Preface

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2006
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
March 6, 2007

Across the globe, men and women are pushing for greater personal and political freedom and for the adoption of democratic institutions. They are striving to secure what President Bush calls "the non-negotiable demands of human dignity."

Despite personal risk and against great odds, courageous individuals and nongovernmental groups expose human rights abuses. They seek to protect the rights of ethnic and religious minorities, workers, and women, and to stop the trafficking in human beings. They work to build vibrant civil societies, ensure free and fair elections, and establish accountable, law-based democracies.

These impatient patriots are redefining the limitations of what was previously thought to be possible. Indeed, in the span of a few generations freedom has spread across the developing world, communist dictatorships have collapsed, and new democracies have risen. The rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are protected more fully and by more countries than ever before.

This noble work continues - but it is not yet complete and it faces determined opponents. Not surprisingly, those who feel threatened by democratic change resist those who advocate and act for reform. Over the past year, we have seen attempts to harass and intimidate human rights defenders and civil society organizations and to restrict or shut down their activities. Unjust laws have been wielded as political weapons against those with independent views. There also have been attempts to silence dissenting voices by extralegal means.

Whenever non-governmental organizations and other human rights defenders are under siege, freedom and democracy are undermined. The world's democracies must defend the defenders. That is one of the primary missions of our diplomacy today, and we hope that the Department of State's County Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2006 will help to further this effort. With these thoughts, I hereby submit these reports to the United States Congress.

Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State

Introduction

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2006
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
March 6, 2007

These reports describe the performance of governments in putting into practice their international commitments on human rights. These fundamental rights, reflected in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, constitute what President Bush calls the "non-negotiable demands of human dignity." As Secretary Rice has said, the full promise of the UN Universal Declaration cannot be realized overnight, but it is urgent work that cannot be delayed.

The Universal Declaration calls upon "every individual and every organ of society … to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance..."

The United States takes its human rights commitments seriously. We recognize that we are writing this report at a time when our own record, and actions we have taken to respond to the terrorist attacks against us, have been questioned. The United States will continue to respond forthrightly to the good faith concerns of others, including by means of the reports we submit periodically in accordance with our obligations under various human rights treaties to which we are a party. We are also committed to continual improvement. US laws, policies, and practices governing the detention, treatment, and trial of terrorist suspects have evolved considerably over the last five years. Our democratic system of government is not infallible, but it is accountable--our robust civil society, our vibrant free media, our independent branches of government, and a well established rule of law work as correctives.

The congressionally mandated country reports on human rights practices that follow are an essential element of the United States' effort to promote respect for human rights worldwide. For three decades, these annual reports have been used widely here and abroad as a reference document for assessing the progress made and the challenges that remain. They also have served as a foundation for cooperative action among governments, organizations, and individuals seeking to end abuses and strengthen the capacity of countries to protect the fundamental rights of all.

The reports review each country's performance in 2006. Each report speaks for itself. Yet, broad patterns are discernible and are described below, supported by country-specific examples. The examples we cite are illustrative, not exhaustive.

Hopeful Trends, Yet Sobering Realities

As a review of these reports shows, across the globe in 2006, men and women continued to press for their rights to be respected and their governments to be responsive, for their voices to be heard and their votes to count, for just laws and justice for all. There also was a growing recognition that democracy is the form of government that can best meet the demands of citizens for dignity, liberty, and equality. These are hopeful trends indeed, yet the reports also reflect sobering realities:

First, the advances made in human rights and democracy were hard won and challenging to sustain. While some countries made significant progress, some lagged and others regressed.

As the range of examples below demonstrates, the performance of countries varied greatly, depending on factors such as the degree of governmental commitment, institutional capacity, the extent of corruption, and the strength of civil society.

In January 2006 Liberia's democratically elected Unity Party government, led by Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, the first female head of state in Africa, replaced the National Transitional Government of Liberia, which had served as the interim government since the end of a ruinous 14-year civil war in 2003. The government took significant steps to correct past human rights deficiencies, including working with international partners to rehabilitate the country's justice sector and establishing a public defender's office in the capital. The president dismissed or suspended a number of corrupt government officials. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, established in 2005 to investigate human rights violations and war crimes committed during the civil war, began taking statements from witnesses. Despite this progress, Liberia continued to face serious human rights challenges, including a still weak judiciary, official corruption and impunity, gender-based violence, and extreme poverty that led to child labor.

Substantial reductions in killings by the armed forces and the police in politically sensitive areas of Indonesia continued during the year. Fifty-four generally free and fair elections were held at the provincial, regency, district, and municipal levels, most notably in December in Aceh, where a former rebel field commander won the governorship. Although inter-communal religious violence generally abated, it nonetheless persisted in some areas. The government and the courts were unable to confront past human rights abuses and atrocities both in Indonesia and in East Timor.

Morocco's human rights record showed notable progress, although problems remained. The government began to address past human rights abuses by providing compensation through the Consultative Council on Human Rights for specific cases of arrest, disappearance, and abuse during the period between 1956 and 1999. In March the government enacted an antitorture law, although reports of torture by various branches of the security forces persisted. There was extensive and largely open debate in public and in the press, despite continuing restrictions on freedom of the press and speech. During the year the government punished some journalists who violated limitations on free speech, and many journalists practiced self-censorship. Trafficking in persons, particularly for sexual exploitation, and child labor remained issues of concern; however, both the government and civil society were increasingly active in addressing them.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo held its first democratic presidential and legislative elections in more than 45 years, putting an end to a three-year post-civil war transitional period. A new constitution went into force. Yet, the human rights record remained poor. In addition to simmering conflict in the east, where government control remained weak and armed groups continued to commit serious abuses, government security forces across the country also committed serious abuses with impunity.

In Haiti, citizens demonstrated their commitment to democracy by going to the polls three times in 2006. More than 3.5 million citizens registered to vote, and an impressive turnout estimated at more than 70 percent of registered voters participated in the first round of presidential and parliamentary elections in February. After a relatively stable and violence-free election process, voters selected President Rene Preval and filled 129 parliamentary seats. In December, Haiti held its first municipal elections in more than a decade. Yet much remains to be done to restore fully the rule of law, including an overhaul of Haiti's dysfunctional judicial system and the continued retraining and vetting of the Haitian National Police.

In Ukraine, notable post-Orange Revolution progress in human rights performance continued to be made. The March 2006 parliamentary elections were the freest in 15 years of independence. The country continued to make improvements in press freedom, freedom of association, and the development of civil society. Despite these gains, a number of serious problems remained, including corruption in all branches of government.

Although Kyrgyzstan's human rights record had improved considerably following the change to democratically elected leadership in 2005, during 2006 a week of mass yet peaceful protests culminated in the hasty adoption of an amended constitution that offered the possibility for genuine checks and balances. At the end of December, however, parliament passed another constitution negating many key checks and balances. The government also harassed foreign-funded nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).

Despite President Musharraf's stated commitment to democratic transition and "enlightened moderation," Pakistan's human rights record continued to be poor. Restrictions remained on freedom of movement, expression, association, and religion. Disappearances of provincial activists and political opponents continued, especially in provinces experiencing internal turmoil and insurgencies. The security forces continued to commit extrajudicial killings. Arbitrary arrest and torture remained common. Corruption was pervasive throughout the government and police forces. On a positive note, in December the National Assembly passed and President Musharraf signed the Women's Protection Bill - marking the first time in three decades that a Pakistan government successfully rolled back laws detrimental to women's rights. The law amends the 1979 rape and adultery provision of the Hudood Ordinance by transferring the offense of rape from Pakistan Sharia law to the Pakistan Penal Code. The law also eliminates the requirement for rape victims to present four male witnesses to press charges.

Though Egypt held a first-ever, multi-party presidential election in 2005, in 2006 public calls for greater democratization and accountability sometimes met with strong government reaction. The continued imprisonment of former presidential candidate Ayman Nour raised serious concerns about the path of political reform and democracy in the country. Continuing a trend begun in 2005, the government arrested and detained hundreds of activists affiliated with the banned-but-tolerated Muslim Brotherhood, generally for periods lasting several weeks. Two senior judges were brought in for questioning in February for publicly calling for an independent judiciary. Egyptian police arrested and detained over 500 activists for participating in demonstrations in support of judicial independence. In addition, severe cases of torture by authorities were documented. The government also arrested, detained, and abused several Internet bloggers.

In Kazakhstan, the government restricted the functioning of the political opposition by enforcing onerous registration requirements and hindering or denying political party registration. The merging of progovernment parties consolidated the firm leadership of President Nazarbayev's Otan Party and left less political space to express alternative views and advocate for reform. The government harassed the political opposition via politically motivated charges and restrictions on freedom of assembly, passed laws restricting press freedom, and harassed NGOs.

Russia experienced continuing centralization of power in the executive branch, including amendments to election laws and new legislation for political parties that grants the government broad powers to regulate, investigate, limit, and even close down parties. Taken together with a compliant State Duma, corruption and selectivity in law enforcement, political pressure on the judiciary, and restrictions on the NGOs and the media, these trends resulted in the further erosion of government accountability. In Chechnya and other areas of the North Caucasus, serious human rights violations continued, including unlawful killings and abuses of civilians by both federal and Chechen Republic security forces. Rebel fighters committed terrorist bombings and politically motivated disappearances in the region. In a growing number of cases, the European Court of Human Rights held Russia responsible for these abuses.

In Venezuela, the Chavez government continued to consolidate power in the executive branch. The government continued to harass the opposition and NGOs and to weaken judicial independence. International observers judged generally free and fair the December presidential elections, in which President Chavez won re-election with 63 percent of the vote. In his inaugural address, President Chavez asked the National Assembly, in which his parties control 100 percent of the seats, to grant him power to rule by executive decree.

In Fiji and Thailand, militaries overthrew democratically elected governments.

A second sobering reality is that insecurity due to internal and/or cross-border conflict can threaten or thwart advancements in human rights and democratic government.

Despite the Iraqi government's continuing commitment to foster national reconciliation and reconstruction, keep to an electoral course, and establish the rule of law, both deepening sectarian violence and acts of terrorism seriously undercut human rights and democratic progress during 2006. Although the Iraqi constitution and law provide a strong framework for the protection of human rights, armed groups attacked human rights from two different directions: those proclaiming their hostility to the government--Al-Qa'ida terrorists, irreconcilable remnants of the Ba'athist regime, and insurgents waging guerrilla warfare; and members of Shi'a militias and individual ministries' security forces--nominally allied with the government--who committed torture and other abuses.

Although Afghanistan made important human rights progress since the fall of the Taliban in 2001, its human rights record remained poor. This was mainly due to weak central institutions and a deadly insurgency: the Taliban, Al-Qa'ida, and other extremist groups stepped up attacks against government officials, security forces, NGOs and other aid personnel, and unarmed civilians; and the number of suicide bombings rose dramatically during the year, as did attacks on schools and teachers. There were continued reports of cases of arbitrary arrests and detention, extrajudicial killings, torture, and poor prison conditions. In December President Karzai launched a Transitional Justice Action Plan designed to address past violations of human rights and improve the institutional capacity of the justice system.

Lebanon's significant steps toward reform following the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and the subsequent withdrawal of Syrian troops after nearly three decades of occupation have been hampered since the July-August 2006 conflict between Hizballah and Israel. Before the conflict, the Lebanese government had started to remove many of the obstacles that barred political associations and parties. After Hizballah entered Israel from Lebanese territory and kidnapped and killed several Israeli soldiers, Israeli military forces responded by entering Lebanese territory. The conflict ended with an UN-sponsored cessation of hostilities. Despite the cessation of hostilities and the deployment of the Lebanon Armed Forces and UN Interim Forces in the south, Lebanese militias and Hizballah retained significant influence over parts of the country.

In East Timor, a series of deadly clashes between the national defense force and a variety of dissident military, police, and civilian forces led to widespread mob and gang violence in the capital. At the request of the government, forces from Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, and Portugal assumed responsibility for security in the capital. On August 25, the UN Integrated Mission for East Timor took over policing responsibilities. This internal conflict resulted in the displacement of approximately 150,000 people, more than 15 percent of the country's population.

Third, despite gains for human rights and democratic principles in every region of the world, much of humanity still lives in fear yet dreams of freedom.

Countries in which power remained concentrated in the hands of unaccountable rulers--whether totalitarian or authoritarian--continued to be the world's most systematic human rights violators.

In 2006 North Korea remained one of the world's most isolated and repressive regimes. The regime controls almost all aspects of citizens' lives, denying freedom of speech, press, assembly, and association, and restricts freedom of movement and worker rights. The constitution provides for "freedom of religious belief," but genuine religious freedom does not exist. An estimated 150,000 to 200,000 people, including political prisoners, were held in detention camps, and many prisoners died from torture, starvation, disease, and exposure.

The military government in Burma extensively used executions, rape, torture, arbitrary detention, and forced relocation of entire villages, particularly of ethnic minorities, to maintain its grip on power. Prisoners and detainees were subjected to abuse and held in harsh, life-threatening conditions. Surveillance, harassment, and imprisonment of political activists continued; Nobel Laureate and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi remained incommunicado under house arrest, and over 1,100 political prisoners languished in prison. The use of forced labor, trafficking in persons, conscription of child soldiers, and religious discrimination remained widespread. The government reconvened the sham National Convention, handpicking delegates and prohibiting free debate. Touted as part of a "democracy road map", the convention was designed to nullify the results of the 1990 election and adopt a new, regime-friendly constitution. The regime's cruel and destructive misrule also resulted in refugee outflows, the spread of infectious diseases, and the trafficking of drugs and human beings into neighboring countries.

The Iranian government flagrantly violated freedom of speech and assembly, intensifying its crackdown against dissidents, journalists, and reformers - a crackdown characterized by arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture, disappearances, the use of excessive force, and the widespread denial of fair public trials. The government continued to detain and abuse Baha'is and other religious minorities and hosted a widely condemned conference denying the existence of the Holocaust. In the lead-up to the December 15 Assembly of Experts elections in Iran, more than two-thirds of those who had applied to run - including all female candidates - were disqualified, leaving many seats uncontested. Hundreds of candidates in nationwide municipal elections also were disqualified. The government continued to flout domestic and international calls for responsible government in 2006 by supporting terrorist movements in Syria and Lebanon as well as calling for the destruction of a UN member state.

In Zimbabwe, the Mugabe government continued across-the-board violations of human rights. Official corruption and impunity were widespread. The 2002 Official Secrets Act and Public Order and Security Act remained in effect, severely restricting civil liberties. In the 2006 parliamentary by-elections and rural district council elections, the government's manipulation of the electoral process disenfranchised voters and skewed elections in favor of ruling party candidates. The ruling party's dominance permitted constitutional changes without wide consultation. Security forces harassed, beat, and arbitrarily arrested critics and opposition supporters. Disruptions at farms and seizures of property continued and were sometimes violent. The campaign of forced evictions, which left 700,000 people homeless during Operation Restore Order in 2005, continued on a lesser scale. The government interfered with humanitarian organizations' efforts to provide assistance. In December Mugabe and his loyalists proposed extending his term for two years by deferring presidential elections to 2010.

In Cuba, the government, temporarily headed by Raul Castro due to Fidel Castro's illness, continued to violate virtually all the rights of its citizens, including the fundamental right to change their government peacefully or criticize the revolution or its leaders. In 2006 the government increased its harassment of dissidents and other citizens viewed as threats to the government, often through mob actions called "acts of repudiation" involving verbal abuse and physical attacks. Beatings and abuse of detainees and prisoners also were carried out with impunity. Although token releases of prisoners occurred during the year, at least 283 political prisoners and detainees were held at year's end, including 59 of 75 prodemocracy and human rights activists imprisoned in a March 2003 crackdown.

The Chinese government's human rights record deteriorated in some areas in 2006. There was an increased number of high-profile cases involving the monitoring, harassment, detention, and imprisonment of political and religious activists, journalists, and writers as well as defense lawyers seeking to exercise their rights under the law. Some of their family members also were harassed and detained. Large numbers of mass demonstrations and protests calling for redress of grievances continued and in some cases were violently suppressed. New government controls were imposed on: NGOs; the media, including the Internet; and courts and judges. Repression of unregistered religious groups and of minority groups, in particular Uighurs and Tibetans, remained a serious concern.

In Belarus, the Lukashenko government continued and intensified its repressive policies. The March presidential election was severely flawed. Up to 1,000 people were arrested in an ensuing crackdown on public protests against the results and many were sentenced to short jail terms. More activists and opposition members, including Aleksander Kozulin, who ran against Lukashenko in the presidential race, were sentenced to jail terms ranging from 2 to 5 ˝ years.

The Eritrean government continued to be one of the most repressive in Sub-Saharan Africa, and its human rights record worsened in 2006. Government security forces committed extrajudicial killings; there were credible reports that security forces shot on sight individuals trying to cross the border into Ethiopia. The government escalated its campaign of arresting national service evaders as well as their relatives, and there also were credible reports indicating that some of those arrested were tortured. As it did in 2005, the government ordered several international humanitarian NGOs to leave the country, despite a severe drought in the Horn of Africa. There were continued severe restrictions on religious freedom.

The fourth sobering reality is that as the worldwide push for greater personal and political freedom grows stronger, it is being met with increasing resistance from those who feel threatened by political and societal change.

Human rights defenders and nongovernmental organizations are essential to a nation's success. In today's world, the problems confronting states are too complex even for the most powerful to tackle alone. The contributions of civil society and the free flow of ideas and information are crucial in addressing a host of domestic and international challenges. Restricting the political space of NGOs and public debate only limits a society's own growth.

In every region of the globe in 2006, there were governments that responded to the growing demands for personal and political freedom not by accepting their obligations to their people but by oppressing those who advocated for human rights and who exposed abuses, such as nongovernmental organizations and independent media, including the Internet. A disturbing number of countries passed or selectively applied laws and regulations against NGOs and journalists. NGOs and journalists also were subjected to extralegal measures, often by unknown assailants. For example:

In Russia in 2006, a new NGO law entered into force in April imposing more stringent registration requirements for NGOs, strict monitoring of organizations, extensive and onerous reporting requirements on programming and activities, and empowering the Federal Registration Service to deny registration or to shut down an organization based on vague and subjective criteria. Freedom of expression and media independence declined due to government pressure and restrictions. In October unknown persons murdered human rights defender Anna Politkovskaya, a prominent journalist known for her critical writing on human rights abuses in Chechnya. The government used its controlling ownership of all national television and radio stations, as well as of the majority of influential regional ones, to restrict access to information deemed sensitive.

In Belarus, onerous tax inspections and NGO registration requirements made it difficult for civil society organizations to operate, and attacks against members of the independent media continued. In November prodemocracy activist Dmitriy Dashkevich was sentenced to 18 months in prison for operating an unregistered NGO.

The government of Kazakhstan registered the opposition True Ak Zhol party after one of its co-chairmen, Sarsenbaiuly, was killed and restrictively interpreted Article 5 of the constitution to suspend foreign-funded, nonpartisan political party training activities, asserting that providing information is tantamount to financing political parties. In July President Nazarbayev signed into law restrictive media amendments deemed a step backward by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Freedom of Media Representative. The government continued to use restrictive libel laws to fine, convict, and suspend media outlets, journalists, and critics. In April a member of a suspended media outlet was brutally beaten.

Freedom of expression, association and assembly are tightly restricted in Turkmenistan, and the government sought to control all NGO activity. Foreign-origin satellite television is accessible throughout the country, but the government controlled all domestic media, and local journalists were prohibited from all contact with foreigners unless specifically permitted. Very limited Internet access was provided through government-owned Turkmen Telecom; no new accounts were allowed in the capital since September 2002. In August the government arrested journalists Ogulspapar Myradova, Annakurban Amanklichev, and Sapardurdy Hajiyev and sentenced them to six to seven years of imprisonment for weapons possession in a closed, summary trial. In September Myradova, a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty correspondent, died in prison under suspicious circumstances. NGOs have reported that she and her two colleagues were tortured during detention in the summer to extract confessions of weapons possession. On December 21, President Saparmurat Niyazov died.

The Government of Uzbekistan sought to control most NGO activity and closed down over 200 civil society organizations, including international NGOs operating in the country, citing alleged violations of the law. Independent journalists and human rights activists continued to be persecuted.

The Syrian government strictly controlled the dissemination of information and prohibited criticism of the government and discussion of sectarian issues, including religious and minority rights. There were detentions and beatings for individual expressions of opinion that violated these restrictions, for example the February arrest of journalist Adel Mahfouz after he called for interfaith dialogue following the controversy surrounding the depiction of the Prophet Muhammed in cartoons. The government relied on its press and publication laws, the penal code, and the Emergency Law to censor access to the Internet, and it restricted electronic media. Harassment of domestic human rights activists also occurred, including regular close surveillance and the imposition of travel bans when they sought to attend workshops and conferences outside the country.

Press freedom was at an all-time low in Iran, as the government closed independent newspapers Shargh and Iran, blocked access to Internet news sites--including the New York Times and BBC Farsi--and jailed journalists and bloggers. The authorities used bans against leaving the country as a weapon against journalists.

In Burundi, there was an increase in the arrest, detention, and intimidation of journalists and human rights activists by the government; among many other individuals, police arrested and detained for several months the president of the country's leading anticorruption NGO. A governor of one province reportedly called the country's leading human rights NGO, League Iteka, an enemy of peace, and in November a government official announced that 32 registered international NGOs in the country could face expulsion for failure to submit mandatory annual reports to the government.

In Rwanda, there was a restrictive atmosphere for the functioning of civil society. Domestic and international NGOs are required by law to register each year and to provide reports to the government on their activities. Authorities reportedly required some NGOs to obtain government authorization for some projects before being allowed to access international donor funds. In addition, all NGOs were expected to join a collective intended to manage their activities.

The Venezuelan government continued to harass and intimidate civil society groups, most notably the leaders of the electoral watchdog NGO Sumate, whose trial for conspiracy and treason for accepting a foreign grant was indefinitely postponed but continues to hang over their heads. At year's end a draft law was under consideration in the National Assembly which, if implemented, would increase government control over NGOs' financing and restrict NGOs from working in the areas of human rights or democracy promotion. Amendments to the penal code that impose prison sentences for insulting public officials and violent attacks on journalists contributed to a climate of self-censorship. The government stepped up its harassment of independent and opposition news outlets. In December President Chavez announced that the government would not renew the broadcast license of Radio Caracas Television, the country's oldest commercial television network. The government accused the network owners of being "coup-mongers" and of violating the public trust.

In China, NGOs, both domestic and international, continued to face increased scrutiny and restrictions. By the end of 2006, Reporters without Borders reported that 31 journalists and 52 Internet writers were in jail. While the government encouraged use of the Internet, it also took steps to monitor its use, control content, restrict information, and punish those who violated regulations. The government imposed stricter website registration requirements, enhanced official control of online content, and expanded the definition of illegal online content. The government consistently blocked access to sites it deemed controversial, and the authorities reportedly began to employ more sophisticated technology enabling the selective blocking of specific content rather than entire websites.

Vietnam continued to monitor and restrict the Internet, blocking international human rights and news websites. Laws allow citizens to complain openly about inefficient government and corruption, but the government continued to prohibit the press from drafting articles that questioned the role of the Communist Party, promoted pluralism or multiparty democracy, or questioned human rights policy. The government forbids direct access to the Internet through Independent Service Providers and requires cybercafé owners to register the personal information of their customers and the sites visited. The government released several high-profile political and religious dissidents, including Dr. Pham Hong Son, who was imprisoned for translating articles on democracy and disseminating them over the Internet.

Genocide was the most sobering reality of all.

Almost 60 years after the adoption of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights--an expression of the outraged conscience of mankind to the enormity of the Holocaust and the cataclysm of the Second World War--genocide continued to ravage the Darfur region of Sudan.

Despite the January 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement ending the 22-year civil war between the north and south, and the establishment of a unity government that year, ethnic conflict continued in Sudan, most catastrophically in Darfur. The Sudanese government andgovernment-backed janjaweed militia bear responsibility for the genocide in Darfur, and all parties to the conflagration committed serious abuses, including the widespread killing of civilians, rape as a tool of war, systematic torture, robbery, and recruitment of child soldiers. By the end of 2006, the Darfur conflict had resulted in at least 200,000 civilian deaths and two million displaced by the fighting. Over 234,000 refugees had fled to neighboring Chad, and both Chad and the Central African Republic experienced violent ethnic conflict along their borders with Sudan.

In spite of indicating its support for the Addis Ababa framework, the Sudanese government publicly rejected international forces for Darfur and renewed its military offensive during the latter half of 2006. The deteriorating security conditions forced some international NGOs and humanitarian organizations to scale back or suspend operations.

Defend the Defenders

If the great promise of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights is to be fulfilled, the international community--and especially the world's democracies--cannot accept that today's sobering realities are impervious to change. Indeed, they compel us to align ourselves with those who work for human dignity and political reform.

In 2006 the courageous efforts of human rights defenders were highlighted by democratic governments:

Country resolutions passed by the United Nations General Assembly in 2006 emphasized the need to protect human rights defenders in Iran, Belarus, North Korea, and Burma.

The UN Democracy Fund, growing out of an idea presented to the General Assembly by President Bush in 2004 and established in 2005, completed its first year successfully. Its board agreed to fund 125 projects out of more than 1,300 proposals submitted by over 100 countries--a disbursal of more than $35 million in grants mostly to prodemocracy civil society organizations.

At the regional level, in June 2006 the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) adopted the Declaration of Santo Domingo, a groundbreaking multilateral commitment by the countries of the region to "guarantee the liberty of every person to enjoy freedom of expression, including access to uncensored political debate and the free exchange of ideas through all forms of mass media, including the Internet." The Foreign Ministers also declared their resolve to develop and encourage strategies and best practices to that effect.

The OAS Inter-American Commission on Human Rights' Unit for Human Rights Defenders issued a report on the serious problems they face in some countries, emphasizing the need for governments to support their work.

In advance of the July African Union Assembly of the Heads of State, civil society organizations from 19 African countries met in Banjul, The Gambia, to develop recommendations for summit leaders regarding civil society's role in the African Peer Review Mechanism on countries' compliance with treaty obligations, ways to improve access to information by civil society, and citizenship laws that entrench discrimination. These recommendations were adopted at the summit.

In the Broader Middle East and North Africa region the Forum for the Future brought together government officials and civil society representatives from the region, along with G-8 partners, at the Dead Sea in Jordan. Nearly 50 civil society leaders representing hundreds of organizations from 16 countries of the region participated in discussions on the rule of law, transparency, women's and youth empowerment, and the legal environment for civil society organizations. They also discussed how to strengthen reform by establishing mechanisms to follow up on recommendations. Though the hardest part lies ahead--adoption and implementation of recommendations put forward by civil society--the Forum helped to open political space that did not before exist for civil society organizations to form and interact with governments in the region.

Marking International Human Rights Day in December 2006, Secretary Rice launched two important U.S. initiatives in support of human rights and democracy defenders:

She announced the creation of a Human Rights Defenders Fund to be administered by the State Department that will quickly disburse small grants to help human rights defenders facing extraordinary needs as a result of government repression. This funding could go to cover legal defense, medical costs, or the pressing needs of activists' families.

Secretary Rice also issued ten guiding NGO Principles regarding the treatment by governments of nongovernmental organizations. These core principles will guide U.S. treatment of NGOs, and we also will use them to assess the actions of other governments. The principles are meant to complement lengthier, more detailed United Nations and other international documents addressing human rights defenders and can help to rally worldwide support for embattled NGOs by serving as a handy resource for governments, international organizations, civil society groups, and journalists.

When democracies support the work of human rights advocates and civil society organizations, we are helping men and women in countries across the globe shape their own destinies in freedom. And by so doing, we are helping to build a safer, better world for all.

We must defend the defenders, for they are the agents of peaceful, democratic change

Serbia (includes Kosovo)

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices  - 2006
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
March 6, 2007

(The Report on Kosovo is appended at the end of this Report.)

The Republic of Serbia is a parliamentary democracy with approximately 7.5 million inhabitants.* Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica has led Serbia's multiparty government since March 2004. Boris Tadic was elected president in June 2004 elections that observers deemed essentially in line with international standards. Following Montenegro's May 21 referendum in which 55.5 percent of voters supported independence, authorities began the work of dissolving the state union of Serbia and Montenegro and reassigning responsibilities to the republic level. In a referendum on October 29 and 30, voters in Serbia approved a new constitution. According to the election commission, turnout was nearly 55 percent, and 53 percent of voters supported the new constitution, although some human rights groups dispute the results. Civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces, and there were fewer reports of members of the security forces acting independently of government authority.

The government generally respected the human rights of its citizens and continued efforts to address human rights violations; however, numerous problems persisted. The following human rights problems were reported: widespread corruption in the police and the judiciary; impunity; inefficient and lengthy trials; government failure to cooperate with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in apprehending war crimes suspects; government failure to initiate new domestic investigations and prosecutions of war crimes from the 1990s; harassment of journalists, human rights workers and others critical of the government; arbitrary arrest and selective enforcement of the law for political purposes; limitations on freedom of speech and religion, including a problematic new law on religion; societal intolerance and discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities; the presence of large numbers of internally displaced persons; violence against women and children; and trafficking in persons.

The government's increased efforts in addressing human rights violations brought notable improvements. The Belgrade District Court, through its specialized organ, continued to make progress in several war crimes and organized crimes cases despite some political pressure and threats from criminal groups. The government also uncovered several international trafficking rings, protected victims of trafficking, and steadily prosecuted traffickers. The government's reaction to the Montenegro referendum on independence, and the subsequent dissolution of the state union, was peaceful. National minorities reported fewer incidents of attacks than in recent years.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:

a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life

Unlike in previous years, there were no reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings.

The trial of Kikinda police officer Sasa Mijin was under way at the end of the year. Authorities charged Mijin with fatally beating a Kikinda resident in October 2005.

The Belgrade special court for organized crime encountered several difficulties during the trial of three dozen suspects, including former secret police commander Milorad Ulemek and his deputy Zvezdan Jovanovic-Zveki, in the 2003 assassination of Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic. On June 3, key witness Zoran Vukojevic was murdered. Presiding Judge Marko Kljajevic submitted his resignation September 1, citing personal reasons. Media and human rights organizations speculated that political pressure may have sparked his departure. A new judge was appointed in September, and the trial continued at year's end.

In June the Supreme Court upheld the Belgrade special court's ruling in the case of Ulemek and others indicted for the 2000 killing of former Serbian President Ivan Stambolic. In July 2005 the Belgrade special court for organized crime sentenced Ulemek and three persons under his command to 40 years in prison, two others to 15 years in prison, and one person to four years in prison.

The government continued its investigation into the disappearance and subsequent killing of Yili, Mehmet, and Agron Bytyqi, three US citizen brothers who were executed in 1999. The bodies of the three were discovered in 2001 in a mass grave in rural Petrovo Selo, near a Serbian police facility. The bodies were found with their hands bound and gunshot wounds to their heads. On August 23, the special war crimes court issued its first indictments in the case against Sreten Popovic and Milos Stojanovic, two former members of a special police unit. The indictments were based on charges of unlawful detention of the Bytyqi brothers. The trial for Popovic and Stojanovic began November 11. No murder charges were filed against any suspects, although the government investigation remained ongoing.

Domestic courts and the ICTY continued to try cases arising from crimes committed during the 1991-99 conflicts in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo (see sections 1.e. and 4).

There was no further development in the deaths of several military conscripts in 2005. These conscripts died while on guard duty in remote areas and their families challenged the military's determination that the deaths were suicides. On October 5, human rights organizations and families of the conscripts marked the two-year anniversary of the deaths of Dragan Jakovljevic and Drazen Milovanovic in Topcider, Belgrade, noting that the case remained unresolved. The families initiated a civil suit against the government, which was pending at year's end.

On September 10, Ruzdija Djurovic, a city council candidate from the List for Sandzak party, was killed during elections in Novi Pazar. Police arrested Estan Gegic and Ismet Derdemet, and were searching for a third suspect, Sead Papic; the case remained in the investigative stage at year's end. While the suspects were members of the rival Sandzak Democratic Party, party leader Rasim Ljajic decried the incident and denied any involvement. Due to security concerns, he declared a boycott of the assembly election and withdrew his party from the assembly.

b. Disappearance

There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.

The government made modest progress in cooperating with neighboring countries, the International Commission on Missing Persons, and other international organizations to identify missing persons from the Kosovo conflict. On June 30, the government repatriated to Kosovo 829 sets of remains found in mass graves in Serbia. Following this return, all bodies uncovered to date in Serbia had been returned to Kosovo. However, progress remained slow in locating additional gravesites and in sharing information with the public. In September, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which has chaired the Working Group on Missing Persons since 2004, halted further working group meetings, citing a lack of commitment from authorities in both Serbia and Kosovo. According to the ICRC, 2,284 missing persons cases remained unsolved.

c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

The constitution and law prohibit such practices; however, police at times beat detainees and harassed persons, usually during arrest or initial detention for petty crimes.

On March 15, the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia (HCS) reported that police beat 28-year-old Kikinda resident Mihalj Koloncaj. Koloncaj sustained critical injuries, which resulted in the removal of his spleen. Authorities suspended several policemen from the Kikinda police station on charges of misconduct and initiated criminal proceedings.

The Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR) reported that, on several occasions between May and September, Subotica police inspector Tomislav Lendvai and three unknown associates beat, tortured, and sexually assaulted two citizens of Subotica, while also invoking ethnic slurs and threatening their families. The two victims, Erne Ceh and Marinko Varnjas, were of mixed ethnic descent. An investigation was underway year's end, and inspector Lendvai was suspended from his post.

The Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) reported that, on June 15, Mileta Novakovic, a member of the gendarmerie special unit, ordered his unit to use force on rowdy fans during a basketball game. According to the Ministry of Interior, 27 people, including 9 officers, were injured, and 30 people were arrested. The Ministry of Interior defended the action as lawful, but later admitted that some officers had exceeded their authority in injuring the fans. Novakovic was transferred to a post outside of Belgrade, but no other disciplinary action was taken.

In the February 2005 case reported by HLC in which police allegedly abused a 17-year-old girl while in custody at a Belgrade police station, the victim gave her testimony to an investigative judge in October, and the investigation continued at year's end. The suspects in the case were Belgrade officers Jovica Pecaranin and Nebojsa Milenkovic.

In the June 2005 case reported by HCS in which traffic police in a village near Nis allegedly harassed and beat a family in their home and subsequently at a police station, the family declined to press charges for fear of reprisals.

Neither the victim nor the police pursued any charges in the case of Aleksandar Petrovic, a Belgrade man who was allegedly beaten by police in his apartment in July 2005. HLC issued a press release following the alleged attack but did not file a criminal complaint. The attackers in this case remained unknown.

There was no information on whether further action was taken on the July 2005 case of a Leskovac police officer who allegedly beat a lawyer for the Leskovac Committee for Human Rights.

Prison and Detention Center Conditions

Prison conditions varied greatly between facilities, and there were reports that some guards abused prisoners.

In some prisons, inmates complained of dirty and inhumane conditions. Several times during the year, prisoners carried out hunger strikes to protest the poor conditions of the facilities. The quality of food varied from poor to minimally acceptable, and health care was often inadequate. Guards were inadequately trained in the proper handling of prisoners. Juveniles were supposed to be held separately from adults; however, this did not always occur in practice.

The government permitted the ICRC and local independent human rights monitors, including HCS, to visit prisons and to speak with prisoners without the presence of a warden.

In January HCS released a report of its findings after visits to eight detention facilities in May 2005. The report found that facilities lacked appropriate procedures to deal with allegations of ill-treatment by prisoners against prison authorities. The report also cited other problems, including corruption, overcrowding, lack of natural light and fresh air, poor toilet facilities, and dirty food preparation areas in some of the prisons visited.

In May the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) published a report on its September 2004 visit to Serbia and Montenegro. During the visit CPT received numerous allegations of physical ill-treatment of prisoners and detainees, and recommended that the government increase professional training, more diligently investigate allegations of abuse, and severely sanction perpetrators of abuse against inmates. The CPT also found that violence among prisoners was a serious problem. The CPT complained of the use of chains and padlocks to restrain patients in the Belgrade prison hospital; in response, authorities reportedly discontinued this practice. The CPT further recommended that authorities increase medical staffing levels at the prison hospital.

In November prison riots broke out over unfulfilled demands for the parliament to pass an amnesty law. In Pozarevac, approximately 30 inmates climbed onto a roof and threatened to jump; in Nis, inmates barricaded themselves in their cells. Hundreds of riot police brought the protests under control, but 55 inmates were injured during the operation. Justice Minister Zoran Stojkovic said the police action was necessary to restore order and to prevent the inmates from hurting themselves.

d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention

The constitution and law prohibit arbitrary arrest and detention, and the government generally observed these prohibitions, with some exceptions.

Police in Nis detained and interrogated four human rights activists from YIHR for more than four hours on July 12 and for more than three hours on July 13. The police called this an "information meeting," and accused them of drawing graffiti depicting ICTY indictee Ratko Mladic during a demonstration two days earlier. The police released the activists without charges.

Role of the Police and Security Apparatus

The approximately 43,000 police officers in Serbia are part of the Ministry of the Interior. The police are divided into 33 regional secretariats that report to the republic government. During the year the Serbian government took over control of the armed forces after the dissolution of the state union of Serbia and Montenegro.

The effectiveness of the police was uneven and generally limited. While most officers were Serbs, the force included Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims), ethnic Hungarians, a small number of ethnic Albanians, and other ethnic minorities. The multiethnic police force in southern Serbia was composed primarily of ethnic Albanians and Serbs.

Corruption and impunity in the police force were problems, and there were only limited institutional means of overseeing and controlling police behavior. The interior ministry inspector general's office, created in 2003, had increasingly limited authority, and the office had no autonomy to investigate and redress abuses. While the office recommended numerous disciplinary proceedings against interior ministry employees since its establishment, it had no means of following up on proceedings, and some secretariats completely ignored its recommendations.

Since 2005 the inspector general's office initiated disciplinary measures against 5,722 members of the police for transgressions, and charges were brought against 587 members of the police force.

During the year the government, together with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other foreign governments, trained police, security, and border officials on combating terrorism, corruption, money laundering and trafficking.

Arrest and Detention

Arrests were generally based on warrants, although police were authorized to make arrests without a warrant in limited circumstances, including if there was a well-founded suspicion that a person had committed a capital crime. The law requires an investigating judge to approve any detention over 48 hours, and authorities respected this requirement in practice. Bail was allowed but rarely used; detainees facing charges that carried possible sentences of less than five years were often released on their own recognizance.

The law provides that the police must inform arrested persons immediately of their rights. Unlike in previous years, no abuses of this provision were reported.

The law provides access for detainees to counsel, at government expense if necessary, and this right was generally respected in practice. Family members were normally allowed to visit detainees. Suspects can be detained for up to six months without being charged.

The law prohibits police use of force, threats, deception, and coercion to obtain evidence, as well as use in court of evidence acquired by such means; however, police sometimes used these means to obtain statements.

Authorities were accused of using arbitrary arrest and selective enforcement of the law for political purposes. Some political analysts speculated that the arrest of commercial court president Goran Kljajevic was an example of selective prosecution, in order to put additional pressure on his brother, Marko Kljajevic, who resigned as presiding judge in the Djindjic trial soon after the arrest (see sections 1.a. and 3). Some analysts also argued that the timing of the government's indictment for corruption and money laundering against tycoon Bogoljub Karic was also politically motivated (see section 3).

The law limits the length of pretrial detention from indictment to the conclusion of a trial to two years for most cases, but allows detention for up to four years for crimes that carry up to the maximum penalty (40 years in prison). The law sets two years as the maximum detention permitted after an appellate court vacates the judgment of a trial court. Nonetheless, prolonged pretrial detention was a problem. The law prohibits excessive delays by authorities in filing formal charges against suspects and in opening investigations; however, such delays continued regularly. Due to the inefficiency of the courts, cases often took an excessively long time to come to trial, and once started, trials often took an excessively long time to complete (see section 1.e.).

The law allows persons detained in connection with serious crimes to be held for up to six months before charges must be filed. Authorities frequently held such persons for the full six-month period before filing charges.

e. Denial of Fair Public Trial

The law provides for an independent judiciary; however, the courts remained susceptible to corruption and political influence. The newly enacted constitution drew criticism for its provisions on the judiciary that make the appointment of judges and prosecutors subject to political screening. Corruption in the judiciary remained a problem. There were reports that government officials attempted to undermine politically sensitive prosecutions, including by applying pressure on prosecutors and judges.

During the year former Supreme Court judge Slavoljub Vuckovic, arrested in September 2005, stood trial on charges of accepting a bribe in the Jotka organized crime case; on July 7, the court sentenced him to eight years in prison. Vuckovic appealed the verdict, and his appeal remained pending at year's end.

During the year the trial of former deputy public prosecutor Milan Sarajlic resumed. Sarajlic had been charged with accepting payments from the Zemun organized crime clan in 2004; the trial was suspended in 2004 due to Sarajlic's poor health. The trial remained ongoing at year's end.

The private sector considered corruption in the commercial courts to be widespread. In addition land transfers often were extremely difficult, leading many in the private sector to allege administrative corruption.

The courts were highly inefficient, and cases could take years to be resolved.

The Serbian judicial system consists of municipal courts, district courts, a Supreme Court, and a Constitutional Court. In addition, the law provides for special courts for war crimes and organized crime; these were operational during the year within the Belgrade District Court. The Constitutional Court rules on the constitutionality of laws and regulations. While the law provides for an administrative appeals court and a second instance appeals court to reduce the Supreme Court's caseload, the National Assembly postponed the establishment of the courts until 2007.

Since 2005, a special branch in each district court maintained responsibility for military cases.

Trial Procedures

Trials are generally public, but they are closed during testimony of a state-protected witness. There are no juries. The law provides that defendants are presumed innocent; have the right to have an attorney represent them at public expense, if needed; and to be present at their trials. Defendants have the right to access government evidence and question witnesses. Both the defense and the prosecution have the right to appeal a verdict. These rights were generally respected in practice.

The special war crimes court continued trying war crimes cases. On May 18, the Supreme Court upheld the Belgrade district court's July 2005 verdict in the Sjeverin war crimes case involving the torture and killing of 16 Muslims in 1992. The court confirmed the original conviction and sentencing of Dragutin Dragicevic, Oliver Krsmanovic, and ICTY indictee Milan Lukic to 20 years in prison, and Djordje Sevic to 15 years in prison.

On July 5, the Belgrade special war crimes court began the main hearing in the case of five Scorpions members indicted for involvement in the 1995 execution of six Bosnian Muslim civilians from Srebrenica. The case was ongoing at year's end.

On September 18, the special war crimes court convicted Anton Lekaj of war crimes and sentenced him to 13 years in prison for the 1999 murder and torture of Roma in Kosovo during a wedding procession.

The Supreme Court upheld the special war crimes court's March 2004 conviction of Aleksandar Cvjetan, sentenced to 20 years in prison for the 1999 killing of 14 ethnic Albanians in Podujevo, Kosovo.

The special war crimes court also continued the trial for the Zvornik case involving the 1992 eviction and killing of Bosnian Muslims.

There were new developments in the Ovcara case (also known as the Vukovar massacre). On December 14, the Supreme Court ordered a retrial of 14 former members of Serb militias who had been convicted in December 2005 for murder, torture, and inhumane treatment of more than 200 Croatian prisoners of war in 1991. Many in the international and NGO community criticized this decision as politically motivated, noting that every major war crimes conviction (e.g., Podujevo, Sjeverin, Ovcara) in a first-instance court had been overturned by the Supreme Court upon first review.

In April the Belgrade district court dismissed the case of Dejan Demirovic after his extradition from Canada. Demirovic had been charged and tried in absentia for the Podujevo killings; however, the court found insufficient evidence to support his conviction.

Political Prisoners and Detainees

There were no reports of political prisoners or detainees.

Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies

The country has an independent and impartial judiciary in civil matters where citizens can bring lawsuits seeking damages for, or cessation of, a human rights violation. The remedies generally involved monetary awards.

Property Restitution

During the year a government commission began preparing a register of claims for private property seized since 1945, but it made no progress on enacting a private property restitution law or returning property. The government enacted a law on restitution of communal property, but took no significant action to register claims or return communal property.

f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence

The constitution and law prohibit such actions; however, the government interfered with privacy and correspondence. While the law requires the interior ministry to obtain a court order before monitoring potential criminal activity and police to obtain a warrant before entering property except to save people or possessions, police occasionally did not respect these provisions in practice.

Most observers believed that authorities selectively monitored communications, eavesdropped on conversations, read mail and e-mail, and tapped telephones. Human rights leaders frequently reported that their communications were being monitored.

Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Speech and the Press

The law provides for freedom of speech and of the press; however, there were reports of government interference in these freedoms and carried out reprisals against persons who criticized the government. In general, independent media organizations were active and expressed a wide range of views; however, some media organizations experienced threats or reprisals for publishing views critical of the government. Many reporters lacked professionalism in citing sources and achieving accuracy.

The media sector was mostly independent and privately owned. The oldest nationwide daily, Politika, was co-owned by a German company and the government, but it was operated by several shareholding companies. During the year this daily took on an increasingly pro-government slant to its reporting and editorial policy. Other major newspapers include Blic, Glas Javnosti, Vecernje Novosti, Kurir, and Danas.

Government-controlled Radio-Television Serbia (RTS) was a major presence, operating three television channels as well as a radio service. The government had considerable influence, although not formal control, over other major television stations, including TV Politika and TV Novi Sad, as well as Radio Belgrade's three stations. In addition, many television stations relied on the state-owned news agency Tanjug for news information. While RTS's coverage was generally objective, there occasionally appeared to be a bias toward the government.

On October 11, controversial amendments to the broadcast law went into effect despite opposition from media groups and the OSCE. The law grants the government the power to approve the budget of the independent broadcast council, gives this council broad authority to strip radio and television stations of their licenses without right of appeal, and sets higher fees for broadcasters.

Media organizations, particularly the radio station B92, were victims of vandalism, bomb threats, and intimidation for coverage of views unpopular with the government. The South East European Media Organization (SEEMO) reported a number of such incidents during the year. On July 25, Jahja Fehratovic, editor of the weekly Glas Sandjaka, received anonymous death threats over the phone. On August 13, Nikola Rumenic, correspondent for the weekly Svet, was physically assaulted and injured by two unidentified persons outside the Hotel Jugoslavija in Belgrade. On August 17, Dragan Zaric, journalist for Radio Stari Milanovac, was attacked by a knife-wielding masked man while moderating a radio program. On August 18, Slavica Jovanovic, a journalist from Macvanski Prnjavor, received a telephone death threat. Local police reportedly refused to allow Jovanovic to file an official complaint until the Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS) intervened on her behalf.

On April 26, police shut down the republic's first private television station, BK Television, following a decision by the government's broadcasting agency to temporarily suspend BK Television's license. The attorney for BK Television described the forceful entrance and shutdown of the station as illegal. The UNS and the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) described the move as arbitrary and constituting a threat to democracy and media freedom.

On July 13, SEEMO reported that Jelena Antic, correspondent for the daily Dnevnik, was blocked by security officers from attending a press conference at the Ruma city hall, allegedly on the orders of municipality president Srdjan Nikolic.

Libel is a criminal offense; those convicted of libel face imprisonment or fines of $552 to $13,800 (460 euros to 11,500 euros).

On August 10, the municipal court in Prokuplje sentenced RTV Kursumlija senior editor Slavko Savic to four months' imprisonment for libel. The court found Savic guilty of broadcasting text messages written and sent in by viewers alleging that Slavko Ilic, a municipal official, had stolen a bottle of brandy from a store. ANEM and the Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the verdict as a violation of freedom of speech.

Journalists sometimes practiced self-censorship due to possible libel suits and fear of offending public opinion, particularly on subjects relating to wars in the former Yugoslavia, on the Montenegrin referendum for independence, and on the UN-led negotiations on the future status of Kosovo. Human rights activists charged that they were subjects of smear campaigns in pro-government publications and tabloids for expressing critical views of the government.

Internet Freedom

There were no government restrictions on access to the Internet. Individuals and groups could engage in the peaceful expression of views via the Internet, including by electronic email. However, there were reports that the government selectively monitored Internet communications.

Academic Freedom and Cultural Events

The government generally respected academic freedom; although there were some reports of censorship of cultural events.

In September police stopped an outdoor theater performance in Novi Sad when a Serbian Orthodox bishop complained that the actors were wearing priests' robes, and called the performance "the work of the devil." A group of neo-Nazis from Zrenjanin disrupted the performance the next night.

On November 28, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a request to organizers of a film festival that the film "Summer Palace" be "removed from the festival program bearing in mind our good bilateral relations [with China]." The Chinese government had opposed the screening of this film, which featured footage of the 1989 events in Tiananmen Square. The festival organizers removed the film from the program. However, on December 1, Foreign Minister Vuk Draskovic suspended Danica Bajic, the MFA employee who issued the request, saying that Bajic acted outside of her authority.

b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The law provides for freedom of assembly and association, and the government usually respected it in practice. Unlike in previous years, there were no reports that authorities impeded public protests.

c. Freedom of Religion

The law provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respected this right in practice; however, the Serbian government adopted a discriminatory law on religion and maintained a discriminatory property tax.

While there is no state religion, the majority Serbian Orthodox Church received some preferential treatment. For example, the military continued to offer only Serbian Orthodox services, although it allowed members of other faiths to attend religious services outside their posts. There were also complaints that the Serbian government continued to fund construction of a large Serbian Orthodox Church. The Serbian government subsidized salaries of Serbian Orthodox clergy in regions outside Serbia.

In April the government adopted a problematic law on religion.

It recognizes seven "traditional" religious communities: the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Slovak Evangelical Church, the Reformed Christian Church, the Evangelical Christian Church, the Islamic community, and the Jewish community. The law requires all other religious groups to reregister with the Ministry of Religion, which has the discretion to decide whether to grant approval. Many of these minority groups had been recognized officially as religions in Serbia for over 50 years, and were present in the republic for as long as 150 years.

The registration requirements, deemed invasive by the Council of Europe and the OSCE, include submitting names, identity numbers, and signatures of members; showing proof that the group meets the threshold of 0.001 percent of adult citizens of Serbia (roughly 65 persons); providing a description of the group's religious texts and a summary of its religious teachings, ceremonies, religious goals, and basic activities; and information on its sources of funding.

Serbian tax law exempts property owned by the seven recognized traditional religious groups, although a challenge to the law was pending in the Constitutional Court at the end of the reporting period. The complaint was filed on July 21 on behalf of the Union of Protestant-Evangelical Churches in Serbia.

Non-Serbian Orthodox religious organizations continued to report difficulty obtaining permission from local authorities in Serbia to build new worship facilities. The Belgrade Islamic community reported continued difficulties in acquiring land and government approval for an Islamic cemetery in the city. In August Minister of Religion Milan Radulovic stated that the Montenegrin Orthodox Church could not build churches in Serbia.

Serbian law requires students in primary and secondary schools either to attend classes of one of the seven traditional religious communities or, alternatively, to take a class in civic education. Leaders of religions groups excluded from the program continued to express their dissatisfaction at the government's narrow definition of religion.

The government enacted a law on restitution of communal property in Serbia, including religious sites seized since 1945, but took no significant action to register claims or return church property.

Societal Abuses and Discrimination

Minority religious communities reported continuing problems with vandalism of buildings, cemeteries, and other religious sites, although the number of such incidents declined from previous years. There were a few cases of verbal and physical attacks against religious minorities. The police response was often inadequate, and civil society groups criticized the lack of commitment by the government to addressing problems of discrimination.

Unknown attackers broke stained glass windows of Catholic churches in Smederevo, Kragujevac, and Bor several times during the year. The Seventh-day Adventists reported that vandalism and arson attacks on their churches were too frequent to count. Vandals damaged tombstones in the Slovak Evangelical-Lutheran graveyard in Dobanovci and in the Catholic graveyard in Temerin. In all of these cases, police were unable to identify the attackers.

On February 15, a man in Mladenovac locked two members of Jehovah's Witnesses inside a building, destroyed their literature, and tried to drag them into a cellar. One of them escaped and called the police, who rescued the other and arrested the man. On February 20, in the Zemun district of Belgrade, a member of Jehovah's Witnesses was beaten on the head by a third party while sharing his beliefs with a family. Police arrested the attacker, and the family testified as witnesses in the court case.

On June 17, a Hare Krishna devotee from Jagodina, Zivota Milanovic, was attacked in the doorway of his home. Jagodina hospital treated him for knife wounds and a cross carved on his head. Milanovic had been attacked previously in July 2005; authorities made no arrests for either attack.

In October the Nis mosque was attacked and vandalized for the fourth time. Local police arrested four suspects, but refused a request to post a permanent police presence in front of the mosque to prevent future attacks.

In March the district court in Sabac began hearing a case against four men who tried to blackmail a member of Jehovah's Witnesses in Loznica in 2004. On May 8, frustrated by officials' failure to take action after an arson attack in 1999, the Jehovah's Witnesses filed suit against the government.

On November 9, a Novi Sad court found members of the nationalist, far-right hate group National Front guilty of inciting ethnic, racial, and religious hatred and intolerance for disrupting an anti-Fascist seminar at Novi Sad University in 2004, harassing and slapping participants. The organization's leader, Goran Davidovic, was sentenced to one year in prison, and member Miodrag Stefanovic was sentenced to six months. Two other members were sentenced to three and four months in prison, while 11 others received suspended sentences of four months for the criminal act of endangering the safety of others.

During the span of three days from December 16 to 19, unidentified attackers threw Molotov cocktails at the offices of the Evangelical church in Kraljevo, and threw stones at the Baptist church and the Holy Spirit Catholic church in Novi Sad. President Tadic publicly condemned the attacks and called on authorities to find the perpetrators; the investigations were ongoing at year's end.

The Jewish community had between 2,000 and 3,000 persons. Jewish leaders in Serbia reported continued incidents of anti-Semitism, including anti-Semitic graffiti, vandalism, small circulation anti-Semitic books, and Internet postings. HCS reported in November that anti-Semitism had grown in intensity in recent years. HCS noted that in recent years, Serbia's publishing sector published various anti-Semitic books, with titles such as Jewish Ritual Murder, The Jewish Conspiracy, and Why I Admire Adolf Hitler. According to Jewish community members, the release of such publications often led to an increase in hate mail and other expressions of anti-Semitism. Several nationalist, far-right organizations identified themselves with anti-Semitic rhetoric, displaying swastikas and using hate speech. The National Front was one of the most active of these groups during the past few years, mixing anti-Semitic rhetoric with anti-Western messages. HCS noted in November that the government's response to such hate speech was often inadequate.

On February 12, graffiti appeared on a monument in Nis saying "Holocaust--the Jewish lie that governs the world," along with nationalistic slogans such as "Serbia for the Serbs."

In late August a group of skinheads reportedly wearing Nazi symbols beat two Israeli tourists. One victim reported that the group was chanting "Auschwitz, Auschwitz." At year's end, no one had been charged in connection with this beating.

In 2005 the Federation of Jewish Communities in Serbia reported receiving increased levels of hate mail saying that, "Jews should leave Serbia." In addition, a list of prominent Serbian Jews was posted on the website of a neo-Nazi organization alongside messages posted by site visitors calling for them to be killed.

Teaching of the Holocaust is incorporated into the Serbian school curriculum, and the role of the Serbian government during that period is also discussed. However, there was a tendency among some commentators to minimize and reinterpret the role of Serbian leaders during the Holocaust, casting them as victims of foreign occupiers when in fact many leaders of that time collaborated with the Nazis and began campaigns against the Jewish population even before the Nazis invaded Yugoslavia.

While government leaders publicly condemned incidents of anti-Semitism, there was no significant government effort in 2006 to prevent such intolerance and hate speech.

For a more detailed discussion, see the 2006 International Religious Freedom Report.

d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

The law provides for these rights, and the government generally respected them in practice. The law prohibits forced exile, and the government did not employ it.

Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)

According to official figures of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), approximately 207,000 IDPs resided in Serbia, mainly Serbs, Roma, and Bosniaks who left Kosovo as a result of the events of 1999. Approximately 6,700 IDPs remained in collective centers. Although the government closed several of the collective centers that were least habitable, many IDPs remained in minimally habitable facilities that were constructed as temporary accommodations, rather than for long-term occupancy.

