Office for Kosovo and Metohija
Government of the Republic of Serbia

Đurić reacts to the piece on Kosovo and Metohija published by The Independent

Director of the Office for Kosovo and Methoija, Marko Đurić sent a letter to the editor-in-chief of the British daily in response to their article titled "Kosovo: Harmony prevails in this corner of the Balkans".

Dear Sir,

I refer to your article "Kosovo: Harmony prevails in this corner of the Balkans""http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/kosovo-harmony-prevails-in-this-corner-of-the-balkans-10499766.html?origin=internalSearch published by the Independent on 14 September.

I will not enter into a political debate about the international and legal status of Kosovo and Metohija, the southern province of the Republic of Serbia. We are aware that we cannot agree on this point, either with you or indeed with your Government.

Promoting material, and this piece certainly qualifies into this category, tend to differ from reality, but your travelogue author Peter Duncan strayed so far away that I am compelled to bring your attention to a point of view which has been completely omitted from the article. To portray the so-called Republic of Kosovo (the Republic of Serbia calls its province "Kosovo and Metohija") as an oasis of harmony is in the least cynical, given that over 200,000 Serbs internally displaced from Kosovo and Metohija continue to be unable to return to their homes to date.

Serbs throughout Kosovo and Metohija today visit their property and the cemeteries where their loved ones are laid to rest escorted by police to avoid being lynched, assaults on returnees and their property are almost daily events and the medieval monasteries of the Serbian Orthodox Church (some of them are listed by UNESCO as world heritage sites) are safeguarded by the police and international forces (KFOR) to ensure they are protected from the destructive rage of the Albanian extremists. No seller of travel arrangements which your author seems to be, should be shut their eyes to these facts. That would be neither fair nor humane.

The only thing in the travelogue that I can agree with is that the natural beauties of our southern province of Kosovo and Metohija are pearls of the Balkans and Europe. Otherwise, the text is teeming with factual errors.

Serbia, nevertheless, joins in the call for tourists to come and witness firsthand the natural beauty of the Kosovo and Metohija, since that would benefit all the residents of the province (despite your author disregarding anybody else but the "Kosovans" or the Albanian population).

Very best regards,

Director of the Government of Serbia’s Office of the for Kosovo and Metohija

Marko Đurić