Church, rail workers join Serb boycott in Kosovo
By Matt Robinson
PRISTINA, March 3 (Reuters) - The influential Orthodox Church and railway
workers on Monday joined a widening Serb boycott of Kosovo following its
declaration of independence from Serbia last month.
The Church instructed all priests in the Albanian majority territory to end all
contact with the capital Pristina, the European Union mission taking over
supervision of Kosovo and representatives of countries that have recognised its
secession on Feb 17.
The Church should "not have contact or hold any kind of discussion with
representatives of these institutions or countries, nor receive them or respond
to their invitations," Bishop Artemije wrote, state news agency Tanjug reported.
Backed by Russia, Serbia rejects Kosovo's secession and is instructing the new
country's 120,000 remaining Serbs to do the same, worsening the ethnic divide
and raising fears Kosovo is heading for de facto partition.
Over 200 Serb police officers have been suspended and handed in their weapons,
badges and radios after refusing to take orders from the Kosovo Police Service
command in Pristina and demanding they report only to the United Nations police.
Border posts in the Serb-dominated north have been attacked, preventing the
collection of customs taxes, and Serbs are bidding to take control of the main
U.N. court in the north by preventing its Albanian staff from travelling to
work.
The EU's Kosovo envoy, Dutch diplomat Pieter Feith, accused Serbia on Friday of
trying to sever ties between the 90-percent Albanian majority and minority
Serbs, a move he said was "coming very close" to a bid for partition.
RAIL WORKERS
Early on Monday, the train travelling from Kosovo Polje in central Kosovo to
Lesak in the far north was stopped at the northern Zvecan station as soon as it
had crossed into Serb-dominated territory.
Around 50 Serb workers in the Kosovo Railway said they had "separated" from the
Pristina headquarters.
"We have decided, as the northern department, to separate from the Kosovo
Railway in Pristina because, for us, Zvecan is still Serbia, and will remain
Serbia," said railway worker Ivan Konstadinov.
Branislav Ristivojevic, head of the state Serbian Railway company and an
adviser to Serb Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, said the company would "take
over responsibility" for the railway infrastructure north of Zvecan.
Serbia lost control over its then southern province in 1999, after NATO bombed
to halt the killing and ethnic cleansing of Albanian civilians by Serb forces
in a two-year war against separatist guerrillas.
Serbia cherishes Kosovo as the cradle of the nation, where Serb history and
myth dates back 1,000 years and old monasteries dot the land.
The European Union is taking over policing and supervision of the new country,
but faces a challenge to impose its rule in Serb areas, notably the north where
Serbs dominate.
Serbia is promising to rule parts of Kosovo where "loyal citizens" continue to
look to Belgrade for government. (Additional reporting by Branislav Krstic;
editing by Keith Weir)
Serbian News Network - SNN
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