The government continued to pay salaries to IDPs who were in the Kosovar government and state-owned enterprises before June 1999. By law, to obtain permanent resident status in Serbia, IDPs from Kosovo must deregister from their previous address in Kosovo. Without registering at a permanent address in Serbia, IDPs were unable to acquire local identification documents and are thus unable to obtain access to health insurance, social welfare, and public schools.

During the year the government signed and parliament ratified 15 bilateral readmission agreements to accept the return of failed asylum seekers, unsuccessful migrants, and persons without legal residency (primarily, Roma). Estimates of the number of unsuccessful asylum seekers and illegal immigrants from Serbia residing in the countries covered under the agreements ranged from 30,000 to 200,000, with an additional 120,000 asylum seekers originally from Kosovo. The government agreed to accept the forced returnees without stipulating a timetable for their return. The ICRC, piloting a project to assist repatriated returnees, opened an office in the Belgrade airport, but the office closed after about three months due to lack of funding.

The UNHCR estimated that there were 40,000 to 45,000 displaced Roma living in Serbia proper; half of those were not registered due to lack of documents. Many Kosovar Roma were perceived to be Serb collaborators during the conflict in Kosovo and could not safely return there. Living conditions for Roma in Serbia were extremely poor. Local municipalities often were reluctant to accommodate them, hoping that, if they failed to provide shelter, the Roma would leave the community (see section 5). If Roma did settle, it was often in official collective centers with minimum amenities or, more often, in makeshift camps in or near major cities or towns.

There were sporadic incidents of attacks and vandalism against IDPs, particularly members of Romani communities (see section 5).

Protection of Refugees

The law does not provide for the granting of asylum or refugee status in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 protocol, despite the fact that Serbia is a signatory to both. The government has not passed legislation or established a system for providing protection to refugees. The law does not protect individuals from forcible return to a country where they have a credible fear of persecution, and there was no information available on whether authorities, in fact, turned such individuals away at borders.

UNHCR maintained an office at the airport to receive third-country asylum seekers, including those who entered the country via other ports of entry. UNHCR conducted refugee status determinations in accordance with the UN Convention and the organization's mandate. By tacit agreement, the government tolerated UNHCR status determinations, neither expelling individuals whom UNHCR determined to be refugees, nor according them any opportunity for integration. UNHCR opened 42 cases for third-country nationals over the course of the year. Of these, 25 Iraqis received temporary UNHCR protection, without full refugee status determinations. The UNHCR rejected 12 applicants and closed five cases without completing the determination (in most instances because the applicants departed Serbia). Fifty-five individuals remained under UNHCR protection at year's end.

UNHCR, with consent of the government, completed construction of an asylum center for receiving and sheltering asylum seekers, but the facility was not in use at year's end.

The government cooperated with the UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations in assisting refugees and asylum seekers. Under the 1992 Decree on Refugees, the government provided temporary protection to individuals from former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) who may not qualify as refugees under the 1951 convention and its 1967 protocol. The government and UNHCR estimated that 104,000 refugees from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina resided in Serbia.

The government, with UNHCR support, closed several collective centers, in a few cases transferring individuals in need of special care to other appropriate institutions. Approximately 3,600 refugees remained in 125 collective centers, either official or unrecognized, in the country at year's end.

Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government

The law provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully, and citizens exercised this right in practice through periodic elections held on the basis of universal suffrage.

In a May 21 referendum in Montenegro, 55.5 percent of voters supported independence from the state union of Serbia and Montenegro. International monitors deemed the referendum in line with OSCE and Council of Europe commitments and other international standards for democratic electoral process, and the Serbian government accepted the results. Following the referendum, Serbian authorities began working on the dissolution of the state union and reassigning state union responsibilities to the republic level.

Elections and Political Participation

At year's end, political parties were preparing for parliamentary elections to be held in January 2007.

The country held a referendum on a constitution on October 28-29. Several human rights groups criticized the parliament for passing the draft without adequate public debate, and some called for a boycott of the referendum. Many also criticized the substance of the document in several areas: it claims Kosovo as a part of the country's territory, although Kosovo Albanians were excluded from voting in the referendum; it does not clarify or enhance Vojvodina's regional autonomy; and it leaves the appointment of judges and prosecutors subject to political screening.

According to the election commission, turnout at the referendum was 54.91 percent, and 53.04 percent of voters supported the new constitution. Turnout was particularly low in Vojvodina (45.9 percent), and the Center for Free Elections and Democracy estimated ethnic Hungarian turnout was only 14 percent. Several human rights groups charged that there were irregularities in the referendum results, including lax control of voting lists and inconsistent identification checks.

Parliament approved the constitution and it entered into legal effect on November 13.

An OSCE and Council of Europe election observation mission reported that the June 2004 Serbian republic presidential elections were peaceful and conducted essentially in line with international standards. Problems noted by the mission included lack of a central voter register, lack of facilities for eligible voters living in Montenegro, and evidence of some degree of disenfranchisement in the Romani community. Voting took place in Kosovo, where 97,000 voters were registered; however, restrictions on movement hindered the ability of ethnic Serbs to vote, while the ethnic Albanian population, with very few exceptions, did not participate in the election, even in areas where some were on the voter lists.

There were 24 women in the 250-seat parliament and a female deputy prime minister. There were no women in the 16-member cabinet. In September the government amended the law on elections of members of parliament to require parties' election lists to include at least 30 percent women.

There were 11 members of minorities in the 250-seat parliament and no members of minorities in the 16-member cabinet.

The constitution and law exempts ethnically based parties from the 5 percent threshold required for a political party to enter parliament. Roma continued their historical pattern of low voter turnout. Local ethnic Albanian leaders in southern Serbia boycotted national elections notwithstanding their active involvement in local governance.

Government Corruption and Transparency

There was a widespread public perception of government corruption at all levels. Recent polls indicated that a majority of citizens believed that government corruption was a major problem.

Government authorities were inconsistent in their approach to official corruption. Investigations often appeared to be politically motivated, and there were numerous examples of authorities failing to act in response to detailed reports of suspected corruption involving a wide range of officials. Media reporting of corruption was often sensationalist.

On January 11, police arrested Dejan Simic, former vice governor of the National Bank of Serbia, and Vladimir Zagradjanin, director of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), and charged them with involvement in bribery. Simic allegedly accepted a suitcase containing the equivalent of $125,000 cash in his apartment in exchange for agreeing to register the Credit Export Bank.

In February Serbian police issued a warrant for Bogoljub Karic, head of the Power of Serbia Movement party, after he failed to appear in court for questioning. Karic faced charges of tax evasion, mismanagement of millions of dollars, and money laundering while he was owner of the telecommunications company Mobtel. Some political commentators speculated that, while the charges against Karic appeared justified, the timing of this crackdown on Karic's business dealings may have been politically motivated. The warrant came shortly after Karic's party formed a new parliamentary caucus that many believed would shake the delicate balance of the governing coalition and spark a parliamentary crisis.

On April 15, police arrested nine persons suspected of operating a lucrative scam in which the commercial court would declare enterprises bankrupt, and the Postal Savings Bank would then provide cheap loans to favored businessmen to buy the enterprise's assets at a below-market price. Several public officials were among the nine arrested, including Goran Kljajevic, president of the commercial court in Belgrade; the directors of the Postal Savings Bank and Kreditna Eksportna Banka; businessmen; and an official from the interior ministry. The suspects remained in pre-trial detention at year's end.

On October 7, police arrested deputy public prosecutor Milorad Cvijovic under suspicion of unauthorized appropriation of a court document from the archives of the state prosecutor's office in 2005 in order to influence proceedings in a specific commercial case.

The trial of former minister of defense Prvoslav Davinic, charged with facilitating apartment leases for his bodyguards, was under way at year's end.

The government's implementation of the November 2004 access to information law continued to be slow, and the government generally did not provide access in practice. The law provides for public access to information of "legitimate public importance" (with many exceptions) and establishes an independent commissioner, selected by the Serbian parliament, to handle appeals when government agencies reject requests for information. According to a September 2005 report by Transparency International, about 60 percent of local institutions, and approximately one-third of national institutions, were failing to fulfill their obligations under the access to information law. NGOs reported that their requests for information from the government frequently went unanswered.

Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights

A variety of independent domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases. However, these groups were often subjects of harassment, threats, and libel suits for expressing views critical of the government. Prominent human rights groups included HCS, HLC, the Lawyers' Committee for Human Rights (YUCOM), the Fund for an Open Society, YIHR, and the Belgrade Center for Human Rights.

Some NGO workers were threatened and attacked, primarily through media campaigns demonizing them and publication of personal information, such as their ethnic backgrounds and addresses. On September 3, HLC Director Natasa Kandic was exiting TV B92's studio when witnesses heard several shots. Police determined that the sounds were caused by firecrackers, but human rights groups asserted they were meant to intimidate Kandic. Several publications, including Politika, NIN, and Kurir, attacked Kandic as well as YUCOM director Biljana Kovacevic-Vuco and HCS Director Sonja Biserko for their outspoken views on Kosovo and Serbian responsibility for war crimes of the 1990s.

In March HCS issued a report on the targeting of human rights defenders in Serbia. While praising some positive legal developments, the report criticized the government's failure to denounce more forcefully verbal and physical attacks against human rights defenders, as well as continued media campaigns aimed at discrediting local human rights advocates. This report followed a November 2005 report by Amnesty International, which found that NGOs had been subjected to repeated and apparently systematic intimidation. The report also found that prominent human rights advocates, including Natasa Kandic, Biljana Kovacevic-Vuco, Sonja Biserko, and Stasa Zajovic of the Women in Black antiwar organization, were targets of a media campaign aimed at discrediting human rights defenders.

In 2005 the government announced that it would establish a new ombudsman's office in Belgrade; however, it failed to do so by the legislated deadline of March 2006. The city of Kragujevac's ombudsman, Milan Petkovic, announced his resignation in May, citing political pressure and harassment from city assembly officials. Vojvodina Province had an ombudsman, who operated independently during the year.

During the year the government made little progress in cooperating with the ICTY to apprehend and bring to justice the six remaining fugitives indicted by ICTY. Two of ICTY's most wanted war crimes suspects with links to Serbia, Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic, remained at large. In July, the government announced a six-point action plan for ICTY cooperation and appointed special war crimes prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic and the head of Serbia's National Council for Co-operation with ICTY, Rasim Ljajic, to oversee the plan's implementation. In October, following a visit to Belgrade, ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla del Ponte stated publicly that government authorities had made little or no progress in implementing the action plan.

While the constitution prohibits the extradition of any person with Serbian citizenship, and this prohibition was applied in practice, the law allows for an exception in cases of extradition of citizens to the ICTY. During the year there were no such extraditions conducted.

Section 5 Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in Persons

The constitution and law prohibit discrimination based on race, gender, disability, language, or social status; however, discrimination against women and ethnic minorities as well as trafficking in persons and violence against women and children were problems.

Women

Violence against women was a problem, and high levels of domestic violence persisted. The Serbian Victimology Society reported in July that one-third of women have been victims of physical violence, and half of women have been victims of psychological violence.

Domestic violence is a crime punishable by a prison sentence of six months to 10 years, depending on the seriousness of the offense, and a minimum of 10 years if death results. Such cases were difficult to prosecute due to lack of witnesses and evidence, as well as unwillingness of witnesses or victims to come forward. In a World Health Organization study of Serbian women released during the year, two-thirds of physically abused women reported that they did not seek help because they thought such abuse was normal or not serious. The few official agencies dedicated to coping with family violence had inadequate resources.

In 2003 there were approximately 6,000 reported cases of domestic violence in Serbia. According to the Magistrates Association of Serbia (MAS), however, domestic violence was significantly underreported, and the problem was widespread and usually long-lasting. Violence frequently became a way of life in a country where contributing factors such as financial dependence, cramped living quarters (multi-family living arrangements were common), and the lack of support from extended family were prevalent. During the year, MAS participated in a series of seminars and training sessions for magistrates to adjudicate domestic violence cases.

Rape, including spousal rape, is punishable by one year to the legal maximum sentence (40 years' imprisonment) for a simple case, a minimum of three years for an aggravated case, and a minimum of five years if death results or the victim is a minor. Only a small proportion of rapes were reported because victims feared that they would not be protected, that their attackers would take revenge, or that they would be humiliated in court. Few spousal rape victims filed complaints with authorities. Women's groups reported that sentences were often too lenient.

The Center for Autonomous Women's Rights in Belgrade offered a rape and spousal abuse hotline, and sponsored a number of self help groups. The center also offered assistance to refugee women (mostly Serb), many of whom experienced extreme abuse or rape during the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia. The Counseling Center Against Family Violence operated a domestic violence shelter partly funded by the government.

Prostitution is illegal, although being a client of a prostitute is not a criminal offense.

Trafficking in women for the purpose of sexual exploitation remained a problem (see section 5, Trafficking).

Sexual harassment was a common problem, but public awareness of it remained low and few complaints were filed during the year. The law provides that sexual harassment is a crime punishable by up to six months' imprisonment for a simple case and up to one year's imprisonment for abuse of a subordinate or dependent.

Women have the same legal rights as men, including under family law, property law, and in the judicial system and these rights were generally enforced in practice. The government has a council for gender equality, which worked during the year with NGOs in raising public awareness of gender equality issues. The Vojvodina government also has a secretariat for labor, employment, and gender equality. The OSCE mission to Serbia helped to establish bodies in charge of gender equality in more than 30 municipalities.

Traditional views of gender roles, particularly in rural areas, resulted in discrimination against women. In remote rural areas, particularly among some minority communities, women could not effectively exercise their right to control property. In rural areas and some minority communities, it was common for husbands to direct the voting of wives.

The social status of women was generally considered inferior to that of men, and women were not well represented in commerce. Women were legally entitled to equal pay for equal work; however, according to the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, women's average wage was 11 percent lower than that of men.

Children

The government was committed to the rights and welfare of children. The educational system provided nine years of free, mandatory schooling. However, ethnic prejudice, cultural norms, and economic distress discouraged some children, particularly Roma, from attending school. One government survey found that approximately 99.8 percent of children attended school; however, the government acknowledged that the survey missed many transient Roma.

Romani education remained a problem. Many Romani children did not attend primary school, either for family reasons, because they were judged by school administrators to be unqualified, or because of societal prejudice. Due to the lack of primary schooling, many Romani children did not learn to speak Serbian. Some Romani children were placed mistakenly in schools for children with emotional disabilities because the Romani language and cultural norms made it difficult for them to succeed on standardized tests in Serbian. The UNHCR, with government support, conducted health education programs for Roma and pre-school programs for Romani children.

Free medical care was available in government clinics, including free medicines from a limited list of covered drugs. Boys and girls had equal access to medical care.

Child abuse was a problem. While teachers were instructed to report suspected child abuse cases, they often did not do so. Police generally responded to complaints, and prosecutions of child abuse cases occurred during the year. Psychological and legal assistance was available for victims, and there was an incest trauma center.

Child marriage was a problem in some communities, particularly among Roma and in rural areas of southern and eastern Serbia. In the Romani community, boys and girls generally married between the ages of 14 and 18, with 16 as the average, and boys generally married a few years later than girls. Child marriage was most common among Muslim Roma, most of whom came from Kosovo and were living in other parts of the country as IDPs.

Trafficking of children for the purpose of sexual exploitation remained a problem (see section 5, Trafficking). Some Romani children were trafficked within the Romani community and to Roma abroad for exploitation in begging and theft rings.

Trafficking in Persons

The law prohibits trafficking in persons; however, trafficking in persons through and, to a lesser extent, to and from the country (excluding Kosovo) remained a problem.

Serbia was a transit point, and to a lesser extent a point of origin and destination, for trafficking in women and minors for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Serbia was primarily a transit point for internationally trafficked women going to other Balkan countries and Western Europe. Eastern European countries were the primary source countries for persons trafficked to and through Serbia. NGOs reported an increase in minor victims and male victims.

While Serbia was not traditionally a major source for trafficked women, the number of Serbian victims increased compared to foreign nationals. In March the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Policy and the NGO Children's Rights Center released results of a survey that showed Roma children, children from poor, rural communities and foster families were at the highest risk for child labor abuse, including begging, theft, prostitution, dealing narcotics and hard physical labor.

Traffickers recruited victims through enticements including advertisements for escorts, marriage offers, and offers of employment. Some women went to work as prostitutes knowingly and only later became trafficking victims. In many cases international organized crime networks recruited, transported, sold, and controlled victims. Authorities reported increased use of the Internet as a method of recruiting victims.

The new criminal code, which took effect January 1, differentiates between trafficking and smuggling. The penalty for trafficking in persons is two to 10 years in prison; for trafficking minors, the penalty is a minimum of three years; if the act of trafficking resulted in death, the penalty is a minimum of 10 years; if it involved serious physical injury, the penalty is three to 15 years; if there were multiple acts of trafficking or if perpetrated by an organized group, the penalty is a minimum of five years.

Authorities uncovered several international trafficking rings, including those with connections to China, Turkey, Italy, Albania, and Bulgaria. The government's prosecution of some trafficking cases became more effective, particularly in cases of organized crime. On March 2, the Supreme Court ruled on the high-profile "Zarubica" case, sentencing Stanko Savanovic to five years in prison, Milivoje Zarubica to four and a half years, Milovan Miletic to three years, Zvezdan Stankovic to two years, and three others to eight to ten months. The verdict reflected increased sentences from the 2004 ruling and ordered the defendants to cover the trial costs. While some major trafficking cases proceeded quickly, others languished in Serbian courts.

During the year authorities filed 34 criminal charges against 77 persons for trafficking. Antitrafficking groups worked with 56 trafficking victims and received 1,775 telephone calls on an assistance hotline for victims.

Government antitrafficking efforts were led by an antitrafficking coordinator who was the chief of the border police and incorporated government agencies, NGOs, and international organizations. The government assisted in international investigations of human trafficking and participated in regional antitrafficking operations.

The government offered temporary resident visas and shelter to victims who agreed to testify against their traffickers, provided victim and witness protection, and did not prosecute victims.

The government's agency for coordination of protection to victims worked to ensure that trafficking victims were correctly identified and referred to assistance providers. Separate shelters for domestic and foreign trafficking victims operated during the year. The NGO Astra operated a hotline for trafficking victims. NGOs and volunteers provided legal, medical, psychological, and other assistance to victims. In August the NGO Atina launched a reintegration program for victims of sexual exploitation.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) managed repatriation of foreign victims and assisted in the reintegration of local victims. The IOM also ran a regional clearing center for information on trafficking victims. There were numerous training programs, including training for hotline volunteers, shelters, social welfare officers, and police.

Government and NGO public awareness efforts to combat trafficking included conferences on trafficking, documentary films and public service announcements shown across Serbia, and school outreach programs. NGOs continued to organize and fund the majority of Serbia's public information campaigns.

Persons with Disabilities

The constitution and law prohibit discrimination against persons with disabilities in employment, education, access to health care, or in the provision of other state services, and the government generally enforced the law. There were no reports of discrimination against persons with physical or mental disabilities; however, facilities for their education and care were nonexistent or inadequate, and the government did not address the problem. A high unemployment rate and lack of accommodations made it difficult for persons with disabilities to obtain employment.

The law mandates access for persons with disabilities to new public buildings, and the government generally enforced this provision in practice.

During the year, several government and municipal authorities took steps to increase access to public facilities for persons with disabilities. In July the Belgrade public transport system adopted a policy to allow guide dogs on all public transportation.

Unemployment remained a serious problem for persons with disabilities. A study released by the Center for Development of Inclusion and the Center for Study of Alternatives found that 87 percent of persons with disabilities were unemployed, while 70 percent lived in poverty. The study also found that a greater percentage of women with disabilities were dependent on public assistance compared to men with disabilities.

National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Minorities constituted 25 to 30 percent of Serbia's population and included Hungarians, Bosniaks, Roma, Slovaks, Romanians, Vlachs, Bulgarians, Croats, Albanians, and others.

Although not widespread, there continued to be incidents of vandalism and some physical attacks against minorities. The number of incidents against ethnic Hungarians in Vojvodina decreased compared with 2004 and 2005, and minority leaders there reported that the situation was calm. Vojvodina and Serbian government officials continued implementation of a 10-point strategy, agreed upon in 2005, for improving ethnic relations in the province, including education programs, public awareness campaigns, and greater representation of minorities in the police and judiciary.

Many voters in Vojvodina objected to the new constitution, and some Vojvodina leaders called for a boycott on the referendum. While the constitution ostensibly gives Vojvodina a larger portion of its tax revenue than the province previously received, it also further limits its autonomy. Only 48 percent of the Vojvodina electorate voted in the referendum on the constitution, and only 14 percent of ethnic Hungarians participated.

Ethnic Albanian leaders of the southern municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac, and Medvedja continued to complain about the under-representation of ethnic Albanians in government structures, and lobbied for greater political autonomy for predominantly ethnic Albanian areas. In October leaders of the Party for Democratic Action, one of the largest ethnic Albanian political parties, called on members to boycott the constitutional referendum.

In August the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Nedzat Beljuli, an ethnic Albanian who had alleged that the Ministry of Economy and Privatization had disqualified his 2004 bid on a public company on ethnic grounds.

Roma continued to be targets of numerous incidents of police violence, verbal and physical harassment from ordinary citizens, and societal discrimination. The UN Development Program's social vulnerability report, released in July, found that the Romani population continued to live in conditions of extreme poverty with limited access to education and healthcare. The report noted that the situation of Roma in the country remained largely unchanged since aid efforts began.

On February 24, a dozen men attacked the Romani settlement of Beograd Mahala in Nis, breaking windows, throwing stones, and shouting, "Gypsies, you are dead." Police arrested nine people but released them without charges since they were minors. The Minority Rights Center filed criminal charges against the perpetrators for inciting ethnic, racial and religious hatred and intolerance.

In June the Minority Rights Center filed criminal charges against police officers Toncika Jeres, Goran Kukuska, and Mirko Kecman in the Municipal Court Novi Knezevac for abusing a Roma man, Mladen Mikluc on several occasions between May 15 and June 2. Mikluc said the officers refused to come to his aid when he tried to report that a man (Stevica Brzak) was beating him with a baseball bat; when Mikluc went to the police station, the officers and Brzak beat him again.

On November 15, two underage suspects allegedly harassed an 18-year-old Roma youth, pushed him off a public bus and then beat him. Police charged the two suspects with inciting ethnic, racial, and religious hatred and intolerance.

The HLC reported that on August 31, Kosta Brzak, Slobodan Pantelic, and several unidentified persons physically and verbally assaulted three Romani men (Seljatim, Besim, and Ljumni Kolovati) at a Novi Sad flea market. At year's end misdemeanor criminal charges were pending against Brzak and Pantelic.

On July 7, the Belgrade district court upheld a February 28 municipal court judgment ordering the government to pay approximately $8,100 (485,000 dinars) compensation to Masimo Marinkovic, a 30-year-old Romani man who was shot by Vladimir Bonifacic, an off-duty employee of the Ministry of Interior in 1998. The municipal court held the government responsible in the case because Bonifacic was a government employee who had used his service weapon while off duty.

On March 8, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) adopted a decision regarding a 2000 incident in which a Romani man was denied entry to a Belgrade discotheque. CERD found that the government failed to adequately investigate the petitioner's claim and recommended that the government provide compensation to the petitioner and take measures to ensure that the police, public prosecutors, and courts properly investigate future complaints of racial discrimination.

Many Roma, including IDPs from Kosovo, lived illegally in squatter settlements that lacked basic services such as schools, medical care, water, and sewage facilities. Some settlements were located on valuable industrial or commercial sites where private owners wanted to resume control; others were on the premises of state-owned enterprises due to be privatized. During the year Belgrade authorities continued to suspend demolition of one settlement on privatized land until they could locate alternative housing for Roma living there.

During the year the City of Belgrade abandoned plans to construct an apartment complex for Roma in New Belgrade due to protests by residents near the prospective site. Residents of Block 45 in New Belgrade blocked traffic for several days and shouted slogans such as "we don't want the Gypsies."

Rivalries between Bosniak political parties in the predominantly Bosniak city of Novi Pazar led to at least one outbreak of low level violence during the year. On April 7, Minister for Local Administration Zoran Loncar dissolved Novi Pazar's democratically elected assembly, sparking fights and some reported assaults.

To address concerns of minorities, the government operated a hotline for minorities and others concerned about human rights problems. The government also sponsored school programs to educate children about minority cultures and to promote tolerance.

Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination

Violence and discrimination against homosexuals was a problem. Some NGOs reported that homosexuals were denied equal opportunities in education and employment. A survey by the Youth Initiatives for Human Rights indicated that lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender persons experienced widespread threats, hate speech, verbal assault, and physical violence.

Although the broadcasting law prohibits discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, the media carried slurs against homosexuals. On February 26, a high ranking official of the SPS called homosexuality a "social pathology" and "something especially decadent," and indicated that gays and lesbians should not be allowed in the diplomatic service.

In a poll released during the year by lesbian rights organization Labris, 65 percent of homosexual respondents claimed they had experienced violence due to their sexual orientation. Only ten percent of respondents had reported this violence to the police.

The new criminal code, which entered into force on January 1, included a provision equalizing the age of consent for all types of sexual contact. The previous law maintained a higher age of consent for homosexual sex (18) than for heterosexual sex (14). Under the new law, the age of consent for all types of sexual contact is 14. Activists had complained that the old law unfairly discriminated against the homosexual community.

Section 6 Worker Rights

a. The Right of Association

The law and constitution provide the right for workers, except military and police personnel, to join or form unions of their choosing, subject to restrictions, including approval by the Ministry of Labor and a statement from the employer that the union leader is a full-time employee, which reportedly was tantamount to an employer approval requirement. A state-affiliated trade union federation dominated organized labor, due to preference for unions belonging to it by the managements of the state-owned industries that dominated the economy. Smaller federations of independent trade unions competed with the government-affiliated federation, but were successful in doing so primarily in the relatively small proportion of the formal nonagricultural economy that is not state-owned. In the state-owned sector, 60 to 70 percent of workers belonged to unions. In the private sector, only four to six percent were unionized, and in agriculture approximately three percent.

The law does not prohibit antiunion discrimination, but it was not a significant problem during the year.

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

The law and constitution allow unions to conduct their activities without interference, and the government protected this right in practice. The law protects the right to organize and bargain collectively, and it was exercised freely in practice. The new labor law implemented in March 2005 requires collective bargaining agreements for any company with more than 10 employees. However, in order to negotiate with an employer, a union must have 15 percent of company employees as members. In order to negotiate with the government, a union must have 10 percent of all workforce employees as members. Wage arrears were reported to be substantial and widespread. Approximately 27 percent of the workforce was covered by collective bargaining agreements.

The law and constitution provide for the right to strike except by persons providing essential services such as education, electric power, and postal service. These employees constitute approximately 50 percent of the workforce and must announce planned strikes at least 15 days in advance and ensure that a "minimum level of work" is provided. Workers exercised the right to strike.

Serbia continued to lack a general collective agreement since the previous agreement expired in September 2005. Two representative trade unions (Independence and the Confederation of the Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia) held over three months of negotiations over a new agreement with members of the Union of Employers. An agreement was reached but never enacted because the Union of Employers' managing board refused to sign it. In the absence of a general collective agreement, branch and local agreements can be signed based on provisions in the labor law. In the event that there is no union representation at a company, the employer is obligated to set minimum labor standards based on the labor law.

There are no export processing zones.

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

The law and constitution prohibit forced and compulsory labor, including by children; however, there were reports that such practices occurred (see sections 5 and 6.d.).

d. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment

The government effectively enforced laws protecting children from exploitation in the workforce. The minimum age for employment is 15, and written parental or guardian permission is needed for employees under 18 years of age. The Labor Law stipulates very specific conditions in which young workers can work and caps the number of work hours at 35 hours per week.

In villages and farming communities, younger children commonly worked in family businesses. Children, particularly Roma, also worked in a variety of unofficial retail jobs, typically washing car windows or selling small items such as newspapers. Romani children were often forced by their families into manual labor, compelled to beg, or trafficked abroad to work in begging or theft rings.

The Labor Inspectorate of the Ministry of Labor, Employment, and Social Issues checked for child labor during its inspections; however, the ministry stated it found no violations during the year. The absence of such violations was most likely the result of limited monitoring capabilities by inspectors. No reliable data existed on the extent of child labor due to the lack of a mechanism to monitor the problem. The ministry also included prevention of child labor in its regular child and family protection programs.

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

The minimum wage for the period July-December was set by the Social Economic Council at approximately $150 (8,820 dinars) per month. The minimum wage did not provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. In companies with a trade union presence, there was generally effective enforcement of the minimum wage. This was not the case in smaller private companies, and workers were often afraid of losing their jobs because many of them were not legally registered. The Labor Inspectorate is responsible for enforcing the minimum wage.

According to figures released in September, the average salary was approximately $370 (22,259 dinars). The average worker in Serbia earned approximately $18 (1,060 dinars) per day or $2.20 (132.5 dinars) per hour. The average salary was not adequate for a worker and family to live comfortably.

The standard workweek of 40 hours was generally followed in state-owned enterprises but not in private companies. The law provides that an employee may not work overtime for more than four hours a day or for more than 240 hours in a calendar year. For an 8-hour workday, one 30-minute break is required. At least 12 hours of break are required between shifts during a workweek, and at least 24 hours of break are required over a weekend.

Collective agreements were the primarily means of providing premium pay for overtime. However, the labor law requires that the premium for overtime work should be at least 26 percent of the salary base, as defined by the relevant collective agreement. Trade unions within a company are the primary agents for enforcing overtime pay; however, the labor inspectorate also has enforcement responsibilities. The inspectorate had mixed results enforcing labor regulation due to a variety of factors, including politics and corruption.

It is mandatory for companies to establish a safety and security unit to implement safety and security regulations; however, in practice these units often focused on rudimentary aspects of safety, such as purchasing soaps and detergents, rather than on providing safety equipment for workers. Workers did not have the right to remove themselves from situations that endangered health or safety without jeopardy to their employment.

KOSOVO

Kosovo has a population of approximately 2.2 million and is administered by the UN Interim Administrative Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) pursuant to UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1244 of 1999. UNMIK is led by a special representative of the UN secretary general in Kosovo (SRSG). UNMIK promulgated regulations that addressed the civil and legal responsibilities of governmental entities and private individuals and ratified laws passed by the Kosovo Assembly. The UNMIK-promulgated Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self Government in Kosovo defines the provisional institutions of self-government (PISG). Multiparty elections in October 2004 for seats in the Kosovo Assembly generally reflected the will of the voters. UNMIK international civilian authorities and a UN-authorized North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) peacekeeping force for Kosovo (KFOR) generally maintained effective control over security forces; however, there were occasional reports that local elements of the security forces acted independently of their respective authority. During the year, negotiations aimed at settling Kosovo's future status were held under the auspices of the UN Office of the Special Envoy for Kosovo. No decision on Kosovo's status had been reached by year's end.

UNMIK and the PISG generally respected the human rights of residents; however, there were problems in some areas, particularly relating to minority populations. The most serious of these were cases of politically and ethnically motivated killings; death and injuries from unexploded ordnance or landmines; lengthy pretrial detention and lack of judicial due process; corruption and government interference in the judiciary; societal antipathy against Serbs and the Serbian Orthodox Church; lack of progress in returning internally displaced persons to their homes; corruption in the PISG; violence and discrimination against women; trafficking in persons, particularly girls and women for sexual exploitation; societal violence, abuse, and discrimination against minority communities; societal discrimination against persons with disabilities; abuse and one killing of homosexuals; and child labor in the informal sector. Unexploded ordnance from the 1998-1999 conflict continued to be a concern and caused several deaths or injuries.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person

a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life

There were no reports that international authorities UNMIK, the PISG, KFOR, or their agents committed unlawful or arbitrary killings; however, local security forces organized under the authority of the PISG committed at least one unlawful or arbitrary killing during the year.

On January 2, Kosovo Protection Service (KPS) special forces officer Albert Markaj killed detainee Besnik Kastrati inside the Pec/Peja police station. The killing was linked to a blood feud between the families of Markaj and Kastrati. In October Markaj was convicted of murder and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

On December 2, Hetem Sadri Rexhaj was killed in police custody in Pec/Peja. No further details were available at year's end, although a KPS professional standards unit investigation was underway.

During the year landmines or unexploded ordnance from the 1998-1999 conflict killed one person and injured ten, compared with two fatalities and three injuries in 2005. Despite some progress on cleanup, unexploded ordnance remained a threat to civilians.

During the year there were at least two killings that may have involved a political motive. On May 2, unknown persons killed Mark Oroshi, the man suspected of killing attorney and Istok/Istog Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) political activist Shaban Manaj in 2001. Oroshi was released due to lack of evidence. According to police he had been a target for some time. Earlier in the year, Oroshi was injured in a failed assassination attempt. A KPS investigation continued at year's end.

On June 20, a 68-year-old Kosovo Serb, Dragan Popovic, was shot and killed in his home in the ethnically mixed Klina/Kline municipality. Popovic left Kosovo during the 1998-1999 conflict and had returned to Klina/Kline in 2005. Despite some allegations that this killing involved an ethnic motive, no such evidence had emerged and no suspects were apprehended by year's end.

Unlike in previous years, there were no apparently politically motivated killings of police officers.

There were reports of attacks and threats against Kosovo Albanian political and institutional figures (see section 3).

There were no developments in the investigation into the January 2005 killing of UNMIK police officer Omar Ali, who died when a bomb was detonated under his official vehicle.

On March 17, a court dismissed for lack of evidence the case against Tasim Osaj for the April 2005 killing of Enver Haradinaj, brother of former prime minister and Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) president Ramush Haradinaj. Osaj voluntarily surrendered in July 2005.

The investigation into the August 2005 apparently ethnically motivated killings of Kosovo Serbs Ivan Dejanovic and Aleksander Stankovic in Strpce, which also injured two passengers in their car, was closed on August 7 due to insufficient evidence.

There were no developments in the possibly politically motivated killing of ethnic Turk and Turk Democratic Party of Kosovo member Ibish Cakalli in October 2005. Investigations remained ongoing at year's end.

There were no developments in the following apparently politically motivated killings of Kosovo Albanians in 2005: the January 2005 killing of Sadik Musaj, a witness at the "Dukagjini group" trial; the April 2005 killing of Muhamet Sallaj, a former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) member; the June 2005 drive-by shooting of journalist Bardhyl Ajeti of the Albanian language daily Bota Sot; the July 2005 drive-by killing of Muhamet Xhemajili, former commander of the Liberation Army of Presevo, Medvedje and Bujanovac, an armed Kosovo Albanian group previously active in Serbia's Presevo Valley; the September 2005 car bombing of Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) and former KLA member Naser Ramaj and his brother Jeton; the October 2005 killing of Hasan Rrustemi, a witness in the war crimes trial of former KLA (and former KPC) Commander Selim Krasniqi.

There were no developments in Kosovo Albanian minor "AK"'s appeal of his June 2005 aggravated murder conviction for the June 2004 killing of 17-year-old Kosovo Serb Dimitrije Popovic and serious injury of another Kosovo Serb teenager in a drive-by shooting in Gracanica.

On September 26, the murder trial of Shkumbin Mehmeti, Florim Ejupi, Xhavit Kosumi, and Faik Shaqiri began before international judges. The four were charged in April 2005 with the killing of a KPS officer and an UNMIK police officer in an ambush on the Podujevo/Podujeve road after the March 2004 riots. Ejupi was also indicted earlier on charges that he and accomplices planned and executed the 2001 Merdare bus bombing near Podujevo/Podujeve that killed 11 Kosovo Serbs and injured 40. A hearing in the latter case remained pending.

There were no developments in the 2004 killing of Avni Elezaj, a former KLA fighter and bodyguard of former prime minister and AAK president Ramush Haradinaj.

On October 18, a special KPS unit apprehended Faton Hajrizi, accused of killing a Russian KFOR soldier in Klina in 2002. Hajziri had escaped from the Pec/Peja investigative prison during trial in August 2005. He remained in custody at year's end.

On August 4, an international panel of the Prizren District Court found Sali Veseli guilty of criminal association and complicity in aggravated murder for the apparently politically motivated 2000 killing of the director of the Prizren Department of Environment, former KLA member Ekrem Rerxha, known as "Commander Drini," and sentenced him to 15 years' imprisonment. The Supreme Court rejected Veseli's appeal on September 1. The court acquitted codefendant Abit Haziraj of the actual assassination for lack of evidence; the gunman was never identified. Charges against codefendant Xhemali Beqiraj were dropped.

b. Disappearance

There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances; however, there were still thousands of persons missing from the 1999 conflict whose remains had not been identified or whereabouts determined.

According to the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC), 2,139 persons remained unaccounted for at year's end, compared with 2,464 at the beginning of the year. Of those still unaccounted for, the ICRC reported that approximately 70 percent were Kosovo Albanians and 30 percent were Kosovo Serbs and other minorities.

During the year the UNMIK Office of Missing Persons and Forensics (OMPF) continued to identify the remains of missing persons in Kosovo. Since its establishment in 2002, the office performed 505 field operations and exhumations, 59 of which took place during the year. The remains of over 3,800 missing persons had been recovered and OMPF focused on establishing the identities of the 1,440 sets of human remains discovered in Kosovo and approximately 900 received from Serbia since 2002.

During the year OMPF continued to hold 582 unidentified bodies in the Pristina morgue, of which 414 were exhumed in Kosovo and 168 were transferred unidentified from Serbia. OMPF received 398 positive DNA reports during the year, representing 291 different individuals. OMPF also submitted 262 bone samples for DNA testing to the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), which returned 1,635 results. By year's end, OMPF had completed forensic inspections of all cases transferred from Serbia proper during the year (remains were transferred on March 31 and June 30) and had conducted 425 autopsies.

At year's end OMPF also continued exhumations; it recovered and autopsied 51 bodies from 34 sites. On October 13, OMPF transferred to the Serbian government the remains of 28 Serbs and other ethnic minorities killed in 1998 and discovered in a mass grave in Volljak, Klina/Kline municipality, in 2005.

On June 30, the Serbian government transferred the last sets of identified remains of Kosovo Albanian victims of the 1999 conflict found in mass graves in Serbia. These remains were returned to families for burial. Families of the missing continued to request that the Serbian government provide access to records that might indicate locations of additional mass graves or places where Kosovo Albanian bodies may have been incinerated.

A working group of Kosovo and Serbian officials on missing persons, chaired by the ICRC, met twice during the year under the auspices of the SRSG. Although a special subgroup on forensics was formed in September 2005 and met several times in the first half of the year, it had not yet identified the hundreds of remains still stored in the Orahovac/Rahovec morgue.

Of the 711 cases resolved in 2005, 174 human remains were identified and transferred to the families by August: 45 from Serbia to Kosovo, 112 within Kosovo, and 28 from Kosovo to Serbia. During the year 323 human remains were identified and returned to families: 102 from Serbia to Kosovo, 60 from Kosovo to Serbia, and 161 within Kosovo. The bodies identified during the year included 253 Kosovo Albanians and 70 members of other ethnic groups.

In 2004 the Prizren prosecutor's office announced arrest warrants for two former Kosovo Serb policemen, Goran Janjusevic and Slavisa Milkovic, for committing war crimes against the civilian population in the Prizren region, including the kidnapping and killing of Ardian Zyrnagjiu during the 1999 conflict. Both suspects remained at large at year's end.

c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

The constitutional framework and criminal procedure code prohibit such practices; however, there were reports that the PISG engaged in such practices. There were no reports that UNMIK, which is the sovereign authority, or KFOR, which has limited arrest and detention authority, engaged in such practices.

According to media reports, the KPS used force to disperse demonstrations and beat demonstrators while making arrests on a least four occasions during the year. The Self-Determination Movement, a group that opposed the continued UN presence and practiced aggressive and confrontational tactics in advocating immediate and unconditional independence for Kosovo, organized protests during the year, several of which became violent. On May 5, the KPS arrested 22 movement members demonstrating against UNMIK, and the media reported that the KPS beat detainees. An unknown number of demonstrators refused medical treatment at the police station; nine KPS officers were injured in the incident, one seriously. An internal KPS investigation found that the KPS did not use excessive force, and none of demonstrators filed official complaints against the police. On June 9, police again reportedly beat protesters while arresting 91 movement members demonstrating against UNMIK; there was one report that a protestor required surgery to treat his injuries. Police violence was also reported on June 28, when police arrested 85 Self-Determination Movement activists at the Kosovo-Serbia administrative boundary line crossing at Merdare, and 31 movement members in Mitrovica, who were protesting the Serbian prime minister's visit to Kosovo. The Kosovo Assembly and the government criticized the reported police abuse of Assembly member Emrush Xhemajli, who was arrested in Merdare. Similar KPS beatings of protesters were reported during the movement's August 23 demonstrations at the Kosovo Assembly and UNMIK headquarters. Eight of the 22 were detained for 72 hours.

At a November 28 protest, demonstrators reportedly threw rocks and paint-filled bottles at buildings housing UNMIK and government offices. UNMIK police responded with tear gas but did not intervene further, instead videotaping the incident and later arresting eight people. All were subsequently released. No injuries were reported, and at year's end no serious charges had been brought against the activists.

In an October 2005 letter to the SRSG concerning October 2005 Self-Determination Movement arrests, the Ombudsperson cited eyewitness reports that "many" activists had experienced "severe ill-treatment" during their arrest and statements by persons who had been arrested that the mistreatment continued after they had been taken into custody. The KPS Professional Standards Unit initiated three investigations, one of which was dismissed as unfounded. The other two investigations resulted in discipline against KPS officers involved, each of whom was suspended for 10 days without pay, given mandatory remedial training, and given letters of discipline in their personnel files.

There were developments in the case of six Kosovo Albanian KPC officers arrested for alleged involvement in war crimes committed against Kosovo Albanian civilians in the Drenovac Detention Camp in Prizren between June and October 1998. On July 27, the international investigating judge dropped the charges against Isuf Gashi and Xhavit Elshani. On August 10, the Gjilan District Court acquitted Islam Gashi and convicted former KPC commander general Selim Krasniqi, colonel Bedri Zyberaj, and Agron Krasniqi of war crimes and sentenced each of them to seven years in prison. When Zyberaj and Selim Krasniqi were provisionally released pending their appeals, Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku visited Selim Krasniqi, called the release "a good thing for Kosovo," and declared, "I never stopped believing in their innocence." Both the Belgrade-based Humanitarian Law Center-Kosovo Branch (HLC) and the Kosovo-based Council for the Defense of Human Rights of Freedoms (CDHRF) criticized the prime minister's statement. Later in August, the prosecutor won a Supreme Court appeal of the provisional release, and an order was issued for the rearrest of the men soon thereafter. Zymberaj was apprehended on October 25. At year's end, Selim Krasniqi remained at large.

During the year authorities brought a number of persons to court for crimes related to the March 2004 interethnic riots (see section 5).

Prison and Detention Center Conditions

Prisons and detention centers reportedly met international standards, and UNMIK permitted ICRC visits and monitoring by the Ombudsperson; however, there were allegations of abuses, including sexual abuse, and mistreatment of prisoners during the year. The government denied prison access to at least one local nongovernmental organization (NGO) during the year.

The Dubrava prison and five detention centers operated during the year, and the construction of a new prison facility continued in Lipljan/Lipjan to alleviate crowding.

UNMIK police corrections officers managed prisons and detention centers, but increasingly transferred responsibilities to the Kosovo Correctional Service (KCS), under the authority of the PISG.

On February 1, the UNMIK Department of Justice Penal Management Division appointed a Kosovo Albanian as KCS commissioner. UNMIK transferred control of Lipljan/Lipjan Prison and all five detention centers to the KCS on February 17. The KCS managed daily operations at the Dubrava prison, with the exception of the 32-prisoner "high risk" section, which remained under international supervision. UNMIK retained authority to take full control of the prison system during emergencies.

The CDHRF reported receiving complaints from prisoners and their families charging abuse and excessive solitary confinement in prison. Authorities did not conduct investigations into these allegations. On June 7, several prisoners went on strike at Dubrava prison, protesting the lack of supplies at the prison canteen. According to CDHRF, prison authorities violated many of the rights granted prisoners by the provisional criminal code, the antidiscrimination law, the juvenile justice code, the education law, and international law.

While the law provides for women and juveniles to be held separately from men, the CDHRF reported that women and juveniles in the Lipljan/Lipjan prison were being held only yards away from men serving sentences for lesser crimes and were harassed by them.

UNMIK reported bringing 60 disciplinary proceedings against members of the 1,650-strong KCS during the year, compared with 35 in 2005. The 17 proceedings that were concluded by October resulted in six dismissals, nine written warnings, and one demotion. Behavior resulting in discipline included administrative violations such as repeated tardiness and fraud (see section 3).

In July the CDHRF was provided full access to monitor KPS police stations. The ICRC visited Kosovo's prisons, although it did not issue any public findings on its visits. In a December policy reversal, the minister of justice decided to allow CDHRF access to the prisons for the first time since 2003, although no such visits took place by year's end. In December, journalists were also allowed to visit both Lipljan/Lipjan and Dubrava prisons for the first time since the 1999 conflict. According to the journalists who visited Dubrava prison, the prisoners with whom they spoke praised prison conditions in the Justice Minister's presence but criticized them in his absence. Dubrava prision held 809 inmates at year's end, below its total capacity of 1,100.

In October the HLC filed suit in Prizren District Court on behalf of Sasa Grkovic, who alleged severe mistreatment while in detention in 2001-2002 before and during his trial on charges of mass murder and torture of civilians. He was acquitted and released after 457 days of imprisonment. There were no developments in the case by year's end.

In January the Council of Europe (COE) noted that it was unclear whether a NATO/KFOR detention facility in Kosovo was open for inspection by its Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT). In July the COE and NATO reached agreement to give the CPT full access to NATO/KFOR facilities. In December CPT visited KFOR headquarters to discuss future visits to detention facilities, but no such visits had taken place by year's end.

d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention

The constitutional framework and criminal procedure code prohibit arbitrary arrest and detention, and UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG generally observed these prohibitions in practice.

Role of the Police and Security Apparatus

Local security forces included the KPC, a civilian emergency response organization, and the KPS, a local police force which functions under the authority of the SRSG and supervision of UNMIK police. A December 2005 UNMIK regulation established the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which under the constitutional framework is responsible for law enforcement. In March Fatmir Rexhepi was appointed minister and in April KPS became an executive agency under the ministry. UNMIK maintains executive authority over the police, but continued to transfer police authority and functions to the KPS.

An international commissioner of police directed both UNMIK police and the KPS, although in August UNMIK appointed a Kosovo Albanian as deputy commissioner and four Kosovo Albanians as assistant commissioners. Members of ethnic minorities comprised approximately 16 percent of the KPS's 7,200 officers at year's end; 10 percent of KPS officers were Kosovo Serbs. Thirteen percent of KPS officers were female.

Executive authority over the KPS is a reserved power of the SRSG. Day-to-day police operations have been transferred to the KPS in five of the six regions of Kosovo. In those regions, the KPS is responsible for all police services and routine activity. Specialized units on war crimes and ethnically motivated crimes were still primarily staffed by international UN police officers and largely operated independently of the KPS due to the sensitivity of those functions. Units on criminal intelligence and organized crime, including trafficking, were jointly operated. Both the international police and the judiciary have broad discretion to intervene in any particular criminal matter. As a practical matter, most policing duties and responsibilities were in the hands of KPS.

Susceptibility to corruption and government influence remained a problem in the security forces.

On June 28, the PISG Ministry of Internal Affairs and the OSCE Mission in Kosovo inaugurated the Police Inspectorate of Kosovo, a body designed to promote police efficiency and effectiveness, hold police accountable for their actions, and investigate and punish misconduct. The first 20 inspectors reported for duty on July 4, and 24 additional positions were advertised in December. During the year, inspectors began the first phase of their mandate: the audit and inspection of KPS management performance. They focused on efficiency and effectiveness, inspecting six of the 14 functional areas at each regional police headquarters and the central headquarters in Pristina and presenting reports on each. A general report on the inspectorate's 2006 activities was not yet available at year's end.

An UNMIK office of oversight investigated corruption in UNMIK and the criminal justice system. The judicial system generally held the security forces to the same level of accountability as it held the general population.

During the year the KPS professional standards unit, run by UNMIK police, completed 98 disciplinary investigations of KPS officers for participating in or failing to prevent violence in the March 2004 riots. The standards unit determined 53 allegations to be unfounded, suspended 35 officers without pay, referred seven to administrative discipline at the station level, demoted two officers, and fired one.

Arrest and Detention

Police generally made arrests openly using a warrant issued by a judge or prosecutor; however, in some cases, persons were arrested secretly by masked or undercover police officers. By law, arrests must be based on prosecutor orders and arrestees must be brought before a judge within 72 hours. Unlike in previous years, the majority of the year's arrests were carried out by the KPS rather than by UNMIK. According to the CDHRF, the KPS did not abuse the 72-hour rule and generally charged arrestees within six hours or released them. Arrestees have the right to be informed of the reason for their arrest in a language they understand; to remain silent and not answer any questions except those concerning their identity; to obtain free assistance of an interpreter; to obtain defense counsel and to have defense counsel provided if they cannot afford to pay for legal assistance; to receive medical treatment including psychiatric treatment; and to notify a family member. UNMIK police and the KPS generally respected these rights in practice. The law permits bail, confiscation of travel documents, house arrest, and other measures as an alternative to detention on remand, but these were applied in only a handful of cases.

Under extraordinary circumstances, KFOR can arrest and detain individuals without a warrant. The KFOR commander can extend the detention of individuals in 30-day increments without charging them with a crime before a court, provided they were not released by a court. There were no reports that KFOR arrested persons without a warrant during the year.

UNMIK police and the KPS may hold individuals for up to 72 hours without a court order. The court may hold individuals in pretrial detention for 30 days from the day of arrest, but this can be extended by the courts up to a total of 18 months. The law allows for house arrest, an appeal for detention on remand, and expanded use of bail as alternatives to pretrial detention.

Lengthy detentions, both before and during judicial proceedings, remained a problem. In October 820 persons were being detained on remand, compared to 432 detained serving sentences. The law provides that the judge may impose this extraordinary measure only when ordinary measures, such as house arrest, are insufficient to secure the defendant's presence during the criminal proceedings and enable proper administration of the criminal proceedings. In practice judges used detention on remand routinely, without showing any evidentiary justification.

e. Denial of Fair Public Trial

The constitutional framework provides for an independent judiciary; however, the local judiciary was at times biased and subject to outside influence and did not always provide due process. There were credible reports of corruption in the local judiciary, and the court system was inefficient.

On March 24, a Pec/Peja municipal court panel of three international judges found former judge Gani Kelmendi and a codefendant, Florim Zekaj, guilty of extortion. Florim Zekaj was also found guilty of attempted obstruction of justice. Both were sentenced to three years in prison. The court also prohibited Kelmendi from serving as a judge for five years after his sentence is completed. Kelmendi served as judge in the Municipal Court of Istok/Istog.

Legal authority is held by UNMIK under UNSC Resolution 1244. UNMIK police and justice authorities held executive responsibility for the judicial system but worked with local judges and prosecutors; during the year UNMIK transferred some reserved competencies to the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Kosovo Judicial Council that was established in December 2005. The Serbian government continued to operate an unsanctioned parallel judicial system in Kosovo Serb enclaves and in majority Serb municipalities.

The court system includes a Supreme Court, five district courts including a commercial court, 25 municipal courts, 25 minor offense courts, and an appellate court for minor offenses. In October there were 14 UNMIK-appointed international judges and 11 international prosecutors. The PISG included a central public prosecutor's office, five district prosecutors, and seven municipal prosecutors.

While the law provides that a panel of two professional and three lay judges try serious cases, an UNMIK regulation authorizes international prosecutors to try cases of a sensitive ethnic or political nature, including before a panel of three international judges. International prosecutors initiated 101 cases during the year, and international judges tried five of them, resulting in four convictions.

UNMIK's Judicial Inspection Unit (JIU) monitored judicial performance and made recommendations on discipline and training. The unit has a mandate to audit and evaluate the Kosovo justice system, make recommendations to the Department of Justice for the resolution of systemic problems, conduct investigations into allegations of judicial and prosecutorial misconduct, and present cases of misconduct in disciplinary hearings before the Kosovo Judicial Council. The JIU had processed a total of 1,488 complaints since 2001, including 448 during the year. Of those 448, JIU rejected 221 cases and completed 100 of the 227 investigations it opened. In the majority of investigations (89), JIU found no misconduct. The unit referred six cases to the Judicial Council, which heard three by year's end, dismissing one judge and recommending three for disciplinary action.

A May 2006 Human Rights Watch report on the March 2004 riots cases criticized local and international authorities for failing to hold perpetrators accountable for their crimes. The report pointed to a lack of effective oversight by UNMIK over the judiciary and a failure to adequately develop and support the rule of law in Kosovo, calling impunity, particularly for crimes with a political or ethnic dimension, "rampant."

Trial Procedures

Trials are public, and the law provides for the right of defendants to be present at their trials, to confront witnesses, to see evidence, and to have legal representation, at public expense if necessary; however, these procedures were rarely used in practice. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty and have the right of appeal. Trials are heard by panels consisting of professional and lay judges; there are no jury trials.

The UNMIK-established judicial integration section continued to address judicial system problems that affected minorities. In addition, the Ministry of Justice operated 11 court liaison offices, two of which were created during the year, to assist minority communities in Kosovo Serb-majority areas by accompanying members of minorities to courts, filing documents with courts on their behalf, and providing information and legal assistance to refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs). In response to past criticism by legal experts and human rights observers of a lack of fairness in criminal trials involving ethnic minorities, international judges and prosecutors, rather than Kosovo Albanians, tried and prosecuted cases involving Kosovo Serbs.

The KPS established a special investigation team to handle cases related to the March 2004 riots. The team covered the territory of Kosovo and was responsible for preparing dossiers on investigations, which were conducted in cooperation with UNMIK police and international prosecutors. According to the Kosovo Judicial Council, by year's end the 326 charges filed by municipal and district prosecutors for criminal offenses in connection with the riots had resulted in 200 indictments, 48 dismissals, 35 cases transferred from municipal to minor offenses court, and 43 cases suspended, terminated, or otherwise unsolved. Of the 200 indictments, municipal and district prosecutors won convictions in 134 cases, and courts acquitted eight and dismissed 28; 30 cases were pending at year's end (see section 1.a.). International prosecutors and judges handled the most sensitive cases. Of the 31 cases handled by international prosecutors and judges, courts convicted 26 individuals and acquitted one, and four were awaiting trial at year's end.

Kosovo's justice system and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) continued to identify and punish perpetrators of war crimes from the 1999 conflict; however, many cases remained unresolved. Supreme Court appeals continued in local courts to adjudicate cases of alleged war crimes and genocide arising from the 1999 conflict. The war crimes case against former KLA (and former KPC) commander Selim Krasniqi concluded during the year (see section 1.c.).

Political Prisoners and Detainees

There were no reports that KFOR, UNMIK, the KPS, or the PISG held political prisoners or detainees during the year.

Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies

According to an April OSCE report, interference by municipal authorities and the UNMIK Department of Justice hampered judicial independence in civil matters. The OSCE cited instances in which municipal authorities plainly obstructed court proceedings, pressured judges in cases to which authorities were party, and influenced third parties to prevent courts from exercising their authority. OSCE also reported that the justice department instructed judges not to process claims for compensation for property damages caused by KFOR, UNMIK, or the municipalities. The Department of Justice claimed that it did not pursue such compensation claims because the logistical challenges of such claims were insurmountable. It also claimed that an influx of property-related claims would hinder the courts' work, increase its already large backlog of cases, and require special planning and coordination, since it would be necessary to provide security escorts to a large number of Kosovo Serb claimants.

There were no reports of difficulty in enforcing court orders resulting from civil litigation. However, according to one survey, only 14 percent of the pending cases to affect a civil order resulted from civil litigation; 69 percent of such cases dealt with debt collection by utility companies.

Property Restitution

The Kosovo Property Agency was created in March under the PISG as the successor to the UNMIK Housing and Property Directorate. While the directorate only handled claims to residential properties, the new agency is responsible for the resolution of residential, commercial, and agricultural property claims from the Kosovo conflict. By year's end the Kosovo Property Agency had received 7,891 claims: 6,991 for agricultural property, 486 for commercial property, and 506 for residential property. Kosovo Serbs in the northern part of Mitrovica continued to occupy Kosovo Albanian properties, while Kosovo Albanians in the southern part occupied and denied Kosovo Serbs access to their property. The Housing and Property Directorate reported that, by December 31, it had decided a total of 29,159 claims, including all of the 1,250 property claims in northern Mitrovica, Leposaviq/Leposavic, Zubin Potok, and Zvecan. In over half of these cases, the KPA resolved claims by allowing squatters to remain in place with owner permission and directorate administration of the property.

