequent violations of mandate by the international administration staff;
    
2. The process of building a democratic and multiethnic society and institutions in Kosovo and Metohia has been unsatisfactory and unsustainable, marked by ethnic discrimination in the provisional institutions of self-government and their unilateral decisions that have flagrantly breached the provisions of the UNSC Resolution 1244, such as the declaration on the legalization of the activities of the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army, hasty transfer of authorities from the international administration to the provisional institutions of self-government, while the real democratic society building mechanisms, such as the process of decentralization, have been precluded;
    
3. The human rights situation in Kosovo and Metohia and general security conditions have been extremely unfavorable, marked by frequent terrorist actions, physical abuse, ethnically-motivated assassinations, drastic expansion of the organized crime, robberies, usurpation and destruction of private property, freedom of movement restrictions, inability of the members of the Serbian ethnic community to use and participate in the work of the institutions, etc.;
    
4. The process of return of refugees and internally displaced persons has been completely unsuccessful, since less than two percent of the refugees and internally displaced individuals from the Serbian ethnic community have returned in four years;

The Parliament also notes that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, i.e. Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia as a member state of the State Union, have, since the beginning of the implementation of the UNSC Resolution 1244,

1. Met all their commitments as provided by the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 of June 10, 1999 and by the Military Technical Agreement between the International Security Forces (KFOR) and the Governments of the FR Yugoslavia and the Republic of Serbia of June 9, 1999;
    
2. Substantively contributed to the participation of the Serbian ethnic community in the implementation of the aforementioned documents by encouraging the Serbian ethnic community to participate in the elections for the provisional institutions of self-government both on the parliamentary and municipal level;
    
3. Invested extraordinary efforts to urge the Serbian ethnic community in Kosovo and Metohia to endure in the work in the provisional institutions of self-government, despite obvious discrimination, majoritarianism, and extremely unfavorable working conditions in these institutions.

The Parliament has come to the following conclusions:

1. The Republic of Serbia, as the member state of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, with all of its institutions and agencies, is firmly committed to use the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 as the fundamental framework for addressing the problem of Kosovo and Metohia, and, to this end, insists on its full and consistent implementation, as provided by the FRY-UNMIK Common Document of November 5, 2001;
    
2. The state sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia as a member state of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro includes Kosovo and Metohia, notwithstanding the provisional international administration, as reaffirmed by the UNSC Resolution 1244;
    
3. The Republic of Serbia, as the member state of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, is fully committed to European and Euro-Atlantic integration processes, which are also the most efficient mechanism for settling the problem of Kosovo and Metohia, along with consistent implementation of the UNSC Resolution 1244;
    
4. The United Nations Mission in Kosovo and Metohia is herewith requested, with full assistance and support of the Republic of Serbia, to show that it is determined to implement the objectives outlined by the UNSC Resolution 1244, in an unbiased manner and in full accordance with its mandate, unburdened by conflicts of interests of personal or other nature, and to create the environment of tolerance, which would facilitate the "development of a democratic and multiethnic society and self-governing institutions in Kosovo and Metohia, which will ensure that all inhabitants in Kosovo and Metohia enjoy substantial autonomy within the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, i.e. Serbia and Montenegro", which is the main objective of the Mission, as defined by the UNSC Resolution 1244, and a prerequisite for meeting the "standards before status" objective set by the UNSC.
    
5. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia are herewith authorized and ordered to render their maximum support and assistance to the UN Mission in Kosovo and Metohia through the Coordination Center of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia for Kosovo and Metohia in regard to the consistent implementation of the UNSC Resolution 1244, to correct severe violations in previous implementation of the Resolution, which has even led to legalization of terrorist activities, legalization of usurped property, etc. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia are herewith also authorized and ordered to render their maximum support to the international security presence in Kosovo and Metohia in providing a safe environment to all citizens in Kosovo and Metohia and in fight on terrorism and organized crime;
    
6. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia are herewith authorized and ordered to carry out all legal and legitimate measures and initiatives through the Coordination Center of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia for Kosovo and Metohia in order to protect the rights of the Serbian ethnic community and other ethnic communities or individuals that have been systematically deprived of their rights in Kosovo and Metohia, in order to protect the interests of the Republic of Serbia, the legal entities it is the founder of, as well other legal entities and organizations whose property and other rights in Kosovo and Metohia are blatantly violated, and in order to protect the valuable Serbian and European cultural heritage in the Province;
    
7. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia are herewith authorized and ordered to carry out measures through the Coordination Center of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia for Kosovo and Metohia, and in cooperation with UNESCO and UNMIK, in order to end the destruction of the cultural heritage of Serbia and Europe in Kosovo and Metohia, by selecting and categorizing the cultural and historic monuments, forming protection zones around the most important ones, carrying out protection of cultural and historic monuments, and undertaking long-term protection measures of our cultural and historic heritage.
    
8. The status of Kosovo and Metohia cannot be addressed until all provisions of the UNSC Resolution 1244 have been implemented, i.e. until the standards of a multiethnic life have been met as defined by the UN Security Council, until the decentralization has been carried out as defined by the Council of Europe, and until the Military-Technical Agreement and the FRY-UNMIK Common Document have been fully observed.
    
9. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia shall, through the Coordination Center of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia, and in cooperation with UNMIK, the provisional institutions of self-government, and relevant international organizations and groups (CoE, EU, OSCE, the Contact Group) ensure that standards are operational and that adequate monitoring mechanisms are set to gauge the progress in meeting the standards and timetables that have been agreed on.
    
10. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia are herewith authorized and ordered, in addition to the daily activities and cooperation with the UN Mission aimed at the consistent implementation of the UNSC Resolution 1244 that are carried out in order to address its highest priorities, i.e. in order to solve the missing persons issue, to launch the process of sustainable returns of IDPs, to guarantee security and freedom of movement, and to carry out the decentralization process in Kosovo and Metohia as a mechanism that will guarantee collective status and collective rights to the Serbian ethnic community in Kosovo and Metohia, to engage, through the Coordination Center of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia for Kosovo and Metohia and under the auspices of the High-Level working Group, in talks on technical issues and problems in the everyday life of the inhabitants in Kosovo and Metohia (such as electric power production and distribution, water supply, environmental protection, etc.).
     
11. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia are herewith authorized and ordered, in cooperation with the Parliament of Montenegro and the Parliament of Serbia and Montenegro and their relevant agencies and institutions, after all provisions of the UNSC Resolution 1244 have been implemented and UN Security Council's standards met, to give their full contribution, through the Coordination Center of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia and in consultations with the Contact Group, to outlining a platform for defining such a substantial autonomy of Kosovo and Metohia that would enable all citizens in Kosovo and Metohia to enjoy the substantial autonomy within the Republic of Serbia as the member state of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, as provided by the UNSC Resolution 1244 and the accompanying documents, i.e. in accordance with the constitutional order and legislation of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia as its Member State.
     
12. The relevant institutions and agencies of the Republic of Serbia are herewith authorized and ordered, within regular cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia in The Hague, to insist that all suspected perpetrators of criminal acts that are under the jurisdiction of the Tribunal that have been committed in the territory of Kosovo and Metohia, and of the criminal acts committed against members of the Serbian ethnic community in particular, be processed and to render all necessary assistance to the Tribunal's investigators in this regard.