The Kosovo Property Agency administered 5,340 properties, 3,497 of which were held with the permission of claimants whose rights were adjudicated by either the Kosovo Property Agency or the former Housing and Property Directorate. The Kosovo Property Agency administered the remaining 1,843 properties where ownership had not been established. In September the agency began the first phase of a rental program for the residential properties under its administration, providing a mechanism for displaced owners to receive some compensation.

The backlog of property-related claims in municipal courts grew from 17,000 in 2005 to over 47,000 at year's end; these were almost exclusively monetary claims by Kosovo Serbs for war-related damage. A study commissioned by the European Agency for Reconstruction estimated that 11,000 additional claims involving agricultural and commercial property awaited adjudication at the end of 2005. There was no indication that this number decreased during the year.

f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence

UNMIK regulations and the constitutional framework prohibit such actions, and UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG generally respected these prohibitions in practice. KFOR forces assisted UNMIK civilian police and the KPS in conducting searches for high-risk suspects and independently searched private property for weapons without court orders, based on UNSC Resolution 1244's peacekeeping authority.

Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties

a. Freedom of Speech and Press

UNMIK regulations and the constitutional framework provide for freedom of speech and of the press, and UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG generally respected these rights in practice; however, there were allegations that the KPS interfered with freedom of speech and press, and the courts ordered the seizure and sale of the assets of a daily newspaper for not paying its fines, including those for "unbalanced coverage" of the 2004 elections. UNMIK regulations prohibit hate speech and speech that incites ethnic violence, as well as newspaper articles that might encourage criminal activity or violence.

Individuals generally could criticize authorities publicly or privately without reprisal.

During the year the number of daily newspapers reached 10, with nine publishing at year's end. On November 24, authorities closed the Pristina branch of Bota Sot and the newspaper's printing press for failing to pay taxes accumulated since 2000. Three newspapers published weekly and covered current events, and dozens of other periodicals that primarily covered entertainment published throughout the year regularly or irregularly.

According to the Association of Professional Journalists of Kosovo, media outlets' financial difficulties left their editorial independence and journalistic professionalism vulnerable to outside influence and pressure. Some newspapers were financially self-sufficient or operated through aid donations and thus were able to develop editorial policies independent of business and political interests. However other newspapers relied on funding from businesses and political interest groups, who provided such money in exchange for positive coverage. During the year, there were no reports that the PISG or UNMIK pressured or influenced the independent print media.

Print media were self-regulated by a press code of conduct adopted by the Press Council of Kosovo, an organization comprised of print editors and publishers. The council's complaint board may impose fines for breaches of the code of conduct, including penalties of up to $2,620 (2,000 euros) for serious violations such as hate speech and defamation. During the year the council adjudicated 10 of the 20 complaints filed, but did not impose any fines.

Kosovo had 115 licensed independent broadcast outlets (93 radio and 22 television stations), which were active and expressed a wide variety of views.

International media were allowed to operate freely.

Journalists reported that pressure from powerful politicians resulted in indirect forms of censorship; they refrained from critical investigative reporting out of fear for their personal security. Journalists were occasionally offered financial benefits in exchange for positive reporting or for abandoning an investigation. According to editors, government agencies withdrew regular advertising from newspapers that had published critical coverage of them.

On January 20, the Kosovo Assembly passed a law bringing Kosovo's popular public broadcasting company Radio Television Kosovo (RTK), formerly overseen by UNMIK, under the immediate authority of the assembly. While RTK previously received operating funds out of fees collected by the Kosovo Energy Corporation, the new law placed RTK's budget under the direct control of the Ministry of Finance, a change that observers believed could jeopardize its editorial independence. RTK reported being frequently pressured by the PISG. The new RTK law also provides for regulation of RTK program content and requires that at least 15 percent of RTK program time, including prime time, be dedicated to nonmajority communities in their respective languages on a proportionate basis.

On August 29, the Independent Media Commission replaced UNMIK's temporary media commissioner. The commission is a permanent body overseen by a seven-member governing council that includes two international members. The commission implemented UNMIK regulations and enforced codes of conduct governing broadcast media.

During the year there were several incidents of violence or harassment directed at the media.

On July 18, a security guard at Bota Sot noticed a hand grenade on a sidewalk near the premises of the newspaper. Police responded and a KFOR demining unit performed a controlled explosion of the device.

The RTK received bomb threats during the year, via both telephone and e-mail. Early in the year, the station received a number of threats from a person accusing it of being a mouthpiece for UNMIK and "working for Serbs." On March 17, RTK received an e-mail from an organization calling itself the "Meteoras," threatening to destroy RTK with a bomb at 3:00 p.m. the following day. The e-mail asked RTK to evacuate the building at that time. The threat proved to be false.

On August 23, RTK received another e-mail threat from a group calling itself "Islamic Jihad," related to RTK's publication of Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad several months earlier.

On September 14, a KPS officer allegedly assaulted daily Lajm Ekskluzive journalist Enis Veliu in the Kosovo Assembly building. The subsequent case against the officer was dismissed as unfounded.

On October 15, two men physically attacked daily Lajm Exclusiva reporter Bujar Desku over his reporting on the illegal construction of a Mobtel cellular telephone antenna in a village outside Pristina and subsequently made further telephone threats to him as well. In September Infopress reporter Burim Qela received death threats by telephone for reporting on the same issue.

On January 13, the KPS and journalists held a public debate on violence against journalists. Fatos Bytyci, head of the Association of Professional Journalists of Kosovo said that although the violence, which had been increasing, did not seem to be a matter of policy, the police commissioner was not doing enough to prevent it. Since that debate, journalists had occasional altercations with the KPS, but as of October there had been only three such incidents reported to the association, compared to 16 during the same period in 2005.

There were no developments in the investigation of the June 2005 killing of Bota Sot editor Bardhyl Ajeti. A KPS investigation continued at year's end.

In September an internal investigation by the KPS Professional Standards Unit cleared a KPS officer of alleged involvement in the March 2005 assault of RTK reporters Behxhet Begu and Bardh Bekteshi. The two had allegedly parked their car in a restricted hospital/emergency no-parking zone on municipal property in Vucitrn/Vushtrri.

According to election regulations, during political campaigns media must ensure fair and equitable news coverage and access to discussion and debate for all parties; campaign-related reporting must be fair and impartial; and debates must have politically diverse guests and audiences and impartial moderators. In April an international judge ordered daily Bota Sot's assets to be seized and sold to pay a $85,150 (65,000 euros) fine imposed by court order in December 2005 for unbalanced coverage of the 2004 elections, and an $10,480 (8,000 euros) fine for a February 2005 failure to ensure accuracy in reporting. A Bota Sot bank account containing $68,120 (52,000 euros) was frozen pending payment of the fine.

On November 24, the Kosovo tax administration closed Bota Sot for alleged nonpayment of $524,000 (400,000 euros) in taxes; the law allows the tax administration to seize and sell the papers assets after 60 days. At year's end no assets had been seized but the paper was not operating.

Internet Freedom

There were no UNMIK, KFOR, or PISG restrictions on access to the Internet or reports that the government monitored e-mail or Internet chatrooms. Individuals and groups could engage in the peaceful expression of views via the Internet, including by electronic mail.

In a November poll, 19 percent of Kosovars reported that they used the Internet daily.

Academic Freedom and Cultural Events

There were no UNMIK, KFOR, or PISG restrictions on academic freedom or cultural events.

b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

Freedom of Assembly

UNMIK regulations and the constitutional framework provide for freedom of assembly, and UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG generally respected this right in practice. An UNMIK regulation required that demonstration organizers give 48 hours advance notice for police coordination.

According to media reports, the KPS used force to disperse demonstrations and beat demonstrators while making arrests on at least four occasions during the year (see section 1.c.).

Freedom of Association

UNMIK regulations and the constitutional framework provide for freedom of association, and UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG generally respected this right in practice.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo routinely registered political parties under UNMIK auspices, and the Ministry of Public Services registered NGOs.

c. Freedom of Religion

UNMIK regulations and the constitutional framework provide for freedom of religion, and UNMIK and the PISG generally respected this right in practice.

There are no specific licensing regulations for religious groups; however, religious organizations must register as NGOs with UNMIK and the Ministry of Public Services in order to purchase property or receive funding from UNMIK or other international organizations. Religious groups complained that NGO status did not adequately reflect their religious character, and the Protestant Evangelical Church refused to register as an NGO.

In July the assembly passed the Law on Religious Freedom, which the SRSG promulgated in August. The law affirms the right to freedom of expression, conscience and religion to all residents of Kosovo regardless of their religious convictions. It provides for the separation of religious communities from public authorities and for equal rights and obligations to all religious communities, and stipulates that there is no official religion in Kosovo.

Religious identity and ethnicity were closely related. Kosovo Serbs identified with the Serbian Orthodox Church, which influenced their cultural, historical, political, and religious views (see section 5). While significant parts of the Kosovo Albanian community continued to view the Serbian Orthodox Church as a symbol of Serbian nationalism, relations between leaders of the Kosovo Albanian community and the Serbian Orthodox Church improved during the year as PISG officials and political figures met on several occasions with church clergy. In May central and local government officials participated in a landmark interfaith conference held at the Serbian Orthodox Patriarchate in Pec/Peja.

Pursuant to a 2002 law requiring public education institutions to refrain from religious instruction or other activities promoting any specific religion, the Ministry of Education prohibited the wearing of headscarves. The ministry continued to enforce this prohibition, particularly at schools with obligatory uniforms, despite a 2004 opinion issued by the Ombudsperson that the rule should apply only to teachers and school officials, not students. Following mediation by the Ombudsperson, a primary school student dismissed from class in April 2005 for wearing a veil completed her education through correspondence classes and received her diploma during the year.

The Ombudsperson Institution reported that it had received no new complaints of violations of religious rights during the year. In 2005 a male student filed a complaint with the Ombudsperson alleging that he was expelled from school for having a beard; school officials told the Ombudsperson that the student was not expelled but only prevented from returning to class while he wore a beard.

Protestant groups continued to report that they experienced discrimination in media access, particularly by public television station RTK. The Protestant Evangelical Church in Kosovo, Fellowship of the Lord's People, reported that the Decani/Decan municipality, citing negative reaction from local citizens, denied it permission to build a church facility on land the church purchased previously. The church reported that the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning upheld the decision in February, and at year's end the case remained pending before the Kosovo Supreme Court.

The Islamic community continued to assert that UNMIK's denial of a radio frequency for an Islamic radio station and the national library's closure of its prayer room constituted violations of religious freedom.

Societal Abuses and Discrimination

During the year there were multiple reports of attacks against Serbian Orthodox clergy and parishioners and vandalism of Serbian Orthodox Churches and church property. During the year the Joint Reconstruction Implementation Commission, composed of the PISG, Serbian Orthodox Church, and international agencies, continued to make progress in restoring churches damaged or destroyed during the March 2004 riots.

On May 6, unknown attackers shot at a car driven by Serbian Orthodox priest Srjdan Stankovic in the Zvecan municipality. UNMIK charged a Kosovo Serb KPS officer in connection with the incident. The case was turned over to an international prosecutor and remained pending at year's end.

There were reported incidents of rock-throwing and other assaults against Serb buses and Serbian Orthodox clergy as they traveled outside of their monasteries, and monks and nuns at some monasteries reportedly did not use areas of the monasteries' properties out of concern for their safety.

Security concerns continued to affect the Serb community and its freedom to worship, particularly after the March 2004 riots. Some Kosovo Serbs asserted that they were not able to travel freely to practice their faith. For example, the Decani monastery experienced a decline in attendance at religious services after KFOR stopped escorting nonclergy parishioners to religious sites in April 2005. Clergy transit vans were also reportedly pelted with stones when traveling through Kosovo.

During the year there were numerous cases of vandalism directed against Serbian Orthodox Church property. For example, on March 15, six tombstones were damaged in a Serbian Orthodox cemetery and a church window was broken in Urosevac/Ferizaj municipality. Three Kosovo Albanian teenagers confessed to the crime. As minors, they faced criminal charges under the Juvenile Justice Code, which permits imprisonment of minors only for criminal acts that carry a penalty of five years or more under the Criminal Code. Because the crime with which they were charged--damaging graves--is punishable by up to one year of imprisonment, the prosecutor sought to impose educational measures on the defendants as permitted under the Juvenile Justice Code. Two of the defendants experienced 15 days of pretrial detention; the three awaited trial at year's end.

On June 9, a landmine was discovered in a Serbian Orthodox cemetery in the predominantly Kosovo Serb village of Staro Gracko, Lipljan/Lipjan municipality. On June 20, church officials reported the disappearances of four crosses from the roof of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Obilic/Obiliq. Three juveniles were arrested, and the crosses were recovered. On August 6, thieves broke into the Serbian Orthodox church in Babin Most, Obilic/Obiliq municipality, stealing several icons and damaging the interior of the church. No suspects were apprehended.

In July 2005 a man attacked a pastor serving in Decani/Decan with the Assemblies of God Protestant Evangelical Church of Kosovo. The pastor underwent surgery for his injuries. The attacker was arrested, fined approximately $400 (300 euros), and released. Protestants reported the attack, which occurred with members of the KPS present, was possibly motivated by a controversy over church-owned land on which the Protestants have been prevented from building.

Protestants reported harassment and discrimination, including verbal attacks, a lack of Protestant programming on RTK, and incidents of school officials calling in parents of pupils to deter their children from converting to Protestantism. They reported that in July 2005, people in Malisevo/Malisheve municipality, incited by the Islamic community, reacted violently against the showing of the movie "Jesus," although the Protestants had received permission from the municipality, the KPS, and village leadership to screen the film. KPS arrested 20 protesters, some of whom were armed, and helped church members to safety.

Approximately 40 individuals from two families in Prizren had some Jewish roots, but there were no synagogues or Jewish institutions in Kosovo other than a small cemetery in Pristina. There were no reports of anti-Semitic acts.

For a more detailed discussion, see the 2006 International Religious Freedom Report.

d. Freedom of Movement, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

UNMIK regulations and the constitutional framework provide for freedom of movement; however, interethnic tensions and real and perceived security concerns restricted freedom of movement. During the year UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG generally improved protection of these rights for minority communities.

Sporadic incidents of violence and intimidation targeting minorities continued to limit freedom of movement for Kosovo Albanians in northern Kosovo. The PISG and UNMIK enhanced efforts to facilitate minority travel throughout Kosovo, but real and perceived risks deterred many minorities from traveling outside of their neighborhood.

There were numerous attacks during the year on buses carrying Serbs and other ethnic minorities. For example, on January 3, a KPS-escorted biweekly bus transporting Serbs from Orahovac/Rahovec was stoned in Malishevo/Malisheve. On January 5, a bus traveling from Dragas/Dragash to Belgrade was attacked by a rocket-propelled grenade. Buses carrying Serb returnees from Klina/Kline and Istok/Istog to Mitrovica were stoned by Kosovo Albanian youth in Runik, Srbica/Skenderaj municipality, on several occasions. On August 30, a bus driver reported that a group of Kosovo Albanians stoned his bus while transporting Kosovo Serb children through southern Mitrovica, breaking one window. The stoning of buses was also reported on October 26 in Runik/Rudnik and November 20 in Obilic. No injuries were reported in any of these incidents.

To reduce the risk of attack by making Kosovo Serb and Kosovo Albanian vehicles indistinguishable, UNMIK continued to offer Kosovo license plates at no fee to Kosovo Serbs who had already registered their vehicles in Serbia. However, Kosovo Serbs were reluctant to use the UNMIK-issued plates because doing so limited their ability to travel to Serbia, which did not recognize the UNMIK plates.

There were also incidents targeting infrastructure used by minorities. On June 2, explosives were found under a bridge connecting two Kosovo Serb returnee villages in Klina/Kline municipality. On December 8, an explosion on railroad tracks in Mihaliq village, Vucitrn/Vushtrri municipality temporarily halted rail service between Kosovo Serb communities in southern Kosovo and areas north of the Ibar River. No suspects were apprehended in either incident.

On September 11, an explosion destroyed the recently reconstructed but yet uninhabited home of a Kosovo Serb returnee and damaged another nearby home in Klina/Kline municipality. The perpetrators were not apprehended.

On August 31, UNMIK and the Ministry of Transportation and Communication signed a memorandum of understanding governing the transfer of competency to provide humanitarian train and bus services to minority communities in Kosovo; since that date the ministry operated the buses. The public transportation strategy developed as part of the transfer provided for the direct participation of an affected community in any decision to change humanitarian transportation services.

UNMIK regulated movement in and out of Kosovo. UNMIK regulations provide that the central civil registry may issue travel documents to any person registered as a habitual resident of Kosovo, and the registry routinely issued such documents in practice. The PISG held managerial and operational responsibility for the registry, while UNMIK retained its overall authority, including for the issuance of UNMIK travel documents and the security of the central registration database.

The law prohibits forced exile, and authorities did not use it.

Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)

According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), some 207,000 persons from Kosovo remained displaced in Serbia and 16,500 in Montenegro as a consequence of the 1999 conflict. Of the 4,100 persons displaced by the March 2004 riots, some 1,300 remained displaced. There were 19,500 persons displaced within Kosovo, almost half of whom were Kosovo Albanians. Few IDPs returned during the year due to uncertainty over Kosovo's future political status, lack of employment opportunities, security concerns, and property disputes. While some international agencies, NGOs, and the PISG continued to organize small-scale return projects, observers criticized the newly created PISG Ministry of Communities and Returns for internal irregularities and delay in the disbursement of PISG funding for return projects. Amidst these criticisms and investigations, returns minister Slavisa Petkovic resigned shortly before year's end. Aside from successes in Klina/Kline and Istok/Istog, municipalities hired staff and devised municipal return strategies with minimal results. On August 3, Pec/Peja municipality decided not to reconstruct any homes in its territory without a statement from the displaced homeowner indicating readiness and intention to return.

On June 6, the governments of Kosovo and Serbia signed a protocol for cooperation in returning displaced people to Kosovo, including to places other than their primary residence. Discussions on implementation of this agreement continued at year's end.

At the end of December, UNHCR reported that 1,608 members of minority communities returned to Kosovo during the year, including Kosovo Albanians who returned to areas where they are a minority. Overall minority returns since 2000 stood at 16,117 at year's end. A slightly smaller number of Kosovo Serbs returned compared to 2005, when more Roma, Ashkali, Egyptians, and Goranis returned. Kosovo Serbs comprised approximately 31 percent of returnees during the year, compared with 35 percent in 2005. Roma (including Ashkali and Egyptians) continued to return in slightly greater numbers, comprising 54 percent of the overall number of returns. In Mitrovica, Kosovo Serbs in the north of the city and Kosovo Albanians in the south continued to illegally occupy each others' properties, hindering potential returns.

By year's end, the PISG had reconstructed over 97 percent of the homes damaged or destroyed in the March 2004 riots. On December 15, for example, repairs and reconstruction were completed in Svinjare. However, a number of the individuals displaced by the riots still did not return due to both a real and perceived lack of security, unemployment, and residents' complaints about the quality of reconstruction. The prospect for returns varied according to region and ethnic group.

Camp Osterode, a relocation facility in northern Kosovo designed to eventually accommodate approximately 531 Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian IDPs, opened in March, and 114 households comprising 454 persons moved there from lead-polluted camps during the year. Forty-one households with 172 individuals remained at the polluted Cesmin Lug camp, refusing to move. All persons from Kablar Barracks and Zitkovac camps moved to Osterode, and all existing structures at those two camps were demolished to prevent movement back to lead-polluted areas. On August 30, the World Health Organization (WHO) began treating relocated Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian children for lead poisoning at the camp.

In 2005 UNMIK also began a concurrent donor funding campaign to rebuild the original Romani settlement in southern Mitrovica, destroyed in 1999 by Kosovo Albanians. In February, the European Roma Rights Center filed a petition with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg alleging UNMIK violations of Roma rights and requesting immediate action to remove the Roma from the lead-contaminated camps and provide medical treatment. The ECHR subsequently rejected the petition.

Limited funding slowed the return project, but reconstruction of the neighborhood began in May. By year's end, two 12-unit apartment buildings were completed and construction had begun on two more. Another 36 houses (54 housing units) were also nearly complete. The committee for selecting future occupants of the 48 apartments received 93 applications; 31 from Serbia, 27 from Camp Osterode, 18 from Leposaviq/Leposavic municipality, 13 from Montenegro, two from Camp Cesmin Lug, and two from private locations in Mitrovica. The committee selected the occupants. At year's end, the 48 chosen heads of household were waiting to sign a 99-year lease, which was in the process of revision and approval by the UNMIK legal adviser's office.

Protection of Refugees

Kosovo is not a signatory to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 protocol. However, Kosovo provides asylum and refugee status under an UNMIK regulation on the movement of persons into and out of Kosovo, whose provisions are compatible with the Convention and Protocol. During the year, UNMIK granted refugee status to two persons.

In practice, UNMIK provided protection against refoulement, the return of persons to a country where they feared persecution. UNMIK cooperated with the UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations in assisting refugees.

Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government

UNMIK regulations and the constitutional framework provide residents with the right to change their government peacefully, and they exercised this right in practice through periodic elections on the basis of universal suffrage.

Kosovo continued to be administered under the civil authority of UNMIK. UNMIK and its chief administrator, the SRSG, established an international civil administration in 1999 following the NATO military campaign that forced the withdrawal of Serbian forces. In 2001 UNMIK promulgated the constitutional framework for the PISG. Under the constitutional framework, a 120-member Kosovo Assembly selects a president, a prime minister, and other ministers and PISG officials. Kosovo's leaders continued to criticize UNMIK for the slow pace of transfer of powers to the PISG, and UNMIK retained a number of competencies under UN Security Council Resolution 1244, including security and relations with foreign governments. In October 2005, a UN report noted that without clarity on future political status, the PISG was unable to take further steps to improve its effectiveness.

Elections and Political Participation

International and domestic observers determined that the October 2004 Kosovo Assembly elections generally reflected the will of the voters, although less than five percent of Kosovo Serbs participated, largely due to Serbian government pressure to boycott. On June 16, the SRSG postponed municipal elections due in November until either June 2007 or six months after the decision on Kosovo's final status, whichever is earlier.

Kosovo has a multiparty system dominated by four Kosovo Albanian parties with several minority parties and coalitions.

Under UNMIK regulations, individuals may nominate themselves as candidates to their parties, which must hold open and transparent internal elections to select candidate lists. Unlike at its 2004 convention, the largest party and senior ruling coalition partner, the LDK, abided by this requirement when it elected a new president at its December 9 party convention. Party affiliation played an important role in access to government services and social and employment opportunities. Traditional social arrangements and clan loyalties also played an important, although unofficial, role in political organizations.

There were numerous reports of politically motivated attacks and threats against Kosovo Albanian political and institutional figures during the year.

In January an unknown person assaulted Ferizaj LDK branch presidency member Ismajl Nazifi, a key witness for Ferizaj Municipal Assembly President Faik Grainca in his lawsuit against former deputy prime minister Adem Salihaj. A KPS investigation continued at year's end.

On July 24, a Kosovo daily newspaper published a threat against the Kosovo negotiating team by the self-proclaimed "Karadaku fighter comrades," warning "that the signing of the current plan on decentralization would be the most fatal signature they have ever given against themselves and the interests of their nation." A KPS investigation continued at year's end.

On September 15, a bomb exploded near the Gnjilane/Gjilan apartment of Kosovo Interior Minister Fatmir Rexhepi, destroying his wife's car. An investigation was ongoing at year's end.

In the four months prior to the December LDK party internal elections, there were 10 explosions, most involving politically relevant targets. Property damage was reported, but no injuries. At the December 9 party convention, several people suffered minor injuries during a fight between those supporting President Sejdiu and those supporting Nexhat Daci.

There were 36 women in the 120-seat Kosovo Assembly. Women must occupy every third spot on each political party's candidate list. There were no female members of the eight-member assembly presidency and only one female minister and one female deputy minister. Women represented 28 percent of the elected municipal representatives. In September 2005, 34 female Kosovo Assembly members established an informal women's caucus with an eight-person, multiethnic board.

There were 22 ethnic minority members in the 120-seat Kosovo Assembly, including 10 Kosovo Serbs and 12 members of other groups, including ethnic Turks, Bosniaks, Gorani, Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptians. There were two minority PISG ministers--one Kosovo Serb and one Bosniak--and three minority deputy ministers. The seat of one Serb minister was kept vacant, as the designated Serb party refused to take the position. One Bosniak and one Kosovo Turk held a rotating seat on the Kosovo Assembly presidency; the boycott by one of the Kosovo Serb parties left empty the eight seats set aside for Kosovo Serbs. At year's end, Kosovo Serbs in the largest Kosovo Serb political party had not claimed their set-aside cabinet posts and continued to boycott assembly votes, although they did participate in committees; members of Slavisa Petkovic's Serb Democratic Party of Kosovo and Metohija took up two of the set-aside seats and led the Ministry of Returns. The constitutional framework requires that the assembly reserve 10 seats for Kosovo Serbs and 10 for members of other ethnic groups, but ethnic minorities were underrepresented at the municipal level where no such provisions govern.

Government Corruption and Transparency

There was a widespread public perception of corruption in both the PISG and UNMIK. A lack of effective judicial oversight and general weakness in the rule of law contributed to corruption in the PISG. As part of its mandate, UNMIK continued to adjudicate many sensitive cases related to corruption and interethnic crimes. During the year 24 people were arrested and one convicted on corruption charges.

On February 28, unknown persons assaulted the independent international auditor general, leaving her with cuts and bruises two months after her arrival in Kosovo and only two days after the release of a critical audit on the Pristina municipality. A KPS investigation continued at year's end.

After assuming office in March, Prime Minister Agim Ceku requested that an independent international auditor undertake an audit of every ministry and municipality. By year's end, the auditor general had issued reports on five municipalities and reports on asset management in six ministries, most of which were critical of government administration, fiscal management, and procurement practices. In October following allegations of corruption and pursuant to a search warrant issued by an international judge, the office of the Ministry of Communities and Returns was searched. In November Prime Minister Ceku dismissed Minister Slavisa Petkovic, a Kosovo Serb, and at year's end prosecutors were continuing to review the reports.

On June 24, the KPS Financial and Corruption Crime Investigation Unit in Pristina arrested Ahmet Alishani, senior advisor to the former assembly speaker Nexhat Daci, on suspicion of fraud and bribery. Alishani was released, then re-arrested in November in connection with the audit of the Kosovo Assembly.

During the year Kosovo Assembly President Kole Berisha ordered an audit on management of the assembly under his predecessor, Nexhat Daci. The audit, presented to assembly members on October 6, reported numerous wrongdoings and mismanagement by the assembly administration, misuse of public funds, and procurement irregularities during Daci's tenure as assembly president. In October Berisha suspended four staff members, and on November 3, the Assembly established an investigation committee on the matter. The committee's investigation was ongoing at year's end. By year's end, three suspects were arrested, including two Assembly officials, and the criminal investigation led by UNMIK's Department of Justice continued. No charges had been brought against Daci himself.

On November 3, an international prosecutor indicted former Director of the Post and Telecommunications of Kosovo Leme Xhema, former divisional manager at Kosovo Trust Agency Roger Reynolds, former director of Norway Invest Mustafa Neziri, and former managing director and chairman of Norway Invest Ronnen Sorensen, in connection with the alleged misuse of $390,000 (300,000 euros).

On November 29, two finance officers at Dubrava Prison were arrested on charges of abusing their official position and falsifying documents. The two were released on the condition that they not approach witnesses in the case or any employee of the Dubrava Prison finance office. An international staff member who had left the mission was also being investigated. The investigation was ongoing at year's end.

No law provides for access to official UNMIK documents. In 2003 UNMIK promulgated a law on the access to official PISG documents, but the law did not include penalties for failure to comply, and in practice PISG institutions rarely granted access during the year. Institutions failed even to respond to nearly 85 percent (690 of 820) of requests made during the year, according to a Youth Initiative for Human Rights study, and those who did respond most often responded by refusing to provide the requested documents. Furthermore, only six of 318 requests made in the Serbian language were replied to in Serbian as required by law. Although most replies came within the required 15-day window, journalists complained that allowing 15 days effectively meant they could never obtain official documents in time to meet their own publishing deadlines.

Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights

A wide variety of domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases. UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG were occasionally cooperative and responsive to their views.

Authorities did not provide NGOs access to public documents (see section 3) and prohibited one NGO, which formerly visited prisons to report on conditions, from conducting such visits until late December (see section 1.c.).

NGOs complained about the lack of a tax exemption on some items imported into Kosovo; some religious NGOs reported discrimination based on their religious affiliation.

An Ombudsperson Institution was responsible for investigating allegations of government abuses of international human rights laws. While the Ombudsperson office actively issued intervention letters, reports, and recommendations, its recommendations were not always followed by the PISG, local courts, or the KPS. Cases investigated by the office concerned property rights, abuse of official authority, administrative acts or omissions by public authorities, lack of proper investigations into criminal acts, issues involving the length of court proceedings and the execution of court decisions, employment-related disputes, and impunity. The former deputy Ombudsperson Hilmi Jashari served as acting head of the Ombudsperson Institution during the year, following the end of the international Ombudsperson's mandate in December 2005. In February the Ombudsperson's mandate was changed to exclude UNMIK from its purview; a new Human Rights Advisory Panel within UNMIK was established in April and charged with UNMIK oversight.

UNMIK, KFOR, and the PISG generally cooperated with the ICTY. In March 2005 the ICTY indicted then-prime minister Ramush Haradinaj and codefendants Idriz Balaj and Lahi Brahimaj regarding war crimes committed between March and September 1998. In a pretrial conference on October 13, the prosecutor amended the indictment, dropping two counts and adding one. The prosecutor also applied to make further amendments, which the court allowed. At year's end, the final indictment had yet to be submitted or approved.

Societal attitudes occasionally interfered with ICTY investigations. A visit on May 25 by an ICTY criminal defense team to a massacre site in Krusha e Vogel, Prizren municipality, sparked violence by villagers, who claimed they saw two former Serb residents in the convoy. The resulting melee resulted in the injury of over 30 people, including three police officers. The PISG and UNMIK officials criticized the villagers' failure to respect the rule of law, adding that any future visits would be better coordinated and announced in advance. Two activist groups, the Self-Determination Movement and the National Movement for the Liberation of Kosovo, supported the villagers' actions and criticized UNMIK police.

Section 5 Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in Persons

UNMIK and PISG regulations specifically prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, gender, ethnic origin, disability, or language; however, violence and discrimination against women, persons with disabilities, and ethnic minorities persisted.

Women

Domestic violence against women, including spousal abuse, remained a serious and persistent problem. UNMIK regulations prohibit domestic violence and convictions carry prison terms of six months to five years. When victims did press charges, KPS domestic violence units conducted investigations and transferred cases to prosecutors. According to UNMIK, family loyalties and close-knit communities and the backlog of cases in both civil and criminal courts added to a low rate of prosecution.

The Center for Protection of Women and Children provided assistance to 81 victims of domestic and sexual violence from April through December, including legal services in 44 cases. The Ministry of Justice Victim Advocate and Assistance Unit was involved in 701 domestic violence cases. The judicial system processed 135 protection orders and opened 213 cases, 116 of which resulted in convictions. Sentences ranged from judicial reprimands to imprisonment. Traditional social attitudes towards women in the male-dominated society contributed to the high level of domestic abuse and low number of reported cases.

There were no governmental agencies dedicated solely to dealing with family violence. Six shelters assisted victims of domestic violence and trafficking, including one run by an international NGO and designed for minors and two that admitted victims of both domestic violence and trafficking. The KPS reported that 66 victims of domestic violence received shelter during the year. Several domestic and international NGOs pursued activities to assist women; however, they were constrained by a tradition of silence concerning domestic violence, sexual abuse, and rape.

During the year, a 24-hour anonymous hotline for reporting domestic abuse operated in Pristina, Gjilan/Gnjilane, Peje/Pec, Prizren, and Mitrovica. Since 2004 the hotline has assisted 2,573 cases. Victims of domestic violence accounted for 77 percent of the calls and 4 percent of calls were from trafficking victims. The hotline informed callers about their rights, available shelters, and related information.

The KPS training school offered special courses on domestic violence and rape in its curriculum. There were no reports that KPS responded inappropriately to rape or domestic abuse allegations.

UNMIK regulations criminalize rape; however, spousal rape is not specifically addressed. Under the Provisional Criminal Code, rape is punishable by one to 10 years in prison; statutory rape (sexual intercourse with a girl under 14) is punishable by one to five years in prison.

Rape was significantly underreported due to the cultural stigma attached to victims and their families. According to the Ministry of Justice, victim advocates provided services to victims in approximately 82 cases of rape during the year.

The law prohibits prostitution, but prostitution remained prevalent. The UNMIK police trafficking and prostitution investigation unit investigated cases of prostitution and suspected trafficking in persons.

Trafficking in women for the purpose of sexual exploitation was a serious problem (see section 5, Trafficking).

There was no specific law against sexual harassment, which was a common problem. Social awareness of sexual harassment remained low, and few cases were reported.

Women have the same legal rights as men but traditionally have a lower social status, which affected their treatment within the legal system. Despite a lack of legal impediments, relatively few women obtained upper-level management positions in commerce, the KPS, or government. While the number of women with jobs continued to increase, female unemployment remained high at around 70 percent, 10 to 20 percent higher than the rate for men.

Traditional social attitudes toward women resulted in discrimination. In some rural areas, women often had little ability to make decisions involving their children or to exercise control over property. While women and men have an equal legal right to inherit property, family property customarily passes only to men. Ethnic Albanian widows, particularly in rural areas, risked losing custody of their children due to a custom calling for children and property to pass to the deceased father's family, while the widow returns to her birth family.

On May 5, the president of the Skenderaj Education Committee recommended that married women should not be allowed to attend secondary school, explaining that since "they are wives," they should take care of their husbands. The municipal assembly unanimously approved the recommendation.

In October KPS arrested four people, including the parents, for attempting to force a 13-year-old girl to marry an already-married, much older man with four children. The girl was removed to a shelter.

To combat discrimination against women, in 2005 UNMIK integrated antidiscrimination, antitrafficking, and human rights coursework into the legal curriculum at the University of Pristina.

Children

UNMIK and the PISG were generally committed to the welfare and rights of children.

According to a 2004 UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) report, an estimated 40 percent of the population of Kosovo is under the age of 18, and 33 percent of the population is under 15. Kosovo has a very low rate of preschool attendance, with less than 10 percent of children aged two to five attending. According to the NGO Save the Children, a preschool education law promulgated in March failed to make the preprimary year (for children ages five to six) compulsory or ensure budget allocations to preprimary education. UNMIK regulations require children between the ages of six and 15 to enroll in public school. Primary education is free. UNICEF estimated that 33 percent of the children who enroll in primary school drop out by grade eight and, of those who finish primary school, only 57 percent enroll in secondary education. Some children were forced to leave school early to enter the workforce (see section 6.d.).

According to 2005 statistics, 97.5 percent of Kosovo Albanian and 99 percent of Kosovo Serb children were enrolled in primary school, while only 77 percent of children between the ages of seven and 14 from non-Serb minority communities (Roma, Ashkali, Egyptian, Turkish, Bosniak, Gorani, and others) were in school. UNICEF reported that the lack of facilities for minority education in parts of Kosovo made it difficult for some IDPs to return to their homes.

According to UNICEF, while 52 percent of all children who completed primary education continued to secondary school, only 43 percent of female students continued. The rate of secondary school completion was also lower for Kosovo Albanian girls than for Kosovo Albanian boys or Kosovo Serb girls.

UNMIK regulations require equal conditions for school children and provide the right to native-language public education through secondary level for minority students. Schools teaching in Serbian, Bosnian, and Turkish operated during the year. Both Kosovo Serb and Kosovo Albanian children attended schools with inadequate facilities that lacked basic equipment. A few schools housed both Kosovo Serb and Kosovo Albanian pupils, who studied different curricula and rotated class schedules.

Romani, Ashkali, and Egyptian children attended mixed schools with Kosovo Albanian children but reportedly faced intimidation in some majority Albanian areas. Romani children tended to be disadvantaged by poverty, leading many to start work both at home and in the streets at an early age to contribute to family income. Romani children were also disadvantaged by having to learn another language to attend school since many spoke Romani at home. Some Bosniak children in predominantly Bosniak areas were occasionally able to obtain primary education in their language, but those few outside such areas received instruction in the Albanian language.

The government provided medical care, and boys and girls had equal access to it. However, the medical care available was generally of a low standard.

A study by UNICEF and the Ministry of Education on the prevalence of violence in schools found that violence against children was condoned. Corporal punishment was an accepted practice in homes and schools. Those who lived far from school reported that they were afraid to travel the distance because of the threat of peer violence. Children reported that persons close to them were perpetrators of violence; that boys were more at risk of physical violence; and girls were more at risk of verbal abuse. Of children ages six to 11, 75 percent perceived the street as the most violent place, 27 percent said the school was the scene of violent events, and 12 percent mentioned the home. Thirty-seven percent of older children considered violence against children in schools to be a widespread phenomenon.

High unemployment and family dislocation resulted in abandonment of newborns. The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare reported that 1,200 children were either orphaned or abandoned since the end of the 1999 conflict, although the abandonment rate was decreasing, and only 56 children were abandoned between January and October. The children were housed in various residential placements including extended family care, foster care, and community-based homes. However, because domestic adoptions and foster family programs did not keep pace with the rate of abandonment, authorities sometimes housed infants and children in group homes with few caregivers. Children with disabilities were often hidden away without proper care, particularly in rural areas.

During the year the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare operated 31 social welfare centers that assisted 1,188 orphans, 1,695 delinquent children, 66 abused children, 66 abandoned children, and 388 children with behavioral problems. The ministry also managed foster homes and coordinated with NGOs to place children in temporary shelters. According to the Center for Social Work, 19 abandoned disabled children, ranging from three to 18 years of age, were living in two government-funded community homes under 24-hour care.

Child marriage was reported to occur, especially among the ethnic Romani, Ashkali, Egyptian, and Albanian communities, although UNMIK did not compile statistics on the problem.

Children were trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation (see section 5, Trafficking).

Child labor was a serious problem (see section 6.d.).

Trafficking in Persons

UNMIK regulations criminalize trafficking in persons; however, trafficking of women and children remained a serious problem.

Kosovo was a source, transit, and destination point for trafficked persons, and internal trafficking was a growing problem. Victims were women and children trafficked internally or from Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and the former Soviet Union into Kosovo, primarily for sexual exploitation but also for domestic servitude or forced labor in bars and restaurants. Victims were also trafficked through Kosovo to Macedonia, Albania, and countries in Western Europe. During the year, 24 of the 64 persons who were identified as victims of trafficking were repatriated or returned to their community.

According to the KPS and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), trafficking in persons was an increasing problem, and the majority of victims were trafficked from Moldova. IOM records indicate that Moldovan females accounted for 43 percent of trafficking victims, followed by females from Romania (17 percent), Kosovo (16 percent), Ukraine (11 percent), Albania (6 percent), Bulgaria (5 percent) and other countries (3 percent). The KPS reported similar statistics, but their records indicated that 31 percent of the victims were from Kosovo and trafficked internally, putting internally trafficked victims just behind Moldovan victims. The KPS also reported great difficulty in identifying trafficking victims due to their reluctance to come forward and report the crimes to the police. Cultural taboos and the threat of social discrimination caused most internally trafficked victims to remain silent about their experiences. Another difficulty was the inability of the KPS to recruit Kosovo Serb officers for the antitrafficking unit, preventing undercover operations from taking place in northern Kosovo and in Kosovo Serb enclaves.

Trafficking victims worked primarily in the sex industry, mostly in brothels and nightclubs but increasingly in private residences. None reported that they were aware they would be working in the sex industry when they left their homes. Trafficking victims reported that they were regularly subjected to beatings and rape, denied access to health care, and had their travel and identity documents confiscated. Victims were often found in poor health and psychological condition.

UNMIK reported that traffickers often worked as part of a coordinated effort between Kosovo Serb and Kosovo Albanian organized crime elements, and some women were trafficked from or through Serbia into Kosovo. Bar and brothel owners purchased victims from organized crime rings.

Methods of trafficking increased in sophistication. In reaction to an aggressive eradication campaign by local and international authorities, traffickers shifted the commercial sex trade out of public bars and clubs and into private homes, where operations were more difficult to detect. Traffickers increasingly used financial incentives to encourage victims to refuse assistance.

The IOM reported that, of the 538 mainly international victims it has assisted since 1999, 73 percent fell prey to traffickers after accepting a bogus job offer abroad, 4.1 percent claimed to have been kidnapped, and 3.7 percent were promised marriage. In 83 percent of cases, recruiting was through personal common contacts; the recruiter was an acquaintance of the victim in 29 percent of the cases and a friend or family friend in approximately 15 percent. Recruiters were most often female.

Under the Provisional Criminal Code, trafficking is punishable by two to 20 years' imprisonment. Engaging or attempting to engage in trafficking is punishable by two to 12 years' imprisonment, or up to 15 years if the victim is a minor; organizing a group to engage in trafficking is punishable by five to 20 years' imprisonment; facilitating trafficking through negligence is punishable by six months' to five years' imprisonment. A client engaging in sex with a trafficking victim may be sentenced for up to five years, while sex with a trafficked minor carries penalties of up to 10 years' imprisonment. Voluntary prostitution is punished as a minor offense; prostitutes can be punished, but not clients, unless the police can prove that a client knowingly used the services of a trafficking victim. Prostitution constitutes grounds for deportation.

UNMIK and the KPS Section for Investigations of Trafficking in Human Beings worked together on trafficking until May, when the trafficking competency was transferred to the KPS. During the year UNMIK and KPS conducted 157 surveillances and 90 operations, including 38 undercover operations. They also checked 1,303 premises suspected of being used for trafficking in persons and prostitution and closed 22 business establishments used for trafficking. During the year UNMIK and KPS arrested 36 people for trafficking, 21 for pimping, 12 for prostitution, and 28 on trafficking-related charges such as illegal weapons possession and counterfeiting. They also identified 64 trafficking victims, 51 of whom received needed assistance, including safe accommodation, counseling, and professional training for return and social reintegration. At least one shelter provided medical care pursuant to its agreements with health care providers. The prosecutor's office filed 15 cases of trafficking in persons; 29 additional cases from previous years remained open. Fourteen of these 44 cases were completed, resulting in 12 convictions of 18 defendants.

Factors that contributed to a low number of prosecutions included the increasing sophistication of organized crime efforts to avoid direct links between the victims and senior crime figures, the lack of a witness protection program (although means were employed to provide anonymity during trial testimony), reluctance of victims to cooperate with authorities, inadequate training for judicial personnel, and failure of police to adapt to new techniques employed by traffickers.

UNMIK regulations provide a defense for trafficking victims against criminal charges of prostitution and illegal border crossing. In the past, local judges sometimes incorrectly sentenced trafficking victims to prison or wrongly issued deportation orders against women convicted of prostitution or lack of documents. Unlike in previous years, there were no reports of these practices occurring during the year.

UNMIK, the KPS, the border police, the OSCE, the Office of Good Governance, prosecutors, judges, and the ministries of health, education, public services, and labor and social welfare shared responsibility for combating trafficking. NGOs and international organizations, particularly the IOM, handled protection and prevention-related antitrafficking activities. The PISG, in cooperation with NGOs, international organizations, and foreign governments, continued to implement the Kosovo Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings, which was launched in May 2005. Activities included a prevention campaign during part of the year, as well as the launch of an antitrafficking Web site and campaigns against trafficking in children and young girls. Authorities also initiated a network of young human rights and antitrafficking "ambassadors." After receiving training, these "ambassadors" began touring Kosovo and hosting debates on human rights and trafficking issues.

The IOM assisted 54 victims of trafficking during the year, 30 of whom were from Kosovo. More than half of the victims from Kosovo were minors (17 cases), and 29 were internally trafficked. The current reporting period was the first year in which IOM assisted more local than foreign trafficking victims. Of the victims from outside Kosovo that the IOM has assisted since 1999, over 50 percent were from Moldova, 20 percent from Romania, 13 percent from Ukraine, and the rest from Bulgaria, Albania, Russia, Serbia, Montenegro, Slovakia, and Nigeria. The majority of these victims were between the ages of 18 and 24 years. IOM figures indicated that 77 percent of Kosovo victims were internally trafficked, while approximately 10 percent were trafficked to Macedonia, and 5 percent each to Albania and Italy.

The overall number of trafficking cases involving minors increased from 2005. While none of the foreign victims of trafficking IOM assisted during the year were minors, about 57 percent of the local victims IOM assisted were minors. Children and young girls from rural areas made up 54 percent of trafficking victims. Children and young girls from backgrounds with a high level of poverty, unemployment, and illiteracy were particularly at risk of being trafficked. The IOM reported that 11 percent of local victims were not enrolled in school; 35 percent had only finished primary school (fifth grade); 47 percent had finished elementary school (ninth grade); 6 percent had completed secondary education (high school); and 1 percent had gone to university.

There was anecdotal evidence during the year that a complex set of financial relationships and kinship ties existed between political leaders and organized crime networks that had financial interests in trafficking. Unlike in previous years, there were no reports that the same lawyer represented an accused trafficker as well as the victim.

In May the antitrafficking competency was transferred from UNMIK Police to the KPS. The number of bar/restaurant checks increased dramatically following the KPS assumption of authority, and the number of premises closed increased slightly.

There were a number of arrests and police actions against traffickers during the year. For example, in August Kosovo daily Koha Ditore reported the killing of a trafficking victim who had been arrested in a Gnjilane/Gjilan motel and deported to Albania on June 26. According to the KPS, the woman did not admit to being a trafficking victim and was deported because she had entered Kosovo illegally. The Albanian interior ministry reported that the victim's boyfriend, Urim Jahja, killed her in her apartment in the Albanian village of Shengjin on August 22 because of an alleged debt. The Albanian investigation revealed that the victim was deceived by another Albanian woman who found her a dishwashing job in Tirana and later moved her to a cafe in Kosovo. The woman kept the victim's wages, which she justified as repayment for finding her the job. She also refused to allow the victim to contact her mother for three to four months. Jahja later committed suicide.

On October 5, KPS officers raided a nightclub in suburban Pristina and arrested five local men and two Moldovan women on suspicion of trafficking. Police recovered six other Moldovan women as possible trafficking victims. The following day, the KPS ordered the six women arrested for hiding the act of human trafficking and recruiting other females for prostitution in cooperation with the nightclub's owners and workers. According to the KPS, the prosecutors later dropped the charges and released the women, who have since gone back to work at the nightclub. One of the men was released a month later due to a lack of evidence. Of the four men awaiting trial on trafficking charges, two remained in pretrial detention at year's end.

On October 9, KPS arrested two Kosovo Albanian males on the Pristina-Urosevac/Ferizaj road for trafficking two female Kosovo Albanian minors. KPS later arrested and detained four women in connection with the crime. A warrant was issued for the arrest of a third man, who was believed to be outside of Kosovo. Trials of those arrested were underway in the Pristina District Court at year's end.

International and local NGOs were the main source of assistance to trafficking victims. Local NGOs, such as the Center for Protection of Victims and Prevention of Trafficking in Humans and the Center for Protection of Women and Children, operated shelters that provided medical care and psychological counseling services to trafficking victims in cooperation with UNMIK, the OSCE, and the IOM. The NGO Hope and Homes for Children operated a shelter for child victims of trafficking, and the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, in cooperation with UNMIK and the OSCE, ran a semi-independent group housing unit for minors who were victims of trafficking and domestic violence. Some domestic violence shelters, such as Liria in Gnjilane/Gjilan, offered short-term shelter and referral services to low security risk victims. A Ministry of Justice-run interim facility also provided temporary shelter to victims while they considered whether to be repatriated or to testify against traffickers. Police often referred suspected trafficking victims to the IOM through OSCE regional officers.

Persons with Disabilities

Several UNMIK regulations prohibit discrimination against persons with disabilities in employment, education, access to health care, and in the provision of other state services; however, there was considerable discrimination in practice, and the rights of persons with disabilities were not a PISG priority.

According to the local disability rights NGO HandiKos, the laws relating to persons with disabilities were not adequately implemented. As a result, children with disabilities were often excluded from educational opportunities, were not professionally evaluated, and lacked sufficient health and social services. There were no special legal protections for children with disabilities, as the Council on Economy and Finances claimed that it did not have sufficient funding to support such programs. There was no law defining the status of persons with disabilities, nor was there provision for their training or employment. There were no guardianship laws with appropriate due process protections, and the regulations did not recognize the placement of individuals with mental disabilities in institutions as a legal issue separate from the issue of involuntary treatment. The law mandates access to official buildings; however, it was not enforced in practice.

According to the NGO Mental Disability Rights International (MDRI), patients with mental disabilities continued to be detained in isolated conditions with no legal basis, since there is no law to regulate the process of committing persons to psychiatric or social care facilities or to protect rights within institutions. On occasion individuals in need of mental health treatment were convicted of fabricated or petty crimes and sent to prisons that lacked resources for adequate treatment.

On April 26, the prime minister established the National Council on Disabled People (NCDP) as an advisory organization to government authorities and the Kosovo Assembly. The NCDP has two co-chairs: the prime minister and NGO HandiKos director Halit Ferizi. During the year they established an NCDP secretariat to draft legal instruments, but by year's end the NCDP had not yet become fully operational.

By year's end, neither UNMIK nor the PISG had filed criminal charges or taken other legal action in response to a 2002 report by MDRI that found extensive evidence of physical abuse, sexual assault, neglect, and arbitrary detention by staff and patients in mental health care facilities at the Shtimje Institute, the Pristina Elderly Home, and the Pristina University Hospital.

The ministries of education, health, social welfare, and public services were responsible for protecting the rights of persons with disabilities.

According to the WHO, there were an estimated 14,000 persons with mental disabilities. In December 2004 MDRI reported that institutional care of persons with mental disabilities left them isolated, arbitrarily detained, and vulnerable to physical violence and sexual abuse (see section 1.c.). In 2005 the PISG expanded options for independent living by such persons and spent $157,000 to $262,000 (120,000 to 200,000 euros) each on 14 integration homes endorsed by MDRI. According to a September draft WHO report, there were not enough facilities to provide care for persons with mental disabilities, and employment opportunities for persons with mental disabilities were limited. The CDHRF reported that prisoners with mental disabilities were often kept in prison facilities because of a lack of available mental health treatment.

National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Official and societal discrimination persisted against Kosovo's ethnic Serb, Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian communities with respect to employment, social services, language use, freedom of movement, the right to return, and other basic rights, although reports of such discrimination declined compared to 2005. Members of the Bosniak and Gorani communities also complained of discrimination. During the year violence and other crimes directed at minorities and their property lessened but remained a problem. Minority employment in the PISG continued to be low and was generally confined to lower levels of the government; members of minorities occupied 11 percent of government jobs despite a PISG target of more than 16 percent.

As of October, 61 cases of interethnic crime were reported; 51 involved Serbs as victims or suspects. At year's end, 24 cases remained under investigation by police and 37 cases were referred to the courts. According to UNMIK, incidents targeting minorities were generally underreported due to distrust of the KPS and the legal system, much of which stemmed from the low rate of successful criminal investigations, prosecutions, and convictions.

Violence against Kosovo Serbs was usually investigated by the international police unit, a unit composed of UN international police officers within the KPS that reports directly to the police commissioner, who is also an international staff member.

There were multiple reports of violence against Kosovo Serbs during the year. For example, on March 28, two Kosovo Albanian youths stabbed a Kosovo Serb youth near the main bridge in northern Mitrovica. Two people were arrested, but charges were later dropped when the victim declined to press charges. The international police unit investigation continued at year's end.

On June 8, unknown persons fired gunshots at the homes of Kosovo Serb returnees in Llug village in Istok/Istog. The Kosovo Albanian mayor condemned the incident and the Kosovo Albanian deputy mayor visited the families. The KPS arrested one person, and the case was in progress in at year's end.

On August 26, 16-year-old Kosovo Albanian male "AD" reportedly threw an explosive device at the entrance of the Dolce Vita Cafe in northern Mitrovica, injuring nine people (including seven Kosovo Serbs, one Bosniak and one British national). AD was arrested, arraigned, and provisionally released due to a medical condition. The international prosecutor filed an indictment in the case on December 15, and AD remained under house arrest at year's end.

On December 8, KPS and media reported an explosion on the Frenku Bridge in Mahiliq village, in Vucitrn/Vushtrri municipality. The explosion damaged railroad tracks, disrupting rail traffic on a line frequently used by Kosovo Serbs, who claimed that it was one of the safest ways for them to travel between Serb enclaves south of the Ibar and Serb majority areas in northern Kosovo. No injuries were reported.

During the year there were no developments in the following cases: the February 2005 bombing of Kosovo Serb leader Oliver Ivanovic's official vehicle; the July 2005 incident in which an unidentified person threw a hand grenade into the Zubin Potok offices of Slavisa Petkovic's Serbian Democratic Party for Kosovo and Metohija, the only Kosovo Serb party that participated in Kosovo institutions; and the September 2005 incident in which four Kosovo Serb youths were shot (and two subsequently died) while driving in Strpce/Shterpce. International police unit investigations continued at year's end.

There were cases of Kosovo Albanians destroying private property belonging to Kosovo Serbs; some cases of violence against Serbs may have been attempts to force them to sell their property. An UNMIK regulation prevents the wholesale buy-out of many Kosovo Serb communities in an effort to prevent the intimidation of minority property owners in certain areas; however, it was rarely enforced. There were reports that Kosovo Serbs had difficulty accessing their property, which was sometimes occupied or used by Kosovo Albanians. In some cases, Kosovo Serb property was reportedly sold by persons falsely claiming to be their attorneys and presenting forged documents in court; in situations where the rightful owners did not live in Kosovo, such fraud went undiscovered for months.

On June 6, in response to several unsolved crimes against Kosovo Serbs, Kosovo Serb National Council leader Marko Jaksic told media that the northern municipalities of Zvecan, Mitrovica, Zubin Potok, and Leposavic/Leposaviq had unanimously decided to suspend their relations with PISG. The crimes included the May 6 incident wherein Serbian Orthodox priest Srdjan Stankovic was shot at while driving in his car (he was not injured), for which UNMIK police suspect a 29-year-old Serb member of KPS; the May 11 wounding of Jovan Milosevic and Jablan Jevtic during an armed robbery gas station burglary in north Mitrovica; and the June 1 killing of Kosovo Serb Miljan Veskovic in Zvecan. Despite subsequent evidence, arrests, and clear statements by UNMIK and KPS officials that these crimes were not ethnically motivated, these three northern municipalities had not resumed relations with the PISG by year's end.

UNMIK police analyzed 1,408 Kosovo Serb convoys escorted by the KPS from January to early May. There were six incidents of stone throwing at the convoys, and police made five arrests in those cases.

There were new developments in the cases of several persons detained on suspicion of organizing or leading the March 2004 riots. In March 2005 the investigation of Vucitrn/Vushtrri KLA war veterans association chairman Salih Salihu was discontinued due to insufficient evidence. In March 2005 KPC reserve commander Naser Shatri was convicted of participation in a crowd that committed violence and given a six-month suspended sentence. In April 2005 Pec/Peja KLA war veterans association chairman Nexhmi Lajci was convicted of unauthorized ownership, control, and possession or use of weapons and fined $393 (300 euros). The investigation of Gnjilane/Gjilan KLA war veterans association chairman Shaqir Shaqiri remained ongoing at year's end.

In August the KPS arrested five Kosovo Albanians from the Kosovo Polje/Fushe Kosove and Obilic/Obiliq municipalities, charging them with organizing and participating in the March 2004 riots. On August 25, the court sentenced the men to 30 days' detention, and the investigation continued. The five were also accused of burning several buildings during the riots.

On November 27, the trial began in the case of Esmin Hamza and "AK" in connection with arsons in Prizren during the March 2004 riots. The two Kosovo Albanian defendants were allegedly members of the mob and were charged with inciting inter-ethnic hatred and causing damage to property. The trial panel was composed of two international judges and one local judge. The defendants were not in custody, and the trial was ongoing at year's end.

On December 14, police arrested Zlyhaje Avdullahu, a.k.a. "Kiki," for crimes committed in Kosovo Polje/Fushe Kosova during the March 2004 riots. Avdullahu was allegedly part of a Kosovo Albanian mob that broke into, looted, and burned Kosovo Serb homes and attacked Kosovo Serbs in Kosovo Polje/Fushe Kosova. On December 17, an international judge conducted a pretrial detention hearing against the defendant, authorizing her detention through the end of the year.

As of October, the PISG had reconstructed more than 97 percent (871 of 897) of the houses damaged or destroyed in March 2004, and church reconstruction was ongoing (see section 2.c.). According to the Ministry of Culture, of the 26 houses not yet reconstructed, 23 remained unfinished due to security concerns in north Mitrovica, and the owners of the other three refused to have their homes reconstructed. On May 11, following complaints about the quality of the reconstruction, the government established a five-member complaint review commission, but no decisions had been made as of October.

There were reports of politically motivated violence against non-Serb minorities during the year. On August 22, a small group of Kosovo Albanians assaulted former resident and Kosovo Montenegrin IDP Vuko Danilovic in front of several IDP children he had accompanied back to Kosovo so they could participate in a multiethnic summer camp at Decani Monastery. The KPS later arrested a Kosovo Albanian youth, but he was released when the victim could not identify him. The KPS investigation continued at year's end.

On October 2, the home of a Gorani representative of Belgrade's Coordination Center for Kosovo and Metohija was seriously damaged by a bomb blast. KPS arrested one person and the investigation continued at year's end.

Roma lived in dire poverty, and anti-Roma bias was a hallmark of Kosovo society. In 1999 Kosovo Albanians, viewing Roma as Serb collaborators, burned the Romani settlement in southern Mitrovica. As a result the settlement's approximately 8,000 former residents continued to live in camps for displaced persons in northern Mitrovica. During the year most of the Romani IDPs living in lead-contaminated camps were moved to alternative facilities and were being treated for lead poisoning (see section 2.d.).

Roma were subject to pervasive social and economic discrimination; often lacked access to basic hygiene, medical care, and education; and were heavily dependent on humanitarian aid for survival. Although there were some successful efforts to resettle Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptians in the homes they occupied prior to the 1999 conflict in Vucitrn/Vushtrri, security concerns remained.

Bosniak leaders complained that thousands of their community members had left Kosovo because of discrimination and the lack of economic opportunities.

The PISG and UNMIK took some steps during the year to improve conditions for ethnic minorities. In September the Kosovo Assembly passed a language law, making Serbian the second official language in Kosovo and setting a 5 percent threshold for making a language spoken by an ethnic minority official in a municipality. The law provides that Turkish will continue to be the third official language in Prizren regardless of the percentage of the Turkish population in the municipality.

Other Societal Abuses and Discrimination

The law prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation; however, the law was not applied during the year.

Traditional societal attitudes about homosexuality intimidated most gays and lesbians into concealing their sexual orientation. Gays and lesbians generally felt insecure, with many reporting threats to their personal safety. The print media previously reinforced these attitudes by publishing without retraction negative articles about homosexuality that characterized gays and lesbians as mentally ill and prone to sexually assaulting children. Individual homosexuals also reported job discrimination. At least one political party, the Islamic-oriented Justice Party, included a condemnation of homosexuality in its political platform.

In December 2005 local media reported that KPS officers and a treating physician verbally abused and mistreated two young gay men after an unknown assailant had attacked them with a knife near Pristina. The KPS briefly suspended two officers without pay pending investigation. The officers subsequently received minor reprimands and were reinstated. In January, police commissioner Kai Vittrup transferred KPS spokesperson Refki Morina out of the KPS press office following the December incident, after Morina stated, incorrectly, that homosexuality was punishable under the criminal code.

On January 6, an unknown person attacked two members of the Center for Social Emancipation, an advocacy group for the gay community. Upon learning they were homosexual, the KPS reportedly treated the victims as criminals and failed to arrest the perpetrator. KPS took the victims to the Pristina University Hospital, where the treating doctor reportedly called them "sick people."

On March 25, a group of seven men physically assaulted and verbally abused a 30-year-old man for being a homosexual. Although he reported the incident to the KPS, which in turn submitted it to the Serious Crimes Unit, the victim ultimately decided to drop the charges due to pressure from the main attacker's family. The district court prosecutor continued with the prosecution, and the court eventually convicted two perpetrators and sentenced them to six months in prison.

On March 28 in Pristina, unknown persons severely beat two men whom they observed engaging in homosexual sex. One of the men later died at the hospital of his injuries. The Center for Social Emancipation, a local NGO promoting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights, criticized police for treating the case as a robbery rather than as a hate crime. An investigation was continuing at year's end.

On September 26, Ferid Agani, a psychiatrist and Kosovo Assembly member from the Justice Party, wrote an article in a local newspaper in which he referred to homosexuality as a "serious psychiatric disorder" that went against "human nature." Two local human rights organizations, the Youth Initiative for Human Rights and the Center for Social Emancipation, called on Agani and the newspaper to issue a public apology; neither did so.

Section 6 Worker Rights

a. Right of Association

UNMIK regulations allow workers to form and join unions of their choice without previous authorization or excessive requirements, and workers exercised this right in practice.

The only significant union, the Association of Independent Trade Unions of Kosovo (BSPK), claimed over 120,000 members; only 50,000 of its members (approximately 10 percent of the workforce) were employed. UNMIK regulations prohibit antiunion discrimination; however, some union officials reported discrimination in practice. The BSPK reported that only a small number of companies respected the regulation preventing antiunion discrimination and claimed that worker rights were abused in every sector, including international organizations, where staff did not have security insurance or pensions.

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

UNMIK regulations allow unions to conduct their activities without interference, and UNMIK protected this right in practice. UNMIK regulations also provide for the right to organize and bargain collectively without interference, and the government did not restrict this right in practice; however, collective bargaining took place on only one occasion. UNMIK regulations do not recognize the right to strike; however, strikes were not prohibited in practice, and strikes occurred during the year.

There are no export processing zones.

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

UNMIK regulations prohibit forced or compulsory labor, including by children; however, there were reports that such practices occurred (see sections 5 and 6.d.).

d. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment

UNMIK regulations and policies prohibit exploitation of children in the workplace, including a prohibition of forced or compulsory labor; however, UNMIK and the PISG rarely challenged these practices when they occurred.

UNMIK regulations set the minimum age for employment at age 16 and at age 18 for any work likely to jeopardize the health, safety, or morals of a young person, but they permit children to work at age 15, provided it is not harmful or prejudicial to school attendance.

In villages and farming communities, younger children typically worked to assist their families. Urban children often worked in a variety of unofficial retail jobs, such as washing car windows or selling newspapers, cigarettes, and phone cards on the street; the numbers of such children grew relative to 2005, although statistics were not kept by either UNMIK or the PISG. According to the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, the PISG still lacked plans to tackle this common form of informal child labor. Some children were also engaged in physical labor, such as transporting goods. The CDHRF reported observing serious labor violations during the year, including child labor.

Trafficking of children was also a serious problem, primarily for sexual exploitation (see section 5).

The Ministry for Labor and Social Welfare, in cooperation with UNMIK, coordinated child protection policies, and the ministry's department of social welfare had responsibility for ensuring the protection of children; however, the ministry acted in an advisory rather than enforcement role, and conducted very few inspections during the year.

e. Acceptable Work Conditions

Although UNMIK regulations provide for a minimum wage, one has not been adopted. While many international agencies and NGOs paid adequate wages, the average full-time monthly public sector wage of $198 (151 euros) and the average private sector wage of $272 (208 euros) were inadequate to provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Public sector salaries remained subject to an IMF-ordered freeze and had not risen since 2003.

UNMIK regulations provide for a standard 40-hour work week; require rest periods; limit the number of regular hours worked to 12 hours per day, overtime to 20 hours per week and 40 hours per month; require payment of a premium for overtime work; and prohibit excessive compulsory overtime. Employers often failed to implement these regulations due to the high underemployment and unemployment in Kosovo.

The CDHRF reported observing serious labor violations during the year, including lack of a standard work week and compulsory and unpaid overtime; employees did not report such violations due to fear of reprisals. According to CDHRF, many private sector employees worked long hours as at-will employees without employment contracts, regular pay, or pension contributions paid on their behalf. Employees reported being fired without cause and in violation of existing laws and being denied holidays. CDHRF reported that sexual abuse occurred on the job but went unreported due to fear of expulsion and/or physical retaliation. According to CDHRF, workers in the public sector commonly faced similar mistreatment.

A labor inspectorate within the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare is responsible for enforcing labor standards. However, the inspectorate primarily advised employers, and although four fines were issued during the year for violation of the standards, they were not paid pending litigation.

The labor inspectorate was responsible for enforcing health and safety standards but lacked trained staff and did not do so effectively. The law does not permit employees to remove themselves from dangerous workplaces without jeopardizing their continued employment.

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*The report on Serbia is divided into two sections; the first addresses the human rights situations in Serbia and the second addresses the situation in Kosovo. For purposes of this report, Kosovo's population of 2.2 million is not included as part of Serbia's population.

Predgovor

Izveštaji o stanju ljudskih prava po zemljama za 2006. godinu

Objavila Kancelarija za demokratiju, ljudska prava i rad

6. mart 2007.

Širom planete, muškarci i žene se bore za veće lične i političke slobode i uvođenje demokratskih institucija. Nastoje da obezbede ono što predsednik Buš naziva „nespornim zahtevima za ljudsko dostojanstvo “.

Uprkos ličnom riziku i ogromnim teškoćama, hrabri pojedinci i nevladine grupe razotkrivaju zloupotrebe ljudskih prava. Nastoje da zaštite prava etničkih i verskih manjina, radnika i žena, i da zaustave trgovinu ljudima. Rade na izgradnji snažnih građanskih društava, na omogućavanju slobodnih i pravičnih izbora i ustanovljavanju odgovornih demokratija zasnovanih na pravu.

Ovi nestrpljivi rodoljubi menjaju granice onoga što se ranije smatralo mogućim. Za samo nekoliko naraštaja sloboda je dospela u svet u razvoju, komunističke diktature su srušene, a nove demokratije uspostavljene. Prava izražena u Univerzalnoj deklaraciji o ljudskim pravima zaštićena su potpunije i u mnogo više zemalja nego ikada pre.

Ovaj plemeniti rad se nastavlja – ali još nije završen i suočava se sa odlučnim protivnicima. Ne iznenađuje da mnogi, koji pred demokratskom promenom osećaju ugroženost, pružaju otpor onima koji zagovaraju i rade na reformama. Prethodne godine smo videli pokušaje da se branitelji ljudskih prava i organizacije za građansko društvo izlože maltretiranju i zastrašivanju a njihov rad ograniči ili potpuno onemogući. Nepravedni zakoni korišteni su kao politička oružja protiv onih sa nezavisnim gledištima. Takođe je bilo pokušaja da se drugačija mišljenja ućutkaju nezakonitim sredstvima.

Kad god su nevladine organizacije i drugi branitelji ljudskih prava ugroženi, podrivaju se sloboda i demokratija. Svetske demokratije moraju braniti branitelje. Danas je to jedan od primarnih zadataka naše diplomatije i nadamo se da će Izveštaji o stanju ljudskih prava po zemljama za 2006. godinu Stejt departmenta doprineti da se ovi napori povećaju. S ovim mislima, stoga, dostavljam ove izveštaje Kongresu Sjedinjenih Država.

Kondoliza Rajs

Državni sekretar

Uvod

Izveštaji o stanju ljudskih prava po zemljama za 2006. godinu

Objavila Kancelarija za demokratiju, ljudska prava i rad

6. mart 2007.

Ovi izveštaji sadrže opise prakse koja se sprovodi prema međunarodnim obavezama preuzetim u pogledu ljudskih prava. Ova osnovna prava, izražena u Univerzalnoj deklaraciji Ujedinjenih nacija o ljudskim pravima, predstavljaju ono što predsednik Buš naziva „nespornim zahtevima ljudskog dostojanstva“. Kao što je državni sekretar Rajs izjavila, obećanja izražena u Univerzalnoj deklaraciji Ujedinjenih nacija ne mogu se ostvariti preko noći, ali je to hitan zadatak koji se ne može odlagati.

Univerzalna deklaracija poziva „svakog pojedinca i svako društveno telo … da promovišu ova prava i slobode i progresivnim merama, nacionalnim i internacionalnim, obezbede njihovo univerzalno i delotvorno priznavanje i poštovanje...“

Sjedinjene Države svoje obaveze u pogledu ljudskih prava shvataju veoma ozbiljno. Priznajemo da pišemo ovaj izveštaj u vreme kad se naša sopstvena ocena i postupci koje smo preduzeli kako bismo odgovorili na terorističke napade protiv nas, dovode u pitanje. Sjedinjene Države će nastaviti da otvoreno odgovaraju na tuđu dobronamernu zabrinutost i pomoću izveštaja koje periodično podnosimo u skladu sa svojim obavezama prema raznim sporazumima o ljudskim pravima čiji smo potpisnici. Takođe, predano radimo na neprestanom poboljšanju. Američki zakoni, politika i praksa koji regulišu pritvor, tretman i suđenje osumnjičenima za terorizam doživeli su značajan razvoj u proteklih pet godina. Naš demokratski sistem uprave nije nepogrešiv, ali je odgovoran – naše jako građansko društvo, naši snažni slobodni mediji, naši nezavisni ogranci uprave i čvrsto uspostavljena vladavina prava služe kao korektivna sredstva.

Izveštaji o stanju ljudskih prava po zemljama, propisani u Kongresu, koji slede, suštinski su element napora Sjedinjenih Država da se promoviše poštovanje ljudskih prava u celom svetu. Ovi godišnji izveštaji su već trideset godina u širokoj upotrebi i ovde i u inostranstvu kao referentni dokument za ocenu postignutog napretka i preostalih problema. Takođe služe kao osnova za saradnju među vladama, organizacijama i pojedincima koji nastoje da se zloupotrebe, okončaju i osnaže kapaciteti zemalja kako bi se zaštitila osnovna prava svih ljudi.

Izveštaji prikazuju ponašanje svake zemlje u 2006. godini. Svaki izveštaj govori za sebe. Ipak, generalni obrasci su prepoznatljivi i u daljem tekstu opisani uz primere iz određenih zemalja. Navedeni primeri su ilustrativni a ne iscrpni.

Optimističke težnje, ali otrežnjujuće činjenice

Kao što pokazuje pregled ovih izveštaja, u 2006. godini muškarci i žene širom planete nastavili su da se bore za poštovanje svojih prava i povratne reakcije svojih vlada, za to da se njihov glas čuje a izborni glas vredi, za pravedne zakone i pravdu za sve. Takođe se sve više priznavalo da je demokratija oblik uprave koji najbolje može odgovoriti na zahteve građana za dostojanstvo, slobodu i jednakost. Ovo su zaista optimističke težnje, ali izveštaji takođe odražavaju otrežnjujuće činjenice:

Prvo, napredak ostvaren u pogledu ljudskih prava i demokratije teško je postignut i vrlo ga je teško bilo održavati. Dok je u nekim zemljama ostvaren značajan napredak, neke su zaostajale a neke pak nazadovale.

Kako pokazuju niže navedeni primeri, postignuća su se veoma razlikovala od zemlje do zemlje, u zavisnosti od faktora kao što su stepen posvećenosti uprave, institucionalni kapaciteti, stepen korupcije i snaga građanskog društva.

U Januaru 2006. u Liberiji je demokratski izabrana vlada na čelu sa Strankom jedinstva, koju predvodi Elen Džonson-Sirlif, prva žena predsednik države u Africi, došla na mesto Nacionalne tranzicione vlade Liberije, koja je služila kao privremena vlada otkako je 2003. godine završen četrnaestogodišnji građanski rat. Vlada je preduzela značajne korake da se otklone raniji nedostaci u pogledu ljudskih prava, uključujući rad sa međunarodnim partnerima na rehabilitaciji pravosudnog sektora i uspostavljanju kancelarije javnog pravobranioca u glavnom gradu. Predsednica je otpustila ili suspendovala veliki broj korumpiranih državnih činovnika. Komisija za istinu i pomirenje, uspostavljena 2005. godine kako bi se istražila kršenja ljudskih prava i ratni zločini počinjeni za vreme građanskog rata, počela je da uzima izjave od svedoka. I pored ovog napretka, Liberija se i dalje suočavala sa ozbiljnim problemima u pogledu ljudskih prava, uključujući još uvek slabo pravosuđe, korupciju i nekažnjavanje zvaničnika, nasilje zasnovano na polnim razlikama, i krajnje siromaštvo koje je dovelo do dečjeg rada.

U politički osetljivim područjima Indonezije broj ubistava koja vrše oružane snage i policija i tokom ove godine značajno je opadao. Pedeset četiri puta održani su uglavnom slobodni i pravični izbori na pokrajinskom, namesničkom, oblasnom i opštinskom nivou, najizraženije u decembru u Acehu gde je ranije na vlasti bio bivši pobunjenički komandant. Mada je međuopštinsko versko nasilje uglavnom umanjeno, u nekim područjima ipak i dalje postoji. Vlada i sudovi nisu mogli da se suoče sa prethodnim zloupotrebama ljudskih prava i zverstvima i u Indoneziji i u Istočnom Timoru.

Izveštaj o ljudskim pravima u Maroku pokazuje primetan napredak mada problemi još nisu nestali. Vlada je započela rad na zloupotrebama ljudskih prava iz prethodnog perioda obezbeđujući, preko Konsultativnog veća za ljudska prava, kompenzaciju za pojedine slučajeve hapšenja, nestanaka i zlostavljanja u periodu od 1956. do 1999. U martu je vlada donela zakon protiv torture mada je i dalje bilo izveštaja o torturi koju vrše razni ogranci bezbednosnih snaga. Iscrpna i uglavnom otvorena debata vođena je u javnosti i u štampi uprkos nastavljenim ograničenjima slobode štampe i govora. Tokom godine vlada je kaznila nekoliko novinara koji su prekršili ograničenja o slobodi govora a mnogi novinari su pribegavali autocenzuri. Trgovina ljudima, posebno radi seksualne eksploatacije, i dečji rad i dalje su predstavljali problem; međutim, i vlada i građansko društvo pokazali su sve veću aktivnost u bavljenju ovim pitanjima.

Demokratska Republika Kongo održala je prve demokratske predsedničke i zakonodavne izbore posle više od četrdeset pet godina tako okončavajući trogodišnji tranzicioni period posle građanskog rata. Na snagu je stupio novi ustav. Ipak, stanje ljudskih prava i dalje nije zadovoljavajuće. Pored konflikta koji vri na istoku, gde je kontrola vlasti ostala slaba i naoružane grupe nastavile da čine teške zloupotrebe, vladine bezbednosne snage širom zemlje takođe su nekažnjeno vršile teške zloupotrebe.

Na Haitiju su građani pokazali svoju posvećenost demokratiji izlazeći na birališta tri puta tokom 2006. godine. Preko tri i po miliona građana prijavilo se za glasanje, a izlaznost je bila zadivljujuća – preko sedamdeset procenata registrovanih birača učestvovalo je u prvom krugu predsedničkih i parlamentarnih izbora u februaru. Nakon relativno stabilnog izbornog procesa koji je protekao bez nasilja, birači su izabrali predsednika Renea Prevala i poslanike za 129 mesta u parlamentu. U decembru su na Haitiju održani prvi opštinski izbori nakon više od deset godina. Ipak mnogo toga ostaje da se uradi kako bi se u potpunosti obnovila vladavina prava, uključujući pažljiv pregled haićanskog disfunkcionalnog pravosudnog sistema i stalnog osposobljavanja i evaluacije Nacionalne policije Haitija.

U Ukrajini je,posle Narandžaste revolucije, nastavljen primetan napredak u oblasti ljudskih prava. Parlamentarni izbori marta 2006. godine bili su najslobodniji za poslednjih petnaest godina otkako je Ukrajina dobila nezavisnost. Zemlja je nastavila da ostvaruje poboljšanja u pogledu slobode štampe, slobode udruživanja i razvoja građanskog društva. Uprkos ovim uspesima, i dalje postoji znatan broj problema, uključujući korupciju u svim ograncima vlasti.

Mada je stanje ljudskih prava značajno poboljšano u Kirgistanu nakon što je 2005. godine vlada demokratski izabrana, 2006. su jednonedeljne masovne ali mirne demonstracije kulminirale u ishitreno usvajanje izmenjenog ustava koji je pružio mogućnost za stvarno sprečavanje samovolje. Krajem decembra, međutim, parlament je doneo drugi ustav koji poništava mnoga pravila o ograničavanju samovolje. Vlada je takođe maltretirala nevladine organizacije koje novčana sredstva dobijaju iz inostranstva.

Uprkos deklarativnom zalaganju predsednika Mušarafa za demokratsku tranziciju i „prosvećenu umerenost“, stanje ljudskih prava u Pakistanu i dalje je bilo loše. I dalje postoje ograničenja slobode kretanja, izražavanja, udruživanja i veroispovesti. Nastavili su se nestanci pokrajinskih aktivista i političkih protivnika, pogotovo u provincijama u kojima postoje unutrašnji nemiri i pobune. Bezbednosne snage nastavile su da vrše vansudska ubistva. Samovoljna hapšenja i tortura i dalje su uobičajeni. Korupcija je prožimala vladu i policijske snage. Pozitivno je to da je u decembru Nacionalna skupština usvojila a predsednik Mušaraf potpisao Nacrt zakona o zaštiti žena – što je prvi put za tri decenije da je pakistanska vlada uspešno ukinula zakone koji su ugrožavali ženska prava. Zakon je izmenio odredbu o silovanju i preljubi iz 1979. godine iz zapovesti hudud prebacivši krivično delo silovanja iz pakistanskog šerijatskog prava u pakistanski krivični zakonik. Zakon je takođe ukinuo obavezu da žrtve silovanja moraju dovesti četiri muškarca svedoka da bi podnele tužbu.

Iako su 2005. godine u Egiptu prvi put u istoriji održani višestranački predsednički izbori, tokom 2006. javni zahtevi za veću demokratizaciju i odgovornost ponekad su nailazili na snažne reakcije vlade. Činjenica da zatvoreništvo bivšeg predsedničkog kandidata Ajmana Nura i dalje traje, izazvala je ozbiljnu zabrinutost za put političke reforme i demokratije u zemlji. Nastavljajući kursom započetim 2005. godine, vlada je hapsila i pritvarala stotine aktivista, pripadnika zabranjenog ali tolerisanog Muslimanskog bratstva, uglavnom ih puštajući na slobodu posle nekoliko nedelja. Dvojica viših sudija privedeni su na ispitivanje u februaru zbog javnog poziva na nezavisno sudstvo. Egipatska policija je uhapsila i pritvorila preko pet stotina aktivista zbog učestvovanje u demonstracijama na kojima je pružena podrška nezavisnom sudstvu. Pored toga, dokumentovani su ozbiljni slučajevi torture koju su izvršile vlasti. Vlada je takođe uhapsila, pritvorila i maltretirala nekoliko internet blogera (osobe koje koriste svoj veb prostor na internetu da napišu nešto o sebi ili drugima, svoj dnevnik ili svoje mišljenje o nečemu ili nekome).

U Kazahstanu je vlada ograničila delovanje političke opozicije tako što je uvela teške uslove za registraciju i ometala ili odbijala registraciju političkih stranaka. Spajanje provladinih stranaka učvrstilo je snažno vođstvo stranke Otan predsednika Nazarbajeva i ostavilo manje političkog prostora na kojem bi se izrazila drugačija stanovišta i zagovarale reforme. Vlada je političku opoziciju izlagala neprijatnostima putem politički motivisanih tužbi i ograničenja slobode okupljanja, donosila zakone koji su ograničavali slobodu štampe i maltretirala zaposlene u nevladinim organizacijama.

U Rusiji je nastavljena centralizacija vlasti u izvršnom ogranku, uključujući amandmane na izborne zakone i nove zakonske propise za političke stranke koje vladi daju široka ovlašćenja u pogledu regulisanja, istraživanja, ograničavanja pa čak i zatvaranja stranaka. Uz popustljivu Državnu Dumu, korupciju i selektivnost policije, politički pritisak na sudstvo i ograničavanja rada nevladinih organizacija i medija, ovakve tendencije su za posledicu imale dalju eroziju odgovornosti vlade. U Čečeniji i drugim područjima Severnog Kavkaza, nastavljeno je ozbiljno kršenje ljudskih prava, gde su federalne i čečenske republičke bezbednosne snage počinile nezakonita ubistva i maltretirale građane. Pobunjenici su vršili teroristička bombardovanja a zabeleženi su politički motivisani nestanci u regionu. U sve većem broju slučajeva, Evropski sud za ljudska prava smatrao je Rusiju odgovornom za ove zloupotrebe.

U Venecueli je Čavezova vlada nastavila da učvršćuje vlast u izvršnom ogranku. Vlada je i dalje maltretirala pripadnike opozicije i nevladinih organizacija i oslabila nezavisnost sudstva. Međunarodni posmatrači su decembarske predsedničke izbore, na kojima je predsednik Čavez ponovo izabran sa 63 procenta glasova, ocenili kao uglavnom slobodne i pravične. U svom inaguracionom govoru, predsednik Čavez je od Nacionalne skupštine, u kojoj njegova stranka kontroliše 100% poslaničkih mesta, zatražio odobrenje da vlada po izvršnom ukazu.

Na Fidžiju i Tajlandu, vojne snage su zbacile s vlasti demokratski izabrane vlade.

Druga otrežnjujuća činjenica jeste da nesigurnost zbog internih i/ili pograničnih sukoba može ugroziti ili osujetiti napredak u pogledu ljudskih prava i demokratske vlasti.

Uprkos tome što je vlada u Iraku nastavila da radi na učvršćivanju nacionalnog pomirenja i obnove, da se drži izbornog kursa i uspostavi vladavinu prava, sve veće sektaško nasilje i teroristička dela ozbiljno su podrivali ljudska prava i demokratski progres u 2006. godini. Iako irački ustav i zakoni obezbeđuju snažan okvir za zaštitu ljudskih prava, naoružane grupe napadaju ljudska prava iz dva različita pravca: s jedne strane, oni koji su proklamovali svoje neprijateljstvo prema vladi – teroristi Alkaide, nepomirljivi ostaci režima partije Baat i pobunjenici koji vode gerilski rat, a s druge, pripadnici šitske milicije i bezbednosne snage individualnih ministarstava –nominalni saveznici vlade – koji su vršili torturu i druge zloupotrebe.

Iako je Afganistan napravio značajan napredak u pogledu ljudskih prava nakon pada Talibana 2001. godine, stanje ljudskih prava još je loše uglavnom zbog slabih centralnih institucija i užasnih pobuna: Talibani, Alkaida i druge ektremističke grupe pojačali su napade na vladine zvaničnike, bezbednosne snage, nevladine organizacije i drugo pomoćno osoblje i nenaoružane civile; i broj napada bombaša samoubica drastično je porastao tokom godine kao i napadi na škole i nastavnike. Stalno su prijavljivani slučajevi samovoljnog hapšenja i pritvora, vansudska ubistva, tortura i loši uslovi u zatvorima. U decembru je predsednik Karzaj pokrenuo Tranzicioni pravosudni akcioni plan namenjen rešavanju ranijih slučajeva kršenja ljudskih prava i poboljšanju institucionalnih kapaciteta pravosudnog sistema.

Libanska nastojanja da se naprave značajni koraci prema reformi, nakon ubistva bivšeg predsednika vlade Rafika Haririja 2005. godine i potonjeg povlačenja sirijskih trupa posle gotovo tridesetogodišnje okupacije, sprečavana su nakon konflikta Hezbolaha i Izraela u julu i avgustu 2006. Pre konflikta, libanska vlada je započela uklanjanje mnogih prepreka koje su zabranjivale politička udruženja i stranke. Nakon što je Hezbolah ušao u Izrael s libanske teritorije te kidnapovao i ubio nekoliko izraelskih vojnika, izraelske vojne snage su odgovorile tako što su ušle na libansku teritoriju. Konflikt je okončan prekidom neprijateljstava pod patronatom Ujedinjenih nacija. Uprkos prekidu neprijateljstava i raspoređivanju Libanskih vojnih snaga i Privremenih snaga Ujedinjenih nacija, libanska milicija i Hezbolah zadržali su značajan uticaj u nekim delovima zemlje.

U Istočnom Timoru, niz strašnih sukoba, između nacionalnih odbrambenih snaga i raznih snaga iz disidentskih redova vojske, policije i građanstva u glavnom gradu, doveo je do rasprostranjenog nasilja kriminalaca i bandi. Na zahtev vlade, snage iz Australije, Novog Zelanda, Malezije i Portugala preuzele su odgovornost za bezbednost u prestonici. Dana 25. avgusta, Združena misija UN-a za Istočni Timor preuzela je policijske dužnosti. Ovaj unutrašnji konflikt za posledicu je imao raseljavanje otprilike 150.000 ljudi, više od 15 procenata ukupne populacije.

Treće, uprkos uspesima u pogledu ljudskih prava i demokratskih principa u svim regionima sveta, veliki deo čovečanstva još živi u strahu ali sanja o slobodi.

Zemlje u kojima je vlast koncentrisana u rukama neodgovornih vladara – bilo totalitarnih ili diktatorskih – i dalje su najveći kršioci ljudskih prava u svetu.

I 2006. godine Severna Koreja predstavljala je jedan od najizolovanijih i najsurovijih režima u svetu. Režim kontroliše gotovo sve vidove života građana, ne dozvoljava slobodu govora, štampe, okupljanja i udruživanja, te ograničava slobodu kretanja i radnička prava. Ustav dozvoljava „slobodu verospovesti“, ali istinske verske slobode ne postoje. Procenjeno je da je između 150.000 i 200.000 ljudi, uključujući političke zatvorenike, zatvarano u logore za internirana lica, a mnogi zatvorenici umrli su od mučenja, gladi, bolesti i nezaštićenosti od vremenskih uslova.

Vojna vlada u Burmi intenzivno je koristila egzekucije, silovanja, mučenja, svojevoljna hapšenja i prisilna preseljenja čitavih sela, posebno onih čiji stanovnici pripadaju etničkim manjinama, da bi zadržala vlast. Zatvorenici i pritvorenici bili su podvrgnuti maltretiranju i držani u surovim uslovima koji su im ugrožavali živote. Nadzor, maltretiranje i zatvaranje političkih aktivista nastavljeno je; laureat Nobelove nagrade i vođa opozicije Aung San Sju Kjui i dalje je u izolaciji u kućnom pritvoru, a preko 1.100 političkih zatvorenika trune u zatvoru. Upotreba prinudnog rada, trgovine ljudima, regrutovanje dece vojnika i verska diskriminacija i dalje je široko rasprostranjena. Vlada je ponovo sazvala prividnu Nacionalnu konvenciju, pažljivo birajući delegate i zabranjujući slobodnu raspravu. Oglašavana kao deo „mape demokratskog puta“, konvencija je bila napravljena tako da poništi rezultate izbora iz 1990. i usvoji novi ustav koji odgovara režimu. Rđava, okrutna i destruktivna vladavina režima takođe je za posledicu imala odliv izbeglica, širenje zaraznih bolesti i trgovinu drogom i ljudima u susedne zemlje.

Iranska vlada je flagrantno kršila slobodu govora i okupljanja intenzivirajući strože kažnjavanje disidenata, novinara i reformista – strože kažnjavanje koje se odlikuje samovoljnim hapšenjima i pritvaranjima, mučenjima, nestancima, upotrebom prekomerne sile i široko rasprostranjenom zabranom pravičnih i javnih suđenja. Vlada je nastavila da pritvara i maltretira bahajsku i druge verske manjine, i bila domaćin opšte osuđene konferencije koja negira postojanje holokausta. U periodu koji je prethodio izborima za iransku Skupštinu eksperata 15. decembra, više od dve trećine kandidata – uključujući sve žene kandidate – diskvalifikovani su pa su mnoga poslanička mesta ostala bez takmaca. Stotine kandidata na opštim opštinskim izborima takođe je diskvalifikovano. Vlada se i 2006. godine oglušila o domaće i međunarodne pozive na odgovornu upravu i podržavala terorističke pokrete u Siriji i Libanu te pozivala na uništenje jedne zemlje članice Ujedinjenih nacija.

U Zimbabveu, Mugabeova vlada je nastavila sa kršenjem ljudskih prava na svim nivoima. Korupcija i nekažnjavanje zvaničnika bili su široko rasprostranjeni. Na snazi su i dalje Zakon o državnim tajnama i Zakon o javnom redu i bezbednosti doneti 2002. godine koji ozbiljno ograničavaju građanske slobode. Na naknadnim parlamentarnim izborima i izborima za seoska oblasna veća 2006. godine, vlada je manipulisala izbornim procesom i oduzela pravo glasa biračima te usmerila izbore u korist kandidata vladajuće stranke. Prevlast vladajuće stranke omogućila je ustavne promene bez opsežnih konsultacija. Bezbednosne snage su zlostavljale, tukle i samovoljno hapsile kritičare vlade i pristalice opozicije. Rušenje poljoprivrednih dobara i zaplena imovine nastavljeni su i u nekim slučajevima bili nasilni. Kampanja prinudnih iseljenja, koja je 700.000 ljudi ostavila bez doma za vreme Operacije Obnova reda 2005. godine, nastavljena je u manjem opsegu. Vlada je ometala napore humanitarnih organizacija u dostavljanju pomoći. U decembru su Mugabe i njegove pristalice predložili pruduženje njegovog mandata na dve godine tako što bi se predsednički izbori odgodili za 2010.

Vlada na Kubi, trenutno pod vođstvom Raula Kastra usled bolesti Fidela Kastra, nastavila je da krši doslovce sva prava svojih građana, uključujući i fundamentalno pravo da mirnim putem menjaju vladu ili da kritikuju revoluciju ili njene vođe. Tokom 2006. godine vlada je još više maltretirala disidente i druge građane koje smatra pretnjom za vladu, često tako što kriminalci izvode takozvana „dela neprihvatanja“, uključujući verbalne i fizičke napade. Pritvorenici i zatvorenici bili su izloženi batinama i maltreriranju što nije kažnjavano. Mada je, tokom godine, bilo simboličnih oslobađanja zatvorenika, do kraja godine je bilo najmanje 283 politička zatvorenika i pritvorenika, uključujući 59 od 75 aktivista za demokratiju i ljudska prava koji su zatvoreni kad je marta 2003. godine primenjeno strože kažnjavanje.

Odnos kineske vlade je prema ljudskim pravima u nekim oblastima tokom 2006. pogoršan. Povećan je broj poznatih slučajeva uključujući nadgledanje, maltretiranje i zatvaranje političkih i verskih aktivista, novinara i pisaca kao i advokata branilaca koji su tražili svoja prava po zakonu. Pojedini članovi njihovih porodica takođe su maltretirani i pritvarani. Veliki broj masovnih demonstracija i protesta na kojima je zahtevano obeštećenje za nepravde održan je a u nekim slučajevima su i nasilno suzbijeni. Vlada je nove kontrole nametnula nevladinim organizacijama, medijima, uključujući i internet, te sudovima i sudijama. Suzbijanje neregistrovanih verskih grupa i manjinskih grupa, posebno Ujgura i Tibetanaca, i dalje je predstavljalo ozbiljan razlog za brigu.

U Belorusiji, Lukašenkova vlada je nastavila i intenzivirala svoju represivnu politiku. Martovski predsednički izbori imali su velike nedostatke. Skoro 1.000 ljudi je uhapšeno u potonjem strogom kažnjavanju javnih protesta zbog rezultata i mnogi su osuđeni na kratkotrajne zatvorske kazne. Veći broj aktivista i pripadnika opozicije, uključujući Aleksandra Kozulina, Lukašenkovog protivkandidata na predsedničkim izborima, osuđeno je na kazne zatvora u trajanju od dve do pet godina.

Eritrejska vlada je i dalje jedna od najrepresivnijih u Africi južno od Sahare, a njen odnos prema ljudskim pravima u 2006. pogoršan je. Vladine bezbednosne snage vršile su vansudska ubistva; bilo je verodostojnih izveštaja da su bezbednosne snage na licu mesta ubijale pojedince koji su pokušavali da pređu granicu sa Etiopijom. Vlada je intenzivirala kampanju hapšenja onih koji su izbegavali vojnu obavezu kao i njihovih rođaka, a bilo je i pouzdanih izveštaja koji su ukazivali da su neki od njih mučeni. Kao i 2005. godine, vlada je naredila nekim međunarodnim nevladinim organizacijama da napuste zemlju uprkos velikoj suši u Istočnoj Africi. I dalje su vladala stroga ograničenja verskih sloboda.

Četvrta otrežnjujuća činjenica jeste da oni koji smatraju da ih političke i društvene promene ugrožavaju pružaju sve veći otpor što je u svetu izraženiji zahtev za veća lična i politička prava.

Branioci ljudskih prava i nevladine organizacije od suštinske su važnosti za napredak jedne države. U današnjem svetu, problemi sa kojima se države suočavaju isuviše su složeni da bi ih čak i najmoćnije zemlje same rešavale. Doprinosi građanskog društva i slobodna razmena mišljenja i informacija od ključnog su značaja u rešavanju mnoštva lokalnih i međunarodnih problema. Ograničavanje političkog prostora nevladinih organizacija i javne rasprave samo je ograničavanje napretka društva.

U svakom regionu na zemlji u 2006. godini bilo je vlada koje su reagovale na sve veće zahteve za lične i političke slobode ali to nisu činile prihvatanjem obaveza prema svom narodu već ugnjetavanjem onih koji zagovaraju ljudska prava i koji razotkrivaju zloupotrebe, a takve su nevladine organizacije i nezavisni mediji, uključujući i internet. Uznemiravajuće veliki broj zemalja doneo je ili selektivno primenjivao zakone i propise protiv nevladinih organizacija i novinara. Nevladine organizacije i novinari takođe su bili izloženi nezakonitim merama koje su često sprovodili nepoznati napadači. Na primer:

U Rusiji je aprila 2006. godine stupio na snagu novi zakon o nevladinim organizacijama koji je nametnuo strože zahteve u pogledu registracije nevladinih organizacija, strogo nadgledanje organizacija, opsežne i teške zahteve u pogledu izveštaja o programu i aktivnostima, te ovlastio Federalnu službu za registracije da odbije registrovanje ili zatvori neku organizaciju na osnovu nejasnih i subjektivnih kriterijuma. Sloboda izražavanja i nezavisnost medija opala je usled vladinih pritisaka i ograničavanja. U oktobru su nepoznate osobe ubile poznatu novinarku i branioca ljudskih prava Anu Politkovskaju, poznatu po kritičkim napisima o zloupotrebama ljudskih prava u Čečeniji. Vlada je kontrolisala sve nacionalne televizijske i radio stanice, kao i većinu uticajnih regionalnih stanica, kako bi ograničila pristup informacijama koje je ocenila kao osetljive.

U Belorusiji su stroge poreske inspekcije i obaveze pri registrovanju nevladinih organizacija otežale rad građanskih organizacija a nastavljeni su i napadi na pripadnike nezavisnih medija. U novembru je prodemokratski aktivista Dmitrij Daškevič osuđen na osamnaest meseci zatvora zbog vođenja neregistrovane nevladine organizacije.

Vlada Kazahstana registrovala je opozicionu stranku Ak Zol nakon što je jedan od kopredsedavajućih, Sarsenbaiulj ubijen i ograničeno interpretirala član 5 Ustava kako bi suspendovala obrazovne aktivnosti nepristrasne političke stranke koja se finansira iz inostranstva, tvrdeći da je davanje informacija jednako finansiranju političkih stranaka. U julu je predsednik Nazarbajev ozakonio restriktivne amandmane koje se odnose na medije, a koje je predstavnik za slobodne medije pri OEBS-u ocenio kao korak unazad. Vlada je nastavila s primenom restriktivnih zakona o kleveti kako bi novčano kažanjavala, osudila i suspendovala medijske distributere, novinare i kritičare. U aprilu je jedan suspendovani medijski distributer brutalno pretučen.

Sloboda izražavanja, udruživanja i okupljanja strogo je ograničena u Turkmenistanu, a vlada je nastojala da kontroliše aktivnosti nevladinih organizacija. Inostrana satelitska televizija dostupna je u čitavoj zemlji, ali vlada kontroliše sve domaće medije, a lokalnim novinarima je zabranjen svaki kontakt sa strancima ukoliko nemaju posebno odobrenje. Veoma ograničen pristup internetu obezbeđivao je Turkmen telekom u vlasništvu države; nijedan novi operater nije dobio dozvolu u glavnom gradu od septembra 2002. U avgustu su novinari Ogulspapar Miradova, Anakurban Amankličev i Sapardurdi Hajijev uhapšeni i na zatvorenom kratkom suđenju osuđeni na šest do sedam godina zatvora zbog posedovanja oružja. U septembru je Miradova, dopisnik radija Slobodna Evrope/Radio Sloboda, umrla u zatvoru pod sumnjivim okolnostima. Nevladine organizacije su prijavile da su ona i njene kolege mučeni za vreme pritvora u leto kako bi se iznudilo priznanje o posedovanju oružja. Predsednik Saparmurat Nijazov preminuo je 21. decembra.

Vlada Uzbekistana nastojala je da kotroliše većinu aktivnosti nevladinih organizacija i zatvorila preko dvesta građanskih organizacija, uključujući međunarodne nevladine organizacije koje rade u zemlji, pozivajući se na navodno kršenje zakona. Nezavisni novinari i aktivisti za ljudska prava i dalje su izloženi progonu.

Sirijska vlada strogo kontroliše distribuciju informacija i zabranjuje kritikovanje vlade i rasprave o sektaškim pitanjima, uključujući verska i manjinska prava. Pojedinci koji su izražavali mišljenje, čime su ova ograničenja prekršena, prebijani su i pritvarani, kao, na primer, Adel Mahfuz koji je uhapšen u februaru nakon što je pozvao na međuverski dijalog posle polemike koja je pratila prikazivanje karikatura proroka Muhameda. Vlada se oslanjala na zakone o štampi i izdavaštvu, krivični zakonik i vanredni zakon kako bi cenzurisala pristup internetu, a takođe je ograničila elektronske medije. Maltretiranje lokalnih aktivista za ljudska prava takođe se događalo, uključujući redovno nadziranje i nametanje zabrane putovanja kad bi nastojali da prisustvuju radionicama i konferencijama van zemlje.

Sloboda štampe nikad nije bila manja u Iranu, kako je vlada zatvorila nezavisne novine Shargh i Iran, blokirala pristup novinskim veb-stranicama na internetu – uključujući tu i Njujork tajms i BBC Farsi – i zatvarala novinare i blogere (osobe koje koriste svoje veb prostor na internetu da napišu nešto o sebi ili drugima, svoj dnevnik ili svoje mišljenje o nečemu ili nekome).Vlasti su koristile zabranu izlaska iz zemlje kao oružje protiv novinara.

 U Burundiju je vlada intenzivirala hapšenje, pritvaranje i zastrašivanje novinara i aktivista za ljudska prava; među mnogim drugim licima, policija je uhapsila i nekoliko meseci u pritvoru držala predsednika vodeće nevladine organizacije u zemlji koja se bori protiv korupcije. Namesnik jedne provincije navodno je najveću lokalnu nevladinu organizaciju za ljudska prava, Liga Iteka, nazvao neprijateljem mira, a u novembru je jedan vladin zvaničnik objavio da 32 međunarodne nevladine organizacije u zemlji mogu biti proterane ukoliko vlastima ne podnesu obavezne godišnje izveštaje.

U Ruandi je za delovanje građanskog društva atmosfera bila restriktivna. Domaće i međunarodne nevladine organizacije po zakonu moraju da se registruju svake godine i vlastima podnose izveštaj o svojim aktivnostima. Vlasti su navodno tražile od nekih nevladinih organizacija da pribave vladino odobrenje za izvesne projekte pre nego što im je dozvoljen pristup međunarodnim donatorskim sredstvima. Pored toga, od svih nevladinih organizacija se očekuje da se učlane u grupu koja za cilj ima rukovođenje njihovim aktivnostima.

Vlada Venecuele nastavila je sa maltretiranjem i zastrašivanjem građanskih grupa, ponajviše vođa Nevladine organizacije Sumate, koja je nadzirala izbore, čije je suđenje za zaveru i izdaju zbog primanja inostranog granta odloženo na neodređeno vreme ali ih još čeka. Krajem godine Narodna skupština je razmatrala nacrt zakona koji će, ako bude primenjen, povećati kontrolu vlade nad finansiranjem nevladinih organizacija a rad im ograničiti na oblasti koje se ne tiču ljudskih prava i promovisanja demokratije. Amandmani krivičnog zakonika koji uvode zatvorske kazne za vređanje javnih zvaničnika i nasilni napadi na novinare doprineli su uspostavljanju autocenzure. Vlada je intenzivirala maltretiranje nezavisnih i opozicionih informativnih distributera. Predsednik Čavez je u decembru najavio da vlada neće obnoviti dozvolu za emitovanje Televiziji Radio Karakas, najstarijoj televizijskoj mreži u zemlji. Vlada je optužila vlasnike mreže da su „prevratnički huškači“ i da su izneverili javno poverenje.

Nevladine organizacije u Kini, kako domaće tako i međunarodne, i dalje se suočavaju sa povećanim nadzorom i ograničenjima. Do kraja 2006. godine, Novinari bez granica prijavili su da su 31 novinar i 52 pisca za internet u zatvoru. Mada vlada ohrabruje upotrebu interneta, takođe i preduzima korake kako bi nadzirala njegovu upotrebu, kontrolisala sadržaje, ograničavala informacije i kažnjavala prekršioce propisa. Vlada je uvela strože obaveze za registraciju veb-stranica, povećala zvaničnu kontrolu internet sadržaja i proširila definiciju nezakonitog internet sadržaja. Vlada neprekidno blokira pristup veb-stranicama koje smatra spornim, a vlasti su navodno počele da koriste bolju tehnologiju koja omogućava selektivno blokiranje određenog sadržaja a ne čitave veb-stranice.

Vijetnam je nastavio nadzor i ograničavanje interneta blokiranjem međunarodnih informativnih veb-stranica kao i onih u vezi sa ljudskim pravima. Zakoni građanima dozvoljavaju da se otvoreno žale na nedelotvorne vlasti i korupciju, ali vlada i dalje zabranjuje štampi da objavljuje tekstove koji preispituju ulogu Komunističke partije, promovišu pluralizam, višestranačku demokratiju ili dovode u pitanje politiku u vezi sa ljudskim pravima. Vlada zabranjuje direktan pristup internetu preko Nezavisne službe distributera i zahteva od vlasnika internet-kafea da registruju lične podatke svojih gostiju i posećene veb-stranice. Vlada je oslobodila nekoliko poznatih političkih i verskih disidenata, uključujući dr Pam Hong Sona, koji je bio zatvoren zbog prevođenja tekstova o demokratiji koje je distribuirao preko interneta.

Činjenica koja najviše otrežnjuje jeste genocid.

Gotovo šezdeset godina nakon usvajanja Univerzalne deklaracije Ujedinjenih nacija o ljudskim pravima – izraza ogorčene savesti čovečanstva u pogledu veličine holokausta i kataklizme Drugog svetskog rata – genocid je nastavio da besni u području Darfur u Sudanu.

Uprkos Sveobuhvatnom sporazumu o miru iz januara 2005, kojim je okončan dvadesetdvogodišnji građanski rat između severa i juga, i uspostavljanja jedinstvene vlade iste godine, etnički sukob je nastavljen u Sudanu, a najstrašnije u Darfuru. Sudanska vlada i džandžavidska milicija, koju vlada podržava, snosi odgovornost za genocid u Darfuru, a sve strane u ratu počinile su teške zloupotrebe, uključujući rasprostranjena ubistva civila, silovanje kao sredstvo ratovanja, sistematska mučenja, pljačke i regrutovanje dece vojnika. Do kraja 2006. godine, konflikt u Darfuru za posledicu je imao najmanje 200.000 poginulih civila i dva miliona raseljenih zbog rata. Preko 234.000 izbeglica otišlo je u susedni Čad, a i Čad i Centralna Afrička Republika doživeli su žestoke etničke konflikte duž svojih granica sa Sudanom.

I pored naznaka da podržava okvir Adis Abebe, sudanska vlada je javno odbila međunarodne snage za Darfur i obnovila vojnu ofanzivu u drugoj polovini 2006. Sve gori bezbednosni uslovi prinudili su neke međunarodne nevladine organizacije i humanitarne organizacije da svoj rad smanje ili suspenduju.

Braniti branitelje

Ako veliko obećanje iz Univerzalne deklaracije Ujedinjenih nacija treba da se ispuni, međunarodna zajednica – a pogotovo svetske demokratije – ne mogu prihvatiti da su današnje otrežnjujuće činjenice nepromenljive. One nas podstiču da se udružimo sa onima koji rade za ljudsko dostojanstvo i političke reforme.

Demokratske vlade istakle su odvažne napore branitelja ljudskih prava u 2006. godini:

Rezolucije po zemljama koje je donela Generalna skupština Ujedinjenih nacija 2006. naglasile su potrebu da se zaštite branitelji ljudskih prava u Iranu, Belorusiji, Severnoj Koreji i Burmi.

Demokratski fond Ujedinjenih nacija, nastao iz ideje koju je predsednik Buš predstavio Generalnoj skupštini 2004. a ustanovljen 2005. godine, uspešno je okončao svoju prvu godinu. Njegova uprava je pristala da finansira 125 projekata od preko 1.300 predloga podnesenih iz više od sto zemalja – isplaćeno je preko 35 miliona dolara u grantovima uglavnom prodemokratskim organizacijama za građansko društvo.

Na regionalnom nivou, juna 2006. Generalna skupština Organizacije američkih država (OAS) usvojila je Deklaraciju Santo Domingo, pionirsku multilateralnu obavezu zemalja regiona da „garantuju slobodu svake osobe da uživa slobodu izražavanja, uključujući pristup necenzurisanoj političkoj raspravi i slobodnu razmenu mišljenja putem svih oblika masovnih medija, uključujući internet“. Ministri inostranih poslova takođe su izrazili svoju odlučnost da u tom smislu razvijaju i podstiču strategije i najbolju praksu.

Jedinica za branitelje ljudskih prava Interameričke komisije za ljudska prava OAS-a objavila je izveštaj o ozbiljnim problemima s kojima se suočavaju u nekim zemljama, naglašavajući da vlade treba da podrže njihov rad.

Pre julske Skupštine šefova država Afričke unije, organizacije za građansko društvo iz devetnaest afričkih zemalja sastale su se u Bandžulu, u Gambiji, da pripreme preporuke za samit lidera u vezi sa ulogom građanskog društva u APRM-u o tome da li zemlje ispunjavaju obaveze iz sporazuma, načinima za poboljšan pristup građanskog društva informacijama, i zakonima o državljanstvu koji utvrđuju diskriminaciju. Ove preporuke su usvojene na samitu.

U regionu šire oblasti Bliskog istoka i Severne Afrike, Forum za budućnost okupio je državne zvaničnike i predstavnike građanskog društva iz regiona, uz partnere iz G-8, na Mrtvom moru u Jordanu. Skoro pedeset lidera građanskog društva koji su predstavljali stotine organizacija iz šesnaest zemalja regiona učestvovalo je u raspravama o vladavini prava, transparentnosti, utvrđivanju položaja žena i omladine i pravnom okviru organizacija za građansko društvo. Takođe su razgovarali o načinu osnaživanja reformi putem uspostavljanja mehanizama kako bi se pratila primena preporuka. Mada najteži deo predstoji – usvajanje i primena preporuka koje je iznelo građansko društvo – Forum je pomogao otvaranju političkog prostora, koji ranije nije postojao, za stvaranje organizacija za građansko društvo i saradnju s vladama u regionu.

Obeležavajući Međunarodni dan ljudskih prava u decembru 2006. državni sekretar Rajs je pokrenula dve važne inicijative Sjedinjenih Država za podršku ljudskim pravima i braniteljima demokratije:

Najavila je stvaranje Fonda za branitelje ljudskih prava kojim će upravljati Stejt department a koji će brzo isplaćivati male grantove kako bi se pomoglo braniteljima ljudskih prava suočenim s vanrednim potrebama usled represije vlasti. Ova sredstva mogu pokrivati troškove advokata, medicinske troškove ili hitne potrebe porodica aktivista.

Državni sekretar Rajs je takođe objavila deset vodećih Principa za nevladine organizacije koji se tiču postupanja vlada prema nevladinim organizacijama. Ovi suštinski principi rukovodiće ponašanje Sjedinjenih Država prema nevladinim organizacijama a takođe ćemo ih koristiti za procenu postupaka drugih vlada. Principi imaju za cilj da upotpune duže i detaljnije dokumente Ujedinjenih nacija i ostale međunarodne dokumente koji se bave braniteljima ljudskih prava i mogu pomoći da se u čitavom svetu okupi podrška utvrđenim nevladinim organizacijama tako što će služiti kao koristan izvor vladama, međunarodnim organizacijama, grupama za građansko pravo i novinarima.

Kad demokratije podržavaju rad zagovornika ljudskih prava i organizacija za građansko društvo, pomažemo muškarcima i ženama u zemljama širom planete da svoju sudbinu uobliče u slobodi. Tako čineći, pomažemo da se izgradi bezbedniji i bolji svet za sve ljude.

Moramo braniti branitelje, jer su oni emisari mirnih, demokratskih promena.

Srbija (sa Kosovom)

Izveštaji o stanju ljudskih prava po zemljama za 2006. godinu

Objavila Kancelarija za demokratiju, ljudska prava i rad

6. mart 2007.

(Izveštaj o Kosovu nalazi se na kraju ovog izveštaja.)

Republika Srbija je po uređenju parlamentarna demokratija sa otprilike 7.5 miliona stanovnika.* Premijer Vojislav Koštunica predvodi srpsku višestranačku vladu počev od marta 2004. godine. Juna 2004. godine, Boris Tadić je izabran za predsednika na izborima za koje su posmatrači ocenili da su uglavnom u skladu sa međunarodnom standardima. Posle crnogorskog referenduma 21. maja, na kojem se 55.5 procenata glasača opredelilo za nezavisnost, vlasti su započele rad na razdvajanju državne zajednice Srbije i Crne Gore i raspodeli dužnosti na republičkom nivou. Na referendumu 29. i 30. oktobra, birači u Srbiji su usvojili novi ustav. Prema izbornoj komisiji, izlaznost je bilo skoro 55 procenata, a 53 procenta birača podržalo je novi ustav mada su neke grupe za ljudska prava osporavale rezultate. Civilna vlast je uglavnom održavala efikasnu kontrolu bezbednosnih snaga, a bilo je manje slučajeva kada su pripadnici snaga bezbednosti delovali nezavisno od upravne vlasti.

Vlasti su generalno poštovale ljudska prava građana i nastavile napore na utvrđivanju slučajeva kršenja ljudskih prava; međutim, brojni problemi i dalje su postojali. Problemi prijavljeni u pogledu ljudskih prava su sledeći: široko rasprostranjena korupcija u sudstvu i policiji; nekažnjavanje; neefikasna i duga suđenja; nedostatak saradnje vlade sa Međunarodnim krivičnim sudom za bivšu Jugoslaviju (ICTY) u hvatanju osumnjičenih za ratne zločine; nedostatak inicijative vlasti u pogledu novih domaćih istraga i tužbi za ratne zločine iz devedesetih godina; uznemiravanje novinara, radnika za ljudska prava i drugih kritičara vlade; samovoljna hapšenja i selektivna primena zakona u političke svrhe; ograničavanja slobode govora i religije, uključujući novi zakon o religiji; društvena netolerancija i diskriminacija etničkih i verskih manjina; prisustvo velikog broja interno raseljenih lica; nasilje nad ženama i decom; i trgovina ljudima.

Povećani napori vlasti na utvrđivanju kršenja ljudskih prava za posledicu su imali primetno poboljšanje. Okružni sud u Beogradu je preko svog specijalizovanog organa nastavio s napretkom u nekoliko predmeta koji se tiču ratnih zločina i organizovanog kriminala uprkos izvesnom političkom pritisku i pretnjama kriminalnih grupa Vlasti su takođe razotkrile nekoliko međunarodnih bandi koje se bave trgovinom ljudima, štitile žrtve trgovine ljudima i istrajno tužile trgovce ljudima. Vlasti su mirno reagovale na crnogorski referendum o nezavisnosti i na potonji nestanak državne zajednice. Nacionalne manjine su prijavile manji broj napada nego prethodnih godina.

POŠTOVANJE LJUDSKIH PRAVA

Odeljak 1 Poštovanje integriteta ličnosti koje ne dozvoljava:

a. Proizvoljno ili nezakonito lišavanja života

Za razliku od prethodnih godina, vlasti i njihovi predstavnici nisu počinili nijedno samovoljno niti nezakonito ubistvo.

Suđenje policajcu Saši Mijinu iz Kikinde nije okončano do kraja godine. Vlasti su Mijina optužile da je na smrt pretukao jednog stanovnika Kikinde u oktobru 2005.

Specijalni sud za organizovani kriminal u Beogradu suočio se sa nekim teškoćama za vreme suđenja trideset šestorici osumnjičenih, uključujući bivšeg komandanta tajne policije Milorada Ulemeka i njegovog zamenika Zvezdana Jovanović Zvekija, za ubistvo premijera Zorana Đinđića 2003. Dana 3. juna ubijen je ključni svedok Zoran Vukojević. Predsedavajući sudija Marko Kljajević podneo je ostavku 1. septembra navodeći lične razloge za takav postupak. U medijima i organizacijama za ljudska prava bilo je špekulacija da je njegov odlazak možda izazvan političkim pritiscima. Novi sudija je naimenovan u septembru, a suđenje je nastavljeno krajem godine.

U junu je Vrhovni sud potvrdio odluku Specijalnog suda u Beogradu u slučaju Ulemeka i ostalih optuženih za ubistvo bivšeg predsednika Srbije Ivana Stambolića 2000. godine. U julu 2005. Specijalni sud za organizovani kriminal u Beogradu osudio je Ulemeka i još tri osobe pod njegovom komandom na kaznu zatvora u trajanju od četrdeset godina, druge dve osobe na petnaestogodišnju kaznu zatvora a jednu osobu na četiri godine zatvora.

Vlasti su nastaviile istragu o nestanku i potonjem ubistvu braće Jilija, Mehmeta i Agrona Bitićija, američkih državljana koji su ubijeni 1999. godine. Tela ove trojice otkrivena su 2001. godine u masovnoj grobnici u Petrovom Selu, nedaleko od srpskog policijskog objekta. Tela su pronađena sa zavezanim rukama dok su na glavama nađene rane od vatrenog oružja. Dana 23. avgusta Specijalni sud za ratne zločine podigao je prve optužnice u ovom predmetu protiv Sretena Popovića i Miloša Stojanovića, pripadnika specijalne policijske jedinice. Optužnice se zasnivaju na krivičnoj prijavi za nezakonito pritvaranje braće Bitići. Suđenje Popoviću i Stojanoviću počelo je 11. novembra. Krivična prijava za ubistvo nije podneta ni protiv koga ali se istraga nastavlja.

Domaći sudovi i Međunarodni krivični sud za bivšu Jugoslaviju nastavili su sudske procese u predmetima proisteklim iz zločina počinjenih u sukobima u periodu 1991-1999. na području Hrvatske, Bosne i Hercegovine i Kosova (vidi odeljak 1.e i 4).

Nema novih saznanja u vezi sa smrću nekoliko vojnih obveznika 2005. Ovi obveznici su preminuli dok su bili na straži u udaljenim oblastima, a njihove porodice su dovele u pitanje tvrdnje Vojske da se radi o samoubistvima. Dana 5. oktobra, organizacije za ljudska prava i porodice obveznika obeležile su dvogodišnicu smrti Dragana Jakovljevića i Dražena Milovanovića u Topčideru, ističući da je slučaj nerešen. Porodice su podnele građansku tužbu protiv države ali sudski postupak nije pokrenut do kraja godine.

Dana 10. septembra ubijen je u Novom Pazaru Ruždija Đurović, kandidat za opštinskog odbornika iz stranke Lista za Sandžak. Policija je uhapsila Estana Gegića i Ismeta Derdemeta, a potraga je organizovana za trećim osumnjičenim Seadom Papićem; predmet je krajem godina još bio u istražnoj fazi postupka. Mada su osumnjičeni članovi suparničke Demokratske stranke Sandžaka, lider stranke Rasim Ljajić osudio je zločin i negirao bilo kakvu umešanost. Zbog bezbednosnih pitanja, najavio je bojkot skupštinskih izbora i povlačenje svoje stranke iz skupštine.

b. Nestanak lica

Nije bilo prijavljenih slučajeva nestanka lica iz političkih motiva.

Vlasti su ostvarile skroman napredak u saradnji sa susednim zemljama, Međunarodnom komisijom za nestala lica i drugim međunarodnim organizacijama na identifikaciji osoba nestalih za vreme sukoba na Kosovu. Dana 30. juna, vlasti su na Kosovo vratile posmrtne ostatke 829 lica pronađene u masovnim grobnicama u Srbiji. Ovim je okončan povratak na Kosovo svih tela do danas otkrivenih u Srbiji. Međutim, i dalje se sporo napredovalo u lociranju drugih grobnica i objavljivanju informacija za javnost. U septembru je Međunarodni komitet Crvenog krsta (ICRC), koji od 2004. predsedava Radnom grupom za nestala lica, obustavio dalje sastanke radne grupe navodeći kao razlog nedovoljnu posvećenost vlasti i u Srbiji i na Kosovu. Prema podacima ICRC-a, još su nerešeni slučajevi 2.284 nestale osobe.

c. Mučenje i drugi surovi, nehumani i ponižavajući oblici ponašanja ili kažnjavanja

Ustav i zakon zabranjuju ovakvu praksu; međutim, policija povremeno batina pritvorenike i maltretira lica obično za vreme hapšenja ili prilikom privođenja za lakša krivična dela.

Dana 15. marta, Helsinški komitet za ljudska prava u Srbiji (HCS) prijavio je da je policija pretukla dvadesetosmogodišnjeg Mihalja Kolončaja iz Kikinde. Kolončaju je usled teških povreda odstranjena slezina. Vlasti su suspendovale nekoliko policajaca iz policijske stanice u Kikindi zbog neodgovarajućeg ponašanja i pokrenule krivični postupak.

Inicijativa mladih za ljudska prava (YIHR) prijavila je da su, u nekoliko navrata od maja do septembra, subotički policijski inspektor Tomislav Lendvaj i njegova tri saradnika tukli, mučili i seksualno zlostavljali dva građanina Subotice, kao i da su ih vređali na etničkoj osnovi i pretili njihovim porodicama. Žrtve, Erne Ceh and Marinko Varnjas različitog su etničkog porekla. Krajem godine istraga je bila u toku a inspektor Lendvaj je suspendovan sa svog položaja.

Centar za humanitarno pravo (HLC) prijavio je da je 15. juna Mileta Novaković, pripadnik specijalne žandarmerijske jedinice, naredio svojoj jedinici da primeni silu protiv izgrednika navijača za vreme košarkaške utakmice. Prema podacima Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova, povređeno je 27 ljudi, uključujući 9 policajaca, a tridesetoro ljudi je uhapšeno. Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova zaštitilo je akciju kao zakonitu, ali je kasnije priznalo da su neki policajci prekoračili ovlašćenja i povredili navijače. Novaković je prebačen na položaj van Beograda, ali nikakva druga disciplinska mera nije preduzeta.

U slučaju iz februara 2005. po prijavi HLC-a po kojoj je policija navodno maltretirala sedamnaestogodišnju devojku dok je bila u pritvoru u jednoj beogradskoj policijskoj stanici, žrtva je dala izjavu pred istražnim sudijom u oktobru a istraga nije završena do kraja godine. U ovom predmetu osumnjičeni su policajci iz Beograda Jovica Pecaranin i Nebojša Milenković.

U predmetu iz juna 2005. po prijavi HCS-a po kojoj je saobraćajna policija u selu pored Niša navodno maltretirala i tukla jednu porodicu u njihovoj kući a potom i u policijskoj stanici, porodica je odbila da podnese tužbu u strahu od odmazde.

Ni žrtva ni policija nisu podnelu tužbu u slučaju Aleksandra Petrovića, Beograđanina koga je navodno policija pretukla u njegovom stanu jula 2005. Centar za humanitarno pravo objavio je saopštenje za štampu posle navodnog napada ali nije podnela krivičnu prijavu. Napadači su u ovom incidentu ostali nepoznati.

Nije bilo podataka da li su dalje radnje preduzete u slučaju leskovačkog policajca koji je navodno jula 2005. pretukao advokata leskovačkog Komiteta za ljudska prava.

Uslovi u zatvorima i centru za pritvor

Uslovi u zatvorima bitno se razlikuju od ustanove do ustanove, a bilo je prijava da neki čuvari takođe zlostavljaju zatvorenike.

U nekim zatvorima, zatvorenici su se žalili na prljavštinu i nehumane uslove. Nekoliko puta u toku godine zatvorenici su štrajkovali glađu buneći se protiv loših uslova u ustanovama. Hrana je različitog kvaliteta – od slabog do jedva prihvatljivog, a zdravstvena nega je često neodgovarajuća. Čuvari nisu adekvatno obučeni za pravilno postupanje sa zatvorenicima. Maloletnici bi trebalo da budu smešteni odvojeno od odraslih; to, međutim, nije uvek slučaj u praksi.

Država je dozvolila Međunarodnom komitetu Crvenog krsta i lokalnim nezavisnim posmatračima za ljudska prava, uključujući HCS, da posete zatvore i razgovaraju sa zatvorenicima bez prisustva stražara.

U januaru je HCS objavio izveštaj o svojim nalazima pošto su posetili osam ustanova za pritvor u maju 2005. U izveštaju se navodi da ustanove nemaju odgovarajuće procedure u slučajevima kada zatvorenici navedu da ih zatvorsko osoblje maltretira. Izveštaj takođe sadrži i druge probleme, uključujući korupciju, prenatrpanost, nedostatak prirodnog svetla i svežeg vazduha, a u nekim od posećenih zatvora i loše prostorije za higijenu i prljave površine za pripremanje hrane.

U maju je Komitet Saveta Evrope za prevenciju torture (CPT) objavio izveštaj o poseti Srbiji i Crnoj Gori septembra 2004. Za vreme posete CPT je dobio brojne navode o fizičkom maltretiranju zatvorenika i pritvorenika, i preporučio da vlasti podignu nivo profesionalne obuke, revnosnije istražuju navode o zlostavljanju i strogo kažnjavaju počinioce koji maltretiraju zatvorenike. CPT je takođe naveo da je nasilje među zatvorenicima ozbiljan problem. CPT se žalio na upotrebu lanaca i katanaca u obuzdavanju pacijenata u beogradskoj zatvorskoj bolnici; vlasti u znak odgovora navodno više ne upražnjavaju ovakvu praksu. CPT je dalje preporučio vlastima da se u zatvorskoj bolnici poveća nivo usluga medicinskog osoblja.

U novembru su zatvorske pobune izbile zbog neispunjenih zahteva da parlament donese zakon o amnestiji. U Požarevcu se tridesetak zatvorenika popelo na krov i pretilo da će skočiti; u Nišu su se zatvorenici zabarikadirali u svoje ćelije. Stotine specijalno obučenih policajaca uspeli su da obuzdaju proteste, ali je za vreme operacije povređeno 55 zatvorenika. Ministar pravde Zoran Stojković je izjavio da je policijska akcija bila neophodna kako bi se ponovo uspostavio red i sprečilo povređivanje zatvorenika.

d. Proizvoljna hapšenja ili pritvor

Ustav i zakon zabranjuju proizvoljno hapšenje i pritvor i vlasti načelno poštuju ove zabrane sa nekoliko izuzetaka.

Policija je u Nišu pritvorila i ispitivala četiri aktivista za ljudska prava iz YIHR-a preko četiri sata 12. jula i više od tri sata 13. jula. Policija je ovo nazvala „informativnim sastankom“ i optužila ih da su dva dana ranije na demonstracijama crtali grafite koji prikazuju haškog optuženika Ratka Mladića. Policija je oslobodila aktiviste a prijava nije podneta.

Uloga policijskog i bezbednosnog aparata

Oko četrdeset tri hiljade policajaca u Srbiji deo su Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova. Policija je podeljena u trideset tri regionalna sekretarijata kojima upravlja republička vlada. Tokom godine Vlada Srbije je preuzela kontrolu nad oružanim snagama posle raspada državne zajednice Srbije i Crne Gore.

Efikasnost policije bila je neujednačena i generalno ograničena. Iako su policajci uglavnom Srbi, pripadnici policije su i Bošnjaci (bosanski muslimani), etnički Mađari, mali broj etničkih Albanaca i drugih etničkih manjina. Multietničke policijske snage na jugu Srbije sastavljene su prvestveno od etničkih Albanaca i Srba.

Korupcija i nekažnjivost policijskih snaga predstavljali su probleme, a u pogledu nadzora i kontrole policijskih postupaka postojala su samo ograničena institucionalna sredstva. Kancelarija generalnog inspektora, uspostavljena 2003. pri Ministarstvu unutrašnjih poslova, imala je sve ograničenija ovlašćenja, i nije imala samostalnost da istražuje i koriguje slučajeve zloupotrebe. Iako je od svog nastanka Kancelarija preporučila brojne disciplinske postupke protiv radnika Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova, nije imala načina da prati odvijanje tih postupaka, a neki sekretarijati su u potpunosti ignorisali ovakve preporuke.

Od 2005. godine, Kancelarija generalnog inspektora preporučila je disciplinske mere protiv 5.722 pripadnika policije zbog prestupa, a prijave su podnete protiv 587 pripadnika policijskih snaga.

Tokom godine, vlasti i Organizacija za bezbednost i saradnju u Evropi (OEBS) kao i druge strane vlade, obučavali su pripadnike policijskih, bezbednosnih i pograničnih snaga za borbu protiv terorizma, korupcije, pranja novca i trgovine ljudima.

Hapšenje i pritvor

Hapšenja se generalno obavljaju na osnovu naloga mada je policija ovlašćena da izvrši hapšenje bez naloga pod određenim okolnostima, uključujući i postojanje osnovane sumnje da je lice počinilo teško krivično delo. Zakon nalaže da istražni sudija odobri svaki pritvor duži od 48 časova i u praksi se ovaj uslov poštuje. Kaucija je dozvoljena ali se retko koristi; pritvorenici kojima preti tužba za delo za koje je zaprećena kazna zatvora do pet godina često su bili puštani na slobodu uz lično novčano jemstvo.

Zakon predviđa da policija mora odmah upoznati uhapšenike sa njihovim pravima. Za razliku od prethodnih godina, u ovom pogledu nisu prijavljene nikakve zloupotrebe.

Po zakonu, pritvorenici imaju pravo na advokata, čije troškove, ukoliko je potrebno, snosi država, i ovo pravo se u praksi generalno poštuje. Članovima porodice je uobičajeno bilo dozvoljeno da posećuju pritvorenike. Pritvor osumnjičenih može trajati do šest meseci a da optužnica ne bude podignuta.

Zakonom je zabranjena upotreba sile, pretnji, obmane i prisile da bi se iznudili dokazi, kao i upotreba dokaza na sudu koji su dobijeni takvim sredstvima; međutim, ponekad policija upotrebljava ovakva sredstva da bi dobila iskaze.

Vlasti su koristile proizvoljno hapšenje i selektivnu primenu zakona u političke svrhe. Neki politički analitičari špekulisali su da je hapšenje predsednika Trgovinskog suda Gorana Kljajevića bio primer selektivnog krivičnog progona kako bi se izvršio dodatni pritisak na njegovog brata, Marka Kljajevića, koji je ubrzo posle hapšenja dao ostavku na mesto predsedavajućeg sudije u suđenju u predmetu Đinđić (vidi odeljak 1.a. i 3). Takođe, neki analitičari su tvrdili da je vreme podizanja optužnice za korupciju i pranje novca protiv tajkuna Bogoljuba Karića takođe bilo politički motivisano (vidi odeljak 3).

Zakon ograničava pritvor pre suđenja od podizanja optužnice do završetka suđenja do dve godine u većini slučajeva, ali dozvoljava pritvor do četiri godine za krivična dela za koja je zaprećena maksimalna kazna (40 godina zatvora). Zakon određuje dve godine kao maksimalni dozvoljeni pritvor nakon što apelacioni sud ukine presudu suda pred kojim je vođen sudski postupak. I pored toga, produženi pritvor pre suđenja bio je problem. Zakon zabranjuje da vlasti prekomerno produžavaju ulaganje zvanične tužbe protiv osumnjičenih i u otvaranju istraga; međutim, takva odlaganja su se redovno dešavala. Usled neefikasnosti sudova, predmeti su često prekomerno dugo čekali na suđenje, a kad bi i počela, suđenja su prekomerno dugo trajala (vidi odeljak 1.e.).

Zakon dozvoljava da osobe pritvorene u vezi sa teškim krivičnim delima u pritvoru ostanu i do šest meseci pre nego što se krivična prijava mora podneti. Vlasti često takve osobe drže punih šest meseci pre podnošenja krivične prijave.

e. Uskraćivanje prava na pravično i javno suđenje

Zakon predviđa nezavisno sudstvo; međutim, sudstvo je i dalje podložno korupciji i političkom uticaju. Novousvojeni ustav pretrpeo je kritike zbog odredaba o sudstvu prema kojima je naimenovanje sudija i tužilaca podložno političkom proveravanju. Korupcija sudstva još uvek predstavlja problem. Bilo je izveštaja da su vladini službenici pokušali da oslabe politički osetljive tužbe, između ostalog i tako što je vršen pritisak na tužioce i sudije.

Tokom godine sudiji Vrhovnog suda Slavoljubu Vučkoviću, uhapšenom septembra 2005. godine, suđeno je za primanje mita u predmetu Jotkine organizovane kriminalne grupe; sud ga je osudio na osam godina zatvora. Vučković se žalio na presudu, a njegova žalba do kraja godine nije rešena.

Tokom godine je nastavljeno suđenje bivšem zameniku javnog tužioca Milanu Sarajliću. Sarajlić je optužen 2004. godine za primanje novca od zemunskog organizovanog kriminalnog klana; suđenje je odloženo 2004. zbog Sarajlićevog lošeg zdravstvenog stanja. Suđenje nije okončano do kraja godine.

Privatni sektor je i dalje smatrao da je korupcija u trgovinskim sudovima široko rasprostranjena. Pored toga, procesi prenosa zemljišta su često bili izuzetno teški, što su mnogi u privatnom sektoru objašnjavali kao posledicu korupcije administracije.

Sudovi su bili izuzetno nedelotvorni i rešavanje predmeta može trajati godinama.

Srpski sudski sistem se sastoji od opštinskih sudova, okružnih sudova, Vrhovnog suda i Ustavnog suda. Pored toga, zakon predviđa specijalne sudove za ratne zločine i organizovani kriminal, koji su tokom godine na koju se izveštaj odnosi radili u okviru Okružnog suda u Beogradu. Ustavni sud donosi odluke o ustavnosti zakona i zakonske regulative. Iako su zakonom predviđeni administrativni apelacioni sud i drugostepeni apelacioni sud u cilju smanjenja obima posla Vrhovnog suda, Narodna skuština je odložila osnivanje ovih sudova do 2007. godine.

Od 2005. godine, specijalni ogranak pri svakom okružnom sudu preuzeo je nadležnost u vojnim predmetima.

Sudski postupci

Suđenja su generalno javna, ali su zatvorena za vreme svedočenja svedoka optužbe. Porota ne postoji. Zakon predviđa da su optuženi nevini dok se ne dokaže suprotno i da imaju pravo da ih advokat zastupa na državni trošak ukoliko je potrebno, kao i da prisustvuju suđenju. Optuženi imaju pravo pristupa dokaznom materijalu u posedu države kao i da ispituju svedoke. I tužba i odbrana imaju pravo žalbe na presudu. Ova prava su generalno poštovana u praksi.

Specijalni sud za ratne zločine nastavio je sa suđenjima za ratne zločine. Dana 18. maja, Vrhovni sud je potvrdio presudu Okružnog suda u Beogradu iz jula 2005. u predmetu ratnih zločina u Sjeverinu u vezi sa mučenjem i ubistvom šesnaest Muslimana iz 1992. godine. Sud je podržao prvobitnu presudu i kaznu Dragutinu Dragićeviću, Oliveru Krsmanoviću i haškom optuženiku Milanu Lukiću na 20 godina zatvora a Đorđu Steviću na petnaest godina zatvora.

Dana 5. jula Specijalni sud za ratne zločine u Beogradu obavio je glavni pretres u predmetu pet pripadnika grupe «Škropioni» za umešanost u ubistvo šest bosanskih Muslimana civila iz Srebrenice iz 1995. godine. Predmet je krajem godine bio u postupku.

Dana 18. septembra, Specijalni sud za ratne zločine osudio je Antona Lekaja za ratne zločine na 13 godina zatvora za ubistvo i mučenje romskih svatova na Kosovu 1999.

Vrhovni sud je potvrdio presudu Specijalnog suda za ratne zločine iz marta 2004. kojom se Aleksandar Cvjetan osuđuje na dvadeset godina zatvora za ubistvo četrnaest etničkih Albanaca u Podujevu na Kosovu 1999. godine.

Specijalni sud za ratne zločine nastavio je suđenje u predmetu „Zvornik“ koji se odnosi na proterivanje i ubistva bosanskih Muslimana 1992. godine.

Ima novih podataka u slučaju Ovčara (takođe poznatom pod nazivom „Vukovarski masakr“). Dana 14. decembra, Vrhovni sud je naredio ponovno suđenje četrnaestorici bivših pripadnika srpske milicije koji su decembra 2005. osuđeni za ubistvo, mučenje i nehumano postupanje prema 200 hrvatskih ratnih zarobljenika 1991. Mnogi u međunarodnoj kao i u zajednici nevladinih organizacija kritikovali su ovakvu odluku kao politički motivisanu naglašavajući da je Vrhovni sud posle prvog razmatranja poništio svaku presudu prvostepenog suda u svim značajnim slučajevima ratnih zločina (npr. Podujevo, Sjeverin, Ovčara).

U aprilu je Okružni sud u Beogradu odbacio slučaj Dejana Demirovića nakon njegove ekstradicije iz Kanade. Protiv Demirovića je podignuta krivična prijava i vođen sudski postupak in absentia za ubistva u Podujevu; međutim, sud je smatrao da su dokazi nedovoljni za presudu.

Politički zatvorenici

Nije bilo izveštaja o političkim zatvorenicima i pritvorenicima.

Građanski sudski postupci i pravni lekovi

U zemlji postoji nezavisno i nepristrasno sudstvo za građanska pitanja gde građani mogu pokrenuti spor kojim traže odštetu za kršenje ljudskih prava ili prekid kršenja tih prava. Pravni lek generalno podrazumeva novčane nadoknade.

Povraćaj imovine

Tokom godine, državna komisija je započela pripreme za popis imovine oduzete počev od 1945. godine, ali nije ostvarila nikakav napredak na donošenju zakona o povraćaju imovine niti vraćanju imovine. Vlada je donela zakon o povraćaju opštinske imovine ali nije preduzela nikakve značajnije korake da napravi popis potraživanja niti da opštinsku imovinu vrati.

f. Proizvoljno ometanje privatnosti, porodice, doma i korespondencije

Ustav i zakon zabranjuju ovakvo delovanje; međutim, država je ometala privatnost i korespondenciju. Iako zakon propisuje da Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova mora nabaviti sudski nalog pre početka praćenja potencijalne kriminalne aktivnosti kao i da policija mora pribaviti nalog pre ulaska u posed izuzev u slučajevima spasavanja ljudi i imovine, policija povremeno nije poštovala ove odredbe u praksi.

Većina posmatrača je smatrala da vlasti selektivno nadziru komunikacije, prisluškuju razgovore, čitaju običnu i elektronsku poštu, i ozvučavaju telefone. Čelnici organizacija za ljudska prava često su prijavljivali da se njihova komunikacija nadzire.

Odeljak 2 Poštovanje građanskih sloboda u koje spada:

a. Sloboda govora i štampe

Zakon predviđa slobodu govora i štampe; međutim, bilo je izveštaja da su vlasti ometale ove slobode te o represivnim merama protiv osoba koje su kritikovale vladu. Uopšte uzev, nezavisne medijske organizacije su bile aktivne i izražavale raznovrsne stavove; međutim, neke medijske organizacije doživele su pretnje i represije zbog objavljivanja stavova u kojima se kritikuje vlada. Mnogim novinarima nedostaje profesionalnost u pogledu navođenja izvora i tačnosti podataka.

Medijski sektor je uglavnom nezavistan i u privatnom vlasništvu. Najstariji nacionalni dnevni list «Politika» je u suvlasništvu države i jedne nemačke kompanije ali ga vodi nekoliko deoničarskih kompanija. Tokom godine, ove dnevne novine su sve više naginjale vladi u svom izveštavanju i uredničkoj politici. Ostale značajnije novine su Blic, Glas Javnosti, Večernje Novosti, Kurir i Danas.

Državna Radio-televizija Srbija (RTS) imala je najveću zastupljenost sa tri televizijska kanala i radio programom. Država je imala znatan uticaj, mada ne i formalnu kontrolu, nad drugim velikim televizijskim stanicama, uključujući TV Politiku i TV Novi Sad, kao i tri programa Radio Beograda. Osim toga, mnoge televizijske stanice se u pogledu vesti oslanjaju na državnu novinsku agenciju TANJUG. Iako su izveštaji RTS-a uopšte uzev bili objektivni, povremeno se čini da postoji pristrasan odnos prema vladi.

Dana 11. oktobra kontroverzni amandmani na zakon o radiju i televiziji stupili su na snagu i pored protivljenja medijskih grupa i OEBS-a. Po ovom zakonu vlada ima pravo da odobri budžet nezavisnog radiodifuznog saveta, daje ovom savetu široka ovlašćenja da oduzima radio i televizijskim stanicama licencu bez prava žalbe i postavlja više naknade za emitere.

Medijske organizacije, posebno Radio stanica B92, bile su žrtve vandalskog ponašanja, pretnji bombama i zastrašivanja zbog prenošenja stavova nepopularnih kod vlasti. Organizacija medija Jugoistočne Evrope (SEEMO) prijavila je izvestan broj takvih incidenata tokom godine. Dana 25. jula, Jahja Fehratović, urednik nedeljnika Glas Sandžaka, primila je telefonom anonimne pretnje smrću. Dana 13. avgusta, Nikolu Rumenića, dopisnika nedeljnika Svet, fizički su napale i povredile dve nepoznate osobe ispred Hotela Jugoslavije u Beogradu. Dana 17. avgusta, dok je vodio radio emisiju, Dragana Zarića, novinara Radija Stari Milanovac, napao je maskirani muškarac koji je mahao nožem. Dana 18. avgusta, Slavica Jovanović, novinar iz Mačvanskog Prnjavora, primila je telefonsku pretnju smrću. Lokalna policija je navodno odbila da omogući Jovanovićevoj da podnese zvaničnu prijavu dok u njeno ime nije intervenisalo Udruženje novinara Srbije (UNS).

Dana 26. aprila, policija je zatvorila prvu privatnu televizijsku stanicu u zemlji, BK Televiziju, po odluci vladine radiodifuzne agencije o privremenoj suspenziji dozvole za rad BK Televizije. Advokat BK Televizije opisao je nasilan ulazak i zatvaranje stanice kao nezakonito. UNS i Asocijacija nezavisnih elektronskih medija (ANEM) opisali su ovaj potez kao samovoljan čin koji predstavlja pretnju demokratiji i slobodi medija.

Dana 13. jula, SEEMO je prijavio da su Jelenu Antić, dopisnika dnevnih novina Dnevnik, bezbednosne snage sprečile da prisustvuje konferenciji za štampu u većnici Rume, navodno po nalogu predsednika opštine Srđana Nikolića.

Kleveta je krivično delo. Osuđeni za klevetu može biti kažnjen zatvorom ili novčanom kaznom u iznosu od 552 do 13.800 dolara (460 do 11.500 eura).

Dana 10. avgusta, Opštinski sud u Prokuplju osudio je urednika RTV Kuršumlija Slavka Savića na četiri meseca zatvora zbog klevete. Sud je smatrao da je Savić kriv zbog objavljivanja SMS poruka koje su pisali i slali gledaoci navodeći da je Slavko Ilić, opštinski zvaničnik, ukrao flašu rakije iz prodavnice. ANEM i Komitet za zaštitu novinara osudio je ovu presudu kao kršenje slobode govora.

Novinari su povremeno primenjivali autocenzuru zbog mogućih tužbi za klevetu i u strahu od vređanja javnog mnjenja, posebno kad su u pitanju teme koje se tiču ratova u bivšoj Jugoslaviji, crnogorskog referenduma za nezavisnost i o pregovorima koje predvodi UN o budućem statusu Kosova. Aktivisti za ljudska prava prijavili su da im je u provladinim publikacijama i tabloidima narušavan ugled zbog izražavanja kritičkih stavova o vladi.

Slobodan pristup internetu

Država nije ograničavala pristup internetu. Pojedinci i grupe mogli su da mirno izražavaju svoje stavove preko interneta, uključujući i elektronsku poštu. Međutim, bilo je izveštaja da je država selektivno nadzirala internet komunikacije.

Akademske slobode i kulturni događaji

Država je generalno poštovala akademske slobode, mada je bilo izveštaja o cenzuri kulturnih događaja.

U septembru je u Novom Sadu policija prekinula pozorišnu predstavu na otvorenom kad se srpski pravoslavni episkop žalio da glumci nose svešteničke odežde i nazvao predstavu „đavoljom rabotom“. Grupa neonacista iz Zrenjanina sledeće večeri je prekinula predstavu.

Dana 28. novembra, Ministarstvo inostranih poslova izdalo je zahtev organizatorima filmskog festivala da se film „Letnja palata“ „skine s festivalskog repertoara imajući u vidu naše dobre bilateralne odnose [sa Kinom]“. Kineska vlada se usprotivila prikazivanju ovog filma koji prikazuje snimak događaja na Trgu Tjenanmen iz 1989. godine. Organizatori festivala su film skinuli s repertoara. Međutim, 1. decembra je ministar inostranih poslova Vuk Drašković suspendovao Danicu Bajić, zaposlenu u Ministarstvu inostranih poslova koja je izdala zahtev, izjavivši da je Bajićeva prekoračila svoja ovlašćenja.

b. Sloboda mirnog okupljanja i udruživanja

Zakon dozvoljava slobodu okupljanja i udruživanja i država to obično i poštuje u praksi. Za razliku od prethodnih godina, nije bilo izveštaja da su vlasti sprečavale javne proteste.

c. Sloboda veroispovesti

Zakon predviđa slobodu veroispovesti i država ovo pravo generalno poštuje u praksi; međutim, srpska država je usvojila diskriminacioni zakon o religiji i vodila diskriminacionu politiku u pogledu poreza na imovinu.

Iako ne postoji državna religija, većinska Srpska pravoslavna crkva je uživala povlašćeni položaj. Na primer, Vojska je i dalje obezbeđivala samo srpsko pravoslavno bogosluženje iako je dozvolila da pripadnici drugih verskih zajednica prisustvuju verskim službama izvan vojnih pošta. Takođe je bilo žalbi da srpska vlada finansira izgradnju velike srpske pravoslavne crkve. Srpska vlada subvencioniše plate srpskog pravoslavnog sveštenstva izvan Srbije.

Vlada je u aprilu usvojila problematičan zakon o religiji.

Taj zakon priznaje sedam „tradicionalnih“ verskih zajednica a to su: Srpska pravoslavna crkva, Rimokatolička crkva, Slovačka evangelistička crkva, Hrišćanska reformatska crkva, Evangelistička hrišćanska crkva, Islamska zajednica i Jevrejska verska zajednica. Zakon propisuje da se sve ostale verske grupe moraju ponovo registrovati pri Ministarstvu vera, koje ima diskreciono pravo da odluči da li će odobriti registraciju ili ne. Mnoge ovakve manjinske grupe zvanično su priznate u Srbije više od pedeset godina a u zemlji postoje već sto pedeset godina.

Po propisima o registraciji, koje su Savet Evrope i OEBS ocenili kao propise koji zadiru u privatnost, moraju se podneti: imena, matični brojevi i potpisi članova, dokazi da grupa prelazi prag od 0.001 procenta odraslog stanovništva u Srbiji (otprilike 65 osoba), opis verskih tekstova grupe i pregled verskih učenja, obreda, verskih ciljeva i osnovnih aktivnosti, kao i informacije o izvorima finansiranja.

Nepravoslavne verske organizacije su nastavile da prijavljuju teškoće u pribavljanju dozvola od lokalnih vlasti u Srbiji za izgradnju novih verskih objekata. Islamska zajednica u Beogradu i dalje ima poteškoće sa nabavkom zemljišta i dobijanjem državne dozvole za islamsko groblje u gradu. U avgustu je ministar vera Milan Radulović izjavio da Crnogorska pravoslavna crkva ne može graditi crkve u Srbiji.

Srpski zakon obavezuje učenike osnovnih i srednjih škola ili da pohađaju nastavu jedne od sedam tradicionalnih verskih zajednica, ili da idu na časove građanskog vaspitanja. Poglavari verskih grupa isključenih iz ovog programa nastavili su da izražavaju svoje nezadovoljstvo zbog ograničene definicije veroispovesti prema tumačenju vlasti.

Vlada je donela zakon o povraćaju opštinske imovine u Srbiji, uključujući i verske objekte konfiskovane posle 1945. godine, ali nije preduzela nikakve važnije radnje da se napravi popis potraživanja niti vrati crkvena imovina.

Društvene zloupotrebe i diskriminacija

Manjinske verske zajednice izveštavaju o kontinuiranim problemima vandalskog uništavanja crkvenih zgrada, groblja i drugih verskih objekata, mada je broj takvih incidenata smanjen u odnosu na prethodne godine. Bilo je nekoliko slučaja verbalnih i fizičkih napada na pripadnike verskih manjina. Reakcija policije često nije bila odgovarajuća i grupe za građansko društvo kritikovale su vlasti da nisu posvećene rešavanju problema diskriminacije.

Nepoznati napadači lomili su nekoliko puta tokom godine prozore sa vitražima na katoličkim crkvama u Smederevu, Kragujevcu i Boru. Adventisti sedmog dana prijavili su da su vandalske napade i namerne paljevine njihovih crkava bile toliko česte da ih je teško pobrojati. Vandali su oštetili nadgrobne spomenike na groblju Slovačke evangelističko-luteranske crkve u Dobanovcima i na katoličkom groblju u Temerinu. U svim ovim slučajevima, policija nije mogla da identifikuje napadače.

Dana 15. februara, jedan muškarac je u Mladenovcu zaključao dva pripadnika Jehovinih svedoka u zgradu, uništio njihovu literaturu i pokušao da ih odvuče u podrum. Jedan od njih je pobegao i pozvao policiju koja je i drugog spasila, a muškarca uhapsila. Dana 20. februara u Zemunu, beogradskoj opštini, pripadnik Jehovinih svedoka je dobio udarce u glavu dok je jednoj porodici govorio o svojoj veri. Policija je napadača uhapsila a dotična porodica je svedočila pred sudom.

Dana 17. juna, poklonik Hare Krišne iz Jagodine Života Milanović napadnut je na pragu svoje kuće. U jagodinskoj bolnici primljen je zbog rana nanesenih nožem i krsta koji mu je urezan na glavi. Milanović je ranije bio napadnut u julu 2005. Ni za jedan napad vlasti nisu nikog uhapsile.

U oktobru je niška džamija vandalski napadnuta četvrti put. Lokalna policija je uhapsila četvoro osumnjičenih, ali je odbila zahtev da postavi stalnu policijsku zaštitu ispred džamije kako bi se sprečili budući napadi.

U martu je Okružni sud u Šapcu započeo postupak protiv četvorice muškaraca koji su pokušali da ucene pripadnika Jehovinih svedoka 2004. godine u Loznici. Dana 8. maja, pripadnik Jehovinih svedoka je podneo tužbu protiv države, nezadovoljan što vlasti nisu preduzele nikakve radnje u vezi sa zlonamernom paljevinom 1999.

Dana 9. novembra, sud u Novom Sadu je proglasio je krivim četiri pripadnika nacionalističke, ultradesničarske grupe Nacionalni front za izazivanje etničke, rasne i verske mržnje i netolerancije jer su prekinuli antifašistički seminar na novosadskom univerzitetu 2004, maltretirali i tukli učesnike. Vođa organizacije Goran Davidović osuđen je na godinu dana zatvora, a član Miodrag Stefanović na šest meseci. Dva preostala člana osuđena su na tri i četiri meseca zatvora, dok je 11 preostalih dobilo uslovne kazne od četiri meseca zatvora za krivično delo ugrožavanja tuđe bezbednosti.

U roku od tri dana – od 16. do 19. decembra – neidentifikovani napadači bacili su Molotovljeve koktele na prostorije Evangelističke crkve u Kraljevu, i kamenje na Baptističku crkvu i Katoličku crkvu Svetog duha u Novom Sadu. Predsednik Tadić je javno osudio napade i pozvao nadležne da pronađu počinioce; istraga je krajem godine bila u toku.

Jevrejska zajednica broji nešto između dve i tri hiljade osoba. Jevrejske vođe u Srbiji izvestili su o kontinuiranim incidentima antisemitizma uključujući grafite antisemitske sadržine, vandalsko ponašanje, male tiraže strane antisemtiske literature i tekstove na internetu. HCS je u novembru prijavio da je antisemitizam poslednjih godina dobio na intenzitetu. HCS je primetio da je proteklih godina izdavački sektor Srbije objavio razne antisemitske knjige s naslovima kao što su „Jevrejsko ritualno ubistvo“, „Jevrejska zavera“ i „Zašto se divim Adolfu Hitleru“. Prema rečima pripadnika Jevrejske zajednice, objavljivanje takvih publikacija često je dovodilo do pisama mržnje i drugačijeg izražavanja antisemitskih osećanja. Nekoliko nacionalističkih, ultradesničarskih organizacija identifikuje se sa antisemitskim govorom pokazujući svastike i koristeći govor mržnje. Nacionalni front je bio jedan od najaktivnijih ovakvih grupa u poslednjih nekoliko godina i izažavao zajedno i antisemitski govor i antizapadnjačke poruke. HCS je u novembru primetio da reakcija nadležnih na ovakav govor mržnje često nije bila odgovarajuća.

Dana 12. februara, na spomeniku u Nišu pojavio se grafit „Holokaust – jevrejska laž koja upravlja svetom“ i nacionalistički slogani kao što je „Srbija Srbima“.

Krajem avgusta je grupa "skinhedsa", navodno noseći nacističke simbole, pretukla dvoje izraelskih turista. Jedna žrtva je prijavila da je grupa izvikivala: „Aušvic, Aušvic“. Do kraja godine niko nije optužen u vezi sa ovim incidentom.

Savez jevrejskih opština u Srbiji je 2005. prijavio povećan prijem pisama mržnje s porukama da „Jevreji treba da odu iz Srbije“. Pored toga, spisak istaknutih srpskih Jevreja postavljen je na veb-stranicu neonacističke organizacije uz poruke koje su posetioci veb-stranice ostavili pozivajući da treba da budu ubijeni.

Predavanja o holokaustu deo su nastavnog programa u srpskim školama, a takođe se govori o ulozi srpske vlade u tom periodu. Međutim, postoji tendencija među autorima da umanje i daju nova tumačenja uloge srpskih vođa za vreme holokausta prikazujući ih kao žrtve stranog okupatora a, u stvari, mnoge tadašnje vođe sarađivale su sa nacistima i vodili kampanje protiv jevrejskog stanovništva čak i pre nego što su nacisti okupirali Jugoslaviju.

Mada državni lideri javno osuđuju antisemitske incidente, vlasti tokom 2006. nisu napravile nikakav značajniji napor u cilju sprečavanja takve netolerancije i govora mržnje.

Više detalja videti u Međunarodnom izveštaju o slobodi veroispovesti za 2006. godinu.

d. Sloboda kretanja unutar zemlje, putovanja u inostranstvo, iseljavanje i repatrijacija

Zakon predviđa ova prava i vlada ih uopšte uzev poštuje u praksi. Zakonom je zabranjeno prisilno proterivanje i vlada ga ni ne primenjuje.

Interno raseljena lica

Prema zvaničnim podacima Kancelarije Visokog komesara za izbeglice pri Ujedinjenim nacijama (UNHCR), u Srbiji je registrovano otprilike 207.000 interno raseljenih lica sa Kosova, uglavnom Srba, Roma i Bošnjaka, što je posledica događaja na Kosovu iz 1999. godine. Oko 6.700 i dalje je u kolektivnim centrima. Mada su vlasti zatvorile nekoliko kolektivnih centara gde su uslovi bili najlošiji, mnoga raseljena lica ostala su u objektima koji ne odgovaraju nijednoj drugoj nameni izuzev kao prihvatilište u krajnjoj nuždi,

Vlada je nastavila da isplaćuje plate interno raseljenim licima koja se do juna 1999. bili članovi kosovske vlade i zaposlenima u državnim preduzećima. Za dobijanje privremenog boravka u Srbiji, po zakonu je potrebno da se interno raseljena lica odjave sa prethodne adrese na Kosovu. Ukoliko nemaju stalni boravak u Srbiji, interno raseljena lica ne dobijaju lokalna lična dokumenta, pa ne mogu da dobiju zdravstveno osiguranje, socijalnu pomoć i mogućnost školovanja u državnim obrazovnim ustanovama.

Srpska vlada je tokom godine potpisala 15 bilateralnih sporazuma o ponovnom prihvatanju onih kojima je uskraćen azil, neuspešnih iseljenika i osoba sa nezakonitim boravkom u tim zemljama, što su prvenstveno bili Romi. Procenjuje se da je broj onih kojima je uskraćen azil i ilegalnih iseljenika iz Srbije u zemljama na koje se sporazumi odnose između trideset i dvesta hiljada uz još 120.000 osoba koje su zatražile azil a potiču sa Kosova. Vlada je pristala da primi prisilne povratnike ne određujući vreme njihovog povratka. Crveni krst Srbije otvorio je kancelariju na beogradskom aerodromu u cilju pomoći Romima povratnicima, ali je kancelarija posle tri meseca zatvorena usled nedostatka novca.

UNHCR je procenio da u Srbiji živi 40.000 do 45.000 raseljenih Roma; polovina njih nije registrovana usled nepostojanja dokumenata. Mnogi Romi sa Kosova smatrani su srpskim kolaboracionistima tokom sukoba na Kosovu i tamo se nisu mogli bezbedno vratiti. Životni uslovi Roma u Srbiji izuzetno su loši. Lokalne opštine često nisu voljne da im obezbede smeštaj nadajući se da će, ukoliko ne mogu da obezbede smeštaj, Romi napustiti zajednicu (vidi odeljak 5). Ukoliko su se Romi nastanili, to je često bilo u kolektivnim centrima sa minimumom pogodnosti ili, što je češće slučaj, u improvizovanim kampovima u većim gradovima i opštinama ili u njihovoj blizini.

Bilo je sporadičnih slučajeva napada i vandalskog ponašanja prema interno raseljenim licima, posebno članovima romskih zajednica (vidi odeljak 5).

Zaštita izbeglica

Zakon ne predviđa davanje azila niti izbegličkog statusa u skladu sa Konvencijom Ujedinjenih nacija iz 1951. koja se odnosi na Status izbeglica i protokol iz 1967, iako je Srbija potpisnica oba ova dokumenta.Vlada nije donela zakon niti ustanovila sistem za pružanje zaštite izbeglicama. Zakon ne pruža zaštitu od prisilnog vraćanja osoba u zemlju u kojoj strahuju od progona a nije bilo podataka da li nadležni zaista takve osobe vraćaju sa granica.

UNHCR ima kancelariju na aerodromu za prijem osoba iz treće zemlje koje su tražili azil, uključujući i one koji su u zemlju ušli preko drugih graničnih prelaza. UNHCR je odlučivao o izbegličkom statusu u skladu sa Konvencijom UN-a i nadležnostima organizacije. Prećutnim sporazumom, vlada toleriše odluke koje UNHCR donosi o statusu, i ne proteruje pojedince kojima je UNHCR dodelio status izbeglica niti im nudi priliku za integraciju. UNHCR je tokom godine otvorio 42 predmeta za državljane trećih zemalja. Od toga, 25 Iračana dobilo je privremenu zaštitu UNHCR-a, bez potpunog određenja o izbegličkom statusu. UNHCR je odbio 12 prijavljenih i zatvorio pet predmeta ne donevši odluku (u većini slučajeva zato što su otišli iz Srbije). Do kraja godine je pod zaštitom UNHCR-a bilo 55 osoba.

Uz saglasnost vlade, UNHCR je završio izgradnju centra za prijem i prihvatilište azilanata, ali objekat do kraja godine nije bio u upotrebi.

Vlada je sarađivala sa UNHCR-om i drugim humanitarnim organizacijama u pomoći izbeglicama i azilantima. Po Ukazu o izbeglicama iz 1992. vlada je obezbedila privremenu zaštitu osobama iz bivših republika Socijalističke Federativne Republike Jugoslavije (SFRJ) koji se možda ne mogu okvalifikovati kao izbeglice po Konvenciji iz 1951. i Protokolu iz 1967. Vlada i UNHCR procenili su da u Srbiji živi 104.000 izbeglica iz Hrvatske i Bosne i Hercegovine.

Uz podršku UNHCR-a, vlada je zatvorila nekoliko kolektivnih centara, u nekoliko slučajeva prebacujući pojedince kojima je potrebna posebna nega u odgovarajuće institucije. Do kraja godine je u Srbiji ostalo oko 3.600 izbeglica u 125 kolektivnih centara, bilo zvaničnih bilo nepriznatih.

Odeljak 3 Poštovanje političkih prava: pravo građana da promene vladu

Zakonom je građanima obezbeđeno pravo da promene vladu mirnim putem i građani su ovo pravo koristili u praksi na povremenim izborima održanim na osnovu opšteg prava glasa.

Na referendumu u Crnoj Gori 21. maja, 55.5 procenata glasača podržalo je nezavisnost od državne zajednice Srbije i Crne Gore. Međunarodni posmatrači su ocenili da je referendum u skladu sa standardima OEBS-a i Saveta Evrope i ostalim međunarodnim standardima za demokratski izborni proces, a srpska vlada je rezultate prihvatila. Posle referenduma srpske vlasti su započele rad na razdvajanju državne zajednice i prenošenju odgovornosti državne zajednice na republički nivo.

Izbori i političko učešće

Krajem godine, političke stranke su se pripremale za parlamentarne izbore koji treba da se održe u januaru 2007.

U zemlji je održan referendum o ustavu 28-29. oktobra. Nekoliko grupa za ljudska prava kritikovale su parlament zbog usvajanja nacrta bez odgovarajuće javne rasprave a neke su pozivale na bojkot referenduma. Mnogi su takođe kiritikovali sadržaj dokumenta u nekoliko oblasti: u dokumentu se tvrdi da je Kosovo deo državne teritorije, iako su kosovski Albanci bili isključeni iz glasanja na referendumu, ne objašanjava se niti povećava regionalna autonomija Vojvodine i prepušta naimenovanje sudija i tužilaca političkoj proveri.

Prema izbornoj komisiji, izlaznost je na referendumu iznosila 54.91 procenata, a 53.04 procenta glasača podržalo je novi ustav. Izlaznost je bila posebno niska u Vojvodini (45.9 procenata), a Centar za slobodne izbore i demokratiju procenio je da je izlaznost etničkih Mađara bila samo 14 procenata. Nekoliko grupa za ljudska prava tvrdilo je da je u rezultatima izbora bilo nepravilnosti, uključujući slabu kontrolu glasačkih spiskova i neujednačenu proveru ličnih dokumenata.

Parlament je odobrio ustav koji je stupio na snagu 13. novembra.

Posmatračka misija OEBS-a i Saveta Evrope, koja je pratila izbore, izvestila je da su predsednički izbori u Republici Srbiji 2004. godine bili mirni i sprovedeni uglavnom u skladu sa međunarodnim standardima. Misija je kao probleme navela nepostojanje centralnog biračkog spiska, nedostatak prostorija za glasače koji žive u Crnoj Gori a imaju pravo na glasanje, kao i dokaze o izvesnom stepenu uskraćivanja prava glasa u romskoj zajednici. Glasanje je obavljeno na Kosovu, gde je registrovano 97.000 birača; međutim, ograničena sloboda kretanja etničke Srbe je onemogućila u glasanju, dok etničko albansko stanovništvo, osim neznatnih izuzetaka, nije učestvovalo na izborima, čak ni u područjima gde su neki bili na biračkim spiskovima.

U Skupštini od 250 poslanika, dvadeset četiri su žene a jedna žena je potpredsednik vlade. U kabinetu koji broji šesnaest članova nema žena. U septembru je vlada donela amandman na zakon o izboru skupštinskih poslanika po kojem na stranačkim izbornim listama treba da bude najmanje 30 procenata žena.

U Parlamentu od 250 poslanika, ima 11 pripadnika manjinskih zajednica dok ih u kabinetu koji broji šesnaest članova nema uopšte.

Ustav i zakon izuzimaju stranke zasnovane na etničkom principu od pravila po kojem politička stranka mora osvojiti najmanje pet posto glasova da bi ušla u parlament. Romi su nastavili sa dobro poznatom praksom slabog odziva. Lokalni lideri etničkih Albanaca na jugu Srbije bojkotovali su nacionalne izbore uprkos svom aktivnom učešću u lokalnoj upravi.

Vlada – korupcija i transparentnost

U javnosti je uvreženo mišljenje o korumpiranosti vlade koja se pojavljuje na svim nivoima. Nedavna istraživanja pokazala su da većina građana veruje da je korumpiranost vlade veliki problem.

Vlada je u junu najavila da će postepeno ukinuti postojeći Savet za borbu protiv korupcije, ali je do kraja godine ostalo nejasno da li će ga zameniti neko drugo telo. Tokom godine Savet nije uspeo da istraži veliki broj slučajeva korupcije, uključujući ugovore koje je potpisala vlada, sumnjiv uvoz električne energije i upotrebu i prodaju komercijalnog kancelarijskog prostora u vlasništvu države.

Vlasti su imale nedosledan pristup prema korupciji zvaničnika. Istrage su često izgledale politički motivisane, a bilo je brojnih primera neuspeha vlasti da preduzmu mere u skladu sa detaljnim izveštajima o slučajevima gde je postojala sumnja za korupciju uključujući i veliki broj zvaničnika. Medijski izveštaji o korupciji često su bili senzacionalistički.

Dana 11. januara, policija je uhapsila Dejana Simića, bivšeg vice-guvernera Narodne banke Srbije, i Vladimira Zagrađanina, direktora Socijalističke partije Srbije (SPS), i optužila ih za umešanost u potkupljivanju. Simić je navodno primio kofer u kojem je bilo gotovine u vrednosti od 125.000 dolara u svom stanu u zamenu za pristanak da se registruje Kreditna izvozna banka.

U februaru je srpska policija izdala poternicu za Bogoljuba Karića, šefa Pokreta Snaga Srbije, pošto se nije pojavio na ispitivanju na sudu. Karić je optužen za utaju poreza, zloupotrebu miliona dolara i pranje novca dok je bio vlasnik telekomunikacione kompanije Mobtel. Neki politički komentatori špekulisali su da je, iako optužbe protiv Karića izgledaju opravdano, vreme kažnjavanja Karićevih poslovnih poteza politički motivisano. Poternica je objavljena ubrzo nakon što je Karićeva stranka osnovala novi parlamentarni kokus za koji su mnogi verovali da će uzdrmati osetljivu ravnotežu vladajuće koalicije i izazvati parlamentarnu krizu.

Dana 15. aprila, policija je uhapsila devet lica osumnjičenih za prevaru u kojoj bi trgovinski sud objavio stečaj preduzeća a Poštanska štedionica zatim dala povoljne pozajmice odabranim poslovnim ljudima da kupe imovinu preduzeća ispod tržišne vrednosti. Među devetoro uhapšenih nekoliko je javnih zvaničnika uključujući Gorana Kljajevića, predsednika Trgovinskog suda u Beogradu, direktore Poštanske štedionice i Kreditne eksportne banke, poslovne ljude i jednog službenika Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova. Osumnjičeni su krajem godine bili u pritvoru pre suđenja.

Dana 7. oktobra, policija je uhapsila zamenika javnog tužioca Milorada Cvijovića pod sumnjom da je neovlašćeno uzeo sudski dokument iz arhive državnog tužioca 2005. kako bi uticao na postupak u određenom trgovinskom predmetu.

Suđenje bivšem ministru odbrane Prvoslavu Daviniću, optuženom da je svojim telohraniteljima omogućio olakšice pri iznajmljivanju stanova, bilo je u toku krajem godine.

Srpska vlada je sporo primenjivala Zakon o dostupnosti informacija iz novembra 2004, i generalno u praksi nije omogućila pristup. Zakon predviđa dostupnost informacija od «legitimnog javnog značaja» (uz mnoge izuzetke) i uspostavlja mesto nezavisnog komesara, koga bira srpska skupština, s ciljem da se on bavi žalbama građana ukoliko neka vladina agencija odbije zahtev za informacije. Prema izveštaju Transparency International iz septembra 2005. oko 60 procenata lokalnih institucija nisu ispunile svoje obaveze po zakonu o dostupnosti informacija. Nevladine organizacije su izvestile da su njihovi zahtevi za informacije često ostajali bez odgovora

Odeljak 4 Stav vlade o istragama međunarodnih i nevladinih organizacija o navodnim slučajevima kršenja ljudskih prava

Brojne nezavisne domaće i međunarodne oganizacije za ljudska prava uglavnom su obavljale svoju delatnost, u čemu ih vlasti nisu ograničavale, vršile su istrage i objavljivale svoje nalaze o pojedinim slučajevima u vezi sa ljudskim pravima. Međutim, ove grupe su često bile predmet uznemiravanja, pretnji i sudskih sporova za klevete zbog izražavanja kritičkih stavova o vladi. Istaknute organizacije za ljudska prava su Helsinški komitet za ljudska prava u Srbiji, Centar za humanitarno pravo, Advokatski komitet za ljudska prava (YUCOM), Fond za otvoreno društvo, Inicijativa mladih za ljudska prava i Beogradski centar za ljudska prava.

Neki radnici nevladinih organizacija dobijali su pretnje i bili napadani prvenstveno kroz medijske kampanje u kojima su vređani i gde su iznošeni njihovi lični podaci kao što su etnička pripadnost i adresa. Dana 3. septembra, direktor HLC-a Nataša Kandić izlazila je iz studija TV B92 kad su svedoci čuli nekoliko pucnjeva. Policija je utvrdila da su zvuci potekli od petardi ali grupe za ljudska prava tvrde da je svrha toga bilo zastrašivanje Kandićeve. Nekoliko publikacija, uključujući Politiku, NIN i Kurir, napale su Kandićevu kao i direktorku YUCOM-a Biljanu Kovačević-Vučo i direktorku HCS-a Sonju Biserko zbog otvorenih stavova o Kosovu i srpskoj odgovornosti za ratne zločine iz devedesetih.

U martu je HCS objavio izveštaj o napadima na branioce ljudskih prava u Srbiji. Iako su pohvaljeni neki pozitivni pravni potezi, u izveštaju se kritikuje vlada jer nije snažnije osudila verbalne i fizičke napade na branioce ljudskih prava, kao i stalne medijske kampanje s ciljem diskreditovanja lokalnih zagovornika ljudskih prava. Ovaj izveštaj usledio je posle izveštaja koji je novembra 2005. objavio Amnesty International, gde se tvrdi da su nevladine organizacije bile predmet ponovljenog i očigledno sistematskog zastrašivanja. U izveštaju se takođe navodi da su istaknuti borci za ljudska prava, uključujući Natašu Kandić, Biljanu Kovačević-Vučo, Sonju Biserko i Stašu Zajović iz antiratne organizacije Žene u crnom, bile mete medijske kampanje uperene na diskreditovanje branilaca ljudskih prava.

Vlada je 2005. najavila da će otvoriti novu kancelariju za ombudsmana u Beogradu, ali to nije učinila do isteka zakonskog roka u martu 2006. Milan Petković, ombudsman grada Kragujevca, najavio je ostavku u maju navodeći kao razlog politički pritisak i uznemiravanje zvaničnika gradske skupštine. Pokrajina Vojvodina ima ombudsmana koji je tokom godine nezavisno radio.

Tokom godine vlada je napravila mali pomak u saradnji sa ICTY-om kako bi uhapsila i privela pravdi šest preostalih begunaca koje je ICTY optužio. Dva najtraženija haška optuženika s vezama sa Srbijom, Ratko Mladić i Radovan Karadžić, još su u bekstvu. U julu je vlada objavila akcioni plan u šest tačaka za saradnju sa ICTY-om i naimenovala tužioca Specijalnog suda za ratne zločine Vladimira Vukčevića i predsednika srpskog Nacionalnog saveta za saradnju sa ICTY-om Rasima Ljajića da nadgledaju primenu plana. U oktobru, nakon posete Beogradu, glavni tužilac ICTY-a Karla del Ponte javno je izjavila da su vlasti napravile mali ili nikakav napredak u primeni akcionog plana.

Iako ustav zabranjuje ekstradiciju bilo koje osobe koja ima srpsko državljanstvo i ova zabrana se primenjuje u praksi, zakon dozvoljava izuzetke u slučajevima ekstradicije građana ICTY-u. Tokom godine takvih ekstradicija nije bilo.

Odeljak 5 Diskriminacija, društvene zloupotrebe i trgovina ljudima

Ustav i zakon zabranjuju diskriminaciju na osnovu rase, pola, umanjenih sposobnosti, jezika i društvenog položaja; međutim, diskriminacija žena i etničkih manjina kao i trgovina ljudima i nasilje nad ženama i decom predstavljali su problem.

Žene

Nasilje nad ženama bio je problem a visok stepen nasilja u porodici i dalje postoji. Viktimološko društvo Srbije u julu je objavilo da je jedna trećina žena izložena fizičkom nasilju dok je polovina žena izložena psihičkom nasilju.

Nasilje u porodici je krivično delo za koje je zaprećena zatvorska kazna u trajanju od šest meseci do deset godina u zavisnosti od težine prestupa, dok je u slučaju smrtnog ishoda predviđena kazna od najmanje deset godina zatvora. Takve slučajeve je teško krivično goniti usled nedostatka svedoka i dokaza, kao i činjenice da se svedoci i žrtve nerado javljaju. Studija o srpskim ženama koju je tokom godine objavila Svetska zdravstvena organizacija navodi da su dve trećine žena izloženih fizičkom nasilju izjavile da nisu tražile pomoć jer su smatrale da je takvo maltretiranje normalno ili ga nisu smatrale ozbiljnim. Malobrojne zvanične agencije koje se bave nasiljem u porodici nemaju odgovarajuća sredstva.

Godine 2003. u Srbiji je bilo oko 6.000 prijavljenih slučajeva nasilja u porodici. Prema Udruženju sudija Srbije (MAS), međutim, nasilje u porodici se u veoma malom broju slučajeva prijavljuje, problem je široko rasprostranjen i obično dugotrajan. Nasilje često postaje način života u zemlji gde preovladavaju faktori koji tome doprinose kao što su finansijska zavisnost, prenatrpan životni prostor (uobičajeno je da više porodica živi zajedno), i nedostatak podrške šire porodice. Tokom godine, MAS je učestvovao u nizu seminara i obuci za sudije koji treba da sude u predmetima nasilja u porodici.

Silovanje, uključujući i silovanje koje počini suprug, kažnjivo je zatvorskom kaznom u trajanju od jedne do četrdeset godina (što je i maksimalna kazna propisana zakonom) u lakšim slučajevima, dok je za teže slučajeve predviđena zatvorska kazna od najmanje tri godine, odnosno pet godina u slučaju smrtnog ishoda ili ukoliko je žrtva maloletna. Samo mali broj silovanja se prijavljuje jer se žrtve plaše da neće biti zaštićene, da će im se napadači osvetiti, ili da će doživeti poniženje na sudu. U retkim slučajevima, žrtve silovanja koje počini suprug podnose tužbu nadležnim organima. Ženske grupe su izvestile da su kazne često previše blage.

Centar za autonomna ženska prava u Beogradu otvorio je dežurnu telefonsku liniju za žrtve silovanja i supružničkog zlostavljanja i pokrovitelj je određenog broja samoorganizovanih grupa za pomoć. Centar takođe pruža pomoć ženama izbeglicama (uglavnom Srpkinjama), od kojih su mnoge pretrpele najteža zlostavljanja ili silovanja tokom sukoba u bivšoj Jugoslaviji. Savetodavni centar za nasilje u porodici drži prihvatilište za žrtve nasilja u porodici koje vlada delimično finansira.

Prostitucija je nezakonita mada se klijenti osoba koje se bave prostitucijom ne smatraju krivičnim prestupnicima.

Trgovina ženama u cilju seksualnog iskorištavanja i dalje je problem (vidi odeljak 5, trgovina ljudima).

Seksualno uznemiravanje je bilo uobičajeni problem, ali se o tome i dalje malo zna a tokom godine podnet je mali broj prijava. Po zakonu je seksualno uznemiravanje krivično delo za koje je zaprećena kazna zatvorom u trajanju do šest meseci u lakšim slučajevima, odnosno do godinu dana kod zlostavljanja podređenog službenika ili štićenika.

Žene imaju jednaka zakonska prava kao i muškarci, uključujući ovde i jednakost po zakonu o porodici, zakonu o imovini i u sudskom sistemu i ova prava se generalno primenjuju u praksi. Vlada ima Savet za jednakost polova koji je tokom godine radio sa nevladinim organizacijama na podizanju javne svesti o pitanjima jednakosti polova. Vlada Vojvodine takođe ima Sekretarijat za rad, zapošljavanje i jednakost polova. Misija OEBS-a u Srbiji pomogla je da se osnuju tela zadužena za jednakost polova u više od trideset opština.

Tradicionalna shvatanja uloge polova, posebno u seoskim sredinama, za posledicu imaju diskriminaciju žena. U zabačenim seoskim sredinama, posebno u nekim manjinskim zajednicama, žene nemaju pravo upravljanja imovinom. U seoskim sredinama i nekim manjinskim zajednicama, uobičajeno je da muž određuje ženi kako će glasati.

Društveni položaj žena se generalno smatra inferiornim u odnosu na onaj koji imaju muškarci a zastupljenost žena u poslovanju nije velika. Žene po zakonu imaju pravo da za isti posao dobiju jednaku novčanu nadoknadu kao muškarci; međutim, prema Međunarodnoj helsinškoj federaciji za ljudska prava, prosečna plata žena je za 11% niža od one koju dobijaju muškarci.

Deca

Vlada je predano radila na pravima i dobrobiti dece. Obrazovni sistem predviđa obavezno i besplatno devetogodišnje školovanje. Međutim, etničke predrasude, kulturne norme, i ekonomska oskudica nepovoljno deluju na neku decu, posebno Rome, kad je u pitanju pohađanje škole. Po jednom vladinom izveštaju, otprilike 99.8% dece pohađa školu; međutim, vlada je potvrdila da izveštaj nije uključio mnoge Rome čergare.

Romsko obrazovanje je predstavljalo problem. Mnoga romska deca ne idu u osnovnu školu, ili iz porodičnih razloga, zato što su nadležni u školi ocenili da nisu zreli, ili zbog društvenih predrasuda. Usled nedostatka osnovnog obrazovanja, mnoga romska deca nisu naučila srpski jezik. Neka romska deca su greškom smeštena u škole za decu sa posebnim potrebama jer im je bilo teško da uspešno rešavaju standardizovane testove na srpskom jeziku zbog romskog jezika i kulturnih normi. Uz pomoć Vlade, UNHCR je za Rome organizovao zdravstvene obrazovne programe a za romsku decu pred-školske programe.

Besplatna medicinska nega bila je omogućena u državnim bolnicama, a postoji i spisak ograničenog broja lekova koji su takođe besplatni. Dečaci i devojčice imaju podjednako pravo na zdravstvenu zaštitu.

Zlostavljanje dece predstavljalo je problem. Iako je nastavnom osoblju naloženo da prijave slučajeve u kojima sumnjaju da se radi o zlostavljanju dece, to se često ne radi. Policija je uglavnom reagovala na prijave i tokom godine su vođeni krivični postupci u slučajevima zlostavljanja dece. Psihološka i pravna pomoć je omogućena žrtvama, a takođe postoji i centar za traume od incesta.

Dečji brakovi su problem u nekim zajednicama, posebno među Romima i u seoskim sredinama na jugu i istoku Srbije. U romskoj zajednici, dečaci i devojčice generalno stupaju u brak između četrnaeste i osamnaeste godine, prosečno u šesnaestoj godini života, a dečaci se načelno žene nekoliko godina kasnije od devojčica. Dečji brakovi su najčešći kod Roma muslimana, od kojih je većina sa Kosova a žive u drugim delovima zemlje kao interno raseljena lica.

Trgovina decom u cilju seksualnog iskorištavanja je i dalje problem (vidi odeljak 5, trgovina ljudima). Neka romska deca prodavana su unutar romske zajednice i Romima u inostranstvu gde se koriste za prosjačenje i krađe.

Trgovina ljudima

Zakon zabranjuje trgovinu ljudima; međutim, trgovina ljudima preko i, u manjoj meri, u i iz Srbije (bez Kosova) predstavljala je problem.

Srbija je tranzitno područje, a u manjoj meri zemlja-izvor i odredište za trgovinu ženama i maloletnicima u cilju seksualne eksploatacije. Srbija je prvenstveno tranzitno područje za žene, žrtve međunarodne trgovine ljudima, koje idu u druge balkanske zemlje i Zapadnu Evropu. Primarne zemlje-izvori za trgovinu ljudima u Srbiju i iz nje jesu istočnoevropske zemlje. Nevladine organizacije su izvestile o povećanju broja maloletnih žrtava i muškaraca žrtava.

Iako Srbija tradicionalno nije veliki izvor za žene žrtve trgovine ljudima, broj srpskih žrtava povećao se u odnosu na strane državljane. U martu su Ministarstvo za rad, zapošljavanje i socijalnu politiku i nevladina organizacija Centar za prava dece objavili rezultate izveštaja koji je pokazao da su romska deca, deca iz siromašnih, seoskih zajednica i starateljskih porodica u najvećoj opasnosti od zloupotrebljavanja dečjeg rada, uključujući prosjačenje, krađe, prostituciju, prodaju narkotika i težak fizički rad.

Trgovci ljudima su žrtve vrbovali putem oglasa u kojima se tražila pratnja, navodile bračne i poslovne ponude. Žene su često svesno odlazile da rade kao prostitutke da bi tek kasnije postale žrtve trgovine ljudima. U mnogim slučajevima, međunarodne organizovane kriminalne mreže obavljale su vrbovanje, prevoz, prodaju i kontrolu žrtava. Vlasti su prijavile da je internet postao metoda vrbovanja žrtava.

Novi krivični zakon, koji je stupio na snagu 1. januara razlikuje trgovinu ljudima i krijumčarenje. Za trgovinu ljudima zaprećena je kazna od dve do deset godina zatvora; za trgovinu maloletnicima, kazna od najmanje tri godine zatvora; ukoliko se trgovina ljudima završi smrtnim ishodom, kazna je najmanje deset godina zatvora; ukoliko dođe do teških telesnih povreda, kazna je od tri do petnaest godina; u slučajevima višestruke trgovine ljudima ili ukoliko ju je počinila organizovana grupa, kazna je najmanje pet godina zatvora.

Vlasti su otkrile nekoliko ozbiljnih međunarodnih bandi za trgovinu ljudima, uključujući one povezane sa Kinom, Turskom, Italijom, Albanijom i Bugarskom. Vlasti su neke slučajeve trgovine ljudima efikasnije krivično gonile, posebno u slučajevima organizovanog kriminala. Dana 2. marta, Vrhovni sud je doneo odluku u poznatom slučaju „Zarubica“ osudivši Stanka Savanovića na pet godina zatvora, Milivoja Zarubicu na četiri i po godine, Milovana Miletića na tri, Zvezdana Stankovića na dve godine, a još tri lica na osam do deset meseci. Presuda je odražavala povećane kazne u odnosu na odluku iz 2004. godine a optuženima je naloženo da plate troškove suđenja. Mada su neki značajniji slučajevi trgovine ljudima brzo procesuirani, ostali predmeti su još pred srpskim sudovima.

Tokom godine vlasti su podnele 34 krivične prijave protiv 77 lica zbog trgovine ljudima. Grupe za borbu protiv trgovine ljudima radile su sa 56 žrtava trgovine ljudima, a dežurna telefonska služba za žrtve primila je 1.775 poziva.

Napore vlasti protiv trgovine ljudima predvodio je koordinator koji je bio šef pogranične policije i sjedinjenih državnih službi, nevladinih organizacija i međunarodnih organizacija. Vlasti su pomagale u međunarodnim istragama o trgovini ljudima i učestvovale u regionalnim operacijama borbe protiv trgovine ljudima.

Vlasti su ponudile privremene boravišne vize i prihvatilište žrtvama koje su pristale da svedoče protiv svojih trgovaca, obezbedile zaštitu žrtava i svedoka, i nisu krivično gonile žrtve.

Vladina agencija za koordinaciju i zaštitu žrtava radila je na pravilnoj identifikaciji žrtava i njihovom upućivanju službama za pomoć. Posebna prihvatilišta za domaće i strane žrtve trgovine ljudima radila su tokom godine. Nevladina organizacija Astra ima dežurnu telefonsku službu za žrtve trgovine ljudima. Nevladine organizacije i dobrovoljci žrtvama su pružali pravnu, medicinsku, psihološku i drugu pomoć. U avgustu je nevladina organizacija Atina pokrenula program reintegracije za žrtve seksualnog izrabljivanja.

Međunarodna organizacija za migracije (IOM) vodila je repatrijaciju stranih žrtava i pomagala u procesu reintegracije lokalnih žrtava. IOM je takođe upravljao regionalnim centrom za informacije o žrtvama trgovine ljudima. Održani su brojni edukativni programi, uključujući obuku za dobrovoljce pri dežurnim telefonskim linijama, prihvatilišta, socijalne radnike i policiju.

Vlasti i nevladine organizacije ulagale su napore da obaveste javnost u cilju borbe protiv trgovine ljudima tako što su održavane konferencije na ovu temu, širom Srbije prikazivani dokumentarni filmovi a škole obuhvaćene programima. Nevladine organizacije nastavile su da organizuju i finansiraju većinu kampanja za podizanje javne svesti u Srbiji.

Osobe sa umanjenim sposobnostima

Ustav i zakon zabranjuju diskriminaciju osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima prilikom zapošljavanja, obrazovanja, u pogledu dostupnosti zdravstvene zaštite ili u pružanju drugih državnih usluga, i vlada je generalno primenjivala ovaj zakon. Nije bilo izveštaja o diskriminaciji osoba sa umanjenim fizičkim ili mentalnim sposobnostima; međutim, objekti za njihovo obrazovanje i negu ne postoje ili su neadekvatni, a vlada u tom pogledu ništa nije učinila. Visoka stopa nezaposlenosti i nedostatak smeštaja otežavaju zapošljavanje osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima.

Zakonom je propisano omogućavanje pristupa osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima novim javnim zgradama i vlada je generalno primenjivala ovaj propis u praksi.

Tokom godine, nekoliko državnih i opštinskih organa preduzeli su korake da povećaju pristup osoba s umanjenim sposobnostima u javnim zgradama. U julu je beogradski javni saobraćajni sistem doneo odluku da dozvoli da se psi uvode u sva sredstva javnog saobraćaja.

Nezaposlenost je i dalje ozbiljan problem osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima. Studija koju su objavili Centar za razvoj angažmana i Centar za alternativne studije pokazuje da je 87 procenata osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima nezaposleno a da 70 procenata živi u siromaštvu. Studija takođe pokazuje da je veći procenat žena s umanjenim sposobnostima zavistan od javne pomoći u poređenju sa muškarcima sa umanjenim sposobnostima.

Nacionalne/rasne/etničke manjine

Manjine čine 25 do 30 procenata stanovništva u Srbiji i podrazumevaju Mađare, Bošnjake, Rome, Slovake, Rumune, Vlahe, Bugare, Hrvate, Albance i druge.

Mada ne u velikoj meri, ipak je bilo slučajeva vandalskog ponašanja i nekih fizičkih napada na pripadnike manjina. Broj napada na etničke Mađare u Vojvodini smanjen je u odnosu na 2004. i 2005. godinu, a tamošnji manjinski lideri su izvestili da je situacija mirna. Vojvođanski i srpski državni zvaničnici nastavili su da primenjuju strategiju koja se sastoji od deset tačaka, usvojenu 2005. godine, u cilju poboljšanja etničkih odnosa u pokrajini, uključujući edukativne programe, kampanje za podizanje javne svesti i veću zastupljenost manjina u policiji i sudstvu.

Mnogi glasači u Vojvodini imali su prigovore na novi ustav, a neki vojvođanski lideri pozivali su na bojkot referenduma. Iako ustav Vojvodini prividno daje veći deo poreskih prihoda nego što je pokrajina ranije dobijala, on joj takođe dalje ograničava autonomiju. Samo 48 procenata vojvođanskog izbornog tela glasalo je na referendumu o ustavu, dok je samo 14 procenata etničkih Mađara učestvovalo.

Vođe etničkih Albanaca u južnim opštinama Preševo, Bujanovac i Medveđa nastavili su sa pritužbama u vezi nedovoljne zastupljenosti etničkih Albanaca u strukturama vlasti i lobirali za veću političku autonomiju u sredinama gde preovlađuju etnički Albanci. U oktobru su vođe Stranke za demokratsku akciju, jedne od najvećih političkih stranaka etničkih Albanaca, pozvali članstvo na bojkot referenduma o ustavu.

U avgustu je Vrhovni sud doneo odluku u korist Nedžata Beljulija, etničkog Albanca koji je naveo da je Ministarstvo za privredu i privatizaciju diskvalifikovalo njegovu ponudu 2004. za javno preduzeće po etničkoj osnovi.

Romi su i dalje bili meta brojnih slučajeva policijskog nasilja, verbalnog i fizičkog maltretiranja koje su činili obični građani, kao i društvene diskriminacije. Izveštaj o društvenoj ranjivosti koji je Razvojni program UN-a objavio u julu pokazuje da je romsko stanovništvo nastavilo da živi u uslovima krajnjeg siromaštva i sa ograničenim pristupom obrazovanju i zdravstvenoj nezi. Izveštaj pokazuje da je situacija za Rome u zemlji uglavnom ostala nepromenjena od početka pružanja pomoći.

Dana 24. februara, desetak muškaraca je napalo romsko naselje Beogradska mahala u Nišu, gde su razbijali prozore, bacali kamenje i vikali: „Cigani, mrtvi ste“. Policija je uhapsila devet lica ali ih je pustila bez krivičnih prijava pošto su maloletnici. Centar za prava manjina podneo je krivičnu prijavu protiv počinilaca zvog izazivanja etničke, rasne i verske mržnje i netrpeljivosti.

U junu je Centar za prava manjina podneo Opštinskom sudu u Novom Kneževcu krivičnu prijavu protiv policajaca Tončike Jeresa, Gorana Kukuske i Mirka Kecmana zbog maltretiranja Roma Mladena Mikluča u nekoliko navrata između 15. maja i 2. juna. Mikluč je rekao da su policajci odbili da mu pomognu kad je pokušao da prijavi da ga je jedan muškarac (Stevica Brzak) tukao palicom za bejzbol; kad je Mikluč otišao u policijsku stanicu, ponovo su ga tukli i Brzak i policajci.

Dana 15. novembra, dva osumnjičena maloletnika navodno su maltretirali osamaestogodišnjeg romskog mladića, izgurali ga iz javnog autobusa a onda tukli. Policija je optužila dvojicu osumnjičenih za podsticanje etničke, rasne i verske mržnje i netrpeljivosti.

HLC je prijavio da su 31. avgusta Kosta Brzak, Slobodan Pantelić i nekoliko neidentifikovanih lica fizički i verbalno napali trojicu Roma (Seljatima, Besima i Ljumnija Kolovatija) na novosadskoj buvljoj pijaci. Krajem godine nije bio završen prekršajni postupak protiv Brzaka i Pantelića.

Dana 7. jula, Okružni sud u Beogradu potvrdio je odluku opštinskog suda od 28. februara kojom se državi nalaže da plati oko 8.100 dolara (485.000 dinara) na ime odštete Masimu Marinkoviću, tridesetogodišnjem Romu na koga je 1998. pucao Vladimir Bonifačić, radnik Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova koji nije bio na dužnosti. Opštinski sud je smatrao da je država odgovorna u ovom slučaju pošto je Bonifačić bio državni službenik koji je upotrebio službeno oružje dok nije bio na dužnosti.

Dana 8. marta, Komitet UN-a za eliminaciju rasne diskriminacije (CERD) usvojio je odluku u vezi sa incidentom iz 2000. godine kada je jedan Rom bio sprečen da uđe u jednu beogradsku diskoteku. CERD je ustanovio da država nije adekvatno istražila zahtev podnosioca i preporučio da država da odštetu podnosiocu i preduzme mere kako bi policija, javni tužioci i sudovi propisno istražili buduće prijave slučajeva rasne diskriminacije.

Mnogi Romi, uključujući interno raseljena lica sa Kosova, žive nezakonito u bespravnim naseljima u kojima ne postoje osnovne usluge kao što su školstvo, zdravstvena zaštita, vodovod i kanalizacija. Neka naselja se nalaze na vrednim industrijskim ili komercijalnim zemljištima gde su privatni vlasnici želeli da preuzmu kontrolu; neka se nalaze u prostorijama preduzeća u državnom vlasništvu koja treba da budu privatizovana. Tokom godine, beogradske vlasti ponovo su sprečile rušenje jednog naselja na privatizovanom zemljištu dok ne budu mogli da obezbede drugi smeštaj Romima koji ovde žive.

Tokom godine, Grad Beograd odustao je od plana da se izgradi stambeni kompleks za Rome u Novom Beogradu zbog protesta žitelja nedaleko od planiranog zemljišta. Žitelji Bloka 45 u Novom Beogradu nekoliko dana su blokirali saobraćaj i izvikivali slogane kao što je: „ Nećemo Cigane“.

Rivalstvo između bošnjačkih političkih stranaka u Novom Pazaru gde je uglavnom bošnjačko stanovništvo dovelo je do izbijanja najmanje jednog slučaja blažeg oblika nasilja tokom godine. Dana 7. aprila, ministar za lokalnu upravu Zoran Lončar raspustio je novopazarsku demokratski izabranu skupštinu, što je izazvalo tuču i nekoliko prijavljenih napada.

U cilju rešavanja otvorenih pitanja manjinskih zajednica, država obezbeđuje dežurnu telefonsku liniju za manjine i ostale za probleme u vezi sa ljudskim pravima. Pod pokroviteljstvom vlade takođe su održavani školski programi za edukaciju dece na temu manjinskih kultura i promovisanja tolerancije.

Ostale društvene zloupotrebe i diskriminacija

Nasilje i diskriminacija homoseksualaca bila je problem. Neke nevladine organizacije su izvestile da se homoseksualcima uskraćuju jednake mogućnosti pri zapošljavanju i obrazovanju. Ispitivanje koje je obavljeno u organizaciji Inicijative mladih za ljudska prava pokazuje da lezbijke, biseksualci, gej i transgender osobe u velikoj meri doživljavaju pretnje, govor mržnje, verbalne napade i fizičko nasilje.

Iako zakon o radiodifuziji zabranjuje diskriminaciju na osnovu seksualne orijentacije, mediji su prenosili sadržaje uvredljive za homoseksualce. Dana 26. februara, visoki zvaničnik SPS-a izjavio je da je homoseksualnost „socijalna patologija“ i „nešto posebno dekadentno“, i ukazao da homoseksualcima i lezbijkama ne treba dozvoliti rad u diplomatskoj službi.

U anketi koju je tokom godine objavila organizacija za lezbijska prava Labris, 65 procenata homoseksualnih ispitanika tvrdilo je da su doživeli nasilje zbog svoje seksulane orijentacije. Samo deset procenata ispitanika nasilje je prijavilo policiji.

Novi krivični zakon koji je stupio na snagu 1. januara sadrži odredbu koja izjednačava starosnu granicu posle koje se može pristati na sve vrste seksualnog kontakta. Prethodni zakon je propisivao višu starosnu granicu za homoseksualne odnose (18) nego za heteroseksualne odnose (14). Po novom zakonu, starosna granica za sve vrste seksualnog kontakta jeste 14 godina. Aktivisti su se žalili da je stari zakon nepravično diskriminisao homoseksualnu zajednicu.

Odeljak 6 Prava radnika

a. Pravo na udruživanje

Zakon i ustav propisuju da svi radnici, izuzev vojnog i policijskog osoblja, imaju pravo da se učlane ili osnivaju sindikate po svom izboru, što je uslovljeno restrikcijama u koje spada odobrenje Ministarstva za rad i izjava poslodavca da je vođa sindikata u stalnom radnom odnosu, a što se navodno svodi na to da je neophodna i dozvola poslodavca. Državni savez sindikata preovlađuje u organizovanom poslovnom sektoru pošto upravama državnih delatnosti koje dominiraju privredom više odgovaraju sindikati koji su članovi ovog saveza. Manji savezi nezavisnih sindikata konkurišu državnom savezu, ali su uspeha imali prevenstveno u relativno malom delu zvanične privrede koja ne uključuje poljoprivredu i nije u državnom vlasništvu. U državnom sektoru, 60 do 70 procenata radnika učlanjeno je u sindikate. U privatnom sektoru, svega 4 do 6 procenata članovi su sindikata, dok je u poljoprivredi to slučaj kod 3 procenta radnika.

Zakon ne zabranjuje diskriminaciju sindikata a to i nije predstavljalo veći problem u toku godine.

b. Pravo na organizovanje i kolektivno pregovaranje

Zakon i ustav dozvoljavaju da sindikati neometano obavljaju svoje aktivnosti, a vlada je to pravo štitila u praksi. Zakon štiti pravo na organizovanje i kolektivno pregovaranje, i to pravo se slobodno ostvarivalo u praksi. Novi zakon o radu, koji je stupio na snagu u martu 2005. godine, propisuje da svako preduzeće sa više od deset zaposlenih mora imati sporazum o kolektivnom pregovaranju. Međutim, da bi se sa poslodavcem pregovaralo, u sindikat mora biti učlanjeno 15 posto zaposlenih. Da bi se pregovaralo sa vladom, u sindikat mora biti učlanjeno 10 posto svih zaposlenih. Prema raspoloživim izveštajima, zaostaci u isplatama zarada su značajni i široko rasprostranjeni. Sporazumom o kolektivnom pregovaranju obuhvaćeno je otprilike 27 procenata svih zaposlenih.

Zakon i ustav predviđaju pravo na štrajk osim za osobe koje obezbeđuju neophodne usluge kao što su obrazovanje, električna energija i poštanske usluge. Ovi zaposleni čine otprilike 50 procenata svih zaposlenih i štrajk moraju najaviti najmanje petnaest dana unapred i obezbediti „minimalni proces rada“. Radnici su koristili pravo na štrajk.

Srbija i dalje nema opšti kolektivni sporazum pošto je prethodni istekao septembra 2005. Dva predstavnička sindikata (Nezavisnost i Savez nezavisnih sindikata Serbije) pregovarali su o novom sporazumu sa članovima Unije poslodavaca više od tri meseca. Sporazum je postignut ali nije ozakonjen jer je upravni odbor Unije poslodavaca odbio da ga potpiše. U nedostatku opšteg kolektivnog sporazuma, strukovni i lokalni sporazumi se mogu potpisati na osnovu odredaba zakona o radu. U slučaju da u preduzeću ne postoji sindikat, poslodavac je dužan da minimalne radne standarde uspostavi na osnovu zakona o radu.

Ne postoje izvozne zone.

c. Zabrana prinudnog ili obaveznog rada

Zakonom je zabranjen prinudni i obavezni rad, uključujući i rad dece; međutim, bilo je izveštaja da je takvih slučajeva bilo u praksi (vidi odeljak 5 i 6.d).

d. Zabrana rada dece i donja starosna granica pri zapošljavanju

Vlada efikasno primenjuje zakone koji decu štite od eksploatacije pri radu. Donja starosna granica pri zapošljavanju jeste petnaest godina, a za radnike mlađe od osamnaest godina potrebna je pismena dozvola roditelja ili staratelja. Zakon o radu propisuje veoma određene uslove za rad mladih radnika i ograničava radnu nedelju na 35 radnih sati.

U seoskim i poljoprivrednim zajednicama uobičajeno da mlađa deca pomažu svojim porodicama u poslu. Deca, naročito romska, takođe obavljaju razne neprijavljene sitne poslove, obično peru prozore na automobilima ili prodaju manje stvari kao što su novine. Romsku decu često njihove porodice prisiljavaju na fizički rad, teraju na prosjačenje, ili ih prodaju u inostranstvo gde se organizovano bave prosjačenjem ili krađom.

Inspekcija rada pri Ministarstvu za rad, zapošljavanje i socijalna pitanja proveravala je tokom inspekcije da li postoji rad dece; međutim, Ministarstvo je izvestilo da tokom godine nije naišlo na kršenje zakona u ovom pogledu. Nema pouzdanih podataka o radu dece usled nedostatka mehanizama za praćenje ovog problema. Ministarstvo je takođe uvrstilo prevenciju zapošljavanja dece u svoje redovne programe za zaštitu dece i porodice.

e. Prihvatljivi uslovi rada

U periodu juli-decembar u Srbiji je minimalnu mesečnu zaradu odredio Socijalno-ekonomski savet na otprilike 150 dolara (8.820 dinara). Minimalna zarada nije bila dovoljna za pristojan životni standard radnika i njegove porodice. U preduzećima gde postoje sindikati, minimalna zarada je uglavnom efikasno primenjena. Ovo nije bio slučaj u manjim privatnim preduzećima, a radnici se često plaše da će izgubiti posao jer mnogi od njih nisu prijavljeni kao zaposleni. Inspekcija rada je odgovorna za primenu minimalne zarade.

Prema podacima objavljenim u septembru, prosečna plata je iznosila oko 370 dolara (22.259 dinara). Prosečan radnik u Srbiji zarađivao je otprilike 18 dolara (1.060 dinara) dnevno ili 2.20 dolara (132.5 dinara) na sat. Prosečna plata nije bila dovoljna za udoban život radnika i njegove porodice.

Standardna radna nedelja od 40 časova generalno se poštovala u državnim preduzećima ali ne i u privatnim firmama. Prema zakonu zaposleni ne može da radi prekovremeno duže od 4 sata dnevno ili više od 240 sati tokom jedne kalendarske godine. Za vreme osmočasovnog radnog dana, propisana je pauza od 30 minuta. Tokom radne nedelje između dve smene mora proći najmanje dvanaest časova, a tokom vikenda – najmanje 24.

Kolektivnim sporazumima regulisano je plaćanje prekovremenog rada. Međutim, zakon o radu propisuje da nadoknada za prekovremeni rad treba da bude u vrednosti od najmanje 26% od osnovne plate, kako je definisano relevantnim kolektivnim sporazumom. Sindikati u okviru preduzeća su primarni posrednici u primeni plaćanja prekovremenog rada; međutim, Inspekcija rada takođe snosi odgovornost u ovom pogledu. Inspektorat je imao različit stepen uspešnosti u pogledu primene propisa o radu usled raznih faktora, uključujući i politiku i korupciju.

Svako preduzeće je obavezno da oformi odeljenje za sigurnost i bezbednost koje treba da primenjuje sigurnosne i bezbednosne propise; međutim, u praksi ova odeljenja su često usredsređena na elementarne aspekte sigurnosti kao što je kupovina sapuna i deterdženata a ne na nabavku sigurnosne opreme za radnike. Radnici nisu imali pravo da se sklone u situacijama kada su im zdravlje ili sigurnost bili ugroženi a da pri tom ne budu u opasnosti da izgube posao.

KOSOVO

Kosovo ima otprilike 2.2 miliona stanovnika i nalazi se pod upravom Privremene administrativne misije Ujedinjenih nacija na Kosovu (UNMIK) u skladu sa Rezolucijom 1244 Saveta bezbednosti Ujedinjenih nacija iz 1999. Na čelu UNMIK-a je specijalni predstavnik generalnog sekretara UN-a za Kosovo (SRSG). UNMIK donosi propise u vezi sa građanskim i pravnim obavezama vladinih organa i privatnih lica i ratifikuje zakone usvojene u Skupštini Kosova. UNMIK je doneo Ustavni okvir za privremenu samoupravu Kosova kojim se definišu privremene institucije samouprave (PISG). Višestranački izbori za poslanička mesta u Skupštini Kosova u oktobru 2004. uglavnom su odražavali volju birača. Međunarodne civilne vlasti UNMIK-a i Mirovne snage na Kosovu (KFOR), koje, pod okriljem UN-a, predvodi NATO, uglavnom su održale efikasnu kontrolu nad snagama bezbednosti; međutim, bilo je povremeno izveštaja da su lokalni elementi snaga bezbednosti delovali nezavisno od svojih nadređenih. Tokom godine, pod pokroviteljstvom Kancelarije specijalnog izaslanika UN-a za Kosovo vođeni su pregovori o rešavanju budućeg statusa Kosova. Do kraja godine nije doneta odluka o statusu Kosova.

UNMIK i PISG su generalno poštovali ljudska prava lokalnog stanovništva; međutim, bilo je problema u određenim oblastima, posebno u vezi sa manjinskim stanovništvom. Najozbiljniji problemi bili su: politički i etnički motivisana ubistva, smrti i povrede od neeksplodiranih naprava i nagaznih mina, dugotrajan pritvor pre suđenja i nedostatak sudskog postupka, korupcija i mešanje vlade u sudstvo, društvena averzija prema Srbima i Srpskoj pravoslavnoj crkvi, nedostatak napretka u povratku interno raseljenih lica njihovim kućama, korupcija PISG-a, nasilje i diskriminacija žena, trgovina ljudima, naročito devojkama i ženama u cilju seksualne eksploatacije, društveno nasilje, zloupotreba i diskriminacija manjinskih zajednica, društvena diskriminacija osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima, zlostavljanje i jedno ubistvo homoseksualaca, i rad dece u nezvaničnom sektoru. Neeksplodirane naprave zaostale iz konflikta 1998-1999. i dalje su problem i bile su uzrok smrti ili povreda u nekoliko navrata.

POŠTOVANJE LJUDSKIH PRAVA

Odeljak 1 Poštovanje integriteta ličnosti

a. Proizvoljno ili nezakonito lišavanje života

Nije bilo izveštaja da su UNMIK, PISG, KFOR ili njihovi predstavnici počinili nezakonita ili proizvoljna ubistva; međutim, lokalne bezbednosne snage organizovane u nadležnosti PISG-a počinile su najmanje jedno nezakonito ili samovoljno ubistvo tokom godine.

Dana 2. januara, pripadnik specijalnih snaga Kosovske zaštitne službe (KPS) Albert Markaj ubio je pritvorenika Besnika Kastratija u pećkoj policijskoj stanici. Ubistvo je povezano s krvnom osvetom između porodica Markaj i Kastrati. U oktobru je Markaj osuđen za ubistvo na deset godina zatvora.

Dana 2. decembra, Hetem Sadri Redžaj ubijen je u policijskom pritvoru u Peći. Do kraja godine nije bilo pojedinosti mada je istraga jedinice za profesionalne standarde KPS-a bila u toku.

Tokom godine, od neeksplodiranih naprava zaostalih iz sukoba 1998-1999. ili nagaznih mina stradala je jedna osoba a ranjeno deset, dok je 2005. registrovana smrt dvoje i povrede tri osobe. Iako je napravljen napredak u raščišćavanju, neeksplodirane naprave su i dalje predstavljale opasnost za civile.

Tokom godine najmanje dva ubistva su možda bila politički motivisana. Dana 2. maja, nepoznata lica ubila su Marka Orošija, osumnjičenog za ubistvo advokata i političkog aktiviste Demokratske lige Kosova (LDK) u Istoku Šabana Manaja 2001. Oroši je pušten usled nedostatka dokaza. Prema podacima policije, on je već neko vreme bio meta. Ranije tokom godine, Oroši je ranjen u neuspelom pokušaju atentata. Istraga KPS-a je krajem godine nastavljena.

Dana 20. juna, šezedesetosmogodišnji kosovski Srbin Dragan Popović ubijen je u svojoj kući u etnički mešovitoj opštini Klini. Popović je napustio Kosovo za vreme konflikta 1998-1999. i u Klinu se vratio 2005. Uprkos nekim navodima da je ovo ubistvo etnički motivisano, dokazi za to nisu pronađeni niti je do kraja godine iko osumnjičen i priveden.

Za razliku od prethodnih godina, izgleda da nije bilo politički motivisanih ubistava policajaca.

Bilo je izveštaja o napadima i pretnjama kosovskim albanskim političkim i institucionalnim ličnostima (vidi odeljak 3).

Nije bilo pomaka u istrazi o ubistvu UNMIK-ovog policajca Omara Alija iz januara 2005. koji je ubijen kad je bomba eksplodirala ispod njegovog službenog vozila.

Dana 17. marta, sud je odbacio zbog nedostatka dokaza predmet protiv Tasima Osaja za ubistvo Envera Haradinaja, brata bivšeg premijera i predsednika Saveza za budućnost Kosova (AAK) Ramuša Haradinaja, izvršeno aprila 2005. Osaj se dobrovoljno predao jula 2005.

Zbog nedovoljnih dokaza, 7. avgusta je zatvorena istraga o ubistvu očito etnički motivisanih ubistava kosovskih Srba Ivana Dejanovića i Aleksandra Stankovića u Štrpcu avgusta 2005, kojom prilikom su povređena još dva lica u njihovom automobilu.

Nije bilo napretka u potencijalno politički motivisanom ubistvu etničkog Turčina i člana Turske demokratske partije Kosova Ibiša Cakalija oktobra 2005. Krajem godine istraga je bila u toku.

Nije bilo pomaka u sledećim očito politički motivisanim ubistvima kosovskih Albanaca u 2005. godini: u januaru 2005. ubistvo Sadika Musaja, svedoka na suđenju „grupi Dukađini“; u aprilu 2005. ubistvo Muhameta Salaja, bivšeg pripadnika Oslobodilačke vojske Kosova (OVK); u junu 2005. pucanje iz automobila na novinara Bardhila Ajetija iz dnevnika Bota Sot na albanskom jeziku; u julu 2005. iz automobila koji je prolazio ubijen je Muhamet Džemajili, bivši komandant Oslobodilačke vojske Preševa, Medveđe i Bujanovca, oružane grupe kosovskih Albanaca koja je ranije bila aktivna u Preševskoj dolini u Srbiji; u septembru 2005. u eksploziji automobila poginuli su pripadnik Kosovskog zaštitnog korpusa (KZK) i bivši pripadnik OVK Naser Ramaj i njegov brat Jeton; u oktobru 2005. ubijen je Hasan Rustemi, svedok na suđenju za ratne zločine bivšem komandantu OVK (i bivšem pripadniku KZK) Selimu Krasnićiju.

Nije bilo pomaka u žalbi kosovskog Albanca, maloletnog A.K. na presudu iz juna 2005. za teško ubistvo sedamnaestogodišnjeg kosovskog Srbina Dimitrija Popovića u junu 2004. i teško ranjavanje još jednog kosovskog Srbina tinejdžera u pucanju iz automobila u Gračanici.

Dana 26. septembra, pred međunarodnim sudijama počelo je suđenje za ubistvo optuženima Škumbinu Mehmetiju, Florimu Ejupiju, Džavitu Kosumiju i Faiku Šaćiriju. Aprila 2005. ova četvorica su optužena za ubistvo pripadnika KPS-a i policajca UNMIK-a iz zasede na podujevskom putu posle martovskih nereda 2004. Ejupi je takođe ranije optužen da je sa saučesnicima planirao i 2001. izvršio bombaški napad na autobus iz Merdara u blizini Podujeva kada je ubijeno 11 kosovskih Srba a ranjeno 40. U ovom potonjem predmetu pretres još nije održan.

Nije bilo pomaka u ubistvu Avnija Elezaja, bivšeg borca OVK i telohranitelja bivšeg premijera i predsednika AAK Ramuša Haradinaja, koje je izvršeno 2004.

Dana 18. oktobra, specijalna jedinica KPS-a uhapsila je Fatona Hajrizija, optuženog za ubistvo ruskog vojnika, pripadnika KFOR-a u Klini 2002. Hajziri je pobegao iz pećkog istražnog zatvora za vreme suđenja u avgustu 2005. Krajem godine bio je u pritvoru.

Dana 4. avgusta, međunarodno veće Okružnog suda u Prizrenu proglasilo je Salija Veselija krivim za kriminalno udruživanje i saučešće u teškom ubistvu iz očito političkih motiva izvršeno 2000. nad direktorom prizrenskog Odeljenja za životnu sredinu, bivšeg pripadnika OVK Ekrema Rerdže, poznatog kao „komandant Drini“, i osudilo ga na 15 godina zatvora. Vrhovni sud je 1. septembra odbacio Veselijevu žalbu. Sud je oslobodio Abita Haziraja takođe optuženog za samo izvršenje atentata zbog nedostatka dokaza; osoba koja je zapravo izvršila samo ubistvo nikad nije identifikovana. Optužba protiv takođe optuženog Džemalija Bećiraja povučena je.

b. Nestanak

Nije bilo izveštaja o politički motivisanim nestancima; međutim, i dalje ima na hiljade lica nestalih od sukoba 1999. čiji ostaci nisu identifikovani niti je utvrđeno gde se nalaze.

Prema Međunarodnom komitetu Crvenog krsta (ICRC), na kraju godine se nije znalo stanje 2.139 lica, u poređenju sa 2.464 lica na početku godine. Od onih čije je stanje neizvesno, ICRC je izvestio da su oko 70 procenata Kosovski Albanci a 30 procenata kosovski Srbi i pripadnici ostalih manjina.

Tokom godine, UNMIK-ova kancelarija za nestala lica i sudsku medicinu (OPMF) nastavila je sa identifikacijom posmrtnih ostataka nestalih osoba na Kosovu. Od svog osnivanja 2002. godine, kancelarija je obavila 505 terenskih operacija i ekshumacija, od kojih 59 tokom godine. Pronađena su tela 3.800 nestalih osoba i pažnja je usmerena na utvrđivanje identiteta zemnih ostataka 1.440 osoba koji su otkriveni na Kosovu i oko 900 primljenih iz Srbije počev od 2002.

Tokom godine, OMPF je nastavio da čuva 582 neidentifikovana tela u prištinskoj mrtvačnici, od kojih je 414 ekshumirano na Kosovu a 168 neidentifikovanih prebačeno iz Srbije. OMPF je primio 398 pozitivna DNK izveštaja tokom godine, što predstavlja 291 pojedinca. OMPF je takođe podneo 262 uzorka kostiju na DNK testove Međunarodnoj komisiji za nestala lica (ICMP), koja je vratila 1.635 rezultata. Do kraja godine, OMPF je okončao forenzičku inspekciju svih slučajeva dostavljenih iz Srbije tokom godine (ostaci su prebačeni 31. marta i 30. juna) i obavio 425 autopsija.

Krajem godine, OMPF je takođe nastavio sa ekshumacijama; otkrio je i izvršio autopsije na 51 telu sa 34 lokacije. Dana 13. oktobra, OMPF je srpskim vlastima prebacio zemne ostatke 28 Srba i drugih pripadnika etničkih manjina ubijenih 1998. i otkrivenih u masovnoj grobnici u Voljku, u Opštini Klina 2005.

Dana 30. juna, srpske vlasti su prebacile poslednje zemne ostatke kosovskih albanskih žrtava iz sukoba 1999. pronađene u masovnim grobnicama u Srbiji. Ovi ostaci su vraćeni porodicama kako bi se obavile sahrane. Porodice nestalih i dalje su tražile da srpske vlasti dozvole pristup podacima koji bi mogli ukazati na lokacije drugih masovnih grobnica ili mesta na kojima su tela kosovskih Albanaca možda spaljena.

Radna grupa sastavljena od kosovskih i srpskih zvaničnika za lica nestala od sukoba 1999, kojom predsedava ICRC, sastala se dva puta tokom godine pod pokroviteljstvom SRSG-a. Iako je specijalna podgrupa za sudsku medicinu ustanovljena u septembru 2005. i sastala se nekoliko puta u prvoj polovini godine, još nije identifikovala stotine zemnih ostataka iz orahovačke mrtvačnice

Od 711 slučajeva rešenih 2005. godine, zemni ostaci 174 lica identifikovani su i predati porodicama do avgusta: 45 iz Srbije na Kosovo, 112 u okviru Kosova, a 28 sa Kosova u Srbiju. Tokom godine zemni ostaci 323 lica identifikovani su i vraćeni porodicama: 102 iz Srbije na Kosovo, 60 sa Kosova u Srbiju, a 161 unutar Kosova. Tela identifikovana tokom godine uključuju 253 kosovska Albanca i 70 pripadnika drugih etničkih grupa.

Tokom 2004. godine, kancelarija tužilaštva u Prizrenu objavila je da su izdati nalozi za hapšenje dvojice kosovskih Srba, bivših policajaca, Gorana Janjuševića i Slaviše Milkovića, zbog počinjenih ratnih zločina nad civilnim stanovništvom u oblasti Prizrena, uključujući i otmicu i ubistvo Ardiana Zirnađijua tokom sukoba 1999. Krajem godine osumnjičeni su bili na slobodi.

c. Mučenje i drugi surovi, nehumani ili ponižavajući postupci ili kazne

Ustavni okvir i zakon o krivičnom postupku zabranjuju ovakvu praksu ali je bilo izveštaja da ih je PISG primenjivao. Nije bilo izveštaja da je UNMIK, koji je suvereno telo vlasti, ili KFOR, koji ima ograničenu nadležnost u pogledu hapšenja i pritvora, upražnjavao ovakvu praksu.

Prema medijskom izveštavanju, KPS je primenjivao silu u razbijanju demonstracija i tukao demonstrante a izvršio je hapšenja najmanje četiri puta tokom godine. Pokret za samoopredeljenje, grupa koja se protivi prisustvu UN-a i sprovodi agresivnu i konfrotacionu taktiku zagovaranja momentalne i bezuslovne nezavisnosti Kosova, organizovala je proteste tokom godine od kojih su neki bili nasilni. Dana 5. maja, KPS je uhapsio 22 člana pokreta koji su demonstrirali protiv UNMIK-a, a mediji su objavili da je KPS tukao pritvorenike. Nepoznat broj demonstranata odbio je medicinsku pomoć u policijskoj stanici; devet pripadnika KPS-a ranjeno je u incidentu, od toga jedan teško. Unutrašnja istraga u KPS-u pokazala je da KPS nije primenio prekomernu silu, a niko od demonstratora nije podneo zvanične prijave protiv policije. Dana 9. juna, policija je navodno ponovo tukla protestante za vreme hapšenja 91 člana pokreta koji su demonstrirali protiv UNMIK-a; bio je jedan izveštaj po kojem je jednom demonstrantu bila potrebna hirurška intervencija kako bi mu se sanirale povrede. Policijsko nasilje takođe je prijavljeno 28. juna, kad je policija uhapsila 85 aktivista Pokreta za samoopredeljenje na administrativnoj granici između Kosova i Srbije u Merdaru, i 31 pripadnika pokreta u Mitrovici, koji su demonstrirali protiv posete srpskog premijera Kosovu. Kosovska skupština i vlada kritikovali su navodno policijsko zlostavljanje poslanika Emruša Džemajlija, koji je uhapšen u Merdaru. Slični izveštaji postoje da je KPS tukao demonstrante za vreme protesta pokreta pred Kosovskom skupštinom i sedištem UNMIK-a 23. avgusta. Na 72 sata pritvoreno je osmoro od 22 lica.

Na protestu 8. novembra, demonstratori su navodno bacali kamenje i flaše napunjene bojom na zgrade u kojima su smeštene kancelarije UNMIK-a i vlade. Policija UNMIK-a odgovorila je suzavcem ali dalje nije intervenisala, umesto toga je napravljen video-snimak i naknadno je uhapšeno osam lica. Svi su kasnije pušteni. Nije bilo izveštaja o povređenima a krajem godine, protiv aktivista nisu podnete ozbiljne prijave.

U pismu iz oktobra 2005 upućenom SRSG-u u vezi sa hapšenjima članova Pokreta za samoopredeljenje, ombudsman je naveo izveštaje očevidaca da su „mnogi“ aktivisti doživeli „teško zlostavljanje“ za vreme hapšenja i izjave uhapšenih osoba da se zlostavljanje nastavilo nakon što su odvedeni u pritvor. Interna istraga KPS-a nije završena do kraja godine. Jedinica za profesionalne standarde KPS-a otvorila je tri istrage od kojih je jedna odbačena kao neosnovana. Druge dve istrage za posledicu su imale disciplinske kazne protiv umešanih pripadnika KPS-a, od kojih je svaki bio suspendovan na 10 dana bez plate, obezbeđena im je obavezna popravna obuka, a u lični dosije im je stavljen dopis o disciplinskoj meri.

Bilo je pomaka u slučaju šestorice kosovskih Albanaca pripadnika KZK-a uhapšenih zbog navodne umešanosti u ratne zločine počinjene nad kosovskim albanskim civilima iz logora u Drenovcu na području Prizrena od juna do oktobra 1998. Dana 27. jula, međunarodni istražni sudija odbacio je tužbu protiv Isufa Gašija i Džavita Elšanija. Dana 10. avgusta, Okružni sud u Gnjilanu oslobodio je Islama Gašija a osudio bivšeg komandanta KZK-a generala Selima Krasnićija, pukovnika Bedrija Ziberaja i Agrona Krasnićija za ratne zločine na po sedam godina zatvora. Kada su Ziberaj i Selim Krasnići privremeno pušteni na slobodu dok su razmatrane njihove žalbe, premijer Kosova Agim Čeku posetio je Selima Krasnićija, rekao da je njegovo puštanje iz zatvora „dobro za Kosovo“ i izjavio da „nikad nije prestao da veruje u njihovu nevinost“. Premijerovu izjavu kritikovali su i beogradski HLC i kosovski Savet za odbranu ljudskih prava i sloboda (CDHRF). Kasnije u avgustu, tužilac je pred Vrhovnim sudom uložio žalbu zbog privremenog puštanja na slobodu koja je rešena po njegovom zahtevu pa je ubrzo potom izdat nalog za njihovo ponovno hapšenje. Zimberaj je uhapšen 25. oktobra. Krajem godine, Selim Krasnići je i dalje bio na slobodi.

Tokom godine vlasti su pred sud izvele veliki broj lica zbog krivičnih dela koja se tiču martovskih međuetničkih nemira 2004 (vidi odeljak 5).

Uslovi u zatvorima i centrima za pritvor

Zatvori i centri za pritvor su navodno u skladu sa međunarodnim standardima, i UNMIK je dozvoljavao posete ICRC-a i nadzor ombudsmana; međutim, tokom godine bilo je navodnih zlostavljanja, uključujući seksualno zlostavljanje, i maltretiranja zatvorenika. Vlasti su tokom godine najmanje jednoj lokalnoj nevladinoj organizaciji uskratile pristup zatvorima.

Tokom godine radio je zatvor u Dubravi i pet centara za pritvor, a u Lipljanu je nastavljena izgradnja novog zatvorskog objekta da bi se smanjila prenatrpanost.

UNMIK-ova policija vodila je zatvore i centre za pritvor, ali je sve više zaduženja prebacivala na Kosovsku zatvorsku službu (KCS), u nadležnosti PISG-a.

Dana 1. februara, UNMIK-ovo odeljenje odseka za kaznenu upravu naimenovalo je kosovskog Albanca za komesara KCS-a. UNMIK je na KCS preneo kontrolu zatvora u Lipljan i svih pet centara za pritvor 17. februara. KCS je vodio dnevne operacije u zatvoru u Dubravi s izuzetkom odeljenja u koje su smeštena 32 zatvorenika „visokog rizika“, koje je ostalo pod međunarodnim nadzorom. UNMIK je zadržao nadležnost za potpunu kontrolu zatvorskog sistema u vanrednim situacijama.

CDHRF je izvestio da dnevno dobija pritužbe zatvorenika i njihovih porodica koji se žale na zlostavljanje i prekomerno zatvaranje u zatvorske samice. Nadležni nisu vodili istrage povodom ovih navoda. Dana 7. juna, nekoliko zatvorenika je počelo štrajk u zatvoru u Dubravi, protestujući zbog nedostatka potrepština u zatvorskoj kantini. Prema podacima CDHRF-a, zatvorske vlasti su prekršile mnoga prava koja su zatvorenicima data po privremenom krivičnom zakoniku, antidiskriminacionom zakonu, zakonima o maloletnicima, o obrazovanju i po međunarodnom pravu.

Mada bi po zakonu žene i maloletnici trebalo da budu odvojeno smešteni od muškaraca, CDHRF je obavestio da je bilo slučajeva da su žene i maloletnici držani u zatvoru u Lipljanu u neposrednoj blizini muškaraca na odsluženju kazne za lakša krivična dela koji ih uznemiravaju.

UNMIK je prijavio da je tokom godine vođeno 60 disciplinskih postupaka protiv članova KCS-a koji broji 1.650 pripadnika, u poređenju sa 35 postupaka u 2005. U šest od sedamnaest postupaka završenih do oktobra optužbe su odbačene, u devet su izdata pismena upozorenja, a u jednom slučaju je snižen čin. Ponašanje za koje su pokrenuti disciplinski postupci uključivalo je administrativne prekršaje kao što su ponovljenja kašnjenja i prevare (vidi odeljak 3).

U julu je CDHRF dobio potpun pristup za nadzor policijskih stanica KPS-a. ICRC je posetio kosovske zatvore mada nije izdao nikakvo zvanično saopštenje o tim posetama. U decembarskoj promeni politike, ministar pravde je odlučio da dozvoli pristup CDHRF-u u zatvore prvi put od 2003. mada takvih poseta do kraja godine nije bilo. U decembru je i novinarima dozvoljeno da posete zatvore u Lipljanu i Dubravi prvi put od sukoba 1999. Prema novinarima koji su posetili zatvor u Dubravi, zatvorenici s kojima su razgovarali pohvalili su zatvorske prilike u prisustvu ministra pravde, ali su ih  kritikovali u njegovom odsustvu. U zatvoru u Dubravi smešteno je krajem godine bilo 809 ljudi, što je ispod ukupnog kapaciteta koji predviđa 1.100 zatvorenika.

U oktobru je HLC podneo tužbu pred Okružnim sudom u Prizrenu u ime Saše Grkovića, koji je navodno teško zlostavljan u pritvoru 2001. i 2002. i za vreme suđenja za masovno ubistvo i mučenje civila. Oslobođen je optužbe i pušten nakon što je u zatvoru proveo 457 dana. Do kraja godine u ovom predmetu nije bilo pomaka.

U januaru je Savet Evrope (SE) objavio da je nejasno da li je objekat NATO/KFOR-a za pritvor na Kosovu bio otvoren kako bi Komitet za prevenciju torture (CPT) obavio inspekciju. U julu su SE i NATO postigli sprazum da se CPT-u omogući potpuni pristup objektima NATO/KFOR-a. U decembru je CPT posetio sedište KFOR-a kako bi razgovarali o budućim posetama objektima za pritvor ali takvih poseta do kraja godine nije bilo.

d. Proizvoljno hapšenje ili pritvor

Ustavni okvir i zakon o krivičnom postupku zabranjuju proizvoljno hapšenje i pritvor i te zabrane su UNMIK, KFOR i PISG generalno poštovali u praksi.

Uloga policijskog i bezbednosnog aparata

Lokalne bezbednosne snage uključuju KZK, civilnu organizaciju za vanredne situacije, i KPS, lokalne policijske snage koje rade u nadležnosti SRSG-a i pod nadzorom UNMIK-ove policije. Po UNMIK-ovoj odredbi iz decembra 2005. godine, ustanovljeno je Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova, koje je po ustavnom okviru odgovorno za primenu zakona. U martu je Fatmir Redžepi postavljen za ministra a u aprilu je KPS postao izvršno telo u sastavu ministarstva. UNMIK je zadržao izvršnu vlast nad policijom, ali je nastavio da prenosi policijska ovlašćenja i funkcije na KPS.

Međunarodni policijski komesar upravlja i UNMIK-ovom policijom i KPS-om mada je u avgustu UNMIK naimenovao kosovskog Albanca za zamenika komesara i četiri kosovska Albanca za pomoćnike komesara. Udružene snage su načelno efikasne i zapaženo je poboljšanje u odnosu na prethodne godine. Pripadnici etničkih manjina su na kraju godine činili otprilike 16 procenata sastava KPS-a koji broji 7.200 ljudi, 10 procenata su kosovski Srbi, a 13 procenata su bile žene.

SRSG ima izvršnu vlast nad KPS-om. Svakodnevne policijske operacije prenete su na KPS u pet od šest regiona Kosova. U ovim regionima je KPS odgovoran za sve policijske službe i uobičajene aktivnosti. Specijalizovane jedinice za ratne zločine i etnički motivisana ubistva i dalje se sastoje prvenstveno od međunarodnog osoblja policije UN-a i uglavno rade nezavisno od KPS-a zbog osetljivosti ovih poslova. Jedinice za kirminalističku obaveštajnu službu i organizovani kriminal, uključujući trgovinu ljudima, zajedno su radile. I međunarodna policija i sudstvo imaju diskreciono pravo da intervenišu u bilo kojem krivičnom predmetu. Iz praktičnih razloga, većina policijskih dužnosti i obaveza bila je u rukama KPS-a.

Podložnost korupciji i uticaju vlasti i dalje je problem u bezbednosnim snagama.

Dana 28. juna, Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova pri PISG-u i Misija OEBS-a na Kosovu inaugurisali su Policijski inspektorat Kosova, telo ustanovljeno za promovisanje policijske umešnosti i uspešnosti, odgovornost policije za njene radnje, i istragu i kažnjavanje rđavog ponašanja. Prvih 20 inspektora stupilo je na dužnost 4. jula a u decembru su otvorena još 24 mesta. Tokom godine, inspektori su započeli prvu fazu mandata: reviziju i inspekciju rada uprave KPS-a. Usredsredili su se na umešnost i uspešnost vršeći inspekciju šest of 14 funkcionalnih oblasti u svakom regionalnom policijskom sedištu i u centralnom sedištu u Prištini i podnoseći izveštaj za svaku. Generalni izveštaj o aktivnostima inspektorata u 2006. do kraja godine nije bio dostupan.

Kancelarija UNMIK-a za nadzor istraživala je korupciju u UNMIK-u i krivični sudski sistem. Sudstvo se generalno odnosilo prema bezbednosnim snagama jednako kao i prema opštem stanovništvu.

Tokom godine jedinica KPS-a za profesionalne standarde, kojom upravlja policija UNMIK-a, završila je 98 disciplinskih istraga o pripadnicima KPS-a zbog učešća ili nesprečavanja nasilja u neredima marta 2004. Jedinica za standarde je 53 optužbe odbacila kao neosnovane, suspendovala 35 pripadnika bez plate, za sedam lica odredila administrativne disciplinske mere na nivou stanice, dvojici snizila čin, a jednog otpustila iz službe.

Hapšenje i pritvor

Policija je uopšte uzev otvoreno hapsila osumnjičene koristeći nalog koji je izdao sudija ili tužilac; međutim, u određenim slučajevima, osumnjičene su tajno hapsili maskirani policajci ili policajci na tajnom zadatku. Po zakonu, za hapšenje je neophodan nalog tužioca a uhapšeni mora biti izveden pred sudiju u roku od 72 časa. Za razliku od prethodnih godina, većinu hapšenja tokom godina obavio je KPS a ne UNMIK. Prema podacima CDHRF-a, KPS nije kršio vremensko ograničenje od 72 sata i generalno je optužbu podizao u roku od šest sati ili bi privedene puštao. Uhapšeni imaju pravo da budu obavešteni o razlogu za hapšenje na jeziku koji razumeju; da ne govore i ne odgovaraju ni na kakva pitanja osim ona koja se tiču njihovog identiteta; da dobiju besplatne prevodilačke usluge; da imaju advokata i da im se advokat obezbedi ukoliko sami ne mogu da plate pravnu pomoć; da dobiju lekarsku pomoć uključujući i psihijatrijsku pomoć; i da obaveste jednog člana porodice. Policija UNMIK-a i KPS generalno su poštovali ova prava u praksi. Zakon dozvoljava kauciju, oduzimanje pasoša, kućni pritvor i druge mere kao alternativu pritvoru po pozivu, ali se ovo primenjivalo samo u nekolicini slučajeva.

Pod vanrednim okolnostima, KFOR je mogao uhapsiti i pritvoriti pojedince bez naloga, a komandant KFOR-a je mogao pojedincima produžiti pritvor i do trideset dana a da pred sudom ne budu optuženi za krivično delo pod uslovom da ih sud ne oslobodi. Nije bilo izveštaja da je tokom godine KFOR vršio hapšenja bez naloga.

Policija UNMIK-a i KPS mogu zadržati lice do 72 sata bez sudskog naloga. Sud može zadržati lice u pritvoru pre suđenja i do 30 dana od dana hapšenja, ali sud može ovaj pritvor produžiti i do ukupno 18 meseci. Zakon dozvoljava kućni pritvor, žalbu na pritvor po pozivu i dodatnu upotrebu kaucije kao alternativu pritvoru pre suđenja.

Dugi pritvori, i pre i za vreme sudskog postupka, i dalje su problem. U oktobru je 820 lica bilo u pritvoru po pozivu, u poređenju sa 432 pritvorena lica na odsluženju kazne. Zakon propisuje da sudija može nametnuti vanredne mere samo kada uobičajene mere, kao što je kućni pritvor, nisu dovoljne da osiguraju prisustvo optuženog tokom krivičnog postupka i omoguće propisno vođenje krivičnog postupka. U praksi su sudije uobičajeno koristile pritvor po pozivu ne pravdajući to pokazivanjem dokaza.

e. Uskraćivanje pravičnog javnog suđenja

Ustavni okvir predviđa nezavisno sudstvo; međutim, lokalno sudstvo je povremeno postupalo pristrasno i bilo pod spoljnim uticajima i nije u svim slučajevima obezbedilo pravičan postupak. Bilo je verodostojnih izveštaja o korupciji lokalnog sudstva i pravosuđe je bilo neefikasno.

Dana 24. marta, Veće opštinskog suda u Peći sastavljeno od trojice međunarodnih sudija proglasilo je bivšeg sudiju Ganija Kelmendija i kooptuženog Florima Zekaja krivim za iznudu. Florim Zekaj je takođe proglašen krivim za pokušaj ometanja pravnog postupka. Obojica su osuđeni na tri godine zatvora. Sud je takođe zabranio Kelmendiju da radi kao sudija pet godina nakon što mu istekne kazna. Kelmendi je bio sudija Opštinskog suda u Istoku.

Zakonodavna vlast pripada UNMIK-u prema Rezoluciji 1244 Saveta bezbednosti Ujedinjenih nacija. Policija i sudski organi UNMIK-a zadržali su izvršnu vlast u okviru pravosudnog sistema ali su sarađivali sa lokalnim sudijama i tužiocima; tokom godine UNMIK je preneo neke nadležnosti na Ministarstvo pravde, Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova i Pravosudni savet Kosova ustanovljen u decembru 2005. U opštinama sa većinskim srpskim stanovništvom vlada Srbije je nastavila da vodi nedozvoljeni paralelni pravosudni sistem.

Sudski sistem se sastoji od Vrhovnog suda, pet okružnih sudova uključujući trgovinski sud, 25 opštinskih sudova, 25 sudova za manje prekršaje i apelacionog suda za manje prekršaje. U oktobru je bilo 14 međunarodnih sudija koje je postavio UNMIK i 11 međunarodnih tužilaca. PISG uključuje centralnu kancelariju javnog tužioca, pet okružnih tužilaca i sedam opštinskih tužilaca.

Mada je po zakonu predviđeno da u teškim slučajevima sudi veće sastavljeno od pet sudija, od kojih su dva profesionalna a tri laika, po UNMIK-ovim propisima međunarodnim tužiocima je dozvoljeno da sude u predmetima osetljive etničke ili političke prirode, u šta spadaju postupci pred većem sastavljenim od trojice međunarodnih sudija. Od 101 aktivnog predmeta koji su tokom godine vodili međunarodni tužioci, međunarodne sudije su sudile u pet slučajeva a donete su četiri presude.

Jedinica UNMIKa za sudsku inspekciju (JIU) nadzirala je sudski rad i dala preporuke za disciplinske mere i obuku. Jedinica je nadležna da izvrši reviziju i evaluaciju kosovskog pravosudnog sistema, da preporuke Odeljenju za pravosuđe za rešavanje sistemskih problema, vodi istrage o navodima o sudijskim i tužilačkim zloupotrebama i iznosi takve slučajeve na disciplinskim raspravama pred Pravosudnim savetom Kosova. JIU je procesuirao ukupno 1.488 prijava od 2001. godine, uključujući 448 tokom godine. Od tih 448, JIU je odbacio 221 predmet a okončao 100 od 227 istraga koje je otvorio. U većini istraga (89), JIU nije otkrio zloupotrebe. Jedinica je šest predmeta prosledila Pravosudnom savetu, koji je do kraja godine raspravljao o tri, otpustio jednog sudiju a za trojicu preporučio disciplinske mere.

Izveštaj Organizacije za zaštitu ljudskih prava (HRW), iz maja 2006. o predmetima koji se odnose na martovske nerede 2004, kritikovao je lokalne i međunarodne vlasti jer nisu uspele da počinioce kazne za krivična dela. Izveštaj je ukazao na nedostatak uspešnog nadzora UNMIK-a nad sudstvom i neuspeh da adekvatno uspostavi i podrži vladavinu prava na Kosovu, nazivajući nekažnjivost, pogotovo za krivična dela koja imaju političku ili etničku dimenziju, „nekontrolisanom“.

Sudski postupci

Suđenja su javna a zakon optuženom omogućava da prisustvuje suđenju, suoči se sa svedocima, vidi dokaze i ima pravnog zastupnika, čije troškove, ukoliko je potrebno, snosi država; međutim, ovi postupci se retko koriste u praksi. Optuženi se smatra nevinim dok se ne dokaže suprotno i ima pravo žalbe. Suđenje se odvija pred većem koje se sastoji od laika i profesionalnih sudija; nema suđenja pred porotom.

Odeljenje UNMIK-a za sudski integritet bavilo se problemima pravosudnog sistema koji su se odnosili na manjine. Osim toga, Ministarstvo pravde je vodilo 11 kancelarija za vezu sa sudom, od kojih su dve osnovane tokom godine, s ciljem da se pomogne manjinskim zajednicama u područjima gde su Srbi većina tako što se s njima odlazi u sud, u njihovo ime se sudu podnose dokumenta, a izbeglicama i interno raseljenim licima se obezbeđuju informacije i pruža pravna pomoć. U odgovor na prethodne kritike pravnih eksperata i posmatrača za ljudska prava o nepravičnosti u suđenjima pripadnicima etničkih manjina, umesto kosovskih Albanaca, međunarodne sudije i tužioci sudili su i tužili po predmetima koji se odnose na kosovske Srbe.

KPS je osnovao specijalni istražni tim za predmete koji se tiču martovskih nereda 2004. Tim pokriva teritoriju Kosova i odgovoran je za pripremanje predmeta o istragama, koje su vođene u saradnji sa policijom UNMIK-a i međunarodnim tužiocima. Prema Pravosudnom savetu Kosova, do kraja godine je podneto 326 prijava opštinskim i okružnim tužiocima za krivične prestupe u vezi sa neredima koje su za posledicu imale 200 optužnica, 48 odbačenih prijava, 35 predmeta je prebačeno iz opštinskih u prekršajne sudove, a 43 predmeta je suspendovano, prekinuto ili na drugi način ostalo nerešeno. Od 200 optužnica, opštinski i okružni tužioci dobili su presude u 134 predmeta, a sudovi su oslobodili 8 a odbacili 28 slučajeva; 30 predmeta je krajem godine bilo nerešeno (vidi odeljak 1.a.). Međunarodni tužioci i sudije radili su na najosetljivijim predmetima. Od 31 predmeta na kojima su radili međunarodni tužioci i sudije, sud je osudio 26 lica a jedno oslobodio, dok su krajem godine četiri lica čekala na suđenje.

Sudski sistem Kosova i Međunarodni krivični tribunal za bivšu Jugoslaviju (ICTY) nastavili su sa identifikacijom i kažnjavanjem počinilaca ratnih zločina tokom sukoba 1999. godine; međutim, mnogi slučajevi su ostali nerešeni. Vrhovni sud nastavlja da postupa po žalbama na odluke lokalnih sudova u predmetima koji se odnose na ratne zlocine i genocid proisteklim iz sukoba 1999. Tužba za ratne zločine podignuta protiv bivšeg komandanta OVK (i bivšeg komandanta Kosovskog zaštitnog korpusa) Selimija Krasnićija krajem godine je završena (vidi odeljak 1.c).

Politički zatvorenici i pritvorenici

Tokom godine, nije bilo izveštaja da su KFOR, UNMIK, KPS ili PISG držali političke zatvorenike ili pritvorenike.

Građanski sudski postupci i pravni lekovi

U zemlji postoji nezavisno i nepristrasno sudstvo za građanska pitanja gde građani mogu pokrenuti spor kojim traže odštetu za kršenje ljudskih prava ili prekid kršenja tih prava. Pravni lek generalno podrazumeva novčane nadoknade.

Prema aprilskom izveštaju OEBS-a, mešanje opštinskih vlasti i UNMIK-ovog odeljenja za pravosuđe ometalo je nezavisnost pravosuđa u građanskim predmetima. OEBS je naveo slučajeve u kojima su opštinske vlasti otvoreno ometale sudske postupke, vršile pritisak na sudije u predmetima u kojima su nadležni bili stranka, i uticali na treću stranu da spreči sudove u izvršavanju dužnosti. OEBS je takođe izvestio da je odeljenje za pravosuđe instruiralo sudije da ne procesuiraju odštetne zahteve za imovinu koju su oštetili KFOR, UNMIK, ili opštine. Odeljenje za pravosuđe je tvrdilo da se nije bavilo takvim zahtevima jer su logistički problemi takvih zahteva nepremostivi. Takođe je tvrdilo da će priliv zahteva koji se tiču imovine ometati rad sudova, povećati već ionako veliki broj nagomilanih predmeta i zahtevati posebno planiranje i koordinaciju, pošto će se morati obezbediti bezbednosna pratnja velikom broju kosovskih Srba koji su podnosioci zahteva.

Nije bilo izveštaja o teškoćama u izvršavanju sudskih naloga koji su proistekli iz građanskih parnica. Međutim, prema jednom izveštaju, samo 14 procenata otvorenih predmeta koji bi uticali na građanski red bili su posledica građanskih sporova; 69 procenata takvih predmeta ticalo se naplate dugovanja komunalnih preduzeća.

Povratak imovine

PISG je u martu ustanovio Kosovsku agenciju za imovinu kao naslednika Direktorata UNMIK-a za stanovanje i imovinu. Dok se direktorat bavio samo stambenom imovinom, nova agencija je odgovorna za rešavanje stambenih, komercijalnih i poljoprivrednih imovinskih zahteva u vezi sa sukobom iz 1999. godine. Do kraja godine Kosovska agencija za imovinu primila je 7.891 zahtev: 6.991 za poljoprivrednu imovinu, 486 za komercijalnu imovinu i 506 za stambenu imovinu. Kosovski Srbi u severnom delu Mitrovice i dalje zauzimaju imovinu kosovskih Albanaca, dok su kosovski Albanci u južnom delu zauzeli i ne dozvoljavaju kosovskim Srbima pristup njihovoj imovini. Direktorat za stanovanje i imovinu je izvestio da je do 31. decembra rešio ukupno 29.159 zahteva, uključujući svih 1.250 imovinskih zahteva u severnoj Mitrovici, Leposaviću, Zubinom Potoku i Zvečanu. U više od polovine ovih predmeta, Kosovska agencija je rešila zahteve dozvoljavajući bespravnim stanarima da ostanu gde su uz dozvolu vlasnika i nadležnost direktorata nad imovinom.

Kosovska agencija za imovinu je bila nadležna za 5.340 poseda, od kojih je 3.497 imalo dozvolu podnosilaca zahteva o čijim pravima sudski odlučuje ili Kosovska agencija za imovinu ili bivši Direktorat za stanovanje i imovinu. Kosovska agencija za imovinu bila je nadležna za preostalih 1.843 poseda gde vlasništvo nije utvrđeno. U septembru je agencija započela prvu fazu programa za iznajmljivanje stambene imovine u njenoj nadležnosti, tako obezbeđujući mehanizam da raseljeni vlasnici dobiju nekakvu odštetu.

Broj zahteva u vezi sa imovinom nagomilan u opštinskim sudovima do kraja godine porastao je sa 17.000 na 47.000; ovo su gotovo isključivo novčani zahtevi etničkih Srba na ime odštete u vezi sa ratom. Studija koja je urađena na zahtev Evropske agencije za obnovu procenila je da je krajem 2005. godine na rešenje čekalo još 11.000 zahteva koji se odnose na poljoprivrednu i trgovinsku imovinu. Tokom godine nije bilo indikacija da se ovaj broj smanjio.

f. Proizvoljno ometanje privatnosti, porodice, doma i korespondencije

Propisi UNMIK-a i Ustavni okvir zabranjuju takve aktivnosti i UNMIK, KFOR i PISG su se u praksi generalno pridržavali ovih zabrana. Snage KFOR-a su pomagale civilnoj policiji UNMIK-a i KPS-u u obavljanju pretresa u slučajevima visoko rizičnih osumnjičenih osoba i samostalno su obavljali pretrese na privatnim posedima tražeći oružje bez naloga suda, na osnovu ovlašćenja mirovne misije po Rezoluciji 1244 Saveta bezbednosti Ujedinjenih nacija.

Odeljak 2 Poštovanje građanskih sloboda

a. Sloboda govora i štampe

Propisi UNMIK-a i Ustavni okvir predviđaju slobodu govora i štampe, i UNMIK, KFOR i PISG su generalno poštovali ova prava u praksi; međutim bilo je tvrdnji da je KPS ometao slobodu govora i štampe i sudovi nalagali konfiskaciju i prodaju imovine dnevnih listova zbog neplaćenih novčanih kazni, uključujući one zbog „neuravnoteženog izveštavanja“ o izborima 2004.

Propisi UNMIK-a zabranjuju govor mržnje i govor koji poziva na etničko nasilje, kao i novinske tekstove koji mogu ohrabriti kriminalne radnje ili nasilje.

Generalno, pojedinci mogu javno ili privatno kritikovati vlasti bez represalija.

Tokom godine broj dnevnih listova porastao je na 10, a do kraja godine objavljivano je devet. Dana 24. novembra, vlasti su zatvorile prištinski ogranak lista Bota Sot i njihovu štampariju jer nisu platili porez od 2000. godine. Tri časopisa su izlazila nedeljno i izveštavala o aktuelnim događajima, a desetine drugih periodičnih izdanja koja su uglavnom prenosila događaje zabavnog karaktera tokom godine su izlazili redovno ili neredovno.

Prema Udruženju profesionalnih novinara Kosova, usled finansijskih nevolja medijskih kuća, nezavisnost uredništva i novinarski profesionalizam bili su podložni spoljnim uticajima i pritiscima. Neke novine su bile finansijski nezavisne, a neke su radile zahvaljujući donacijama i tako uspele da razviju uredničku politiku nezavisnu od poslovnih i političkih interesa. Međutim, druge novine su se oslanjale na finansiranje poslovnih i političkih interesnih grupa, koje su im novac obezbeđivale u zamenu za pozitivno izveštavanje. Tokom godine nije bilo izveštaja da su PISG ili UNMIK vršili pritisak ili uticali na nezavisne štampane medije.

Štampani mediji se rukovode novinarskim kodeksom koji je usvojio Savet za štampu Kosova, organizacija koju čine novinski urednici i izdavači. Žalbena komisija saveta može da izrekne novčane kazne za kršenje kodeksa, uključujući kazne i do 2.620 dolara (2.000 evra) za teška kršenja kao što su govor mržnje i klevete. Tokom godine savet je presudio u 10 od 20 podnetih prijava, ali nije izrekao nijednu novčanu kaznu.

Nezavisni mediji, kojih ima 115 (93 radio i 22 televizijske stanice) bili su aktivni i iznosili široku paletu gledišta.

Međunarodnim medijima je bilo dozvoljen neometan rad.

Novinari su izvestili da su pritisci moćnih političara za posledicu imali indirektan oblik cenzure; uzdržavali su se od kritičkog istraživačkog izveštavanja iz straha za ličnu bezbednost. Novinarima su povremeno nuđene finansijske beneficije  u zamenu za pozitivno izveštavanje ili odustajanje od istraživanja. Prema rečima urednika, vladine agencije su povukle redovne reklame iz novina koje su objavile kritičke prikaze o njima.

Dana 20. januara, Skupština Kosova donela je zakon kojim je neposrednu nadležnost nad kosovskim popularnim javnim medijskim preduzećem Radio Televizijom Kosovo (RTK), koje je ranije nadzirao UNMIK, preuzela skupština. Dok je RTK ranije primao sredstva iz naplata Kosovske energetske korporacije, novi zakon je budžet RTK-a stavio pod direktnu kontrolu Ministarstva finansija, što je promena za koju posmatrači veruju da će ugroziti uredničku nezavisnost. RTK je izvestio da je često izložen pritiscima PISG-a. Novi zakon o RTK-u takođe propisuje regulisanje sadržaja programa RTK-a i nalaže da najmanje 15 procenata programskog vremena RTK-a, uključujući udarne termine, bude proporcionalno posvećeno nevećinskim zajednicama na njihovim jezicima.

Dana 29. avgusta, Komisija za nezavisne medije ustanovljena je umesto privremenog komesara UNMIK-a za medije. Komisija je stalno telo koje nadzire sedmočlani upravni savet u kojem su dva međunarodna člana. Komisija je primenila propise UNMIK-a i kodeks ponašanja koji se odnosi na radiodifuzne medije.

Tokom godine bilo je nekoliko incidenata nasilja i uznemiravanja usmerenih protiv medija.

Dana 18. jula, čuvar u listu Bota Sot primetio je ručnu granatu na pločniku u blizini prostorija lista. Policija je reagovala a KFOR-ova jedinica za uklanjanje mina obavila je kontrolisanu eksploziju naprave.

RTK je tokom godine dobijao pretnje bombama,pretnje putem telefona i elektronskom poštom. Početkom godine, stanica je dobila izvestan broj pretnji od osobe koja ju optužila da je glasnik UNMIK-a i da „radi za Srbe“. Dana 17. marta, RTK je primio imejl od organizacije koja sebe naziva „Meteoras“, koja je pretila da će bombom razneti RTK u 3 sata po podne narednog dana. U imejlu se od RTK-a tražilo da u to vreme evakuiše zgradu. Ispostavilo se da je pretnja bila lažna.

Dana 23. avgusta, RTK je primio pretnju imejlom od grupe koja sebe naziva "Islamski džihad“, u vezi sa danskim karikaturama na kojima je prikazan prorok Muhamed a koje je RTK objavio nekoliko mesece ranije.

Dana 14. septembra, pripadnik KPS-a navodno je napao novinara Enisa Veliua iz dnevnika Lajm Ekskluziva u zgradi kosovske skupštine. Podneta prijava odbačena je kao neosnovana.

Dana 15. oktobra, dva muškarca su fizički napala novinara Bujara Deskua iz dnevnika Lajm Ekskluziva zbog njegovog izveštavanja o nezakonitoj izgradnji antene mobilne telefonije Mobtel u selu pored Prištine a zatim mu i pretili telefonom. U septembru je novinar Burim Ćela iz Infopresa telefonom primio pretnje smrću zato što je izveštavao o istom pitanju.

Dana 13. januara, KPS i novinari održali su javnu raspravu o nasilju nad novinarima. Fatos Bitići, predsednik Udruženja profesionalnih novinara Kosova rekao je da, mada nasilje, koje je u porastu, izgleda nije bilo pitanje politike, policijski komesar nije učinio dovoljno da ga spreči. Posle te debate, novinari su povremeno dolazili u sukob s KPS-om, ali od oktobra su samo tri takva incidenta prijavljena udruženju, u poređenju sa 16 u istom periodu 2005.

Nije bilo pomaka u istrazi o ubistvu Bardhila Ajetija, urednika lista Bota Sot, koje je izvršeno juna 2005. Krajem godine KPS je još vodio istragu.

U septembru je u internoj istrazi Jedinice KPS-a za profesionalne standarde pripadnik KPS-a oslobođen optužbi za navodnu umešanost u napad na novinare RTK-a Behdžeta Begua i Bardha Bektešija koji se dogodio marta 2005. Njih dvojica su navodno parkirali automobil u zoni bolnice/hitne pomoći na opštinskom posedu u Vučitrnu gde je parkiranje zabranjeno.

Prema zakonskim propisima o izborima, za vreme političke kampanje mediji moraju obezbediti pravično i nepristrasno izveštavanje i razgovore i debate za sve stranke, izveštavanje o kampanjama mora biti pravično i nepristrasno, a u debatama moraju učestvovati gosti različitih političkih mišljenja i publika kao i nepristrasni moderatori. Međunarodni sudija je u aprilu  naredio konfiskaciju imovine lista Bota Sot te da se proda kako bi se platilo 85.150 dolara (65.000 evra) na ime novčane kazne koju je sud odredio u decembru 2005. zbog neuravnoteženog izveštavanja o izborima decembra 2004. i 10.480 dolara (8.000 evra) na ime novčane kazne zbog netačnog izveštavanja februara 2005. Iznos od 68.120 dolara (52.000 evra) koji Bota Sot ima na računu u banci blokiran je do naplate novčane kazne.

Dana 24. novembra, poreska uprava Kosova zatvorila je Bota Sot navodno zbog neplaćenog poreza u iznosu od 524.000 dolara (400.000 evra); zakon dozvoljava poreskoj upravi da konfiskuje i proda imovinu lista nakon 60 dana. Krajem godine imovina nije oduzeta ali list nije radio.

Slobodan pristup internetu

UNMIK, KFOR i PISG nisu ograničavali upotrebu interneta niti je bilo izveštaja da je vlada kontrolisala elektronsku poštu ili internet komunikaciju. Pojedinci i grupe mogli su da mirno izražavaju svoje stavove preko interneta, uključujući i elektronsku poštu.

Po jednoj anketi u novembru, 19 procenata žitelja Kosova internet koristi svakodnevno.

Akademske slobode i kulturni događaji

UNMIK, KFOR i PISG nisu ograničavali akademske slobode niti kulturne događaje.

b. Sloboda mirnog okupljanja i udruživanja

Sloboda okupljanja

Propisi UNMIK-a i Ustavni okvir predviđaju slobodu okupljanja i u praksi UNMIK, KFOR i PISG generalno poštuju ovo pravo. Propisi UNMIK-a nalažu da organizatori prijave demonstracije 48 sati ranije radi policijske koordinacije.

Prema izveštajima medija, KPS je koristio silu da razbije demonstracije i batinao demonstratore pri hapšenju u najmanje četiri prilike tokom godine (vidi odeljak 1.c.).

Sloboda udruživanja

Propisi UNMIK-a i Ustavni okvir predviđaju slobodu udruživanja i u praksi UNMIK, KFOR i PISG generalno poštuju ovo pravo.

Misija OEBS-a na Kosovu rutinski registruje političke stranke pod pokroviteljstvom UNMIK-a a Ministarstvo javnih službi registruje  nevladine organizacije.

c. Sloboda veroispovesti

Propisi UNMIK-a i Ustavni okvir predviđaju slobodu veroispovesti i u praksi UNMIK i PISG generalno poštuju ovo pravo.

Nema nekih posebnih propisa u vezi sa odobravanjem dozvola za verske grupe; međutim, da bi mogle kupiti imovinu ili dobiti finansijsku pomoć od UNMIK-a ili nekih drugih međunarodnih organizacija, verske organizacije se moraju registrovati pri UNMIK-u kao nevladine organizacije. Verske grupe su se žalile da status nevladine organizacije ne odražava adekvatno njihov verski karakter, a Protestantska evangelistička crkva odbila je da se registruje kao nevladina organizacija.

U julu je skupština donela zakon o verskim slobodama, koji je SRSG proglasio u avgustu. Zakon afirmiše pravo na slobodu izražavanja, savesti i religije svim stanovnicima Kosova bez obzira na njihovo versko ubeđenje i obezbeđuje razdvajanje verskih zajednica od javnih organa i jednaka prava i obaveze svim verskim zajednicama, i kaže da na Kosovu ne postoji zvanična religija.

Verska i etnička pripadnost su tesno povezani. Kosovski Srbi se poistovećuju sa Srpskom pravoslavnom crkvom, koja ima uticaj na njihova kulturna, istorijska, politička i verska gledišta (vidi odeljak 5). Mada značajan deo albanske etničke zajednice i dalje smatra Srpsku pravoslavnu crkvu simbolom srpskog nacionalizma, odnosi između lidera kosovske albanske zajednice i Srpske pravoslavne crkve poboljšani su tokom godine pošto su se zvaničnici PISG-a i političke ličnosti u nekoliko navrata susreli sa sveštenstvom ove crkve. U maju su zvaničnici centralne i lokalnih vlada učestvovali u međuverskoj konferenciji koja se smatra prekretnicom a koja je održana u srpskoj pravoslavnoj patrijaršiji u Peći.

U skladu sa zakonom iz 2002. po kojem državne obrazovne ustanove treba da se uzdrže od verskih uputstava ili drugih aktivnosti koje promovišu ijednu određenu religiju, Ministarstvo obrazovanja je zabranilo nošenje marama. Ministarstvo je nastavilo da primenjuje ovu zabranu, posebno u školama koje propisuju uniformu, uprkos mišljenju ombudsmana iz 2004. da bi taj propis trebalo primenjivati samo na nastavno i drugo osoblje škole a ne i na učenike. Nakon intervencije ombudsmana, učenica osnovne škole izbačena sa časa u aprilu 2005. zbog nošenja vela, završila je dopisnu školu i tokom godina dobila diplomu.

Kancelarija ombudsmana je izvestila da nije primila nove žalbe o kršenju verskih prava tokom godine. Jedan učenik je Kancelariji ombudsmana uložio žalbu navodeći da je iz škole izbačen zato što ima bradu; zvaničnici škole su Kancelariji ombudsmana objasnili da učenik nije izbačen već da mu je zabranjeno da prisustvuje časovima dok ima bradu.

Protestanti još prijavljuju diskriminaciju u pristupu medijima, posebno kad je reč o Radio Televiziji Kosovo (RTK). Protestantska evangelistička crkva na Kosovu, Zajednica Božjih ljudi, takođe je prijavila da im Opština Dečani nije dala dozvolu za izgradnju crkvenog objekta na zemljištu koje su kupili, navodeći negativnu reakciju lokalnog stanovništva. Crkva je izvestila da je Ministarstvo za životnu sredinu i prostorno planiranje podržalo odluku, a krajem godine predmet je bio pred Vrhovnim sudom Kosova.

Islamska zajednica je nastavila da tvrdi da su UNMIK-ovo odbijanje da dodeli radio frekvenciju za islamsku radio stanicu i zatvaranje prostorije za molitvu u Nacionalnoj biblioteci primeri pomanjkanja verskih sloboda.

Društvene zloupotrebe i diskriminacija

Tokom godine bilo je više izveštaja o napadima na srpsko pravoslavno sveštenstvo i parohijane i o vandalskim napadima na srpske pravoslavne crkve i crkvenu imovinu. Tokom godine je Komisija za zajedničku obnovu, sastavljena od PISG-a, Srpske pravoslavne crkve i međunarodnih agencija, nastavila je s napretkom u obnavljanju crkava oštećenih ili uništenih za vreme martovskih nereda 2004.

Dana 6. maja, nepoznati napadači pucali su na automobil koji je vozio srpski pravoslavni sveštenik Srđan Stanković u zvečanskoj opštini. UNMIK je podneo prijavu protiv pripadnika KPS-a, kosovskog Srbina, u vezi sa ovim incidentom. Predmet je predat međunarodnom tužiocu i nije okončan do kraja godine.

Bilo je izveštaja o incidentima kao što su kamenovanje i drugi napadi na srpske autobuse i srpsko pravoslavno sveštenstvo dok su putovali izvan manastira, a monasi i monahinje u nekim manastirima navodno nisu koristili delove manastirskog poseda u strahu za ličnu bezbednost.

Bezbednosni problemi i dalje pogađaju srpsku zajednicu i, takođe, verske slobode, pogotovo posle martovskih nemira 2004. Neki kosovski Srbi su tvrdili da nisu mogli da putuju slobodno kako bi upražnjavali verske običaje. Na primer, na bogosluženja u manastir Dečani dolazi manje vernika otkako je KFOR prestao da prati parohijane koji nisu sveštena lica do verskih objekata u aprilu 2005. Kad putuju po Kosovu, sveštenička vozila su meta kamenovanja.

Tokom godina bilo je brojnih slučajeva vandalskih napada na imovinu Srpske pravoslavne crkve. Na primer, 15. marta je oštećeno šest nadgrobnih spomenika na srpskom pravoslavnom groblju i razbijen prozor na crkvi u opštini Uroševac. Tri kosovska Albanca tinejdžera priznali su da su oni počinioci. Pošto su maloletni, optuženi su po zakonu za maloletnike, koji dozvoljava zatvorsku kaznu za maloletnike jedino ukoliko je za krivično delo koje počine zaprećena kazna od pet ili više godina zatvora po krivičnom zakoniku. Pošto je za krivično delo za koje su optuženi – oštećenje grobova – zaprećena kazna do jedne godine zatvora, tužilac je tražio da se optuženima izrekne edukativna mera što zakon za maloletnike dozvoljava. Dvojica optuženih su proveli 15 dana u pritvoru pre suđenja; krajem godine su sva trojica čekali na suđenje.

Dana 9. juna, otkrivena je nagazna mina na srpskom pravoslavnom groblju u selu Staro Gracko sa većinskim srpskim stanovništvom, u opštini Lipljan. Dana 20. juna, crkveni zvaničnici su prijavili nestanak četiri krsta s krova srpske pravoslavne crkve u Obiliću. Uhapšena su tri maloletnika a krstovi vraćeni. Dana 6. avgusta, lopovi su provalili u srpsku pravoslavnu crkvu u Babinom Mostu, u opštini Obilić, ukrali nekoliko ikona i oštetili unutrašnjost crkve. Nijedan osumnjičeni nije priveden.

U julu 2005. jedan muškarac je u Dečanima napao sveštenika Crkve skupštine Božje Protestantske evangelističke crkve Kosova. Svešteniku su povrede zbrinute hirurškim putem. Napadač je uhapšen, kažnjen novčano u iznosu oko 400 dolara (300 evra), i pušten. Protestanti su prijavili da je napad, koji se dogodio u prisustvu pripadnika KPS-a, možda motivisan sporom zbog zemljišta u posedu crkve na kojem protestantima nije dozvoljena gradnja.

Protestanti su prijavili da su bili žrtve uznemiravanja i diskriminacije, uključujući verbalne napade i slučajeve da školski zvaničnici pozivaju roditelje učenika kako bi decu nagovorili da ne budu protestanti. Takođe su prijavili da se u julu 2005. stanovništvo opštine Mališevo, koje je podstakla Islamska zajednica, žestoko usprotivilo prikazivanju filma „Isus“ iako su protestanti dobili dozvolu od opštine, KPS-a i seoskog rukovodstva da film prikažu. KPS je uhapsio 20 demonstranata, od kojih su neki bili naoružani, te odveo pripadnike crkve na sigurno.

Oko 40 osoba iz dve porodice u Prizrenu poreklom su Jevreji, ali na Kosovu ne postoje sinagoge niti jevrejske institucije izuzev malog groblja u Prištini. Nije bilo izveštaja o ispoljavanju antisemitizma.

Više pojedinosti videti u Međunarodnom izveštaju o slobodi veroispovesti za 2006.

d. Sloboda kretanja, putovanja u inostranstvo, iseljavanje i repatrijacija

Propisi UNMIK-a i Ustavni okvir predviđaju slobodu kretanja; međutim, međuetničke tenzije i objektivni i subjektivni bezbednosni problemi ograničili su slobodu kretanja. Tokom godine, UNMIK, KFOR, i PISG su generalno poboljšali ova prava za manjinske zajednice.

Sporadični slučajevi nasilja i zastrašivanja usmereni na manjine i dalje su ograničavali kretanje kosovskih Albanaca na severu Kosova. PISG i UNMIK su povećali napore da olakšaju putovanje pripadnika manjinskih zajednica po celom Kosovu, ali su objektivni i subjektivni rizici odvratili mnoge pripadnike manjina od putovanja izvan njihovih oblasti.

Tokom godine je bilo brojnih napada na autobuse u kojima su bili Srbi i pripadnici drugih manjinskih zajednica. Na primer, 3. januara u Mališevu je kamenovan autobus, u pratnji KPS-a, koji jednom u dve nedelje prevozi Srbe iz Orahovca. Dana 5. januara, na autobus iz Dragaša za Beograd ispaljena je granata. Autobuse sa srpskim povratnicima iz Kline i Istoka koji su išli u Mitrovicu u nekoliko narata su kamenovali kosovski albanski mladići u Rudniku, u opštini Srbica. Dana 30. avgusta, vozač autobusa je prijavio da je grupa kosovskih Albanaca kamenovala autobus dok je prevozio decu kosovskih Srba kroz južni deo Mitrovice i razbila jedan prozor. Kamenovanje autobusa takođe je prijavljeno 26. oktobra u Rudniku i 20. novembra u Obiliću. Nije bilo izveštaja o povređenima u ovim incidentima.

Da bi se umanjili rizici od napada pomoću jednakog označavanja vozila etničkih Srba i etničkih Albanaca, UNMIK je nastavio da nudi kosovske registarske tablice etničkim Srbima koji su svoja vozila već registrovali u Srbiji. Međutim, kosovski Srbi nisu bili voljni da koriste tablice koje izdaje UNMIK jer tako ne mogu da putuju u Srbiju koja ne priznaje UNMIK-ove tablice.

Takođe je bilo incidenata u kojima je meta bila infrastruktura koju koriste manjine. Dana 2. juna, eksploziv je pronađen ispod mosta koji spaja dva sela u kojima žive Srbi povratnici u opštini Klina. Dana 8. decembra, zbog eksplozije na pruzi u selu Mijalić, u opštini Vučitrn, privremeno je obustavljen železnički saobraćaj između srpskih zajednica u južnom Kosovu i područja severno od Ibra. U oba ova incidente nije bilo osumnjičenih.

Dana 11. septembra, u opštini Klina u eksploziji je uništena nedavno obnovljena ali još neuseljiva kuća jednog Srbina povratnika i oštećena još jedna kuća u blizini. Počinioci nisu uhvaćeni.

Dana 31. avgusta, UNMIK i Ministarstvo saobraćaja i komunikacija potpisali su sporazum kojim se reguliše prenošenje nadležnosti za obezbeđivanje humanitarnih železničkih i autobuskih usluga za manjinske zajednice na Kosovu, nakon čega je Ministarstvo preuzelo autobuse. Strategija javnog saobraćaja kao dela prenosa nadležnosti omogućila je direktno učešće pogođenih zajednica u odlučivanju o promenama koje se odnose na humanitarne transportne službe.

UNMIK je regulisao kretanje iz Kosova i na Kosovo. Propisi UNMIK-a predviđaju da centralni matični ured izdaje putna dokumenta svakom licu koje ima stalni boravak na Kosovu, i matični ured takva dokumenta u praksi rutinski izdaje. Upravne i operativne nadležnosti matičnog ureda ima PISG, ali je UNMIK zadržao sveukupnu nadležnost, u šta spada izdavanje UNMIK-ovih putnih dokumenata i bezbednost centralne baze podataka.

Zakon zabranjuje nasilno proterivanje i vlasti ga nisu primenjivale.

Interno raseljena lica

Prema podacima Kancelarije Visokog komesara za izbeglice Ujedinjenih nacija (UNHCR), od sukoba 1999. godine, otprilike 207.000 osoba bilo je raseljeno na području Srbije a 16.500 na području Crne Gore, dok je i dalje raseljeno oko 1.300 od 4.100 lica koja su proterana iz svojih kuća u neredima marta 2004. godine. Unutar Kosova raseljeno je 19.500 lica od kojih su skoro polovina kosovski Albanci. Tokom godine, vratio se mali broj interno raseljenih lica zbog nesigurnosti u pogledu budućeg političkog statusa Kosova, nemogućnosti zapošljavanja, bezbednosnih problema i imovinskih sporova. Mada su neke međunarodne agencije, nevladine organizacije i PISG nastavili da organizuju projekte za povratak malih razmera, posmatrači su kritikovali novostvoreno Ministarstvo PISG-a za zajednice i povratak zbog internih nepravilnosti i kašnjenja PISG-a u finansiranju projekata za povratak. Usred ovih kritika i istraga, ministar za povratak Slaviša Petković dao je ostavku neposredno pred kraj godine. Izuzev uspeha u Klini i Istoku, opštine su zaposlile osoblje i napravile opštinske strategije za povratak bez značajnih rezultata. Dana 3. avgusta, Opština Peć je odlučila da ne obnovi nijednu kuću na svojoj teritoriji bez izjave raseljenog vlasnika kojom potvrđuje spremnost i nameru da se vrati.

Dana 6. juna, vlade Kosova i Srbije potpisale su protokol o saradnji na povratku raseljenih lica na Kosovo, uključujući mesta koja nisu primarno boravište povratnika. Krajem godine i dalje su vođene rasprave o primeni ovog sporazuma.

Krajem decembra, UNHCR je izvestio da se tokom godine na Kosovo vratilo 1.608 pripadnika manjina, uključujući etničke Albance koji su se vratili u područja gde predstavljaju manjinsko stanovništvo. Od 2000. do kraja godine na koju se ovaj izveštaj odnosi ukupno se vratilo 16.117 lica. U odnosu na 2005. godinu, vratio se nešto manji broj etničkih Srba, a više Roma, Aškalija, Bošnjaka i Goranaca. Etnički Srbi čine otprilike 31 procenat povratnika ove godine, u poređenju sa 35 posto koliko ih je bilo 2005. Romi (uključujući Aškalije i Egipćane) nastavili su da se vraćaju u nešto većem broju, i predstavljaju 54 procenta ukupnog broja povratnika. U Mitrovici etnički Srbi u severnom delu grada i etnički Albanci u južnom delu grada i dalje jedni drugima bespravno koriste imovinu i ometaju potencijalne povratnike.

Do kraja godine PISG je obnovio više od 97 procenata kuća uništenih ili oštećenih u martovskim neredima 2004. godine. Dana 15. decembra, na primer, u Svinjarima su popravke i obnova završene. Međutim, većina osoba raseljenih zbog nereda nije se vratila i zbog objektivnih i zbog subjektivnih bezbednosnih problema, nezaposlenosti i žalbi stanovnika na kvalitet rekonstrukcije. Perspektiva za povratnike je bila različita u zavisnosti od područja i etničke grupe.

Kamp Osterode, objekat za preseljenje na severnom Kosovu, napravljen za smeštaj oko 531 interno raseljenih Roma, Aškalija i Egipćana, otvoren je u martu, i 114 domaćinstava, odnosno 454 osobe su se tokom godine tamo preselile iz olovom zagađenih kampova. U zagađenom kampu Česmin lug ostalo je 41 domaćinstvo, odnosno 172 lica koja su odbila da se presele. Sve osobe iz kampova Kablarske barake i Žitkovac preselile su se u Osterode, a sve postojeće strukture u ova dva kampa uništene su kako bi se sprečio povratak u olovom zagađena područja. Dana 30. avgusta, Svetska zdravstvena organizacija (WHO) započela je lečenje dece preseljenih Roma, Aškalija i Egipćana zbog trovanja olovom u kampu.

Tokom 2005, UNMIK je započeo istovremenu donatorsku kampanju za ponovnu izgradnju originalnog romskog naselja u južnom delu Mitrovice koje su 1999. uništili kosovski Albanci. U februaru je Evropski centar za prava Roma podneo peticiju Evropskom sudu za ljudska prava (ECHR) u Strazburu navodeći kršenja romskih prava i tražeći da se odmah preduzmu radnje kako bi se Romi uklonili iz olovom zagađenih kampova i obezbedilo lečenje. ECHR je peticiju odbacio.

Ograničena novčana sredstva usporila su projekat povratka, ali je obnova stanova započela u maju. Do kraja godine, dve stambene zgrade sa ukupno 24 stana završene su a započeta je izgradnja još dve. Još 36 kuća (54 stambene jedinice) takođe su skoro gotove. Odbor za selekciju budućih stanara 48 stanova dobio je 93 prijave – 31 iz Srbije, 27 iz kampa Osterode, 18 iz opštine Leposavić, 13 iz Crne Gore, dve iz kampa Česmin lug i dve sa privatnih lokacija u Mitrovici. Odbor je napravio izbor stanara. Krajem godine, 48 izabranih predstavnika domaćinstava čekalo je da potpiše ugovor o iznajmljivanju na 99 godina, koji je bio na reviziji i odobrenju u kancelariji pravnog savetnika UNMIK-a.

Zaštita izbeglica

Kosovo nije potpisnik Konvencije Ujedinjenih nacija iz 1951. koja se odnosi na Status izbeglica i protokol iz 1967. Međutim, Kosovo je davalo azil i izbeglicki status po UNMIK-ovim propisima o kretanju lica iz Kosova i na Kosovo, čije su odredbe u skladu sa Konvencijom i Protokolom. U toku godine UNMIK je status izbeglica dao dvema osobama.

U praksi, UNMIK je pružao zaštitu od ponovnog proterivanja, tj. vraćanja osoba u zemlju u kojoj strahuju od progona. UNMIK je sarađivao sa Kancelarijom visokog komesara za izbeglice Ujedinjenih nacija i drugim humanitarnim organizacijama u pružanju pomoći izbeglicama.

Odeljak 3 Poštovanje političkih prava: Pravo građana da promene vladu

Propisi UNMIK-a i Ustavni okvir predviđaju pravo stanovnika da mirnim putem promene vladu i oni su to pravo u praksi koristili na periodičnim i generalno slobodnim i fer izborima zasnovanim na opštem pravu glasa.

Kosovo je i dalje pod civilnom upravom UNMIK-a. UNMIK i njegov glavni administrator, specijalni predstavnik generalnog sekretara (SRSG), uspostavili su međunarodnu civilnu vlast 1999. godine po završetku vojne intervencije NATO-a koja je srpske snage naterala na povlačenje. UNMIK je 2001. proglasio Ustavni okvir za PISG. Prema Ustavnom okviru, Skupština Kosova, koja broji 120 članova, bira predsednika, premijera i druge ministre i zvaničnike PISG-a. Kosovski lideri nastavili su da kritikuju UNMIK zbog sporosti u prenošenju nadležnosti na PISG, a UNMIK je zadržao veliki broj nadležnosti, uključujući bezbednost i odnose sa inostranstvom. Oktobra 2005, u izveštaju UN-a se navodi da bez jasnog budućeg političkog statusa, PISG ne može da preduzme dalje korake i poboljša svoju efikasnost.

Izbori i političko učešće

Međunarodni i domaći posmatrači su ustanovili da su skupštinski izbori oktobra 2004. generalno odražavali volju birača, mada je učestvovalo manje od 5 posto etničkih Srba, uglavnom zbog pritisaka srpske vlade da ne glasaju. Dana 16. juna, SRSG je odložio opštinske izbore predviđene za novembar i to ili za juni 2007 ili šest meseci nakon odluke o konačnom statusu Kosova, šta god od toga bude ranije.

Kosovo ima višestranački sistem kojim dominiraju četiri kosovske albanske stranke i nekoliko manjinskih stranaka i koalicija.

Po propisima UNMIK-a, pojedinci se mogu kandidovati u okviru svojih stranaka, koje moraju održati otvorene i transparentne interne izbore da bi se napravila lista kandidata. Za razliku od konvencije 2004, najveća stranka i većinski partner u vladajućoj koaliciji, LDK, poštovala je ovaj zahtev izabravši novog predsednika 9. decembra na stranačkoj konvenciji. Stranačka pripadnost je imala značajnu ulogu u pristupu državnim službama, dobijanju pozicija u službi i za društvenu afirmaciju. Tradicionalne društvene veze i plemenska lojalnost takođe su igrali veliku, mada nezvaničnu ulogu u političkim organizacijama.

Bilo je brojnih izveštaja o politički motivisanim napadima i pretnjama etničkim albanskim političkim i društvenim ličnostima tokom godine.

U januaru je nepoznato lice napalo Ismajla Nazifija, člana predsedništva ogranka LDK-a u Uroševcu, ključnog svedoka Faika Grainca predsednika Skupštine Opštine Uroševac u njegovoj tužbi protiv bivšeg potpredsednika vlade Adema Salihaja. Istraga KPS-a krajem godine bila je u toku.

Dana 24. jula, kosovski dnevni list je objavio pretnju kosovskom pregovaračkom timu koju je uputila samozvana „Karadaku brigada“, upozoravajući „da bi potpisivanje aktuelnog plana o decentralizaciji bilo fatalan čin koji bi uradili protiv sebe i interesa svog naroda“. Istraga KPS-a bila je u toku krajem godine.

Dana 15. septembra je u Gnjilanu eksplodirala bomba blizu stana kosovskog ministra unutrašnjih poslova Fatmira Redžepija i uništila kola njegove supruge. Krajem godine istraga je bila u toku.

Za četiri meseca koja su prethodila internim stranačkim izborima LDK-a koji su održani u decembru, bilo je 10 eksplozija od kojih je većina bila usmerene na politički relevantne mete. Prijavljena je oštećena imovina ali nije bilo povređenih. Na stranačkoj konvenciji 9. decembra, nekoliko osoba zadobilo je lakše povrede u tuči pristalica predsednika Sejdiua i pristalica Nedžata Dacija.

U Skupštini ima sto dvadeset poslanika od čega su trideset šest žene. Ženama mora pripasti svako treće mesto na listi kandidata svake političke stranke. Žena nije bilo u osmočlanom u rukovodećem skupštinskom telu, dok je na mestu ministra i zamenika ministra radila samo po jedna žena. Žene predstavljaju 28 procenata izabranih opštinskih predstavnika. U septembru 2005, trideset četiri članice Skupštine osnovale su neformalni kokus sa osmočlanim multietničkim odborom.

U Skupštini od sto dvadeset poslanika, bilo je dvadeset dva pripadnika etničkih manjina, od kojih deset kosovskih Srba i dvanaest članova drugih grupa, uključujući etničke Turke, Bošnjake, Gorance, Rome, Aškalije i Egipćane. U PISG-u su na ministarskim mestima bila dva pripadnika manjina, jedan kosovski Srbin i jedan Bošnjak, a na mestima zamenika ministara – tri pripadnika manjina. Mesto predviđeno za jednog etničkog Srbina ostalo je prazno jer je određena srpska stranka odbila da preuzme poziciju. Jedan Bošnjak i jedan etnički Turčin su se smenjivali na mestu u Predsedništvu Skupštine Kosova; osam mesta predviđenih za kosovske Srbe ostalo je prazno zbog bojkota jedne od stranaka kosovskih Srba. Na kraju godine, kosovski Srbi u najvećoj političkoj stranci kosovskih Srba nisu tražili položaje u kabinetu koji su im namenjeni nastavljajući da bojkotuju glasanje u Skupštini, mada su učestvovali u radu odbora; članovi Srpske demokratske stranke Slaviše Petkovića preuzeli su dva predviđena mesta i vodili Ministarstvo za povratak. Po Ustavnom okviru, deset poslaničkih mesta mora biti rezervisano za kosovske Srbe, a deset za druge etničke manjine na Kosovu, ali na opštinskom nivou , gde takve odredbe ne postoje, manjine su nedovoljno zastupljene.

Vlada – korupcija i transparentnost

U javnosti je uvreženo mišljenje da korupcija postoji i u PISG-u i u UNMIK-u. Nedostatak efikasnog sudskog nadzora i generalna slabost u vladavini prava doprineli su korupciji u PISG-u. U okviru svojih nadležnosti UNMIK je nastavio da donosi odluke u mnogim osetljivim predmetima koji se tiču korupcije i međuverskih zločina. Tokom godine 24 lica uhapšena su a jedno osuđeno zbog korupcije.

Dana 28. februara, nepoznata lica napala su nezavisnu međunarodnu generalnu revizorku nanoseći joj posekotine i modrice dva meseca nakon što je došla na Kosovo i samo dva dana posle objavljivanja kritičkog revizorskog izveštaja o prištinskoj opštini. Istraga KPS-a bila je u toku krajem godine.

Posle preuizmanja dužnosti u martu, premijer Agim Čeku tražio je da nezavisni međunarodni revizor obavi reviziju svih ministarstava i opština. Do kraja godine, generalni revizor je objavio izveštaje za pet opština i izveštaje o rukovođenjem imovinom u šest ministarstava, od kojih je većina kritikovala državnu upravu, fiskalnu praksu i način nabavke. U oktobru je posle optužbi za korupciju i u skladu sa nalogom za pretres koji je izdao međunarodni sudija, obavljen pretres Ministarstva za zajednice i povratak. U novembru je premijer Čeku otpustio ministra Slavišu Petkovića, kosovskog Srbina, a tužioci su krajem godine nastavili da razmatraju izveštaje.

Dana 24. juna, Jedinica KPS-a za finansijski kriminal i korupciju u Prištini uhapsila je Ahmeta Ališanija, višeg savetnika bivšeg predsednika skupštine Nedžata Dacija, pod sumnjom za prevaru i podmićivanje. Ališani je pušten pa ponovo uhapšen u novembru u vezi sa revizijom Skupštine Kosova.

Tokom godine predsednik Skupštine Kosova Kole Beriša naložio je reviziju uprave skupštine pod njegovim prethodnikom Nedžatom Dacijem. U izveštaju o reviziji, koji je predstavljen poslanicima 6. oktobra, navode se mnoge nezakonitosti i nepravilnosti u radu skupštinske uprave, zloupotreba državnih fondova i nepravilnosti u nabavci za vreme Dacijevog mandata na mestu predsednika skupštine. U oktobru je Beriša suspendovao četiri zaposlena a 3. novembra je skupština formirala istražni odbor. Istraga odbora je krajem godine još trajala. Do kraja godine, troje osumnjičenih je uhapšeno, uključujući dva skupštinska zvaničnika, a nastavljena je krivična istraga koju vodi Odeljenje UNMIK-a za pravosuđe. Protiv Dacija nije podneta prijava.

Dana 3. novembra, međunarodni tužilac je podigao optužnicu protiv direktora Pošte i telekomunikacija Kosova Leme Džema, bivšeg direktora odseka Kosovske poverilačke agencije Rodžera Renoldsa, bivšeg direktora Norway Invest Mustafe Nezirija i bivšeg direktora i predsednika Norway Invest Ronena Sorensena, u vezi sa navodnom zloupotrebom 390.000 dolara (300.000 evra).

Dana 29. novembra, dva finansijska službenika u zatvoru u Dubravi uhapšeni su pod optužbom da su zloupotrebili službeni položaj i falsifikovali dokumenta. Pušteni su pod uslovom da ne stupaju u kontakt sa svedocima u ovom predmetu ni sa službenicima računovodstva zatvora u Dubravi. Jedan član međunarodnog osoblja koji je napustio misiju takođe je bio pod istragom. Istraga do kraja godine nije završena.

Ni po jednom zakonu nije dozvoljen pristup zvaničnim dokumentima UNMIK-a. UNMIK je 2003. proglasio zakon o dostupnosti zvaničnih dokumenata PISG-a ali zakon ne uključuje kazne ukoliko se ne poštuje, a u praksi su institucije PISG-a retko dozvoljavale pristup tokom godine. Institucije čak nisu odgovorile na gotovo 85 procenata zahteva dostavljenih u toku godine, prema studiji Inicijative mladih za ljudska prava, a kad i jesu, najčešće su odgovarale tako što su odbijale da pruže tražena dokumenta. Štaviše, odgovor na srpskom , kako zakon nalaže, dat je samo na šest od 318 zahteva na srpskom jeziku. Mada je većina odgovora data u propisanom roku od 15 dana, novinari su se žalili da rok od 15 dana zapravo znači da nikad neće dobiti dokumenta na vreme kako bi sami predali tekstove u roku neophodnom za objavljivanje.

Odeljak 4 Stav vlade o istragama međunarodnih i nevladinih organizacija o navodnim slučajevima kršenja ljudskih prava

Široka paleta domaćih i međunarodnih grupa koje se bave ljudskim pravima generalno je radila bez ograničenja, vodila istrage i objavljivala svoja saznanja o slučajevima u vezi sa ljudskim pravima. UNMIK, KFOR i PISG su povremeno sarađivali i reagovali na njihove stavove.

Vlasti nisu dozvoljavale nevladinim organizacijama uvid u državna dokumenta (vidi odeljak 3) a jednoj nevladinoj organizaciji, koja je ranije posećivala zatvore i izveštavala o uslovima u njima, zabranjeno je da obavlja takve posete do kraja decembra (vidi odeljak 1.c.).

Nevladine organizacije su se žalile što neke stvari nisu izuzete od carine pri uvozu na Kosovo; neke verske nevladine organizacije izvestile su o diskriminaciji zasnovanoj na njihovom verskom opredeljenju.

Zadatak ombudsmana je da istraži tvrdnje da vlasti krše međunarodne zakone o ljudskim pravima. Mada je kancelarija ombudsmana aktivno objavljivala interventna pisma, izveštaje i preporuke, PISG, lokalni sudovi i KPS nisu uvek postupali po njegovim preporukama. Predmeti koje je kancelarija ombudsmana istraživala ticali su se imovinskih prava, zloupotrebe službenog položaja, administrativnih postupaka ili nepravilnosti u radu javnih organa, pomanjkanja propisnih istraga krivičnih dela, pitanja koja se tiču dužine sudskih postupaka i izvršenja sudskih odluka, sporova u vezi sa zapošljavanjem i nekažnjivosti. Bivši zamenik ombudsmana Hilmi Jašari tokom godine je radio kao šef kancelarije ombudsmana, nakon isteka mandata međunarodnog ombudsmana u decembru 2005. U februaru je mandat ombudsmana promenjen tako što je iz njegovog delokruga isključen UNMIK; novo Savetodavno veće za ljudska prava u okviru UNMIK-a osnovano je u aprilu sa zadatkom da nadzire UNMIK.

UNMIK, KFOR i PISG generalno su sarađivali sa Međunarodnim krivičnim sudom za bivšu Jugoslaviju (ICTY). U martu 2005. ICTY je podigao optužnicu protiv nekadašnjeg premijera Ramuša Haradinaja i kooptuženih Idriza Balaja i Lahija Brahimaja u vezi sa ratnim zločinima počinjenim od marta do septembra 1998. Na raspravi pred suđenje 13. oktobra, tužilac je izmenio optužnicu odustajući od dve a dodajući jednu tačku optužnice. Tužilac je takođe zatražio mogućnost novih izmena što je sud dozvolio. Krajem godine konačna optužnica još nije podneta ni odobrena.

Društveni stavovi su povremeno ometali istrage ICTY-a. Poseta tima odbrane ICTY-a mestu masakra u selu Mala Kruša u prizrenskoj opštini 25. maja izazvala je nasilje seljana koji su tvrdili da su u konvoju videli dva Srbina koja su tu ranije živela. U opštoj tuči povređeno je preko 30 ljudi, uključujući tri policajca. Zvaničnici PISG-a i UNMIK-a kritikovali su seljane zbog nepoštovanja zakona i dodali da će buduće posete biti bolje koordinisane i unapred najavljene. Dve grupe aktivista, Pokret za samoopredeljenje i Nacionalni pokret za oslobođenje Kosova, podržale su postupke seljana i kritikovale policiju UNMIK-a.

Odeljak 5 Diskriminacija, društvene zloupotrebe i trgovina ljudima

Propisi UNMIK-a i PISG-a jasno zabranjuju diskriminaciju na osnovu rase, pola, etničke pripadnosti, umanjenih sposobnosti i jezika; međutim, nasilje i diskriminacija žena, osoba s umanjenim sposobnostima i etničkih manjina bili su problemi.

Žene

Porodično nasilje nad ženama, uključujući supružničko zlostavljanje, i dalje postoji u velikoj meri. Propisi UNMIK-a zabranjuju porodično nasilje za koje je zaprećena kazna zatvorom u trajanju od šest meseci do pet godina. Kad žrtve podnesu prijavu, jedinice KPS-a za porodično nasilje obavljaju istragu i predmet prosleđuju tužiocima. Prema podacima UNMIK-a, porodična odanost i tesno povezane zajednice i nagomilani predmeti i pred građanskim i pred krivičnim sudovima doprineli su niskoj stopi krivičnog gonjenja.

Centar za zaštitu žena i dece pružio je pomoć 81 žrtvi porodičnog i seksualnog nasilja od aprila do kraja decembra, uključujući pravnu pomoć u 44 predmeta. Jedinica za podršku i pomoć žrtvama Ministarstva pravde radila je na 701 slučaju porodičnog nasilja. Pred sudovima je procesuirano 135 odluka o zaštiti i otvoreno 213 predmeta, od kojih je u 116 doneta osuđujuća presuda. Izrečene kazne varirale su od sudske opomene do kazne zatvorom. Tradicionalni društveni odnosi prema ženama u društvu kojim dominiraju muškarci doprineli su visokom nivou porodičnog nasilja i malom broju prijavljenih slučajeva.

Nisu postojale vladine agencije isključivo posvećene porodičnom nasilju. Šest prihvatilišta pružalo je pomoć žrtvama porodičnog nasilja i trgovine ljudima, uključujući i jedno koje vodi nevladina organizacija i koje je namenjeno maloletnicima, i dva koja su prihvatala žrtve i porodičnog nasilja i trgovine ljudima. KPS je prijavio da je tokom godine pomoć dobilo 66 žrtava porodičnog nasilja. Nekoliko lokalnih i međunarodnih nevladinih organizacija bavilo se aktivnostima za pomoć ženama; međutim, njihov rad je ograničavalo tradicionalno ćutanje o porodičnom nasilju, seksualnom zlostavljanju i silovanju.

Tokom godine je radila anonimna dežurna telefonska linija, na raspolaganju 24 sata, u Prištini, Gjilanu, Peći, Prizrenu i Mitrovici. Od 2004. preko ove linije pružena je pomoć u 2.573 slučaja. Žrtve porodičnog nasilja predstavljaju 77 procenata svih poziva a žrtve trgovine ljudima 4 procenta poziva. Dežurna linija je obaveštavala osobe koje su zvale o njihovim pravima, raspoloživim prihvatilištima i relevantnim informacijama.

Nastavni program škole KPS-a za obuku obuhvata specijalne kurseve o porodičnom nasilju i silovanju. Nije bilo izveštaja da je KPS neodgovarajuće reagovao na optužbe za silovanje i porodično nasilje.

Po propisima UNMIK-a silovanje je krivično delo; međutim, supružničko silovanje nije posebno istaknuto. Po privremenom krivičnom zakoniku, za silovanje je zaprećena kazna do deset godina zatvora; za silovanje maloletnika (seksualni odnos sa devojčicom mlađom od 14 godina) zaprećena je kazna od jedne do pet godina zatvora.

Silovanje se izuzetno retko prijavljuje jer su žrtve i njihove porodice u društvu izložene sramoti. Prema podacima Ministarstva pravde, tokom godine advokati su pružili usluge žrtvama u otprilike 82 slučaja silovanja.

Zakon zabranjuje prostituciju ali je prostitucija i dalje rasprostranjena. Istražna jedinica UNMIK-a za trgovinu ljudima i prostituciju vodila je istrage u slučajevima prostitucije i predmetima u kojima je postojala sumnja na trgovinu ljudima.

Trgovina ženama u svrhu seksualnog iskorištavanja bila je ozbiljan problem (vidi odeljak 5, Trgovina ljudima).

Ne postoji poseban zakon o seksualnom uznemiravanju koje je predstavljalo uobičajeni problem. Društvena svest o seksualnom uznemiravanju i dalje je na niskom stepenu i mali broj slučajeva je prijavljen.

Žene imaju ista zakonska prava kao muškarci ali tradicionalno imaju niži društveni status što utiče na njihov tretman u okviru zakonskog sistema. Iako ne postoje zakonske prepreke, relativno mali broj žena se nalazi na položajima visokog ranga u privredi, KPS-u i vladi. Mada je sve veći broj zaposlenih žena, stopa nezaposlenosti žena je i dalje visoka – oko 70 procenata, što je 10 do 20 procenata više nego kod muške populacije.

Tradicionalni društveni stavovi prema ženama za posledicu imaju diskriminaciju. U nekim seoskim sredinama žene nisu uvek u mogućnosti da donose odluke koje se tiču dece ni da vrše kontrolu nad imovinom. Mada žene i muškarci imaju jednaka zakonska prava kad je u pitanju nasleđivanje imovine, porodična imovina obično prelazi u ruke muškaraca. Udovice etničkih Albanaca, posebno u seoskim područjima, izlažene se opasnosti da izgube starateljstvo nad decom zbog običaja po kojem deca i imovina prelaze u porodicu pokojnog oca dok se žena vraća svojoj porodici.

Dana 5. maja, predsednik Obrazovnog odbora Donje Srbice preporučio je da udatim ženama ne treba dozvoliti da pohađaju srednju školu, s objašnjenjem da, „pošto su supruge“, treba da vode računa o muževima. Opštinska skupština je jednoglasno odobrila preporuku.

U oktobru je KPS uhapsio četvoro ljudi, uključujući roditelje, zbog pokušaja da prisile trinaestogodišnju devojčicu da se uda za već oženjenog, mnogo starijeg muškarca sa četvoro dece. Devojčica je odvedena u prihvatilište.

U cilju borbe protiv diskriminacije žena, UNMIK je 2005. u nastavni program Univerziteta u Prištini uključio kurs o antidiskriminaciji, borbi protiv trgovine ljudima i ljudskim pravima.

Deca

UNMIK i PISG su generalno bili posvećeni dobrobiti i pravima dece.

Prema izveštaju UNICEF-a iz 2004, oko 40 procenata kosovske populacije ima ispod 18 godina, a 33 procenta – ispod 15. Kosovo ima vrlo nisku stopu pohađanja predškolskih ustanova – manje od 10 procenata dece između dve i pet godina starosti. Prema nevladinoj organizaciji Spasimo decu, zakon o predškolskom obrazovanju dece, donet u martu, nije uspeo da učini pripremnu godinu (za decu od pet do šest godina) obaveznom ni da obezbedi budžet za pripremno obrazovanje. Propisi UNMIK-a nalažu da deca od šest do petnaest godina starosti budu upisana u državnu školu. Osnovno obrazovanje je besplatno. UNICEF je procenio da 33 procenta dece upisane u osnovnu školu napušta školu pre osmog razreda, a od onih koji završe osnovnu školu, samo 57 procenata se upiše u srednju školu. Neka deca su primorana da napuste školu kako bi počela da rade (vidi odeljak 6.d.).

Prema statističkim podacima iz 2005. godine, 97.5 procenata dece kosovskih Albanaca i 99 procenata dece kosovskih Srba upisana su u osnovnu školu, a samo se 77 procenata dece od sedam do četrnaest godina iz nesrpskih manjinskih zajednica (Romi, Aškalije, Egipćani, Turci, Bošnjaci, Goranci i drugi) školuje. UNICEF je izvestio da je nedostatak objekata za manjinsko obrazovanje u delovima Kosova nekim raseljenim licima otežao povratak kućama.

Prema podacima UNICEF-a, mada 52 procenta sve dece koja završe osnovnu školu upisuje srednju školu, samo 43 procenta učenica nastavlja školovanje. Stopa završavanja srednjoškolskog obrazovanja takođe je niža za kosovske albanske devojčice nego za kosovske albanske dečake i kosovske srpske devojčice.

Propisi UNMIK-a nalažu jednake uslove za školsku decu i obezbeđuju pravo na osnovno i srednjoškolsko obrazovanje na maternjem jeziku za manjinske učenike. Tokom godine radile su škole u kojima se predavanja drže na srpskom bošnjačkom i turskom. I deca kosovskih Srba i deca kosovskih Albanaca pohađala su škole u neodgovarajućim objektima i bez osnovne opreme. Nekoliko škola ima i srpske i albanske učenike, koji su učili po različitim nastavnim programima i smenjivali se na časovima.

Romska, aškalijska i egipatska deca pohađaju mešovite škole sa decom kosovskih Albanaca ali se navodno suočavaju sa zastrašivanjem u nekim većinskim albanskim oblastima. Romska deca su bila u nepovoljnijem položaju zbog siromaštva, što je mnoge navelo da počnu da rade i kod kuće i na ulicama u ranom uzrastu kako bi doprineli porodičnom budžetu. Romska deca su takođe bila u nepovoljnom položaju zbog toga što su morala da uče još jedan jezik pošto mnogi kod kuće govore romski. Neka bošnjačka deca u prevashodno bošnjačkim oblastima povremeno su mogla da pohađaju osnovnu školu na svom jeziku, ali je nekolicina van takvih oblasti slušala predavanja na albanskom jeziku.

Vlada je obezbeđivala medicinsku negu koja je bila jednako dostupna i dečacima i devojčicama. Međutim, raspoloživa medicinska nega je generalno bila na niskom nivou.

Studija koju su uradili UNICEF i Ministarstvo obrazovanja o rasprostranjenosti nasilja u školama otkrila je da je nasilje nad decom prihvatljivo. Fizička kazna je prihvaćena praksa kod kuće i u školi. Deca koja žive daleko od škole prijavila su da se plaše da putuju zato što im usput preti nasilje vršnjaka. Deca su prijavila da su počinioci nasilja njima bliske osobe, da dečacima preti veća opasnost od fizičkog nasilja a devojčicama od verbalnog zlostavljanja. Od dece uzrasta od šest do 11 godina, 75 procenata smatra da na ulicama vlada najveće nasilje, za 27 procenata je škola mesto nasilnih događaja, a za 12 procenata kuća. Trideset sedam procenata starije dece smatra nasilje nad decom u školi široko rasprostranjenom pojavom.

Visoka nezaposlenost i izmeštenost porodice za posledicu ima ostavljanje novorođenčadi. Ministarstvo rada i socijalne pomoći izvestilo je da je nakon sukoba 1999. godine 1.200 dece postalo siročad ili napušteno, mada se stopa ostavljanja dece smanjila, a svega 56 dece je napušteno od januara do oktobra. Deca su smeštena na različita mesta, uključujući širu porodicu, kod staratelja i u opštinske domove. Međutim, kako lokalni programi o usvajanju i starateljskoj porodici nisu pratili stopu ostavljanja, vlasti su povremeno smeštale novorođenčad i decu u grupne domove sa nekoliko negovatelja. Deca s umanjenim sposobnostima često su bila sakrivana i bez potrebne nege, posebno u seoskim područjima.

Tokom godine Ministarstvo rada i socijalne pomoći vodilo je 31 centar za socijalnu pomoć koji je pružio pomoć za 1.188 siročića, 1.695 dece delikvenata, 66 zlostavljane dece, 66 napuštene dece i 388 dece s problemima u ponašanju. Ministarstvo je takođe brinulo o starateljskim domovima i koordinisalo smeštaj dece u privremenim prihvatilištima sa nevladinim organizacijama. Prema podacima Centra za socijalni rad, 19 napuštene dece s posebnim potrebama, od tri do 18 godina starosti, živelo je u dva opštinska doma koja finansira vlada i koja pružaju dvadesetčetvoročasovnu negu.

Brakovi dece su problem, posebno među etničkim Romima, Aškalijama, Egipćanima i Albancima, mada UNMIK nije prikupio statističke podatke o ovom problemu.

Deca su bila žrtve trgovine ljudima u svrhu seksualnog iskorištavanja (vidi odeljak 5, Trgovina ljudima).

Rad dece je bio ozbiljan problem (vidi odeljak 6.d.).

Trgovina ljudima

Po propisima UNMIK-a trgovina ljudima smatra se krivičnim delom; međutim, trgovina ženama i decom i dalje je ozbiljan problem.

Kosovo je izvorna, tranzitna i odredišna tačka za trgovinu ljudima, a trgovina unutar područja je sve veći problem. Žrtve su žene i deca kojima se trguje unutar područja ili koja stižu iz Istočne Evrope, sa Balkana i iz bivšeg Sovjetskog Saveza na Kosovo, prevashodno u cilju seksualne eksploatacije, ali i rada po kućama ili prinudnog rada po barovima i restoranima. Žrtvama se takođe trgovalo preko Kosova za Makedoniju, Albaniju i zemlje Zapadne Evrope. Tokom godine, 24 od 64 osobe identifikovane kao žrtve trgovine ljudima vraćene su u svoje države ili u svoje zajednice.

Prema podacima KPS-a i Međunarodne organizacije za migracije (IOM), trgovina ljudima je sve veći problem a većina žrtava trgovine potiče iz Moldavije. Podaci IOM-a ukazuju da Moldavljanke predstavljaju 43 procenta žrtava trgovine ljudima, a za njima slede žene iz Rumunije (17 procenata), s Kosova (16 procenata), iz Ukrajine (11 procenata), Albanije (6 procenata), Bugarske (5 procenata) i ostalih zemalja (3 procenta). KPS je objavio slične statističke podatke, ali njihovi podaci ukazuju da je 31 procenat žrtava sa Kosova i da je njima trgovano unutar područja, te su žrtve interne trgovine ljudima stavili odmah iza žrtava iz Moldavije. KPS je takođe prijavio velike teškoće u identifikaciji žrtava trgovine ljudima zbog njihove nevoljnosti da otvoreno istupe i podnesu prijave policiji. Kulturni tabui i pretnja socijalnom diskriminacijom bili su uzrok za većinu žrtava trgovine ljudima unutar područja da ne govore o svojim iskustvima. Druga poteškoća bila je nesposobnost KPS-a da svoje pripadnike, kosovske Srbe, regrutuje u jedinicu za borbu protiv trgovine ljudima, što je sprečavalo da se vode tajne operacije u severnom delu Kosova i u enklavama kosovskih Srba.

Žrtve trgovine ljudima radile su uglavnom u seks industriji, uglavnom u bordelima i noćnim klubovima ali sve više i u privatnim stanovima. Nijedna od njih nije prijavila da su znale da će raditi u seks industriji kad su napustile svoje domove. Žrtve trgovine ljudima su prijavile da su redovno batinane i silovane, da im je uskraćivana medicinska nega i da su im putne i lične isprave oduzete. Žrtve su često zaticane u lošem zdravstvenom i psihičkom stanju.

UNMIK je izvestio da su trgovci ljudima često radili u okviru koordinisanih postupaka pripadnika organizovanog kriminala iz redova kosovskih Srba i kosovskih Albanaca, a da su neke žene preko ili iz Srbije stizale na Kosovo. Vlasnici barova i bordela kupovali su žrtve od organizovanih kriminalnih bandi.

Metode trgovine ljudima su sve sofisticiranije. U odgovor na agresivnu kampanju iskorenjivanja trgovine ljudima koju sprovode lokalne i međunarodne vlasti, trgovci ljudima su komercijalni seks izmestili iz javnih barova i klubova u privatne stanove, gde se takve radnje teže otkrivaju. Trgovci ljudima su sve više finansijski podsticali žrtve na odbijanje pomoći.

IOM je izvestio da su od 538 uglavnom međunarodnih žrtava kojima je pomoć pružio od 1999, 73 procenta postale žrtve trgovaca ljudima nakon što su prihvatile izmišljene poslove u inostranstvu, 4.1 procenat je tvrdio da su kidnapovane, a 3.7 procenata je očekivalo brak. U 83 procenta slučajeva, vrbovanje je izvršeno preko ličnih zajedničkih kontakata, 29 procenata žrtava su zavrbovali poznanici, a 15 procenata prijatelji ili porodični prijatelji. Vrbovanje su uglavnom vršile žene.

Prema privremenom krivičnom zakoniku, za trgovinu ljudima zaprećena je kazna od dve do 20 godina zatvora. Bavljenje ili pokušaj bavljenja trgovinom ljudima kažnjava se na dve do 12 godina zatvora, ili do 15 godina ukoliko je žrtva maloletna; organizivanje grupe za bavljenje trgovinom ljudima kažnjava se na pet do 20 godina zatvora; omogućavanje trgovine ljudima kroz nemar kažnjava se sa šest meseci do pet godina zatvora. Klijent koji se upusti u seksualni odnos sa žrtvom trgovine ljudima može biti osuđen do pet godina zatvora, a sa maloletnom žrtvom do 10 godina zatvora. Dobrovoljna prostitucija se kažnjava kao manji prekršaj; prostitutke se mogu kazniti ali ne i klijenti ukoliko policija ne dokaže da je klijent svesno koristio usluge žrtve trgovine ljudima. Prostitucija predstavlja osnov za deportaciju.

Sekcija UNMIK-a i KPS-a za istragu trgovine ljudima radila je na trgovini ljudima do maja kada je nadležnost za trgovinu ljudima preneta na KPS. Tokom godine UNMIK i KPS obavili su 157 nadzora i 90 operacija, uključujući i 38 tajnih operacija. Takođe su pregledali 1.303 objekta za koje se sumnjalo da se koriste za trgovinu ljudima i prostituciju i zatvorili 22 poslovna objekta korištena za trgovinu ljudima. Tokom godine UNMIK i KPS uhapsili su 36 lica zbog trgovine ljudima, 21 lice zbog svodništva, 12 zbog prostitucije i 28 pod optužbom u vezi sa trgovinom ljudima kao što je nezakonito posedovanje oružja i falsifikovanje. Takođe su identifikovali 64 žrtve trgovine ljudima, od kojih je 51 dobila potrebnu pomoć, uključujući bezbedan smeštaj, savetovanje i profesionalnu obuku za povratak i socijalnu reintegraciju. Najmanje jedno prihvatilište pružilo je medicinsku negu u skladu sa sporazumom sa nadležnim ustanovama. Tužilaštvo je podnelo 15 tužbi za trgovinu ljudima; još 29 predmeta iz prethodne godine nije okončano. Završeno je 14 od ova 44 predmeta u kojima je za 18 optuženika izrečeno 12 osuđujućih presuda.

Faktori koji su doprineli malom broju tužbi uključivali su sve veću sofisticiranost pripadnika organizovanog kriminala i njihovih napora da se izbegnu direktne veze između žrtava i glavnih kriminalaca, nedostatak programa zaštite svedoka (iako su sredstva iskorištena da bi se za vreme svedočenja na suđenju obezbedila anonimnost), nevoljnost žrtava da sarađuju sa vlastima, neodgovarajuća obuka sudskog osoblja i neuspeh policije da se prilagodi novim tehnikama koje upotrebljavaju trgovci ljudima.

Propisi UNMIK-a nalažu da se žrtvama trgovine ljudima obezbedi odbrana po tužbama za prostituciju i ilegalni prelazak granice. U prošlosti su lokalne sudije ponekad netačno osuđivale žrtve trgovine ljudima na zatvorske kazne ili pogrešno izdavale nalog za deportaciju za žene osuđene zbog prostitucije ili ne posedovanja dokumenata. Za razliku od prethodnih godina, nije bilo izveštaja o ovakvoj praksi tokom ove godine.

UNMIK, KPS, pogranična policija, OEBS, Kancelarija za dobru upravu, tužioci, sudije i ministarstva zdravlja, obrazovanja, javnih službi i rada i socijalne pomoći dele odgovornost u borbi protiv trgovine ljudima. Nevladine organizacije i međunarodne organizacije, posebno IOM, bavili su se zaštitom i preventivnim aktivnostima za borbu protiv trgovine ljudima. U saradnji sa nevladinim organizacijama, međunarodnim organizacijama i stranim vladama, PISG je nastavio da primenjuje Kosovski akcioni plan za borbu protiv trgovine ljudima koji je pokrenut maja 2005. Aktivnosti uključuju preventivnu kampanju u jednom delu godine, kao i pokretanje internet stranice za borbu protiv trgovine ljudima i kampanju protiv trgovine decom i mladim devojkama. Vlasti su takođe pokrenule mrežu mladih „ambasadora“ za ljudska prava i borbu protiv trgovine ljudima. Posle obuke, ovi „ambasadori" započeli su putavanja po Kosovu i držali debate o ljudskim pravima i problemima trgovine ljudima.

IOM je tokom godine pružio pomoć za 54 žrtve trgovine ljudima od kojih je 30 bilo sa Kosova. Više od pola žrtava sa Kosova bili su maloletnici (17 slučajeva), a 29 su bili žrtve trgovine ljudima unutar područja. Ovo je prva godina u kojoj je IOM pružio pomoć većem broju lokalnih nego stranih žrtava trgovine ljudima. Od žrtava van Kosova kojima je IOM pomogao od 1999, preko 50 procenata bilo je iz Moldavije, 20 procenata iz Rumunije, 13 procenata iz Ukrajine, a ostatak iz Bugarske, Albanije, Rusije, Srbije, Crne Gore, Slovačke i Nigerije. Većina ovih žrtava imala je od 18 do 24 godine starosti. Podaci IOM-a ukazali su da je 77 procenata kosovskih žrtava bilo žrtva trgovine ljudima unutar područja, dok je oko 10 procenata odlazilo u Makedoniju, a po 5 procenata u Albaniju i Italiju.

Ukupan broj slučajeva trgovine ljudima u kojima su žrtve maloletnici porastao je od 2005. Iako nijedna od stranih žrtava trgovine ljudima kojoj je IOM pomogao tokom godine nije bile maloletna, oko 57 procenata lokalnih žrtava kojima je IOM pomogao bili su maloletnici. Deca i mlade devojke iz seoskih područja čine 54 procenta žrtava trgovine ljudima. Deca i mlade devojke iz sredina gde je veliko siromaštvo, nezaposlenost i nepismenost posebno su u opasnosti da postanu žrtve trgovine ljudima. IOM je izvestio da 11 procenata lokalnih žrtava nije upisano u školu; 35 procenata je tek završilo peti razred osnovne škole; 47 procenata je završilo osnovnu školu (deveti razred); 6 procenata je završilo srednju školu, a 1 procenat su studenti.

Postoje nepouzdani dokazi da kompleksne finansijske i porodične veze postoje između političkih lidera i organizovanih kriminalnih mreža koji imaju finansijsku korist od trgovine ljudima. Za razliku od prethodnih godina, nije bilo izveštaja da je isti advokat zastupao optuženog trgovca ljudima i žrtvu.

U maju je nadležnost za antitrafiking preneta sa policije UNMIK-a na KPS. Broj provera barova i restorana povećan je otkako je KPS preuzeo nadležnost, a broj objekata koji su zatvoreni takođe je bio u blagom porastu.

Tokom godine je obavljen veliki broj hapšenja i policijskih akcija protiv trgovaca ljudima. Na primer, u avgustu je kosovski dnevni list Koha Ditore izvestio o ubistvu žrtve trgovine ljudima koja je bila uhapšena u motelu u Gnjilanu i deportovana 26. juna u Albaniju. Prema podacima KPS-a, žena nije priznala da je žrtva trgovine ljudima i deportovana je pošto je na Kosovo ušla ilegalno. Albansko Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova izvestilo je da je žrtvu ubio njen mladić Urim Jahja u njenom stanu u albanskom selu Šengjinu 22. avgusta zbog navodnog duga. Albanska istraga je otkrila da je žrtvu obmanula izvesna Albanka koja joj je našla posao – da u Tirani pere sudove – a kasnije je preselila u kafe na Kosovu. Žena je zadržala žrtvinu zaradu što je pravdala time da je tako naplatila to što joj je našla posao. Takođe nije žrtvi dozvolila da kontaktira majku tri-četiri meseca. Jahja je kasnije izvršio samoubistvo.

Dana 5. oktobra, pripadnici KPS-a izvršili su raciju u noćnom klubu u prištinskom predgrađu i uhapsili pet meštana i dve Moldavke pod sumnjom da se radi o trgovini ljudima. Policija je pronašla još šest žena potencijalnih žrtava trgovine ljudima. Narednog dana je KPS naredio da se ovih šest žena uhapsi zbog prikrivanja trgovine ljudima i vrbovanja drugih žena za prostituciju u saradnji sa vlasnicima i radnicima noćnih klubova. Prema podacima KPS-a, kasnije je tužilac odbacio prijavu i pustio žene koje su se potom vratile da rade u noćnom klubu. Jedan od muškaraca oslobođen je mesec dana kasnije usled nedostatka dokaza. Od četvorice muškaraca koji čekaju suđenje zbog trgovine ljudima, na kraju godine su dvojica bili u pritvoru pre suđenja.

Dana 9. oktobra, KPS je uhapsio dva kosovska Albanca na putu Priština-Uroševac zbog trgovine dve kosovske albanske maloletnice. KPS je naknadno uhapsio i pritvorio četiri žene u vezi sa ovim krivičnim delom. Izdat je nalog za hapšenje trećeg muškarca za koga se veruje da je van Kosova. Suđenje uhapšenima je krajem godine bilo u toku pred Okružnim sudom u Prištini.

Međunarodne i lokalne nevladine organizacije bile su glavni izvor pomoći žrtvama trgovine ljudima. Lokalne nevladine organizacije, kao što su Centar za zaštitu i prevenciju trgovine ljudima i Centar za zaštitu žena i dece, vodili su prihvatilišta koja su pružala medicinsku negu i psihološko savetovanje žrtvama trgovine ljudima u saradnji sa UNMIK-om, OEBS-om i IOM-om. Nevladina organizacija Nada i dom za decu vodila je prihvatilište za decu žrtve trgovine ljudima, a, u saradnji sa UNMIK-om i OEBS-om, Ministarstvo rada i socijalne pomoći vodilo je polunezavisni objekat za smeštaj maloletnika koji su žrtve trgovine ljudima i nasilja u porodici. Neka prihvatilišta za žrtve porodičnog nasilja, kao što je Lirija u Gnjilanu, niskorizične žrtve je kratkotrajno prihvatala i upućivala ih dalje. Privremeni objekat koji vodi Ministarstvo pravde takođe je privremeno prihvatao žrtve dok se odlučivale da li će biti vraćene u svoju zemlju ili svedočiti protiv trgovaca ljudima. Policija je često upućivala lica za koje se sumnjalo da su žrtve trgovine ljudima na IOM preko regionalnih zvaničnika OEBS-a.

Osobe sa umanjenim sposobnostima

Nekoliko propisa UNMIK-a zabranjuje diskriminaciju osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima pri zapošljavanju, školovanju, zdravstvenoj zaštiti i pružanju drugih državnih usluga; međutim, postojala je znatna diskriminacija u praksi a prava osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima nisu prioritet PISG-a.

Prema podacima lokalne nevladine organizacije za prava osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima HandiKos, zakoni koje se odnose na osobe sa umanjenim sposobnostima nisu adekvatno sprovođeni. Stoga su deca s umanjenim sposobnostima često bila uskraćena u pogledu mogućnosti obrazovanja, nisu profesionalno evaluirana i nedostajala im je odgovarajuća zdravstvena i socijalna služba. Ne postoji nikakva posebna pravna zaštita za decu s umanjenim sposobnostima, jer je Savet za privredu i finansije tvrdio da nema dovoljno sredstava da bi podržao takve programe. Ne postoji zakon kojim se definiše status osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima niti odredbe za njihovo obučavanje i zapošljavanje. Ne postoje zakoni o starateljstvu i odgovarajući mehanizmi zaštite, a propisi ne priznaju smeštaj lica sa umanjenim mentalnim sposobnostima u institucije kao pravno pitanje odvojeno od pitanja protivvoljnog lečenja. Zakonom je propisan pristup osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima javnim zgradama ali to nije primenjeno u praksi.

Prema podacima nevladine organizacije Međunarodna organizacija za prava osoba sa umanjenim mentalnim odnosima (MDRI), pacijenti sa umanjenim mentalnim sposobnostima i dalje su bez pravnog osnova pritvarani u izolovan smeštaj, pošto ne postoji zakon kojim se reguliše pitanje prijema lica u psihijatrijske ustanove ili ustanove socijalne pomoći niti se štite prava unutar institucija. Povremeno su lica kojima je neophodno lečenje mentalnog zdravlja osuđivana za izmišljena ili sitna krivična dela i smeštana u zatvore koji nemaju uslove za adekvatan tretman.

Dana 26. aprila, premijer je ustanovio Nacionalni savet za osobe sa umanjenim sposobnostima (NCDP) kao savetodavnu organizaciju pri državnim organima i Skupštini Kosova. NCDP ima dva kopredsedavajuća: premijera i direktora nevladine organizacije HandiKos Halita Ferizija. Tokom godine su oformili sekretarijat NCDP-a da napravi nacrt pravnih instrumenata ali NDCP do kraja godine nije bio potpuno operativan.

Do kraja godine ni UNMIK ni PISG nisu podneli krivičnu prijavu niti preduzeli ikakvu drugu pravnu radnju u odgovor na izveštaj MDRI-ja iz 2002. godine da su pronađeni obimni dokazi o fizičkom zlostavljanju, seksualnim napadima, zanemarivanju i samovoljnom pritvoru koje vrše osoblje i pacijenti u objektima za negu mentalnog zdravlja u Institutu u Štimlju, prištinskom Staračkom domu i prištinskoj univerzitetskoj bolnici.

Ministarstva obrazovanja, socijalne pomoći i javnih službi odgovorna su za zaštitu prava osoba sa umanjenim sposobnostima.

Prema podacima Svetske zdravstvene organizacije, bilo je oko 14.000 osoba sa umanjenim mentalnim sposobnostima. MDRI je u decembru 2004. izvestio da institucionalna nega za osobe sa umanjenim mentalnim sposobnostima deluje tako da ostaju izolovani, proizvoljno pritvoreni i izloženi fizičkom nasilju i seksualnom zlostavljanju (vidi odeljak 1.c.). PISG je 2005. povećao mogućnosti za nezavistan život takvih osoba i potrošio između 157.000 i 262.000 dolara (120.000 do 200.000 evra) na 14 integrativnih domova koje je odobrio MDRI. Prema septembarskom nacrtu izveštaja Svetske zdravstvene organizacije, nije bilo dovoljno objekata za negu osoba sa umanjenim mentalnim sposobnostima, a mogućnosti za zapošljavanje takvih osoba ograničene su. CDHRF je izvestio da su zatvorenici sa umanjenim mentalnim sposobnostima često smešteni u zatvorske objekte u nedostatku institucija za mentalno zdravlje ljudi.

Nacionalne/Rasne/Etničke manjine

Zvanična i društvena diskriminacija i dalje postoji protiv kosovskih etničkih Srba, Roma, Aškalija i Egipćana u pogledu zapošljavanja, socijalnih službi, upotrebe jezika, slobode kretanja, prava na povratak i drugih osnovnih prava, mada su izveštaji o takvoj diskriminaciji smanjeni u odnosu na 2005. Pripadnici bošnjačke i goranske zajednice takođe su se žalili na diskriminaciju. Tokom godine nasilje i druga krivična dela protiv manjina i njihove imovine umanjena su ali su i dalje problem. Zapošljavanje manjina u PISG-u i dalje je na niskom nivou i generalno ograničeno na niži stepen nadležnosti; pripadnici manjina čine 11 procenata zaposlenih u državnim organima iako je cilj PISG-a više od 16 procenata.

Do oktobra je prijavljen 61 slučaj međuetničkog kriminala; u 51 slučaju žrtve ili osumnjičeni bili su Srbi. Krajem godine, policija je još vodila istragu u 24 slučaja a 37 predmeta je upućeno sudovima. Prema podacima UNMIK-a, incidenti upereni protiv manjina generalno su retko prijavljivani zbog nepoverenja prema KPS-u i pravnom sistemu, koje uveliko potiče iz malog broja uspešnih krivičnih istraga, tužbi i osuđujućih presuda.

Istrage o nasilju protiv kosovskih Srba obično vodi međunarodna policijska jedinica, jedinica sastavljena od pripadnika međunarodne policije UN-a u okviru KPS-a koja odgovara direktno policijskom komesaru, koji takođe pripada međunarodnom osoblju.

Tokom godine bilo je brojnih izveštaja o nasilju nad kosovskim Srbima.Na primer, 28. marta su dva kosovska Albanca nožem izbola srpskog mladića s Kosova blizu glavnog mosta u severnoj Mitrovici. Dvoje ljudi je uhapšeno ali je kasnije prijava odbačena kad je žrtva odbila da podnese tužbu. Međunarodna policijska jedinica je krajem godine nastavila istragu.

Dana 8. juna, nepoznata lica su pucala na domove srpskih povratnika u selu Lug u Istoku. Gradonačelnik, kosovski Albanac, osudio je incident, a njegov zamenik, kosovski Albanac, posetio je porodice. KPS je uhapsio jednu osobu i krajem godine je slučaj bio u toku.

Dana 26. avgusta, šesnaestogodišnji kosovski Albanac A.D. navodno je bacio eksplozivnu napravu na ulaz kafea Dolče vita u severnoj Mitrovici i tom prilikom povredio devet ljudi (uključujući sedam kosovskih Srba, jednog Bošnjaka i jednog britanskog državljanina). A.D. je uhapšen, optužen i privremeno pušten zbog zdravstvenog stanja. Međunarodni tužilac je podigao optužnicu 15. decembra a A.D. je krajem godine bio u kućnom pritvoru.

Dana 8. decembra, KPS i mediji izvestili su o eksploziji na mostu u selu Mijalić u vučitrnskoj opštini. Eksplozija je oštetila železničku prugu a železnički saobraćaj je prekinut na pruzi koju često koriste kosovski Srbi, koji tvrde da je to za njih jedan od najsigurnijih načina da putuju između srpskih enklava južno od Ibra i srpskih većinskih oblasti na severnom Kosovu. Nije bilo izveštaja o povređenima.

Tokom godine nije bilo pomaka u sledećim slučajevima: na službeno vozilo lidera kosovskih Srba Olivera Ivanovića u februaru 2005. bačena je bomba; incident u julu 2005. u kojem je nepoznato lice u Zubinom potoku bacilo ručnu granatu na kancelarije Srpske demokratske stranke za Kosovo i Metohiju Slaviše Petkovića, jedinu srpsku stranku s Kosova koja učestvuje u radu kosovskih institucija; i incident iz septembra 2005. u kojem je na četiri srpska mladića pucano (dvojice su nakon toga preminuli) dok su se vozili kroz Štrpce. Krajem godine istraga međunarodne policijske jedinice bila je u toku.

Bilo je slučajeva u kojima su kosovski Albanci uništavali privatnu imovinu kosovskih Srba; nekoliko slučajeva nasilja nad Srbima možda su bili pokušaji da se nateraju da prodaju imovinu. Propis UNMIK-a sprečava otkup na veliko u mnogim zajednicama kosovskih Srba kako bi se sprečilo u određenim područjima zastrašivanje vlasnika koji pripadaju manjinama; međutim, taj propis je retko bio sprovođen. Bilo je izveštaja da kosovski Srbi imaju otežan pristup svojim imanjima koje ponekad zaposedaju ili koriste kosovski Albanci. U nekim slučajevima, imovinu kosovskih Srba navodno su prodala lica koja se lažno predstavljaju kao njihovi advokati i podnose falsifikovana dokumenta u sudovima; u situacijama gde pravi vlasnici ne žive na Kosovu, takve prevare su mesecima ostajale neotkrivene.

Dana 6. juna, u odgovor na nekoliko nerešenih zločina nad kosovskim Srbima, lider Srpskog nacionalnog veća Kosova Marko Jakšić izjavio je za medije da su severne opštine Zvečan, Mitrovica, Zubin Potok i Leposavić jednoglasno odlučile da suspenduju odnose sa PISG-om. Nerešeni zločini bili su: incident 6. maja kada je pucano na srpskog pravoslavnog sveštenika Srđana Stankovića dok se vozio svojim kolima (nije bio povređen), za šta je policija UNMIK-a osumnjičila dvadesetdevetogodišnjeg Srbina pripadnika KPS-a, ranjavanje Jovana Miloševića i Jablana Jevtića 11. maja za vreme oružane pljačke benzinske pumpe u severnoj Mitrovici, i ubistvo kosovskog Srbina Miljana Veskovića 1. juna u Zvečanu. Uprkos potonjim dokazima, hapšenjima i jasnim izjavama zvaničnika UNMIK-a i KPS-a da ova krivična dela nisu etnički motivisana, do kraja godine ove tri severne opštine nisu nastavile odnose sa PISG-om.

Policija UNMIK-a analizirala je 1.408 konvoja kosovskih Srba u pratnji KPS-a od januara do početka maja. U šest prilika konvoji su kamenovani a policija je u vezi s tim izvršila pet hapšenja.

Bilo je novih podataka o slučajevima nekoliko osoba koje su pritvorene pod sumnjom da su organizovali ili predvodili martovske nerede 2004. Marta 2005. prekinuta je istraga protiv Saliha Salihua, predsedavajućeg udruženja ratnih veterana OVK iz Vučitrna usled nedostatka dokaza. Marta 2005. komandant KZK-a u rezervi Naser Šatri osuđen je za učestvovanje u masovnom nasilju na uslovnu kaznu od šest meseci zatvora. Aprila 2005. Nedžmi Lajci, predsedavajući udruženja ratnih veterana KLA iz Peći, osuđen je zbog nedozvoljenog posedovanja, kontrole i nošenja ili upotrebe oružja i izrečena mu je novčana kazna od 393 dolara (300 evra). Krajem godine istraga je bila u toku protiv Šaćira Šaćirija, predsedavajućeg udruženja ratnih veterana OVK-a iz Gnjilana.

U avgustu je KPS uhapsio pet kosovskih Albanaca iz opština Kosovo Polje i Obilić, pod optužbom da su organizovali i učestvovali u martovskim neredima 2004. Sud im je 25. avgusta odredio 30 dana pritvora a istraga je nastavljena. Petorica su takođe optužena za spaljivanje nekoliko zgrada za vreme nereda.

Dana 27. novembra, počelo je suđenje u predmetu Esmina Hamze i A.K. u vezi sa namernim paljevinama u Prizrenu za vreme martovskih nereda 2004. Dva kosovska albanska optuženika navodno su bili u nasilnoj grupi i optuženi su za podsticanje međuetničke mržnje i oštećenje imovine. Sudsko veće bilo je sastavljeno od dva međunarodna i jednog lokalnog sudije. Optuženi nisu bili u pritvoru a suđenje nije okončano do kraja godine.

Dana 14. decembra uhapšena je Zlihaje Avdulahu, takođe poznata kao „Kiki“ zbog krivičnih dela počinjenih u Kosovu Polju za vreme martovskih nereda 2004. Avdulahu je navodno bila u nasilnoj grupi kosovskih Albanaca koja je obila, opljačkala i zapalila domove kosovskih Srba i napala kosovske Srbe u Kosovu Polju. Dana 17. decembra, međunarodni sudija je predsedavao raspravom o pritvoru pred suđenje i optuženoj je određen pritvor do kraja godine.

Do oktobra je PISG obnovio više od 97 procenata (871 od 897) kuća oštećenih ili uništenih u martu 2004, dok je obnova crkava bila u toku (vidi odeljak 2.c.). Prema podacima Ministarstva kulture, od 26 još neobnovljenih kuća, 23 su ostale nezavršene zbog bezbednosnih razloga u severnom delu Mitrovice, a vlasnici preostale tri odbili su da im kuće budu obnovljene. Dana 11. maja, posle pritužbi na kvalitet obnove, vlada je ustanovila petočlanu komisiju za razmatranje žalbi ali do oktobra nije doneta nijedna odluka.

Tokom godine je bilo izveštaja o politički motivisanom nasilju nad nesrpskim manjinama. Dana 22. avgusta, mala grupa kosovskih Albanaca napala je bivšeg stanovnika, kosovskog Crnogorca, inače interno raseljeno lice, Vuka Danilovića pred nekoliko interno raseljene dece koju je pratio dok su se vraćali na Kosovo kako bi učestvovali u multietničkom letnjem kampu u manastiru Dečani. KPS je kasnije uhapsio mladog kosovskog Albanca ali je on pušten jer žrtva nije mogla da ga identifikuje. Istraga KPS-a krajem godine bila je u toku.

Dana 2. oktobra, kuća predstavnika Goranaca u beogradskom Koordinacionom centru za Kosovo i Metohiju teško je oštećena u eksploziji bombe. KPS je uhapsio jednu osobu a istraga je krajem godine bila u toku.

Romi žive u teškom siromaštvu a antiromsko raspoloženje obeležje je kosovskog društva. Na Kosovu su 1999. Albanci, smatrajući Rome srpskim saradnicima, spalili romsko naselje u južnom delu Mitrovice. Stoga, oko 8.000 stanovnika tog naselja i dalje živi u kampovima za raseljena lica u severnom delu Mitrovica. Tokom godine većina Roma, interno raseljenih lica koja su živela u olovom zagađenim kampovima preseljeni su u druge objekte i lečeni zbog trovanja olovom (vidi odeljak 2.d.).

Romi su bili predmet sveopšte društvene i ekonomske diskriminacije, često im osnovni higijenski uslovi, medicinska nega i obrazovanje nisu bili dostupni a za njihovo preživljavanje je od znatnog značaja humanitarna pomoć. Mada je bilo nekoliko uspešnih pokušaja da se Romi, Aškalije i Egipćani presele u kuće u kojima su živeli pre sukoba 1999. u Vučitrnu, bezbednosni problemi još postoje.

Bošnjački lideri se i dalje žale da su hiljade pripadnika njihove zajednice napustile Kosovo zbog diskriminacije i nemogućnosti privređivanja.

PISG i UNMIK preduzeli su neke korake tokom godine za poboljšanje uslova za etničke manjine. U septembru je Skupština Kosova usvojila zakon o jeziku, po kojem je srpski drugi zvanični jezik na Kosovu i koji određuje prag od 5 procenata da bi jezik etničke manjine postao zvaničan u opštini. Po zakonu je turski i dalje treći službeni jezik u Prizrenu bez obzira na procenat koji turska populacija predstavlja u opštini.

Druge društvene zloupotrebe i diskriminacija

Zakon zabranjuje diskriminaciju na osnovu seksualne orijentacije; međutim, tokom godine zakon nije primenjivan.

Zbog straha od tradicionalnih društvenih stavova prema homoseksualnosti, većina lezbijki i gej osoba kriju svoju seksualnu orijentaciju. Lezbijke i gej osobe se uopšte uzev osećaju nesigurno, a mnogi od njih su prijavili da im je lična sigurnost ugrožena. Prethodno su štampani mediji učvrstili ovakve stavove objavljivanjem, bez povlačenja, negativnih tekstova o homoseksualnosti koji su okarakterisali lezbijke i gej osobe kao mentalno obolele i sklone seksualnom zlostavljanju dece. Pojedini homoseksualci su takođe izvestili o diskriminaciji na radnom mestu. Najmanje jedna politička stranka, proislamska Stranka pravde, u svojoj političkoj platformi osuđuje homoseksualnost.

U decembru 2005. lokalni mediji su objavili da su pripadnici KPS-a i prisutni lekar verbalno maltretirali dva mlada gej muškarca nakon što ih je u blizini Prištine nepoznata osoba napala nožem. KPS je ubrzo suspendovao svoja dva pripadnika koji nisu primali platu dok su čekali na istragu, da bi kasnije bili blago opomenuti i vraćeni na posao. U januaru je policijski komesar Kaj Vitrup premestio protparola KPS-a Refki Morinu iz Kancelarije KPS-a za štampu nakon decembarskog incidenta i netačne izjave Morine da je homoseksualnost kažnjiva po krivičnom zakonu.

Dana 6. januara, nepoznata osoba napala je dva člana Centra za socijalnu emancipaciju, grupu koja zastupa gej zajednicu. Saznavši da su homoseksualci, KPS je žrtve navodno tretirao kao kriminalce i nije uhapsio počinioca. KPS je žrtve odveo u prištinsku univerzitetsku bolnicu gde ih je prisutni lekar navodno nazvao „bolesnim ljudima“.

Dana 25. marta, sedmorica muškaraca fizički su napali i verbalno zlostavljali tridesetogodišnjeg muškarca zato što je homoseksualac. Mada je incident prijavio KPS-u, koji ga je dalje prosledio Jedinici za teška krivična dela, žrtva je na kraju odlučila da povuče prijavu zbog pritiska porodice glavnog napadača. Tužilac Okružnog suda nastavio je postupak i sud je na kraju osudio dva počinioca na šest meseci zatvora.

Dana 28. marta u Prištini, nepoznata lica su teško pretukla dva muškarca kad su primetili da su se upustili u seksualni odnos. Jedan od muškaraca je kasnije u bolnici preminuo od zadobijenih povreda. Centar za socijalnu emancipaciju, lokalna nevladina organizacija koja promoviše prava lezbijki, gej osoba, biseksualaca i transrodnih osoba, kritikovala je policiju koja je prema predmetu imala odnos kao prema pljački, a ne zločinu iz mržnje. Krajem godine istraga je bila u toku.

Dana 26. septembra, Ferid Agani, psihijatar i poslanik Stranke pravde u Skupštini Kosova, napisao je tekst u lokalnim novinama u kojem o homoseksualnosti govori kao o „teškom psihijatrijskom oboljenju“ koje je protiv „ljudske prirode“. Dve lokalne organizacije za ljudska prava, Inicijativa mladih za ljudska prava i Centar za socijalnu emancipaciju, pozvali su Aganija i novine da objave javno izvinjenje; ni Agani ni časopis nisu se izvinili.

Odeljak 6 Prava radnika

a. Pravo na udruživanje

Propisi UNMIK-a dozvoljavaju radnicima da se po svom izboru učlanjuju i osnivaju sindikate bez prethodnog ovlašćenja ili preteranih zahteva, i radnici to pravo koriste u praksi.

Jedini značajan sindikat, Udruženje nezavisnih sindikata Kosova (BSPK) ima preko 120.000 članova; od toga je zaposleno samo 50.000 članova (otprilike 10 posto svih zaposlenih). Propisi UNMIK-a zabranjuju diskriminaciju sindikata; međutim, u praksi su neki sindikalni zvaničnici prijavili slučajeve diskriminacije. BSPK je izvestio da samo mali broj preduzeća poštuje propis o zabrani diskriminacije sindikata i tvrdio da se radnička prava krše u svim sektorima, uključujući međunarodne organizacije, gde zaposleni nemaju socijalno osiguranje ni penzije.

b. Pravo na organizovanje i kolektivno pregovaranje

Propisi UNMIK-a dozvoljavaju sindikatima da svoje aktivnosti sprovode neometano i UNMIK je ovo pravo štitio u praksi. Propisi UNMIK-a takođe predviđaju pravo na organizovanje i kolektivno pregovaranje bez ometanja, a vlada nije ograničavala ovo pravo u praksi; međutim, kolektivno pregovaranje se odigralo samo u jednoj prilici. Propisi UNMIK-a ne priznaju pravo na štrajk; međutim, štrajkovi u praksi nisu zabranjeni i bilo ih je tokom godine.

Ne postoje izvozne zone.

c. Zabrana prinudnog i obaveznog rada

Propisi UNMIK-a zabranjuju prinudni i obavezni rad, uključujući i rad dece; međutim, bilo je izveštaja da ima takvih aktivnosti (vidi odeljak 5 i 6.d).

d. Zabrana rada dece i donja starosna granica za zapošljavanje

Propisi i procedure UNMIK-a zabranjuju iskorištavanje dece na radnom mestu, u šta spada zabrana prinudnog i obaveznog rada; međutim, UNMIK i PISG su retko reagovali kada bi se ovakve aktivnosti ustanovile.

Po propisima UNMIK-a donja starosna granica za zapošljavanje jeste šesnaest godina, odnosno osamnaest kod poslova gde postoji verovatnoća da su štetni po zdravlje, sigurnost i moral mlade osobe, ali se rad dozvoljava deci koja imaju petnaest godina pod uslovom da nije štetan ili da ne ometa redovno pohađanje nastave.

U selima i poljoprivrednim sredinama, mlađa deca obično u poslu pomažu porodici. Gradska deca su često obavljala razne neprijavljene sitne poslove, kao što je pranje prozora na automobilima i prodaja novina, cigareta ili telefonskih kartica na ulici; broj takve dece povećao se tokom prošle godine iako o tome ni UNMIK ni PISG nemaju statističkih podataka. Prema Ministarstvu za rad i socijalnu pomoć, PISG i dalje nema plan za rešavanje ovog uobičajenog oblika nezvaničnog rada dece. Neka deca takođe obavljaju fizički posao kao što je prevoz robe. CDHRF je izvestio da su tokom godine primećena ozbiljna kršenja radnih propisa uključujući i rad dece.

Trgovina decom pre svega u cilju seksualnog iskorištavanja takođe je predstavljala ozbiljan problem (vidi odeljak 5).

U saradnji sa UNMIK-om, Ministarstvo za rad i socijalnu pomoć koordinisalo je politiku zaštite dece a odeljenje Ministarstva za socijalnu pomoć imalo je zadatak da obezbedi zaštitu dece; međutim, tokom godine, Ministarstvo je imalo više savetodavnu ulogu a nije sprovodilo zakon, a tokom godine je obavilo mali broj inspekcija.

e. Prihvatljivi uslovi za rad

Iako propisi UNMIK-a predviđaju minimalnu zaradu, ona još nije usvojena. Mada mnoge međunarodne agencije i nevladine organizacije isplaćaju odgovarajuće zarade, prosečna mesečna plata stalno zaposlenog radnika u javnom sektoru u iznosu od 198 dolara (151 evra) i prosečna mesečna plata u privatnom sektoru u iznosu od 272 dolara (208 evra) nedovoljne su da bi se obezbedio pristojan životni standard radnika i njegove porodice. Plate u javnom sektoru i dalje su zamrznute po nalog MMF-a i nisu povećavane od 2003. godine.

Propisi UNMIK-a predviđaju standardnu četrdesetočasovnu radnu nedelju, pauze za odmor, ograničavaju prekovremeni rad na dvanaest časovo dnevno, dvadeset časova nedeljno, odnosno četrdeset časova mesečno, propisuju plaćanje nadoknade za prekovremeni rad i zabranjuju prekomerni obavezan prekovremeni rad. Poslodavci često nisu primenjivali ove propise zbog male zaposlenosti i velike nezaposlenosti na Kosovu.

CDHRF je izvestio da su tokom godine primećena ozbiljna kršenja radnih propisa, uključujući i nedostatak standardne radne nedlje i obavezan i neplaćen prekovremeni rad; zaposleni nisu prijavljivali takve nepravilnosti iz straha od odmazde. Prema podacima CDHRF-a, mnogi radnici u privatnom sektoru radili su prekovremeno kao proizvoljno zaposleni bez ugovora o radu, redovne plate i plaćenih penzijskih doprinosa. Zaposleni su prijavljivali da su otpuštani bez razloga i protiv postojećih zakona kao i da su im uskraćivani praznici. CDHRF je izvestio da se seksualno zlostavljanje događalo na radnom mestu ali nije prijavljeno iz straha od gubitka posla i/ili fizičke osvete. Prema podacima CDHRF-a, zaposleni u javnom sektoru uglavnom su doživljavali slična iskustva.

Inspektorat rada Ministarstva za rad i socijalna pitanja odgovoran je za sprovođenje radnih standarda, i mada su četiri novčane kazne izrečene tokom godine zbog kršenja standarda, kazne nisu plaćene i parnica je u toku.

Inspektorat rada je odgovoran za sprovođenje zdravstvenih i sigurnosnih standarda ali nema obučeno osoblje tako da se ovo ne obavlja efikasno. Zakon ne dozvoljava zaposlenima da u slučaju opasnosti napuste radno mesto a da pri tome ne rizikuju da će biti otpušteni.

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*Izveštaj za Srbiju podeljen je na dva dela; prvi se bavi stanjem ljudskih prava u Srbiji a drugi situacijom na Kosovu. Za potrebe ovog izveštaja, stanovništvo Kosova, 2.2. miliona, nije predstavljeno kao deo stanovništva Srbije.

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